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New study provides stark statistics about care availability for dementia patients

A new study provides stark statistics about a reality that 6 million Americans with dementia and their families live every day: one where people with dementia receive hundreds of hours a month in unpaid care from spouses, adult children and other relatives, and where some rely on paid help including nursing home care.

9 Sep 2021

Stanford researchers engineer an efficient, multi-purpose, mini CRISPR system

The common analogy for CRISPR gene editing is that it works like molecular scissors, cutting out select sections of DNA. Stanley Qi, assistant professor of bioengineering at Stanford University, likes that analogy, but he thinks it's time to reimagine CRISPR as a Swiss Army knife.

4 Sep 2021

New machine learning techniques help resolve structural biology challenges

Determining the 3D shapes of biological molecules is one of the hardest problems in modern biology and medical discovery. Companies and research institutions often spend millions of dollars to determine a molecular structure – and even such massive efforts are frequently unsuccessful.

27 Aug 2021

Genetic background linked to elevated risk of omega-3 deficiency in Hispanic Americans

Hispanic people with a high percentage of American Indigenous ancestry are at increased risk of a nutritional deficiency that could affect their heart health and contribute to harmful inflammation, new research suggests.

26 Aug 2021

Researchers identify numerous genetic regions that may affect individuals' food intake

A team of researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston University School of Public Health, and other institutions have identified more than two dozen genetic regions that may affect individuals' food intake.

25 Aug 2021

Age and sex affect the outcomes of time-restricted eating

Time-restricted eating (TRE), a dietary regimen that restricts eating to specific hours, has garnered increased attention in weight-loss circles.

17 Aug 2021

Study reveals novel mechanism underlying infantile spasms-associated learning deficits

Researchers report that infantile spasms, a rare but serious seizure disorder in babies, appear to be the result of a molecular pathway gone awry.

3 Aug 2021

Brain cells snap DNA strands in numerous locations to make memories

The urgency to remember a dangerous experience requires the brain to make a series of potentially dangerous moves: Neurons and other brain cells snap open their DNA in numerous locations--more than previously realized, according to a new study--to provide quick access to genetic instructions for the mechanisms of memory storage.

6 Jul 2021

Many US adults report an unmet need for mental health counseling during the pandemic

A new national study published in Psychiatric Services finds that over a quarter of US adults with depression or anxiety symptoms reported needing mental health counseling but were not able to access it during the COVID-19 pandemic.

6 Jul 2021

Research associates prior encounter with seasonal coronavirus to milder COVID-19 symptoms

A study by Stanford University School of Medicine investigators hints that people with COVID-19 may experience milder symptoms if certain cells of their immune systems "remember" previous encounters with seasonal coronaviruses -- the ones that cause about a quarter of the common colds kids get.

2 Jul 2021

Over-the-counter antacids may improve glucose levels in people with diabetes

Antacids improved blood sugar control in people with diabetes but had no effect on reducing the risk of diabetes in the general population, according to a new meta-analysis published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

25 Jun 2021

Researchers unravel new mechanism that enables cancer development

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center have uncovered a new mechanism that activates specific genes, leading to the development of cancers.

23 Jun 2021

Molecular study reveals signs of inflammation in brains of people who died of COVID-19

The most comprehensive molecular study to date of the brains of people who died of COVID-19 turned up unmistakable signs of inflammation and impaired brain circuits.

22 Jun 2021

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The ACA lives

For the third time in nine years, the Affordable Care Act has survived a constitutional challenge at the Supreme Court. In a 7-2 decision, the court ruled that the states and individuals who filed the latest challenge lacked standing to sue.

18 Jun 2021

Scientists capture real-time electrical activity of a beating heart using graphene 'camera'

Bay Area scientists have captured the real-time electrical activity of a beating heart, using a sheet of graphene to record an optical image -- almost like a video camera -- of the faint electric fields generated by the rhythmic firing of the heart's muscle cells.

16 Jun 2021

Patients hospitalized with active cancer are more likely to die from COVID-19

New research indicates that patients hospitalized with active cancer were more likely to die from COVID-19 than those with a history of cancer or those without any cancer diagnosis.

7 Jun 2021

Adults with obsessive compulsive disorder face higher risk of ischemic stroke

Adults who have obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) were more than three times as likely to have an ischemic stroke later in life compared to adults who do not have OCD, according to new research published today in Stroke, a journal of the American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart Association.

27 May 2021

Popular television shows can bolster teenagers' mental health

Popular television shows and movies can bolster teenagers' mental health and help them cope with bullying, sexual assault, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse and depression when these issues are depicted with empathy and appropriate resources are provided, a report published by UCLA's Center for Scholars and Storytellers shows.

26 May 2021

Cancer patients experiencing a deep sense of loneliness and depression during the pandemic

Loneliness and social isolation have been significant problems for the general population during the COVID-19 pandemic, but for cancer patients these issues were particularly acute, likely due to isolation and social distancing, according to a new UCSF study.

6 May 2021

Many cancer patients are experiencing loneliness and social isolation during COVID-19 pandemic

Loneliness and social isolation, which can have negative effects on health and longevity, are being exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. More than half of surveyed adults with cancer have been experiencing loneliness in recent months, according to a study published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.