Aging News and Research

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Drugs that target retromer pathway could help prevent or treat Parkinson's

Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have identified a protein trafficking defect within brain cells that may underlie common non-familial forms of Parkinson's disease.

9 Feb 2013

Older adults with COPD more frequently use benzodiazepines

A popular class of drugs commonly used to treat sleep and mood symptoms continues to be frequently prescribed despite being known to have potentially life-threatening side effects.

9 Feb 2013

Academic medical centers play an integral role in developing new treatments and cures

As an internationally recognized researcher into aging and dementia, Suzanne Craft is keenly aware of the importance of volunteers in clinical studies.

9 Feb 2013

Alzheimer's appears to be on the rise

The number of people with Alzheimer's disease is expected to triple in the next 40 years, according to a new study by researchers from Rush University Medical Center published in the February 6, 2013, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

9 Feb 2013

Self-reported feelings of well-being tend to increase with age

Psychological well-being has been linked to many important life outcomes, including career success, relationship satisfaction, and even health. But it's not clear how feelings of well-being change as we age, as different studies have provided evidence for various trends over time.

9 Feb 2013

Studies to identify molecular causes and preventive and therapeutic strategies for Parkinson's

On the fourth floor of Wichita State University's McKinley Hall, biochemistry professor Kandatege Wimalasena and his group of doctoral and undergraduate students are hard at work researching Parkinson's disease (PD) - the second-most common neurodegenerative disease, affecting 1 to 2 percent of people older than 60.

7 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: Iowa 'botched' high risk pool; Clinton praises Family and Medical Leave Act; HHS contraceptive policy's 'sensible balance'

The health reform law will get millions of Americans coverage in 2014. Until then, Congress offered Iowa up to $35 million to provide temporary insurance for people whose health prevent them from buying coverage on their own. Iowa botched the entire concept behind the high-risk pool, and state and federal officials stood by and failed to take corrective action.

7 Feb 2013

Key details of how TRF2 protein performs crucial chromosome-protecting function

We take it for granted that our chromosomes won't stick together, yet this kind of cellular disaster would happen constantly were it not for a protein called TRF2. Now, scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered key details of how TRF2 performs this crucial chromosome-protecting function.

7 Feb 2013

Hospital house calls: A way to cut costs and improve quality?

Meanwhile, a group of experts convened by the National Quality Forum has released its second annual round of recommendations on quality measures to be used in federal health programs.

6 Feb 2013

Donor liver quality: an interview with Dr Eric Orman

Liver transplantation is a surgical procedure in which a liver (or part of a liver) is removed from a donor and placed into a recipient. Although some transplants use a portion of the liver of living donors, the vast majority of donors are deceased.

6 Feb 2013

UCSD receives $3.4M NIMH grant to study successful aging in HIV-infected adults

The National Institute of Mental Health has awarded a $3.4 million grant to a team of researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine to study successful aging in HIV-infected adults. HIV is a serious, chronic, medical disease that affects the lives of more than one million Americans.

5 Feb 2013

Nitric oxide shuts down brain's repair mechanisms

Nitric oxide, a gaseous molecule produced in the brain, can damage neurons. When the brain produces too much nitric oxide, it contributes to the severity and progression of stroke and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. Researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute recently discovered that nitric oxide not only damages neurons, it also shuts down the brain's repair mechanisms.

5 Feb 2013

Perceived work-related stress in midlife predicts functional limitations and disability later in old age

Nearly 30% of adult workers suffer from work-related stress, and it is commonly acknowledged that stress has damaging effects on individual's health. Recently published prospective cohort study by Dr. Jenni Kulmala and co-workers from the Gerontology Research Center (GEREC) at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, provides strong evidence that perceived work-related stress in midlife predicts functional limitations and disability later in old age.

4 Feb 2013

Delayed hematuria common after prostate brachytherapy

A significant proportion of patients with prostate cancer who are treated with brachytherapy develop gross hematuria years later, report researchers.

4 Feb 2013

Cells lose ability to defend against transposons as they age

Even in our DNA there is no refuge from rogues that prey on the elderly. Parasitic strands of genetic material called transposable elements - transposons - lurk in our chromosomes, poised to wreak genomic havoc. Cells have evolved ways to defend themselves, but in a new study, Brown University researchers describe how cells lose this ability as they age, possibly resulting in a decline in their function and health.

4 Feb 2013

VMAT use to deliver prostate intensity-modulated radiation therapy reduces treatment time

According to a study in the January issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology, the use of volume-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) to deliver intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) to prostate cancer patients results in an overall reduction in treatment time of approximately 14 percent. The study was performed at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University in Atlanta.

3 Feb 2013

High intensity interval training more suitable to achieve sustainable changes in exercise behaviour

With many of us struggling to get enough exercise, sport and exercise scientists at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and the University of Birmingham, under the lead of Professor Anton Wagenmakers, have been working on a time-saving solution.

3 Feb 2013

New survey outlines funding deficiency in brain and eye disease research

BrightFocus Foundation, a nonprofit organization that funds research worldwide to save sight and mind, today released the results of a survey of more than 170 leading biomedical scientists that explores the most significant barriers to progress in ending brain and eye diseases.

2 Feb 2013

Research roundup: Concerns about ambulance diversions; The health law's impact on nursing homes; Mental health parity

Hospitals across the United States routinely turn away ambulances to relieve overcrowding, but the practice remains controversial. Researchers in this study aimed to identify the impact of Massachusetts' 2009 ambulance diversion ban.

2 Feb 2013

Dairy intake may increase risk of bone mineral density in the hip

A study by researchers at the Institute for Aging Research (IFAR) at Hebrew SeniorLife, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School (HMS), has found that dairy intake -specifically milk and yogurt -is associated with higher bone mineral density (BMD) in the hip, but not the spine.

1 Feb 2013