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Cartilage repair gel gives injuries a sporting chance

A cartilage gel being developed by tissue engineers and biochemists at the University of Sydney could bring increased mobility to people living with debilitating sports injuries.

5 Mar 2012

Concert commences dosing in CTP-499 Phase 2 clinical trial for diabetic nephropathy

Concert Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced the initiation of dosing in a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating CTP-499, an investigational drug for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy, the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the US.

5 Mar 2012

Polymer-based medical implants can produce harmful free radicals

A polymer is a mesh of chains, which slowly break over time due to the pressure from ordinary wear and tear. When a polymer is squeezed, the pressure breaks chemical bonds and produces free radicals: ions with unpaired electrons, full of untapped energy. These molecules are responsible for aging, DNA damage and cancer in the human body.

3 Mar 2012

Sleep improves with age dispelling age old myth

A new study dispels the age old belief that sleep doesn’t get more difficult with age. The study shows that sleep quality tends to improve the older people got, with adults in their 80s getting better sleep than any other age group surveyed. The new study was published in the journal Sleep.

2 Mar 2012

Unpaid caregivers provided an estimated $202 billion in dementia care in 2010

NPR reports unpaid caregiver costs for those with dementia was an estimated $202 billion in 2010 alone. In other news, the income of Massachusetts' elderly covers only 60 percent of living expenses, and at the Mayo Clinic, researchers are trying to learn more about the effects of old age.

2 Mar 2012

Study offers hope for novel approach to prevent AD

As scientists struggle to find an effective way to prevent Alzheimer's disease, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison may have found a new approach to interrupting the process that leads to the devastating disease.

2 Mar 2012

Mayo researchers gain insights into function of histone chaperones

Mayo Clinic researchers have gained insights into the function of a member of a family of specialized proteins called histone chaperones. Using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography, they have determined the 3-D structure and interactions of the histone chaperone Rtt106 down to the atomic details.

1 Mar 2012

Flat worms may hold key to immortality

Experts from Nottingham University created a colony of more than 20,000 flatworms from one original by chopping it into pieces and observing each section grow into a new complete worm. They believe that it could help scientists develop new methods to allow humans to stay younger for longer.

1 Mar 2012

FoxO protein plays a significant role in regulation of skeletal muscle mass

If you want big muscles without working out, there's hope. In the March 2012 print issue of the FASEB Journal, scientists from the University of Florida report that a family of protein transcription factors, called "Forkhead (Fox0)" plays a significant role in the regulation of skeletal muscle mass.

1 Mar 2012

Political Studies professor wants to see more research into remarkable examples of health

Political Studies professor Colin Farrelly wants to see more research into remarkable examples of health - such as why some people live 100 years disease-free.

1 Mar 2012

Aging does not appear to be a factor in poor sleep

Aging does not appear to be a factor in poor sleep, a new survey of more than 150,000 Americans shows. In fact, subjective sleep quality seems to improve over a lifetime, with the fewest complaints coming from people in their 80s.

1 Mar 2012

WPI establishes Healthcare Delivery Institute

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has established the Healthcare Delivery Institute, (HDI), bringing together top faculty and students in engineering, science, and business with the aim to solve one of the nation's toughest problems-delivering high-quality healthcare for a growing, aging population.

1 Mar 2012

Exposure to deceptive advertising activates specific brain regions

Several specific regions of our brains are activated in a two-part process when we are exposed to deceptive advertising, according to new research conducted by a North Carolina State University professor. The work opens the door to further research that could help us understand how brain injury and aging may affect our susceptibility to fraud or misleading marketing.

29 Feb 2012

KCC's geriatric oncology symposium to take place on March 9

Approaches to treating elderly cancer patients are evolving as more of the population ages and the need for specialized care becomes more evident. To address these issues and others, national thought leaders in geriatric oncology will gather at a unique symposium at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson (KCC) in Philadelphia on Friday, March 9, 2012, where they will present an overview of the latest advances in the understanding and treatment of cancer in older adults in an effort to impact patient care.

29 Feb 2012

Obesity can decrease risk of mortality in people over 85 years of age

Obesity is considered the leading preventable cause of death worldwide - until you reach old age, that is. Though obesity increases the risk of an early death, shaving an average of six to seven years off a person's lifespan, Tel Aviv University researchers have found that this trend may reverse itself after the age of 85. In these people, excess fat seems to have a "protective" effect, decreasing the risk of death when compared to those who are considered at a normal body weight.

29 Feb 2012

Low levels of omega-3 in blood ‘ups’ risk of dementia and brain aging: Study

Researchers looked at 1,575 adults who averaged 67 years old and had no signs of dementia and had not had a stroke. They were given MRI brain scans and a battery of tests to measure memory and thinking abilities; they also had blood drawn to check the level of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) or omega-3 fatty acids in their red blood cells. Those with the lowest levels of omega-3s showed signs of accelerated aging. They had lower brain volume, indicating shrinkage comparable to two additional years of aging. Compared with those with the highest blood levels of omega-3s, they scored lower on cognitive tests measuring such things as memory, problem solving, abstract thinking and multi-tasking.

28 Feb 2012

Dompé enters definitive agreement to acquire Anabasis

Dompé, one of Italy's leading biopharmaceutical companies, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of Anabasis Srl, a privately held Italian research and development biopharmaceutical company, focused on ocular diseases.

28 Feb 2012

Scientists demonstrate how immortal flatworm overcomes aging process

Researchers from The University of Nottingham have demonstrated how a species of flatworm overcomes the ageing process to be potentially immortal.

28 Feb 2012

Ambient assisted-living technology supports active ageing

'When I am less worried, I do not think about the fact that I'm alone': the words of an older Swedish person who participated in a recent trial of European technology that supports active ageing. Loneliness from being disconnected from friends and family, fears about health and safety and worries about security are some of the many burdens of old age. EU-funded researchers are proving how technology can alleviate the problems.

28 Feb 2012

Older women with recurrent pain more likely to develop depression, obesity

Women age 50 and older who experience worsening pain with aging also have a higher risk for depression, obesity and declining physical function, according to research reported in The Journal of Pain, the peer-review publication of the American Pain Society.

28 Feb 2012