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Commonly used medications may produce cognitive impairment in seniors

Many drugs commonly prescribed to older adults for a variety of common medical conditions including allergies, hypertension, asthma, and cardiovascular disease appear to negatively affect the aging brain causing immediate but possibly reversible cognitive impairment, including delirium, in older adults according to a clinical review now available online in the Journal of Clinical Interventions in Aging, a peer reviewed, open access publication.

1 Jun 2009

Wilson disease and excess copper are focus of new NIDDK publication

Wilson disease, a rare but potentially serious condition that causes the buildup of too much copper in the body, is explained in a new fact sheet from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

1 Jun 2009

New pathology tests double sensitivity to detect bile duct and pancreatic cancers

Pancreatic cancer and bile duct cancer are difficult to diagnose and often fatal because they are discovered in the advanced stages of the disease. Researchers have developed new tests that double the ability to detect bile duct and pancreatic cancers, according to a Mayo Clinic study published in the June issue of Gastroenterology.

1 Jun 2009

Blood pressure drug reverses liver damage

British scientists have discovered that blood-pressure drugs can reverse the effects of early-stage liver failure in some patients.

1 Jun 2009

Research links intestinal inflammation with systemic chromosome damage

UCLA scientists have linked for the first time intestinal inflammation with systemic chromosome damage in mice, a finding that may lead to the early identification and treatment of human inflammatory disorders, some of which increase risk for several types of cancer.

1 Jun 2009

Glucose metabolism and recidivism of severe violent crimes in alcohol intoxications

It is commonly known that alcoholism and alcohol intoxications are connected with severe violent crimes such as homicides. For instance, in Finland even 80 per cent of these crimes happen in alcohol intoxications. It has not, however, been clear why only a minority of alcoholics in intoxications become irritated and impulsively aggressive or even commit severe violent crimes.

1 Jun 2009

MicroRNAs grease the cell's circadian clockwork

Most of our cells possess an internal clock, a group of genes displaying a cyclic expression pattern that reaches a peak once a day. A large number of circadian genes are expressed by organs such as the liver, whose activity needs to be precisely regulated over the course of the day.

31 May 2009

Blood-pressure medicine shown to reverse the effects of early-stage liver failure

Newcastle University researchers analysed a small clinical trial of losartan, a drug normally prescribed for hypertension, on 14 patients in Spain, who had Hepatitis C.

31 May 2009

Discovery of genetic cause for primary biliary cirrhosis

Researchers have discovered a novel molecular path that predisposes patients to develop primary biliary cirrhosis, a disease that mainly affects women and slowly destroys their livers. Primary biliary cirrhosis has no known cause.

27 May 2009

Novel chemotherapy and biological agents brings dramatic increase in metastatic colon cancer survival

Novel chemotherapy and biological agents for metastatic colorectal cancer, combined with surgical advances in liver resection, have resulted in a dramatic increase in survival for patients with advanced disease, according to researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

26 May 2009

Discovery of biological markers that may indicate poor breast cancer prognosis

A team of researchers has found an association between breast cancer survival and two proteins that, when present in the blood in high levels, are indicators of inflammation.

26 May 2009

FDA approves Samsca (tolvaptan) to treat hyponatremia

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Samsca tablets (tolvaptan) to treat hyponatremia, an abnormally low concentration of sodium in the blood.

22 May 2009

Tamed virus wipes out cancer safely

Cancer Research UK scientists have tamed a virus so that it attacks and destroys cancer cells but does not harm healthy cells, according to a paper published in PLoS Pathogens, today.

22 May 2009

Discovery of gene that controls sugar production, implications for diabetes

Scientists in Sydney and Boston believe they may have identified a gene that controls abnormal production of sugar in the liver, a very troublesome problem for people with diabetes.

22 May 2009

Methylene blue in combo with new malaria drugs curbs the spread of malaria parasites

New combinations of agents based on the oldest synthetic malaria drug, the methylene blue stain, can curb the spread of malaria parasites and make a significant contribution to the long-term eradication called for by the international "Roll Back Malaria Initiative."

20 May 2009

Curcumin suppresses fat tissue growth in rodent models

Curcumin, the major polyphenol found in turmeric, appears to reduce weight gain in mice and suppress the growth of fat tissue in mice and cell models.

18 May 2009

Amino acid glutamine show promise in treating stomach ulcers

Nearly 20 years ago, it was discovered that bacteria known as Helicobacter pylori were responsible for stomach ulcers. Since then, antibiotics have become the primary therapy used to combat the H. pylori infection, which affects approximately six percent of the world population and is also a primary cause of stomach cancer. But today the bacteria is growing increasingly resistant to antibiotics.

17 May 2009

Old diabetes drug Metformin teaches experts new tricks

Research from the Johns Hopkins Children's Center reveals that the drug most commonly used in type 2 diabetics who don't need insulin works on a much more basic level than once thought, treating persistently elevated blood sugar - the hallmark of type 2 diabetes - by regulating the genes that control its production.

15 May 2009

Research looks at advanced radiation therapy technique for pancreatic cancer

According to the American Cancer Society, pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cancer killer in the country, with more than 42,000 new cases expected to be diagnosed this year and more than 35,000 deaths. In New Jersey alone, 1,000 deaths are estimated from the disease, which only has a five-year, five-percent survival rate.

12 May 2009

Pioneering technique for treatment of liver tumours

Leicester consultant surgeon who has developed a pioneering technique using microwaves to destroy liver tumours has treated more than 100 patients in the UK and other patients are now being treated internationally.

12 May 2009