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Blood pressure medication associated with increased risk of diverticulosis

A type of blood pressure lowering medication, called a calcium-channel blocker, may be linked with an increased risk of a type of bowel condition called diverticulosis.

3 Jul 2019

Low-cost OCT scanner promises to bring vision-saving technology to underserved regions

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have developed a low-cost, portable optical coherence tomography scanner that promises to bring the vision-saving technology to underserved regions throughout the United States and abroad.

29 Jun 2019

Eccentric exercises could help fatigued dancers prevent injury, improve jump performance

Exercises that lengthen leg muscles may help dancers counteract fatigue, preventing injury and allowing for a more perfected jump technique, suggests research being presented at the National Athletic Trainers' Association 70th Clinical Symposia & AT Expo.

26 Jun 2019

Inhaling irritant that mimics air pollution changes defensive heart-lung reflex for hypertension

Air pollution significantly increases the risk for premature deaths, particularly in people with underlying cardiovascular disease, clinical and epidemiological studies have determined.

19 Jun 2019

Physical exercise can reduce liver fat, improve blood sugar control in obese individuals

Research conducted at the University of Campinas in São Paulo State, Brazil, shows that vigorous physical exercise such as strength and weight training can reduce accumulated liver fat and improve blood sugar control in obese and diabetic individuals in a short time span, even before significant weight loss occurs.

13 Jun 2019

Chemical changes in the brain may be associated with unexplained motor symptoms

A new study finds that people who have movement problems, symptoms that cannot be explained by an underlying disease, may have chemical changes in specific areas of the brain.

6 Jun 2019

Study confirms gut-brain link in autism

People with autism often suffer from gut problems, but nobody has known why. Researchers have now discovered the same gene mutations – found both in the brain and the gut – could be the cause.

31 May 2019

Study reveals how genetic message to produce healthy heart tissue is altered during stress, aging

Researchers at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion have revealed how a genetic message to produce healthy heart tissue is altered in the body during stress and aging to contribute to sudden cardiac death.

29 May 2019

Researchers map full-body muscular activity of Hydra during movement

Accomplishing perhaps a world first, researchers at Columbia University and the Marine Biological Laboratory have mapped the full-body muscular activity of an animal while it was moving and behaving.

25 May 2019

Researchers examine how coffee helps bowel movement

Coffee drinkers know that coffee helps keep the bowels moving, but researchers in Texas are trying to find out exactly why this is true, and it doesn't seem to be about the caffeine, according to a study presented at Digestive Disease Week® 2019.

20 May 2019

Immune responses that prevent fungal infections may eliminate Trichinella spiralis

Scientists from Lancaster University in the UK have discovered that immune responses originally found to prevent fungal infections are also important in eliminating Trichinella spiralis, a round worm and the causative agent of Trichinosis.

18 Apr 2019

Using slime mold to produce accessible biosensors

An EU-funded project is using slime mold to produce accessible sensing devices with a wide range of applications, including environmental monitoring and health - helping European industry become more competitive in the growing biosensor device market.

15 Apr 2019

Research shows how prenatal anesthesia in rats affects neuronal migration

While there has long been discussion whether exposure to anesthesia affects brain development, new Rush University Medical Center research published in the journal Cerebral Cortex describes how prenatal anesthesia in rats seems to disrupt the "precisely choreographed" and timed migration of neurons to the area of the developing brain where thinking, memory and language occur.

12 Apr 2019

Rare gut condition is more predictable from individual's genetic makeup, study finds

Hirschsprung disease - a rare condition where the failure of gut nerves to develop before birth leads to impaired bowel contractions that prevent infants from passing stool - is more predictable from an individual's genetic makeup than previously envisioned.

11 Apr 2019

Scientists grow most sophisticated brain organoid to date

Researchers at Cambridge Biomedical Campus have grown the most sophisticated brain organoid to date, providing new opportunities for scientists to understand human brain development and neurological disorders.

20 Mar 2019

Nicotine could affect human embryonic development at the single-cell level

Nicotine induces widespread adverse effects on human embryonic development at the level of individual cells, researchers report February 28th in the journal Stem Cell Reports.

4 Mar 2019

U.S.-funded initiative associated with reductions in maternal and newborn mortality in Indonesia

A U.S.-funded initiative to improve quality of care and referrals during pregnancy and childbirth in Indonesia resulted in significant reductions in maternal and newborn mortality at participating hospitals, according to a new study led by scientists at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

28 Feb 2019

Successful testing of multi-organ "human-on-a-chip" could replace animals as test subjects

The replacement of animals as test subjects is one step closer to reality with the successful testing of multi-organ "human-on-a-chip" models to recapitulate the 28-day experiments typically used in animals to evaluate the systemic toxicity of drug and cosmetic compounds.

22 Feb 2019

Children with cerebral palsy to benefit from 'artificial muscles'

A team of researchers from the University of Delaware has received nearly $200,000 in start-up funding to develop a motorized ankle foot device for children with cerebral palsy that includes a novel artificial muscle.

7 Feb 2019

Zebrafish offers clue to alleviate gastrointestinal distress related to autism

University of Miami researchers have discovered a clue in the humble zebrafish's digestive tract that, one day, could help people on the autism spectrum alleviate one of the most common yet least studied symptoms of their disorder: gastrointestinal distress.