Digestion News and Research

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Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breaking down of food into smaller components, to a form that can be absorbed, for instance, into a blood stream. Digestion is a form of catabolism; a break-down of macro food molecules to smaller ones.

Children from low income environments experience higher risk of neurological impairment

Children from low income environments appear to have a higher risk of neurological impairment than those from more economically secure circumstances, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions. This neurological impairment appears to be distinct from the risk of cognitive and emotional delays known to accompany early-life poverty.

16 Dec 2015

Discovery may provide reliable 'clock' for forensic scientists

Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and University of Colorado Boulder have discovered that unique and changing microbial communities present during decomposition of human cadavers may provide a reliable "clock" for forensic scientists. The method could be used to estimate time of death in different seasons, as well determine the original location of moved corpses and help locate buried corpses.

11 Dec 2015

Combination of antiviral medications can eradicate HCV infection in patients with advanced liver disease

A large multi-center clinical trial has found that a combination of antiviral medications can eradicate hepatitis C infection in more than 90 percent of patients with advanced liver disease. Known as the ASTRAL-4 trial, the study was co-led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Intermountain Medical Center and published online Nov. 17 in The New England Journal of Medicine.

1 Dec 2015

Bile pigment may provide natural protection from heart attacks

New hope in the fight against cardiovascular disease has arrived, following breakthrough research identifying a pigment in our bile which could protect us.

26 Nov 2015

EndoGastric Solutions announces assignment of relative value units for new CPT code covering TIF procedure

EndoGastric Solutions® (EGS), a leader in incisionless procedural therapy for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), today announced the Federal Register has posted coding and payment information specific to the new Current Procedural Terminology (CPT)® code covering the Transoral Incisionless Fundoplication (TIF®) procedure.

4 Nov 2015

SLU VTEU awarded $5.8 million NIH contract to support 'omics' research initiative

Saint Louis University's Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Unit has received a five-year, $5.8 million contract from the National Institutes of Health to support an "omics" research initiative to study the safety and effectiveness of vaccines and other ways to fight infectious diseases.

30 Oct 2015

New research shows that autophagy can operate in cell nucleus to guard against start of cancer

Autophagy, literally self-eating or the degradation of unwanted cellular bits and pieces by the cell itself, has been shown for the first time to also work in the cell nucleus. In addition, in this setting it plays a role in guarding against the start of cancer, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

29 Oct 2015

Heart disease becomes the major killer of women in Norway

More research is carried out on breast cancer than on women's heart attack. Even though heart attack kills more women.

26 Oct 2015

Improved results yielded from new ChIP-seq protocol

Chromatrap®, a business unit of Porvair Sciences, has developed a new protocol that further extends the many advantages of its popular Chromatin Immunoprecipitation Sequencing (ChIP-seq) assay kits.

From Chromatrap® - Porvair Sciences Ltd 23 Oct 2015

Study links antibiotic use during childhood to weight gain

Children who take antibiotics during the course of their childhood gain weight more quickly than those who do not, according to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity.

22 Oct 2015

Research finding could lead to new treatments for celiac disease

A team of researchers has discovered that bacteria found in the gut may contribute to the body's response to gluten, an important finding that could lead to new treatments for celiac disease.

9 Oct 2015

NYIT's Aydin Farajidavar receives NIH grant to develop implantable wireless device for measuring gastric activity

New York Institute of Technology Assistant Professor Aydin Farajidavar has received a $457,000 National Institutes of Health grant to develop an implantable wireless system to study the body's gastric and digestive systems.

8 Oct 2015

Presence of blood eosinophilia during NEC predicts life-threatening complications for preemies

Premature infants have heightened risks of deadly diseases because their organs and immune systems are not fully developed. Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a major gastrointestinal disease that causes the intestines to die, is a leading cause of death among these infants and is the most the common disease for babies born before 32 weeks.

1 Oct 2015

Study raises hope for reducing life-threatening respiratory problems in infants

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have a lead on reducing life-threatening respiratory problems in infants born to women who develop the liver disorder intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP).

30 Sep 2015

Study shows reduced heart rate variability may be contributing risk factor for PTSD

A prospective longitudinal study of U.S. Marines suggests that reduced heart rate variability - the changing time interval between heartbeats - may be a contributing risk factor for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

11 Sep 2015

Treating cancer cells with quizartinib inhibits key metabolic pathway, activates macroautophagy

A study published in The Journal of Cell Biology describes a way to force cancer cells to destroy a key metabolic enzyme they need to survive.

1 Sep 2015

MACC1 gene can help predict better treatment options for patients with Klatskin carcinoma

Bile duct cancer is rare and is usually detected too late. Often only extensive liver surgery can help or, in rare cases, liver transplantation. But which patients will benefit from surgery and which will not, because their risk of cancer recurrence is too high? With the oncogene MACC1 as a biomarker, physicians for the first time have a tool to decide which treatment option is best for patients with Klatskin carcinoma, one type of bile duct cancer.

1 Sep 2015

BRCA gene mutations and ovarian cancer: an interview with Dr Matulonis, Harvard Medical School

The BRCA gene encodes for the BRCA proteins, BRCA1 and BRCA2. These proteins are very important in repairing DNA, which they do by correcting double-stranded breaks.

2 Aug 2015

Researchers demonstrate direct connection between NOX proteins and liver fibrosis

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have demonstrated a direct connection between two signaling proteins and liver fibrosis, a scarring process underlying chronic liver disease, the 12th leading cause of death in the United States.

30 Jul 2015

Researchers use silk fibers to grow stem cells into salivary gland cells

The silkworm, which produces the essential ingredient for fine silk fabric, also plays a critical role in a new process designed to provide relief for millions of individuals with dry mouth, a devastating oral and systemic health issue.

28 Jul 2015