Hormone News and Research

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A hormone is a chemical released by one or more cells that affects cells in other parts of the organism. Only a small amount of hormone is required to alter cell metabolism. It is essentially a chemical messenger that transports a signal from one cell to another.

Breast cancer patients still have risk of relapse after 5 years of systemic therapy

Breast cancer survivors continue to have a substantial risk of disease recurrence after five years of systemic therapy, according to a study published in the August 12 online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

12 Aug 2008

California under pressure to ban bisphenol A in baby bottles

Growing anxiety by consumers over over the possible side-effects of a chemical commonly used in plastic baby bottles and baby formula cans has prompted California lawmakers to consider whether the use of the chemical should be banned.

12 Aug 2008

Low vitamin D levels substantially increase risk of death

Researchers at Johns Hopkins are reporting what is believed to be the most conclusive evidence to date that inadequate levels of vitamin D, obtained from milk, fortified cereals and exposure to sunlight, lead to substantially increased risk of death.

11 Aug 2008

Bristol University receives new funds for research into stress and the brain

Over £500,000 has been awarded to Bristol University academics to fund research into how stress hormones act in the brain.

11 Aug 2008

Commonly used fertility drug useless

British scientists say that using the drug Clomid for the treatment of unexplained infertility is no more effective than no treatment at all.

11 Aug 2008

New treatment in the pipeline for leukaemia and rheumatoid arthritis

Australian scientists believe they are well on the way to developing a new treatment for leukaemia and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and asthma.

10 Aug 2008

Testosterone and disease transmission

High levels of testosterone may be a key factor in spreading disease among mice, according to biologists. The findings could help explain why males in a population are often more likely to get infected, and transmit disease.

10 Aug 2008

Research finds a role for the GABA neurotransmitter in maintaining energy balance

Controlling body weight is a complicated process, as any frustrated dieter might attest. But as scientists continue to investigate the brain's intricate neurocircuitry and its role in maintaining energy balance, they are forming a clearer picture of the myriad events that lead to weight gain and weight loss.

10 Aug 2008

New therapeutic platform technology tackles major diseases

A spin out company from basic structural biology, Asterion Ltd., has led to new technology that provides a way of creating therapeutic proteins to tackle major diseases such as cancer, diabetes and infertility.

8 Aug 2008

Gene doping in sport

Professor John Rasko, head of the Gene and Stem Cell Therapy Program at the Centenary Institute, University of Sydney, talks about gene doping and other methods of performance enhancement on the eve of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

8 Aug 2008

Genetic biomarker linked to subcutaneous growth hormone dose-response

The interindividual variability of response to subcutaneously applied protein-based drugs remains poorly understood. However, defining genetic markers that can be associated with biological effects of such drugs may improve the understanding of individual variability of response and even drug resistance.

6 Aug 2008

Oestrogen - a beneficial addition to treatment of schizophrenia in women

Australian scientists have found that women suffering from schizophrenia were less likely to suffer hallucinations or delusions, when the hormone oestrogen was added to their treatment.

4 Aug 2008

Testosterone and body fat are controlled by the same genes

Genes that control percentage of body fat are also responsible for circulating levels of testosterone in men, research published in the latest edition of Clinical Endocrinology shows. The research shows a 23% overlap between the genes that control testosterone and those that regulate body fat composition, suggesting that these two variables are partly controlled by the same set of genes.

4 Aug 2008

Chronic exposure to estrogen impairs some cognitive functions

University of Illinois researchers report this week that chronic exposure to estradiol, the main estrogen in the body, diminishes some cognitive functions. Rats exposed to a steady dose of estradiol were impaired on tasks involving working memory and response inhibition, the researchers found.

3 Aug 2008

Desmopressin for bed-wetting linked to convulsions in children

Australian authorities have issued a warning regarding a drug sometimes used to treat primary nocturnal enuresis (bed-wetting) in children.

3 Aug 2008

Growth hormone reduces abdominal fat, cardiovascular risk in HIV patients on antiviral therapy

Low-dose growth hormone treatment reduced abdominal fat deposits and improved blood pressure and triglyceride levels in a group of patients with HIV lipodystrophy, a condition involving the redistribution of fat and other metabolic changes in patients receiving combination drug therapy for HIV infection.

3 Aug 2008

study shows compounds from soy affect brain and reproductive development

Two hormone-like compounds linked to the consumption of soy-based foods can cause irreversible changes in the structure of the brain, resulting in early-onset puberty and symptoms of advanced menopause in research animals, according to a new study by researchers at North Carolina State University. The study is a breakthrough in determining how these compounds can cause reproductive health problems, as well as in providing a key building block for how to treat these problems.

31 Jul 2008

Mechanism for postpartum depression found in the brains of mice

Researchers have pinpointed a mechanism in the brains of mice that could explain why some human mothers become depressed following childbirth. The discovery could lead to improved treatment for postpartum depression.

31 Jul 2008

Excess fat around the heart may be worse than high BMI for heart attacks

When it comes to risk for a heart attack, having excess fat around the heart may be worse than having a high body mass index or a thick waist, according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues reporting in the August issue of the journal Obesity.

31 Jul 2008

New way to treat advanced prostate cancer, potentially more effective, fewer side effects

Researchers at the University of Adelaide have developed a novel approach to treating advanced prostate cancer that could be more effective with fewer side effects.

29 Jul 2008