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Researchers explore effects of hypoglycemia on cardiovascular autonomic control

Past studies have shown an association between strict control of blood sugar and increased mortality. These studies have also suggested that a consequence of this strict control is low blood sugar (called hypoglycemia), which may have adverse effects on the heart.

3 Nov 2015

Researchers find strong associations between hunger and poor health

It may come as a surprise that, even after the Great Recession ended in 2009, almost 50 million people in the United States are food insecure -- that is, they lack access to adequate food because of limited money or other resources. University of Illinois economist Craig Gundersen and University of Kentucky's James Ziliak examined recent research on food insecurity and its association with poor health and offer suggestions, including that doctors screen for hunger.

3 Nov 2015

Lab experiment leads researchers to major red blood cell discovery

A bizarre result of a routine lab experiment has led researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine to an unexpected new way to trigger the production of red blood cells. This could represent a significant step forward in the battle against anemia, benefitting people with diabetes, people with kidney disease or cancer, and older people for whom anemia can become a chronic problem.

3 Nov 2015

Good news for patients suffering from dry age-related macular degeneration

Scientists have good news for patients who suffer from currently untreatable dry age-related macular degeneration (dry AMD). In a new study, researchers identified a potential target for future therapies to slow the progression of the blinding condition. Published in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, the findings indicate that treatments currently used for other conditions could also work for dry AMD.

3 Nov 2015

VUMC, UCSF investigators awarded $6 million NIH grant to develop implantable artificial kidney

The National Institutes of Health has awarded a four-year, $6 million grant to investigators at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and the University of California at San Francisco to develop an implantable artificial kidney.

3 Nov 2015

APOE ε4 predicts risk of future depression

One of the most powerful predictors in neuropsychiatry is the epsilon 4 (ε4) allele of the apolipoprotein gene (APOE).

3 Nov 2015

$Older people with age-related muscle loss face greater risk of falls, bone fractures$

Older people with age-related muscle loss face greater risk of falls, bone fractures

Older people with an age-related loss of muscle mass and strength may be at greater risk of falling and bone fractures, according to new research led by the University of Southampton.

3 Nov 2015

Deaths from avoidable risk factors: an interview with Dr Ali Mokdad, IHME

The study showed that about thirty percent to maybe half of the leading causes of death in the world are preventable. These are risk factors that you could manage and thus you could prevent a lot of premature deaths.

3 Nov 2015

$Viking begins VK5211 Phase 2 trial in patients recovering from hip fracture$

Viking begins VK5211 Phase 2 trial in patients recovering from hip fracture

Viking Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel, first-in-class or best-in-class therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders, today announced the initiation of dosing in the company's Phase 2 clinical trial of VK5211 in patients who recently suffered a hip fracture.

3 Nov 2015

Winners of 'Scopus Awards Romania 2015' announced

Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, has announced the winners of the "Scopus Awards Romania 2015" in two categories: Research Excellence and Journal Excellence. These awards were launched for the first time in Romania and aim to showcase good practice in research to inspire and further motivate the Romanian research community.

3 Nov 2015

Researchers find rise in state-level obesity-related health care costs

Nearly 11 percent or $8 billion of the cost to treat severe obesity was paid for by Medicaid in 2013, ranging from a low of $5 million in Wyoming to $1.3 billion in California. Research led by Y. Claire Wang, ScD, associate professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, predicts these costs will only grow as Medicaid eligibility is extended to more people following the implementation of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion.

3 Nov 2015

Two Duke obesity experts' articles appear in the November issue of Health Affairs

Two Duke Global Health Institute faculty members have articles in the November issue of Health Affairs, which is devoted entirely to the subject of food and health, marking the first time the publication has covered the subject in this way.

3 Nov 2015

Researchers develop biochemical trick that can extend lifespan of peptides

Researchers at University of the Pacific have developed a biochemical trick that can significantly extend the lifespan of peptides, smaller cousins of proteins. The finding opens up new possibilities for creating peptides to treat cancer, infertility and other conditions.

3 Nov 2015

Scientists identify protein that helps map brain tumours

Scientists have discovered a protein that helps map the edge of brain tumours more clearly so they show up on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, according to new research presented at the National Cancer Research Institute Cancer Conference in Liverpool today.

3 Nov 2015

Duke University mathematicians developing ways to help doctors predict tumor growth

Mathematicians at Duke University are developing ways to help doctors predict how different cancers are likely to progress when actual measurements of tumor growth are hard to come by.

3 Nov 2015

Just one junk food snack is enough to trigger signs of metabolic disease

We hate to ruin Thanksgiving, but a new report appearing in the Nov. 2015 issue of The FASEB Journal suggests that for some people, overindulgence at the dinner table or at snack time is enough to trigger signs of metabolic disease.

3 Nov 2015

In-home test kits help parents lower allergen levels in their homes

In-home test kits, coupled with patient education, help parents reduce allergen levels in their homes, according to scientists from the National Institutes of Health. The researchers found that parents may become more motivated to participate in allergen reduction interventions, when they can actually see results for themselves.

3 Nov 2015

Patients with Down syndrome face additional challenge of early-onset dementia

Individuals with Down syndrome who survive into adulthood face the additional challenge of early-onset dementia, in which toxic amyloid plaques build up in the brain. The condition is strikingly similar to Alzheimer's disease, and as new work led by researchers at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University shows, dementia in Down syndrome involves defects in a regulatory enzyme known as γ-secretase activating protein (GSAP), which also happens to malfunction in Alzheimer's disease.

3 Nov 2015

Alexander Technique or acupuncture can relieve chronic neck pain

A large scale investigation by researchers at the University of York found that the use of Alexander Technique or acupuncture can significantly relieve chronic neck pain.

3 Nov 2015

TSRI scientists awarded NIH grant to investigate molecular machinery involved in cancer metastasis

Cancer metastasis occurs when tumor cells escape from a primary tumor, via the blood stream, and establish tumors in secondary locations. When the metastases are found in distant tissues and organs, doctors call this stage IV cancer, and the survival rate is low.

3 Nov 2015