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Men perform wayfinding tasks better than women

It's been well established that men perform better than women when it comes to specific spatial tasks. But how much of that is linked to sex hormones versus cultural conditioning and other factors? Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) decided to explore this idea by administering testosterone to women and testing how they performed in wayfinding tasks in a virtual environment.

17 Dec 2015

Research project explores use of nanoparticles as a way to disinfect wounds

Infections contracted during surgical operations are a serious healthcare problem, leading to death in some cases. Now, a research project at the University of Huddersfield is investigating the use of nanoparticles as a way to disinfect wounds. It could prove to be much more effective than existing techniques because the particles would be tiny enough to enter the skin via hair follicles, ensuring much better penetration of the area affected by surgery.

17 Dec 2015

Study examines links between genetic background, physical activity level and lifespan

Animal studies have already shown that a strong link exists between genetic background and physical activity level. The purpose of our study was to investigate the associations between genetic background, physical activity level, and lifespan.

17 Dec 2015

Feeling sad can alter levels of inflammatory proteins linked to increased risk of comorbid diseases

Feeling sad can alter levels of stress-related opioids in the brain and increase levels of inflammatory proteins in the blood that are linked to increased risk of comorbid diseases including heart disease, stroke and metabolic syndrome, according to a study by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

17 Dec 2015

RBHS Chancellor leads study to eliminate chronic viral hepatitis

Chronic viral hepatitis has a reputation for being a silent killer. The infection often goes undetected until the symptoms of advanced liver cancer appear. By that point, a patient has a five-year survival rate, according to the American Cancer Society.

17 Dec 2015

Study: Weight loss due to dietary changes can improve sleep at any body weight

Weight loss due to dietary changes can improve sleepiness at any weight, says a study published by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania this month in the journal Sleep. The findings offer new insights into how weight fluctuations impact numerous aspects of sleep independent of body weight.

17 Dec 2015

Louisville researchers move closer to potential treatment for gum disease

University of Louisville researchers recently received a patent on a synthetic biochemical compound and its variants, moving science closer to a treatment for gum disease. This discovery could lead to the formulation of a mouth rinse or tooth varnish to prevent the pathogen, P. gingivalis from colonizing in the mouth and establishing itself orally.

17 Dec 2015

Study examines whether pregnant woman can take antidepressants during pregnancy

Should a pregnant woman stop taking antidepressants during her pregnancy? The Journal of the American Medical Association has published a study showing the risk of autism doubles (from 1% to 2%) for children of women who use antidepressants, like Zoloft and Prozac. Max Wiznitzer, MD, pediatric neurologist at UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, stresses, even if the study proves correct, the vast majority of babies exposed to antidepressants in the second and third trimesters will not develop autism.

17 Dec 2015

Reducing cost for screening does not increase colorectal cancer screening rates

Making colonoscopy available at no cost to eligible Medicare beneficiaries under the Affordable Care Act did not increase the number of people in this target population who regularly undergo the procedure, says a new large scale national study from University Hospitals Case Medical Center Seidman Cancer Center.

17 Dec 2015

New study suggests that musclin may promote muscle health

A new study in mice shows that exercise causes muscle to release a peptide that builds the muscle's capacity for energy production and increases physical endurance, allowing for longer and more intense exercise.

17 Dec 2015

UMMS researchers identify new life cycle stage in HIV infection

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School have identified a new life cycle stage in HIV infection, thanks to a novel technique they developed to take images of intact infected cells.

17 Dec 2015

Salk researchers move one step closer to unlocking how the brain functions

How the brain functions is still a black box: scientists aren't even sure how many kinds of nerve cells exist in the brain. To know how the brain works, they need to know not only what types of nerve cells exist, but also how they work together. Researchers at the Salk Institute have gotten one step closer to unlocking this black box.

17 Dec 2015

Understanding how thought arises from brain structure

Using 20 years of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from tens of thousands of brain imaging experiments, computational neuroscientists Hava Siegelmann and a postdoctoral colleague at the University of Massachusetts have created a geometry-based method for massive data analysis to reach a new understanding of how thought arises from brain structure.

17 Dec 2015

Treated greywater does not pose risk for water-related diseases

Researchers at the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have determined that treated greywater is safe for irrigation and does not pose a risk for gastrointestinal illness or water-related diseases.

17 Dec 2015

Mutual eye contact synchronizes brain activity, facilitates face-to-face social interaction

Researchers at the National Institute of Physiological Science have revealed that mutual eye contact synchronizes spontaneous activity in specific areas of the brains of two interacting parties. The finding indicates that this synchronized brain activity is crucial in establishing and facilitating face-to-face social interaction.

17 Dec 2015

Scientists reveal major players in severe muscle damage caused by sepsis

Scientists from the Institut Pasteur, Paris Descartes University, Sainte-Anne Hospital and the CNRS have recently published a paper in Nature Communications in which they reveal major players in the severe muscle damage caused by sepsis, or septicemia, which explains why many patients suffer debilitating muscle impairment long-term after recovery.

17 Dec 2015

Slow eating keeps childhood obesity at bay, study finds

Waiting 30 seconds in between bites of food allows children to realize they're no longer hungry before they overeat--preventing excessive weight gain. That's the conclusion of a study published in the Dec. 15 issue of the journal Pediatric Obesity by an international team of researchers, including bioengineers at the University of California, San Diego.

17 Dec 2015

New research suggests use of low-dose aspirin to prevent preeclampsia

To prevent preeclampsia, new research suggests that low-dose aspirin should be given prophylactically to all women at high risk (those with diabetes or chronic hypertension) and any woman with two or more moderate risk factors (including obesity, multiple gestation and advanced maternal age).

17 Dec 2015

Berkeley Lab researchers develop new mouse model for most common form of breast cancer

The first clinically-relevant mouse model of human breast cancer to successfully express functional estrogen receptor positive (ER+) adenocarcinomas has been developed by researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

17 Dec 2015

One of every three deaths in the U.S. linked to cardiovascular diseases

One of every three deaths in the U.S. in 2013 were from heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases, while heart disease and stroke were the No. 1 and No. 2 killers worldwide, according to American Heart Association's 2016 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update.

17 Dec 2015