Medical Science News

RSS

NJIT professor receives $340,000 NIH grant to investigate membrane proteins

NJIT Associate Professor Edgardo Farinas has been awarded today a three-year $340,000 National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to investigate spores as a protein display platform for the directed evolution of membrane proteins.

3 May 2012

Study explains beneficial fat-fighting effects of black pepper

A new study provides a long-sought explanation for the beneficial fat-fighting effects of black pepper. The research, published in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, pinpoints piperine - the pungent-tasting substance that gives black pepper its characteristic taste, concluding that piperine also can block the formation of new fat cells.

3 May 2012

Paper explores links between neuronal avalanches and spike time-dependent plasticity

The brain's neurons are coupled together into vast and complex networks called circuits. Yet despite their complexity, these circuits are capable of displaying striking examples of collective behavior such as the phenomenon known as "neuronal avalanches," brief bursts of activity in a group of interconnected neurons that set off a cascade of increasing excitation.

3 May 2012

Study reveals evidence about harmful effects of glycogen accumulation in neurons

Collaborative research by groups headed by scientists Joan J. Guinovart and Marco Mil-n at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) has revealed conclusive evidence about the harmful effects of the accumulation of glucose chains (glycogen) in fly and mouse neurons.

3 May 2012

High fructose intake may increase risk of NFALD in obese people

Obese people who consume increased amounts of fructose, a type of sugar that is found in particular in soft drinks and fruit juices, are at risk for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NFALD) and more its more severe forms, fatty inflammation and scarring.

3 May 2012

Rapamycin could help prevent autism in newborns with seizures

Early-life seizures are known to be associated with autism, and studies indicate that about 40 percent of patients with autism also have epilepsy. A study from Boston Children's Hospital finds a reason for the link, and suggests that an existing drug, already shown to be safe in children, could help prevent autism from developing in newborns who have seizures.

3 May 2012

Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation to fund $45,000 pilot internship program at TGen

The Arizona-based Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation will fund a $45,000 pilot internship program this summer and fall at the Translational Genomics Research Foundation (TGen).

3 May 2012

Study finds possible link between ghrelin hormone and hedonic eating

When eating is motivated by pleasure, rather than hunger, endogenous rewarding chemical signals are activated which can lead to overeating, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

3 May 2012

Smokers with variants in specific genes at increased risk for hot flashes

Women who smoke and carry specific variations in the genes that impact their metabolism are at higher risk of developing hot flashes in comparison with smokers who do not carry these gene variants, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

3 May 2012

Scientists determine structure of green pigment seen in nitrite-cured bacon, other meats

As with many concerned consumers, a team of University of Oklahoma researchers wondered if the green color sometimes seen in bacon is, in fact, harmful to human health. Recently, these OU scientists took an important first step in answering this question by determining the structure of the green pigment responsible for this 'nitrite burn.'

3 May 2012

Biosynthetic polyphenol improves cognitive function in mice with AD

Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers have succeeded in developing a biosynthetic polyphenol that improves cognitive function in mice with Alzheimer's disease.

3 May 2012

New bio-inspired approach can synthesize polymers

A new bio-inspired approach to synthesising polymers will offer unprecedented control over the final polymer structure and yield advances in nanomedicine, researchers say.

3 May 2012

JS Genetics announces availability of XCAT-KS buccal swab test

JS Genetics announces the availability of XCAT-KS, its proprietary buccal swab test for the diagnosis of Klinefelter syndrome (KS) and other male sex chromosome aneuploidies.

3 May 2012

Foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids linked with lower blood beta-amyloid levels

A new study suggests that eating foods that contain omega-3 fatty acids, such as fish, chicken, salad dressing and nuts, may be associated with lower blood levels of a protein related to Alzheimer's disease and memory problems.

3 May 2012

Hypothalamic neuropeptide changes cause obesity in low-birth-weight babies

It seems improbable that a baby born underweight would be prone to obesity, but it is well documented that these children tend to put on weight in youth if they're allowed free access to calories. Now, researchers believe they understand why this happens.

3 May 2012

Math models can be useful tools for study of cancer progression

Using mathematical models, researchers in the Integrated Mathematical Oncology (IMO) program at Moffitt Cancer Center are focusing their research on the interaction between the tumor and its microenvironment and the "selective forces" in that microenvironment that play a role in the growth and evolution of cancer.

3 May 2012

New link between motor action and emotion

The way we use our hands may determine how emotions are organized in our brains, according to a recent study published in PLoS ONE by psychologists Geoffrey Brookshire and Daniel Casasanto of The New School for Social Research in New York.

3 May 2012

Study investigates use of stem cells to treat lower-limb peripheral artery disease

Research led by vascular surgeons at Dartmouth-Hitchcock may offer new hope to sufferers of peripheral artery disease, the cause of nearly 60,000 lower-limb amputations annually, through the use of a patient's own stem cells.

3 May 2012

PRDM16 transcription co-factor plays a critical role in development of embryonic palate

In the United States, a baby is born with a facial cleft every hour, of every day of the year! Such birth defects result from both gene mutations and environmental insults. PRDM16 is a transcription factor originally described as being aberrantly activated in specific types of leukemia's, and more recently as a master regulator of brown adipose tissue differentiation.

3 May 2012

Study confirms that COX-2 inhibitors predispose people to cardiovascular disease

After nearly 13 years of study and intense debate, a pair of new papers from the Perelman School of Medicine, at the University of Pennsylvania have confirmed exactly how a once-popular class of anti-inflammatory drugs leads to cardiovascular risk for people taking it.

3 May 2012