Eye Health News and Research

Latest Eye Health News and Research

Humans and apes do not bare the imprint of nocturnal life in their eye structures

Since the age of dinosaurs, most species of day-active mammals have retained the imprint of nocturnal life in their eye structures. Humans and other anthropoid primates, such as monkeys and apes, are the only groups that deviate from this pattern, according to a new study from The University of Texas at Austin and Midwestern University.

1 Nov 2012

Proposing standards and guidelines for Rett syndrome research

There is an urgent need for new drugs to treat Rett syndrome, a rare and severe neurological disease mainly affecting girls. A bottleneck in drug development for this syndrome is a lack of clarity at the level of preclinical research. Key researchers in this field now tackle this issue, proposing standards and guidelines for Rett syndrome research, in an Open Access review article published on Oct. 31, 2012 in Disease Models & Mechanisms (DMM).

1 Nov 2012

Brain's infralimbic cortex can switch between new and old habits

Habits are behaviors wired so deeply in our brains that we perform them automatically. This allows you to follow the same route to work every day without thinking about it, liberating your brain to ponder other things, such as what to make for dinner.

1 Nov 2012

Experimental HIV test might help improve diagnosis, treatment in developing countries

"Scientists have come up with a test for the virus that causes AIDS that is 10 times more sensitive and a fraction of the cost of existing methods, offering the promise of better diagnosis and treatment in the developing world," Reuters reports.

1 Nov 2012

Vitamin D and multiple sclerosis: an interview with Ellen Mowry

Vitamin D is actually a hormone. For the most part, humans obtain vitamin D through sun exposure. Ultraviolet light from the sun promotes the conversion of a compound in the skin to pre-vitamin D.

31 Oct 2012

Gas superior to air tamponade in lower quadrant vitrectomy

Gas and air are suitable tamponading agents for use during vitrectomy for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment, however air tamponade should only be used in cases that are restricted to the superior quadrants, study findings show.

30 Oct 2012

Sedation interruption does not reduce mechanical ventilation duration

Daily sedative interruption of mechanically ventilated patients in intensive care units does not reduce the time they are on ventilation or improve their clinical outcomes, report researchers in JAMA.

29 Oct 2012

Medicare, health law are common themes in various House and Senate races

The Associated Press reports that outside spending -- which includes ads about Medicare and abortion rights -- are rocking various House campaigns. Plus: updates regarding Senate races in Missouri, Illinois and Wisconsin.

29 Oct 2012

Eye movement tests to diagnose schizophrenia

There is a long history of research on impaired eye movements associated with schizophrenia. Using a series of simple viewing tests, researchers of a new paper in Biological Psychiatry explored the ability of these eye movement tests to distinguish people with and without the diagnosis of schizophrenia.

29 Oct 2012

Light-sensitive protein to study Parkinson's disease

Introducing a light-sensitive protein in transgenic nerve cells... transplanting nerve cells into the brains of laboratory animals... inserting an optic fibre in the brain and using it to light up the nerve cells and stimulate them into releasing more dopamine to combat Parkinson's disease...

29 Oct 2012

First Edition: October 29, 2012

Today's headlines include reports about how the presidential election's outcome could impact the insurance industry as well as the fate of people who are sick or uninsured.

29 Oct 2012

Scientists identify grid cells in the brains of rhesus monkeys

Primates' brains see the world through triangular grids, according to a new study published online Sunday in the journal Nature.

29 Oct 2012

New research report shows how bimatoprost causes human hair to regrow

If you're balding and want your hair to grow back, then here is some good news. A new research report appearing online in The FASEB Journal shows how the FDA-approved glaucoma drug, bimatoprost, causes human hair to regrow.

29 Oct 2012

Scientists develop new prototype ultra sensitive disease sensor

Scientists have developed a prototype ultra-sensitive sensor that would enable doctors to detect the early stages of diseases and viruses with the naked eye, according to research published today in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

29 Oct 2012

Scientists hope to unravel mystery of how Borrelia burgdorferi causes Lyme disease

Investigators at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) have accelerated the search for the bacterial genes that make the Lyme disease bacterium so invasive and persistent. The discovery could advance the diagnosis and treatment of this disease, which affects an estimated 30,000 Americans each year.

29 Oct 2012

ESDM improves social skills and brain responses to social cues

The Early Start Denver Model, a comprehensive behavioral early intervention program that is appropriate for children with autism spectrum disorder as young as 12 months, has been found to be effective in improving social skills and brain responses to social cues in a randomized controlled study published online today in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

29 Oct 2012

FDA approves 'first non-surgical treatment' for vitreomacular adhesion

The US Food and Drug Administration reports the approval of ocriplasmin for the treatment of symptomatic vitreomacular adhesion.

26 Oct 2012

Targeted deletion of major VEGF gene in mice induces vision loss

Millions of people with "wet" macular degeneration are prescribed a class of medication known as anti-VEGF drugs. But now scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found that a drastic reduction of VEGF activity may do more harm than good.

26 Oct 2012

Video-article details new laser-activated bio-adhesive polymer

A new video-article in JoVE, Journal of Visualized Experiments, details the use of a new laser-activated bio-adhesive polymer. The chitosan-based polymer, SurgiLux, was developed by scientists at the University of New South Wales.

26 Oct 2012

Sleep deprivation affects memory formation in bees

Everyone feels refreshed after a good night's sleep, but sleep does more than just rejuvenate, it can also consolidate memories. 'The rapid eye movement form of sleep and slow wave sleep are involved in cognitive forms of memory such as learning motor skills and consciously accessible memory', explains Randolf Menzel from the Freie Universt-t Berlin, Germany.

26 Oct 2012