Eye News and Research

Latest Eye News and Research

Swine flu - All you need to know

Swine influenza or Swine flu is a respiratory disease commonly found in pigs which is caused by type A influenza virus - it causes high levels of illness in pigs but low death rates and while swine flu viruses may circulate among swine throughout the year, most outbreaks occur during the autumn and winter months similar to flu outbreaks in humans.

29 Apr 2009

New hope for potential heart attack victims

Twenty percent of American deaths each year are caused by heart attack or angina, sometimes without any warning.

27 Apr 2009

Benfotiamene, a fat-soluble form of vitamin B1, could treat common cause of blindness

University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers have discovered that a form of vitamin B1 could become a new and effective treatment for one of the world's leading causes of blindness.

23 Apr 2009

Researchers discover that gene switches on during development of epilepsy

A discovery made by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine while studying mice may help explain how some people without a genetic predisposition to epilepsy can develop the disorder.

23 Apr 2009

Researchers identify gene linked to skeletal muscle disease and vision deficits

Skeletal muscle disease and vision deficits might seem unrelated, but a frog model of muscular dystrophy shows it is not such a leap.

22 Apr 2009

Genetic variants in MC1R could help predict melanoma risk

New genetic research suggests that the traditional risk factors for melanoma may not be as helpful in predicting risk in all people as previously thought, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research 100th Annual Meeting 2009.

22 Apr 2009

Another gene found for Rett syndrome

New research has revealed another gene for Rett syndrome which could lead to new treatments for the disorder.

22 Apr 2009

Rockefeller University Hospital opens new Sleep Research Center

A good night's sleep is good for your health, but the details have long been sketchy.

20 Apr 2009

Fish oil protects against neurodegenerative diseases

Dr. Nicolas Bazan, Director of the Neuroscience Center of Excellence, Boyd Professor, and Ernest C. and Yvette C. Villere Chair of Retinal Degenerative Diseases Research at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, will present new research findings showing that an omega three fatty acid in the diet protects brain cells by preventing the misfolding of a protein resulting from a gene mutation in neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's and Huntington's.

20 Apr 2009

Jet lag disrupts sleep by throwing two neural centers out of sync

New research by scientists in the U.S. has revealed that the disrupted sleep which results from jet lag and shift work occurs in two separate but linked groups of neurons below the hypothalamus at the base of the brain.

19 Apr 2009

Jet lag disturbs sleep by upsetting internal clocks in 2 neural centers

Jet lag is the bane of many travelers, and similar fatigue can plague people who work in rotating shifts.

16 Apr 2009

Secret to night vision in nocturnal animals revealed

Researchers have discovered an important element for making night vision possible in nocturnal mammals: the DNA within the photoreceptor rod cells responsible for low light vision is packaged in a very unconventional way, according to a report in the April 17th issue of Cell , a Cell Press publication.

16 Apr 2009

Scientists use eye tracking to detect mild dementia in humans

Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, developed a test in nonhuman primates that is now using infrared eye tracking to detect mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in humans.

15 Apr 2009

Simple method to monitor sleep and potentially diagnose sleep disorders

Sleep is such an essential part of human existence that we spend about a third of our lives doing it -- some more successfully than others.

15 Apr 2009

Strange glaucoma puzzle solved

Scientists studying a rare form of glaucoma have discovered why people in the disparate Roma communities are at greater risk of inheriting a condition leading to permanent blindness than other groups in the population.

15 Apr 2009

Eyes seek new targets during visual search

When we look at a scene in front of us, we need to focus on the important items and be able to ignore distracting elements.

15 Apr 2009

The DECIPHER database - revolutionising clinical practice and genetic research

Today - five years after the inception of the DECIPHER database - researchers have published a report that reveals the developing role of the database in revolutionising both clinical practice and genetic research.

15 Apr 2009

Topical bevacizumab therapy effective in treating corneal blood vessels growth that can cause blindness

Researchers at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and Schepens Eye Research Institute have concluded that short-term topical bevacizumab therapy reduces the severity of corneal neovascularization (formation of new blood vessels in the cornea that can create impaired vision or vision loss) without local or systemic adverse effects.

15 Apr 2009