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What your mother did when she was a child may have an effect on your memory

A new study by researchers from Rush University Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine using mice indicate that a child's memory and the severity of learning disorders may be affected by what his or her mother did when she was a child.

3 Feb 2009

Vitamin D related to muscle power, force, velocity and jump height in adolescent girls

Vitamin D is significantly associated with muscle power and force in adolescent girls, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism ( JCEM ).

3 Feb 2009

Disruption of circadian clock can suppress cancer growth

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have shown that disruption of the circadian clock - the internal time-keeping mechanism that keeps the body running on a 24-hour cycle - can slow the progression of cancer.

3 Feb 2009

Treating appendicitis by laparoscopic surgery may not be worth the cost

New research published in the February issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons suggests that a traditional, "open" appendectomy may be preferable to a less-invasive laparoscopic appendectomy for the majority of patients with acute appendicitis, contrary to recent trends.

3 Feb 2009

Exposure to second-hand smoke and alcohol significantly raises the risk of liver disease

The finding adds to mounting evidence that tobacco smoke and alcohol are worse for health as a combination, beyond the individual exposure risks, said Shannon Bailey, Ph.D., an associate professor in the UAB Department of Environmental Health Sciences and a co-lead author on the study.

3 Feb 2009

Sun in pregnancy builds stronger bones for baby

New research from ALSPAC (Children of the 90s) indicates that children born in late summer and early autumn are slightly taller and have wider bones than those born in winter and spring.

3 Feb 2009

Laparoscopic central pancreatectomy

This minimally invasive procedure, pioneering in Spain, has been developed by a team of surgeons at the University Hospital of Navarra, which brings together the greatest experience worldwide in this technique.

3 Feb 2009

Primary care doctors miss opportunities to recommend colon cancer screening

While it is known that patients with few primary care doctor's office visits are less likely to receive colorectal cancer screening, new research indicates that even patients who see their physicians regularly also do not receive screening.

3 Feb 2009

Link found between genetic and environmental causes of Parkinson's disease

Scientists at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research have found that a single gene, known as PARK9, protects cells from manganese toxicity and rescues neurons from over-expression of the protein alpha-synuclein.

3 Feb 2009

Zen meditation may reduce pain

Zen meditation - a centuries-old practice that can provide mental, physical and emotional balance - may reduce pain according to Université de Montréal researchers.

3 Feb 2009

New test predicts how breast cancer patients respond to chemotherapy

Researchers at the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics and the Swiss National Center of Competence in Research in Molecular Oncology in Lausanne have developed a new test to predict how breast cancer patients respond to chemotherapy, which could help change how treatment is delivered in the future.

3 Feb 2009

Seniors in Medicare's doughnut hole decrease use of meds

Beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Part D who reached a gap in health care coverage known as the "doughnut hole" were much less likely to use prescription drugs than those with an employer-based plan, according to a University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health study.

3 Feb 2009

Resting pulse predicts heart attacks in women

A simple measurement of resting pulse predicts coronary events in women independently of physical activity and common risk factors, such as smoking and alcohol consumption, finds a study published on bmj.com.

3 Feb 2009

Researchers find pathway and enzyme unique to tularemia organism

Researchers are closer to developing therapies to combat the deadly tularemia infection, according to a study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences' online Early Edition.

3 Feb 2009

Researchers find culture of academic institution may influence health care delivery

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Brandeis University have completed a qualitative study on the cultural environment in medical schools and how this may affect medical faculty vitality, professionalism and general productivity ultimately influencing the delivery of health care.

3 Feb 2009

Discovery introduces a lot of new questions about nervous system

A delay in traffic may cause a headache, but a delay in the nervous system can cause much more.

3 Feb 2009

Discovery of new cause of ozone wheezing and potential treatments

Researchers at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health, and Duke University have discovered a cause of airway irritation and wheezing after exposure to ozone, a common urban air pollutant.

3 Feb 2009

Regular physical activity linked to better quality of life in early-stage lung cancer survivors

Survivors of early-stage lung cancer who take part in regular physical activity have a better quality of life, according to a study in the February issue of the journal Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention , available online now.

3 Feb 2009

Radiofrequency treatment better than ethanol injection for small liver tumors

A new review of four randomized controlled trials that directly compared two different treatments for small inoperable liver tumors has found that radiofrequency ablation (RFA) significantly improves patient survival compared to the standard therapy of percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI).

3 Feb 2009

Capn4 protein predicts liver cancer recurrence and after transplantation

A new study suggests that Capn4, a protein involved in cell migration, is associated with liver cancer recurrence and metastasis after liver transplantation.

3 Feb 2009