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Post cardiac surgery heart irregularities reduced by medication

Use of the medication amiodarone is associated with one-half the incidence of atrial tachyarrhythmias (rapid, abnormal heart beat) following cardiac surgery, according to a study in the December 28 issue of JAMA.

28 Dec 2005

Blacks more likely to die of curable lung cancer than whites

Even when they have equal access to specialized care, blacks with potentially curable lung cancer are about half as likely as whites to undergo surgery that could save their lives, according to a study by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers.

28 Dec 2005

Blue-green algae shows promise as a natural weapon against Alzheimer's

A compound isolated from a cyanobacterium, a type of blue-green algae known as Nostoc, shows promise of becoming a natural drug candidate for fighting Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases, according to an in vitro study by researchers in Switzerland.

28 Dec 2005

Talks between Bulgaria, Libya delayed as emotions run high over HIV children fund

Five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor, who had been sentenced to death by firing squad, following a conviction of infecting 426 children with HIV in a hospital, have had that conviction quashed and a new trial has been ordered by Libya's Supreme Court.

28 Dec 2005

China's new bird flu vaccine ready to go

According to the state media, China is about to begin mass-production of a new bird flu vaccine for poultry by the end of the month.

28 Dec 2005

Binge drinking amongst young Brit's on the rise

According to experts in the UK, hospitals are being forced to treat record numbers of young people admitted to hospital for drink-related diseases.

28 Dec 2005

Heart disease risk higher if a brother or sister has heart problems

According to a new report having a brother or sister with a cardiovascular disease poses a greater risk than having a parent with a history of the disease.

28 Dec 2005

Diet rich in antioxidants protects against Age-Related Macular Degeneration

New research has shown that a diet high in beta carotene, vitamins C and E, and zinc is associated with a substantially reduced risk of age-related macular degeneration in elderly people.

28 Dec 2005

Daily dose of Vitamin D cuts cancer risk

According to cancer prevention specialists, taking vitamin D3 daily appears to lower the risk of cancer by up to as much 50 percent.

28 Dec 2005

Bigger brain = more intellectual capacity

Brain size matters for intellectual ability and bigger is better, McMaster University researchers have found.

22 Dec 2005

Implantable defibrillators benefit women as much as men after heart attack

Women who have had a heart attack get as much survival benefit as men from implanted cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), devices designed to monitor the heart's pumping rhythm and shock it back to normal when needed, according to a study published in the December edition of the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology.

22 Dec 2005

Gene discovery may prevent craniofacial birth defects

Craniofacial researchers have developed an animal model that explains how skull malformations occur and how they might be prevented.

22 Dec 2005

Scientists discover how to integrate new neurons into the brain

In experiments with mice, scientists from Johns Hopkins' Institute for Cell Engineering have discovered the steps required to integrate new neurons into the brain's existing operations.

22 Dec 2005

Plant stem cell breakthrough made

Totipotent stem cells allow plants to build new organs throughout their whole life. But it has been unclear how hormones and genetic factors work together to prevent plants from having growth that is either stunted, or uncontrolled and tumor-like. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology have now uncovered a feedback mechanism, involving a growth-enhancing hormone and a regulatory protein, which controls the number of stem cells the plant produces.

22 Dec 2005

Electrical microstimulation allows researchers to map the brain for the first time

Over the last two centuries electrical microstimulation has been often used to demonstrate causal links between neural activity and specific behaviors or cognitive functions. However, to understand the mechanisms by which electrical microstimulation can cause alternations in behaviors and cognitive functions it is imperative to characterize the cortical activity patterns that are elicited by stimulation locally around the electrode and in other functionally connected areas.

22 Dec 2005

Study to look for links between the nervous system and fatal heart rhythm

Finding out why seemingly healthy people experience ventricular fibrillation, a fatal irregular heart rhythm, could eventually lead to better methods of early detection, according to a Medical College of Georgia researcher.

22 Dec 2005

Women suffering lupus OK to take oral contraceptives

Major study of women with either inactive or stable systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus) – a disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks and damages healthy tissues of the skin, joints and internal organs – were able to take oral contraceptives without increased risk of flares, or periods of increased disease activity, that characterize the disease.

22 Dec 2005