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Genetic factors versus environmental factors in assessing malaria risk

Humans exposed to malaria get infected and sick to varying degrees, and some of that variation is due to differences in genetic makeup between individuals. But how important are genetic factors compared with environmental ones?

13 Nov 2005

Adverts for SSRI antidepressants misleading

Consumer ads for a class of antidepressants called SSRIs often claim that depression is due to a chemical imbalance in the brain, and that SSRIs correct this imbalance, but these claims are not supported by scientific evidence, say researchers in PLoS Medicine.

13 Nov 2005

Habitual coffee drinking is not associated with an increased risk of hypertension in women

Habitual coffee drinking is not associated with an increased risk of hypertension in women, although an association was found with the consumption of sugared or diet colas, according to a study in the November 9 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

13 Nov 2005

Meditation associated with increased cortical thickness

Meditation is known to alter resting brain patterns, suggesting long lasting brain changes, but a new study by researchers from Yale, Harvard, Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology shows meditation also is associated with increased cortical thickness.

13 Nov 2005

Phenolic compounds in olive oil may explain cardiovascular health benefits associated with Mediterranean Diet

Phenolic compounds in olive oil, which have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-clotting properties, may explain cardiovascular health benefits associated with the so-called Mediterranean Diet, according to a new study in the Nov. 15, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

13 Nov 2005

Cellular signal may determine life or death for damaged brain cells

Scientists at the Universities of Heidelberg and Ulm and a unit of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Monterotondo, Italy, have discovered that a specific signal within brain cells may determine whether they live or die after a stroke.

13 Nov 2005

Promising functional readouts of immunity in a blood-stage malaria vaccine trial

A malaria vaccine remains the most desired tool to combat the worsening malaria epidemic in many developing countries. Pierre Druilhe and colleagues (from the Institut Pasteur in Paris) have completed the first human trial of a vaccine based on MSP3, a protein present on the surface of the malaria parasite, with very encouraging results.

13 Nov 2005

Taking either COX-2 inhibitors or NSAIDs after a heart attack increases the risk of death

In recent years, evidence has shown that patients treated with selective cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors are at increased risk of heart attack and death. COX-2 inhibitors are used primarily to treat pain and arthritis in patients at risk of gastrointestinal bleeding.

13 Nov 2005

Pretreating a vein graft with edifoligide prior to coronary bypass graft surgery does not lower the rate of graft failure

Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery is one of the most common surgical procedures performed in the United States, according to background information in the article. In appropriately selected patients, CABG surgery results in improved survival, relief of angina, and improved quality of life. Despite frequent use of artery grafts, vein grafts remain the most frequently used conduit.

13 Nov 2005

Obstructive sleep apnea significantly increases the risk of stroke

An observational study of more than 1,000 patients at the Yale Center for Sleep Medicine found that obstructive sleep apnea significantly increases the risk of stroke or death from any cause, and that the risk is linked to sleep apnea severity.

13 Nov 2005

Statins reduce the risk of stroke after carotid artery endarterectomy

Carotid artery endarterectomy (CEA) is the most commonly performed operation to prevent stroke in the United States. However, the operation itself carries a small risk of stroke.

13 Nov 2005

Scientists discover why lung, but not skin, anthrax infections are lethal

Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin discovered why lung, but not skin, anthrax infections are lethal. As reported in the newest issue of PloS Pathogen (November 2005) Neutrophils, a form of white blood cells, play a key role in anthrax infections.

13 Nov 2005

Zyflamend shows promise in the early treatment of prostate cancer

Data from the Columbia University Department of Urology demonstrates that Zyflamend, a unique herbal extract preparation, suppresses the growth of prostate cancer cells and induces prostate cancer cells to self-destruct via a process called "apoptosis."

13 Nov 2005

Physical activity enhances long-term quality of life in older adults

Exercise is a lot like spinach … everybody knows it's good for you; yet many people still avoid it, forgoing its potential health benefits.

13 Nov 2005

Total smoking ban is accepted in New Zealand

The public has made significantly more enquiries to a national Quitline for smokers, and demand for nicotine replacement treatment vouchers has increased, following a total ban on smoking in indoor public places in New Zealand, according to a letter in this week's British Medical Journal.

13 Nov 2005

Human umbilical cord blood cells may widen treatment window for stroke

An experimental treatment that spares disability from acute stroke may be delivered much later than the current three-hour treatment standard – a potential advance needed to benefit more stroke victims.

13 Nov 2005

Antibiotics overprescribed for sore throat

Physicians prescribe antibiotics for more than half of children with sore throat, exceeding the expected prevalence of strep throat, and used nonrecommended antibiotics for 27 percent of children who received an antibiotic prescription, according to a study in the November 9 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

13 Nov 2005