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Researchers discover 'microbial Pompeii' preserved on teeth of skeletons around 1,000 years old

An international team of researchers have discovered a 'microbial Pompeii' preserved on the teeth of skeletons around 1,000 years old. The key to the discovery is the dental calculus (plaque) which preserves bacteria and microscopic particles of food on the surfaces of teeth, effectively creating a mineral tomb for microbiomes.

24 Feb 2014

Older people who assess themselves as poor get sick more often, shows study

Being objectively low income leads to poor health and a shorter life. This much we already knew. But poverty can also be a matter of subjectively feeling poor. WZB economist Maja Adena and her colleague Michal Myck (DIW Berlin and the Center for Economic Analysis, CenEA, Szczecin) have substantiated how the subjective assessment of being poor affects the health of the 50+ age group.

24 Feb 2014

Blocking mechanisms for DNA repair may help to potentiate chemotherapy, says study

Chemotherapies are cancer treatments that work by inducing lesions in the DNA of tumour cells in order to inhibit their proliferation. However, the body naturally tries to repair these lesions, and thus reduces the efficacy of chemotherapy.

24 Feb 2014

Researcher uses computational approach to speed up process of drug discovery

OIST researcher uses a computational approach in identifying proteins that will interact with potential drugs to speed up the process of drug discovery.

24 Feb 2014

Feds charge 25 in D.C. with Medicaid fraud

Investigators said the scheme -- which rang up $75 million in fraudulent claims -- is the largest in the history of the city.

24 Feb 2014

IIN collaborates with Nanyang Technological University to establish Nanomedicine

Northwestern University's International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN) is collaborating with Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, to establish the NTU-Northwestern Institute for Nanomedicine.

24 Feb 2014

Electrical stimulation of hippocampus activates dormant memory cells

The electrical stimulation of the hippocampus in in-vivo experiments activates precisely the same receptor complexes as learning or memory recall. This has been discovered for the first time and the finding has now been published in the highly respected journal "Brain Structure Function".

24 Feb 2014

Scientists develop stem cell based method for restoring strength to damaged skeletal muscles in elderly

A study co-published in Nature Medicine this week by University of Toronto researcher Penney Gilbert has determined a stem cell based method for restoring strength to damaged skeletal muscles of the elderly.

24 Feb 2014

Scientists discover how viral DNA of HBV can be degraded in cell nucleus

Scientists from the Helmholtz Zentrum München and the Technische Universität München have discovered how the viral DNA of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) can be degraded in the cell nucleus of liver cells, consequently allowing the virus to be eliminated.

24 Feb 2014

People suffering from schizophrenia at greater risk of developing autoimmune diseases

Researchers have long known that people with autoimmune diseases, such as hepatitis, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and psoriasis, are at greater risk of developing schizophrenia.

24 Feb 2014

Doctors' groups urge members to reduce number of C-sections

The move is designed to reduce the risk of unnecessary surgery, but some physicians may resist the effort. Women with low-risk pregnancies should be allowed to spend more time in labor, to reduce the risk of having an unnecessary C-section, the nation's obstetricians say.

24 Feb 2014

AACN to bring top issues facing critical care into focus in spring conference

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses brings top issues facing critical care into focus with its spring conference, AACN Clinical Priorities.

24 Feb 2014

Research explains how cells behave when placed in low oxygen environment

Research at the University of Liverpool has explained how cells behave when placed in a low oxygen environment, a development that could have implications for cancer patients and other serious illnesses.

24 Feb 2014

Research continues to show that drinking law saves lives

Although some advocates want to lower the legal drinking age from 21, research continues to show that the law saves lives. That's the finding of a new review published in a special supplemental issue to the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

24 Feb 2014

Research indicates that premature babies benefit from being exposed to adult talk

Research led by a team at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island and The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University has been published in the February 10, 2014 online edition of Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

24 Feb 2014

Researchers develop early warning systems for preventing epidemics

The environment has an impact on our health. Preventing epidemics relies on activating the right counter-measures, and scientists are now trying to find out how better use of forecasting can help.

24 Feb 2014

Study reveals that color vision abnormalities increase with age

Abnormal color vision increases significantly with aging-affecting one-half or more of people in the oldest age groups, reports a study in Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry.

24 Feb 2014

Computerized safety checklist shows threefold drop in rates of serious type of hospital-acquired infection

A computerized safety checklist that automatically pulls information from patients' electronic medical records was associated with a threefold drop in rates of one serious type of hospital-acquired infection, according to a study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford.

24 Feb 2014

Antibody in people with MS may be present long before onset of symptoms

An antibody found in the blood of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) may be present long before the onset of the disease and its symptoms, according to a study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 66th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, April 26 to May 3, 2014.

24 Feb 2014

GOP strategists prepare to pounce on Medicare advantage payment changes

The new payment rates for private Medicare Advantage plans -- expected to be announced Friday -- are likely to become political fodder in the midterm elections, reports Politico. Meanwhile, congressional Republicans come out against proposed changes in the Medicare prescription drug program which they say would increase seniors' costs.

24 Feb 2014