Industries
Implanted ‘Bracelet’ Treats Chronic Heartburn
April 11, 2013 10:31 am | by MARILYNN MARCHIONE - AP Chief Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsA tiny magnetic bracelet implanted at the base of the throat is greatly improving life for some people with chronic heartburn who get limited relief from medicines. It's a novel way to treat severe acid reflux, which plagues millions of Americans and can raise their risk for more serious health problems.
‘Protein Switch’ Can Pinpoint Cancer’s Key Players
April 11, 2013 10:28 am | News | CommentsResearchers have “rationally rewired” some of the cell’s smallest components to create proteins that can be switched on or off by command. These “protein switches” can be used to interrogate the inner workings of each cell, helping scientists uncover the molecular mechanisms of human health and disease.
Doctors Can ‘See’ Pain
April 10, 2013 5:02 pm | by MARILYNN MARCHIONE - AP Chief Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsIn a provocative new study, scientists reported Wednesday that they were able to “see” pain on brain scans and, for the first time, measure its intensity and tell whether a drug was relieving it. Though the research is in its early stages, it opens the door to a host of possibilities.
Medication Nation: Study Shows Antibiotic Overuse
April 10, 2013 4:59 pm | by MIKE STOBBE - AP Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsU.S. doctors are prescribing enough antibiotics to give them to 4 out of 5 Americans every year, an alarming pace that suggests they are being overused, a new government study finds. Overuse is one reason antibiotics are losing their punch, making infections harder to treat.
Mouse Brains Made Transparent
April 10, 2013 1:29 pm | by MALCOLM RITTER - AP Science Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsTalk about clearing your head: Stanford University scientists have found a way to make see-through mouse brains. You take the brain out of the mouse, soak it in chemicals for a couple of days, and voila: It becomes transparent. That's not just a parlor trick.
190M-Year-Old Dino Bones Hold Development Clues
April 10, 2013 11:26 am | by ALICIA CHANG - AP SCIENCE WRITER | News | CommentsRecently discovered dinosaur embryos are giving scientists their best glimpse yet into how the ancient creatures developed. The 190-million-year-old fossils unearthed in China belonged to Lufengosaurus, a long-necked, plant-eating dinosaur.
Healing by the Clock
April 10, 2013 11:26 am | by Harvard Medical School | News | CommentsCircadian rhythms keep time for all living things, from regulating when plants open their flowers to foiling people when they try to beat jet lag. Day-night cycles are controlled through ancient biological mechanisms, evolutionarily speaking, so in essence, a human has the same internal clock as a fly does.
Bedbug-trapping Leaves May Lead to Pest Control
April 10, 2013 10:48 am | News | CommentsInspired by a traditional Balkan bedbug remedy, researchers have documented how microscopic hairs on kidney bean leaves effectively stab and trap the biting insects, according to new research. Bedbugs have made a dramatic comeback in the U.S. in recent years, infesting everything from homes and hotels to schools, movie theaters and hospitals.
Researchers Create Next-gen Alzheimer’s Model
April 10, 2013 10:18 am | News | CommentsA new genetically engineered lab rat that has the full array of brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease supports the idea that increases in a molecule called beta-amyloid in the brain causes the disease, according to a new study.
Tiny Proteins Prevent Bacterial Gene Transcription
April 10, 2013 10:10 am | News | CommentsIn the search for new antibiotics, researchers are taking an unusual approach: They are developing peptides, short chains of protein building blocks that effectively inhibit a key enzyme of bacterial metabolism. The road from gene to protein has an important stop along the way: ribonucleic acid, or RNA.
Symposium Examines Arsenic Contamination in Food, Water
April 10, 2013 9:57 am | News | CommentsAfter virtually eliminating arsenic as a useful tool for homicide, science now faces challenges in doing the same for natural sources of this fabled old “inheritance powder” that contaminates water supplies and food, threatening more than 35 million people worldwide.
Safety Reflectors Reused in Bioterror Detection
April 10, 2013 9:49 am | News | CommentsTiny versions of the reflectors on sneakers and bicycle fenders that help ensure the safety of runners and bikers at night are moving toward another role in detecting bioterrorism threats and diagnosing everyday infectious diseases, scientists said.
Combo Therapy New Key to Treating Blindness
April 10, 2013 9:42 am | News | CommentsResearchers have discovered that using two kinds of therapy in tandem may be a knockout combo against inherited disorders that cause blindness. While their study focused on man’s best friend, the treatment could help restore vision in people, too.
Green Coffee Beans Linked to Diabetic Control
April 9, 2013 12:52 pm | News | CommentsScientists described evidence that natural substances extracted from unroasted coffee beans can help control the elevated blood sugar levels and body weight that underpin type 2 diabetes. Their presentation on chlorogenic acids― widely available as a dietary supplement was part of the 245th National Meeting and Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS).
Do Cells in the Body Smell the Food We Eat?
April 9, 2013 12:46 pm | News | CommentsIn a discovery suggesting that odors may have a far more important role in life than previously believed, scientists have found that heart, blood, lung and other cells in the body have the same receptors for sensing odors that exist in the nose.
New Brain Cancer Treatment is More Effective, Less Toxic
April 9, 2013 10:00 am | News | CommentsA Phase 2 clinical trial, described this week in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, tested a new protocol for treating a relatively rare form of brain cancer, primary CNS lymphoma, that may change the standard of care for this disease, according to doctors who led the research.
Hot and Cold Senses Interact
April 9, 2013 9:31 am | News | CommentsA new study offers insights into how the nervous system processes hot and cold temperatures. The research found an interaction between the neural circuits that detect hot and cold stimuli: Cold perception is enhanced when nerve circuitry for heat is inactivated.
Robot Hot Among Surgeons, FDA Taking a New Look
April 9, 2013 3:19 am | by BY LINDSEY TANNER - AP MEDICAL WRITER | News | CommentsThe biggest thing in operating rooms these days is a million-dollar, multi-armed robot named da Vinci, used in nearly 400,000 surgeries nationwide last year- triple the number just four years earlier. But now the high-tech helper is under scrutiny over reports of problems, including several deaths that may be linked with it and the high cost of using the robotic system.
Drug for Morning Sickness Making a Comeback
April 8, 2013 7:55 pm | by LAURAN NEERGAARD - AP Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsTalk about a comeback: A treatment pulled off the market 30 years ago has won Food and Drug Administration approval again as the only drug specifically designated to treat morning sickness. That long-ago safety scare, prompted by hundreds of lawsuits claiming birth defects, proved to be a false alarm.
Engineered T Cells Kill Tumors, Spare Normal Tissue
April 8, 2013 11:09 am | News | CommentsThe need to distinguish between normal cells and tumor cells is a feature that has been long sought for most types of cancer drugs. Tumor antigens, unique proteins on the surface of a tumor, are potential targets for a normal immune response against cancer.
Illusive Vel Blood Group Gene Uncovered
April 8, 2013 10:55 am | News | CommentsResearchers have uncovered the gene at the root of a human blood group that has remained a mystery for the past 60 years. They showed that a genetic deletion on this gene is responsible for the lack of this blood group in some people. With the discovery of the gene behind the Vel blood group, medical scientists can now develop a more reliable DNA test to identify people who lack this group.
Protein’s Cousin Sheds Light on Its Gout-linked Relative
April 8, 2013 10:38 am | News | CommentsScientists have found out how a gout-linked genetic mutation contributes to the disease: by causing a breakdown in a cellular pump that clears an acidic waste product from the bloodstream. By comparing this protein pump to a related protein involved in cystic fibrosis, the researchers also identified a compound that partially repairs the pump in laboratory tests.
Revealing How Melanoma Evades Chemotherapy
April 8, 2013 9:40 am | News | CommentsNitric oxide (NO), a gas with many biological functions in healthy cells, can also help some cancer cells survive chemotherapy. A new study reveals one way in which this resistance may arise, and raises the possibility of weakening cancer cells by cutting off their supply of NO.
NFL, Ex-players Prep for Concussion Battle
April 8, 2013 3:09 am | by MARYCLAIRE DALE - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsWith perhaps billions of dollars at stake, a hearing Tuesday over concussion litigation filed against the NFL promises to be a brawl between legal heavyweights. About 4,200 former players have sued the league. Some suffer from dementia, depression, Alzheimer's disease and other neurological problems. Others simply want their health monitored.
Dengue Cases May be 4 Times More Common Than Known
April 7, 2013 1:18 pm | by MARIA CHENG - AP Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsThere may be nearly four times as many people infected with the tropical disease dengue globally than was previously believed, according to a new study. The World Health Organization has estimated there are about 50 million to 100 million cases of dengue, also known as "break-bone fever," every year.
