Researchers from Dr. Klaus
Hansen's group at BRIC, University of Copenhagen, have just shown that external
factors can stress our cells through the control of our genes. Their new results show that the protective complexes
are lost and selected genes turned on when cells are exposed to external stress
factors. The reason why the complexes are lost is that the stress factors
instruct an enzyme named MSK to attach another chemical group -- a phosphate
group -- to the histones neighboring the methyl group. The phosphate group
neutralizes the effect of the methyl group and turns specific genes on. "The consequence is that genes that
should be turned off are now active and this may disturb cellular development,
identity and growth," says Gehani. This means that without damaging our
genetic code external stress factors can control the activity of our
genes. Read more: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100924122533.htm
Vitamin
C rapidly improves emotional state of acutely hospitalized patients, say LDI
researchers
Treatment with vitamin C
rapidly improves the emotional state of acutely hospitalized patients,
according to a study carried out by researchers at Montreal's Jewish General
Hospital (JGH) and the affiliated Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research
(LDI). http://www.jgh.ca/en/publication/?id=227
Acute pain is eased with the touch of a
hand
There may
be a very good reason that people naturally clutch their hand after receiving
an injury. A new report published online Sept. 23 in Current Biology shows
that self-touch offers significant relief for acute pain under experimental
conditions. The researchers suggest that the relief comes from a change in the
brain's representation of the rest of the body.
Read more: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100923125111.htm
Watercress may "turn off" breast cancer signal
New scientific research from the University of Southampton has revealed
that a plant compound in watercress may have the ability to suppress
breast cancer cell development by 'turning off' a signal in the body and
thereby starving the growing tumour of essential blood and oxygen. The research, led by Professor Graham Packham of the University of
Southampton, shows that the plant compound (called phenylethyl
isothiocyanate) found in watercress can block this process, by
interfering with and 'turning off' in the function of a protein called
Hypoxia Inducible Factor (HIF).
B-vitamins slow brain atrophy in people with memory problems
Daily tablets of certain B-vitamins can halve the rate of brain shrinkage in elderly people who suffer from mild memory problems, an Oxford University study has shown. The two-year
randomised clinical trial is the largest to study the effect of B
vitamins on mild cognitive impairment, and one of the first
disease-modifying trials in the Alzheimer's field to show positive
results in people.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of
Medicine have identified the molecular mechanism that makes omega-3
fatty acids so effective in reducing chronic inflammation and insulin
resistance. The discovery could lead to development of a simple dietary remedy for
many of the more than 23 million Americans suffering from diabetes and
other conditions.
Cranberry Juice Creates Energy Barrier that Prevents Bacteria from
Adhering to Cells, New Study Shows
A new study by researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
reveals that the juice changes the thermodynamic properties of bacteria
in the urinary tract, creating an energy barrier that prevents the
microorganisms from getting close enough to latch onto cells and
initiate an infection. "Our results show that, at least for urinary tract infections, cranberry
juice targets the right bacteria - those that cause disease - but has no
effect on non-pathogenic organisms, suggesting that cranberry juice will
not disrupt bacteria that are part of the normal flora in the gut,"
Camesano says. "We have also shown that this effect occurs at
concentrations of cranberry juice that are comparable to levels we would
expect to find in the urinary tract."
Consuming Vitamin-E Rich Foods Associated with Lower Risk of Developing Dementia
Consuming more vitamin E through the diet appears to be associated with a
lower risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, according to a report
in the July issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the
JAMA/Archives journals.
Elizabeth E. Devore, Sc.D., of Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the
Netherlands, and colleagues assessed 5,395 participants 55 years and
older who did not have dementia between 1990 and 1993. Participants
underwent a home interview and two clinical examinations at the
beginning of the study, and provided dietary information through a
two-step process involving a meal-based checklist and a food
questionnaire.
Over an average of 9.6 years of follow-up, 465 participants developed
dementia; 365 of those were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. After
adjusting for other potentially related factors, the one-third of
individuals who consumed the most vitamin E (a median or midpoint of
18.5 milligrams per day) were 25 percent less likely to develop dementia
than the one-third of participants who consumed the least (a median of 9
milligrams per day). Dietary intake levels of vitamin C, beta carotene
and flavonoids were not associated with dementia risk. Results were
similar when only the participants diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease
were assessed.
A new research published in the July 2010 print edition of the FASEB
Journal explains for the first time how honey kills bacteria.
Specifically, the research shows that bees make a protein that they add
to the honey, called defensin-1, which could one day be used to treat
burns and skin infections and to develop new drugs that could combat
antibiotic-resistant infections.
"We have completely elucidated the molecular basis of the antibacterial
activity of a single medical-grade honey, which contributes to the
applicability of honey in medicine," said Sebastian A.J. Zaat, Ph.D., a
researcher involved in the work from the Department of Medical
Microbiology at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam. "Honey or
isolated honey-derived components might be of great value for prevention
and treatment of infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria."
Scientists are reporting a possible explanation for the symptoms of
anxiety and depression that occur in some patients taking the popular
statin family of anti-cholesterol drugs, and reported by some
individuals on low-cholesterol diets. These symptoms could result from
long-term, low levels of cholesterol in the brain, the report suggests.
It appears in ACS' weekly journal Biochemistry: Chronic Cholesterol Depletion using Statin Impairs the
Function and Dynamics of Human Serotonin1A Receptors.
Cocoa flavanols improve vascular and BP measures for CAD patients
A new study by UCSF cardiologists and researchers found that high
concentrations of cocoa flavanols decrease blood pressure, improve the
health of blood vessels and increase the number of circulating
angiogenic cells in patients with heart disease. The findings indicate
that foods rich in flavanols - such as cocoa products, tea, wine, and
various fruits and vegetables - have a cardio-protective benefit for
heart disease patients.
Drinking Java Reduces Risk of Head and Neck Cancer Study Finds
The latest study shows that java junkies are significantly less likely
to develop head and neck cancer - and the more coffee consumed, the
lower the risk.
Those who drank four or more cups of coffee a day were a whopping 39
percent less likely to develop tumors, according to the American
Association for Cancer Research, which publishes Cancer
Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, the journal
that published the study.
The study, which looked at pooled data from nine previous studies,
didn't answer the question of whether decaf had the same anticancer
effect as caffeinated coffee. But it found no evidence that drinking
tea affects the risk of head and neck cancer.
The study was associative, which means although researchers found a
strong link between coffee drinking and reduced cancer risk, they can't
say for sure that it's the coffee doing the trick.
Two phenolic compounds in peaches and plums induce breast cancer cell death
Breast cancer cells - even the most aggressive type - died after
treatments with peach and plum extracts in lab tests at Texas AgriLife
Research recently, and scientists say the results are deliciously
promising. Not only did the cancerous cells keel over, but the normal
cells were not harmed in the process.
Misinformation about antibiotics can travel to large audience via Twitter
Misunderstandings about proper use of antibiotics have the potential to
spread widely through social networks such as Twitter, according to a
report in the April issue of AJIC: American Journal of Infection
Control. Researchers from Columbia University and MixedInk (New York, NY) studied
the health information content of Twitter updates mentioning
antibiotics to determine how people are sharing information and assess
the proliferation of misinformation. The investigation explored evidence
of misunderstanding or misuse of antibiotics.
Santa Barbara, Calif., April 8, 2010 - Researchers have shown that a
peptide (a chain of amino acids) called iRGD helps co-administered drugs
penetrate deeply into tumor tissue. The peptide has been shown to
substantially increase treatment efficacy against human breast, prostate
and pancreatic cancers in mice, achieving the same therapeutic effect
as a normal dose with one-third as much of the drug.
Taking the most commonly-prescribed anti-diabetic drug, metformin,
reduces an individual's risk of developing pancreatic cancer by 62
percent, according to research from The University of Texas M. D.
Anderson Cancer Center, published in the Aug. 1 issue of Gastroenterology. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-08/uotm-mda073009.php
Benefits from upper airway surgery for sleep apnea found to equal CPAP
Adults who struggle with CPAP treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) should be considered candidates for reconstructive surgery on the upper airway, because it holds the same quality-of-life (QOL) benefits but with more permanence. This thesis is in new research published in the August 2009 edition of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-08/aaoo-bfu072909.php
Surgery for Migraines
For nearly a decade, researchers have been testing the concept that
migraines are caused when a person's trigeminal nerve branches are
irritated. When the muscles around these branches are incapacitated,
the headaches stop, which is why some patients have found relief from
the 'freezing' effect of Botox treatments. However, according to this
study, removal of these muscles or 'triggers,' offers an easily
attainable and permanent fix. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-07/asop-gm072809.php
Bariatric surgery - short term complications low
Short-term complications and death rates were low following bariatric
surgery to limit the amount of food that can enter the stomach,
decrease absorption of food or both, according to the Longitudinal
Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (LABS-1). The study was funded by the
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
(NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health. Results are
reported in the July 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-07/niod-nsf073009.php
Resveratrol as an inflammation preventive
In this study, researchers administered an inflammatory agent to two
groups of mice. One group was pretreated with resveratrol and the other
group was not. The mice that were not pretreated with resveratrol
experienced a strong inflammatory response, simulating disease in
humans, while the group pretreated with resveratrol was protected from
the inflammation. The scientists then examined the tissues of the mice
to determine exactly how resveratrol was able to protect the mice from
inflammation. They found that resveratrol used a one-two punch to stop
inflammation in the mice by preventing the body from creating two
different molecules known to trigger inflammation, sphingosine kinase
and phospholipase D. This finding suggests that resveratrol may be
harnessable as a treatment for inflammatory diseases and may also lead
to entirely new resveratrol-based drugs that are even more effective. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-07/foas-sua073009.php
Zinc: research shows it may fight infections
Scientists administered either a zinc supplement or a placebo to
healthy volunteers to assess the effects of zinc on T cell activation.
After isolating the T cells from the blood, scientists then simulated
infection in laboratory conditions. Results showed that T cells taken
from the zinc-supplemented group had higher activation than those from
the placebo group. Specifically, cell activation stimulated the zinc
transporter in T cells called "ZIP8," which transports stored zinc into
the cell cytoplasm where it then alters the expression of a T cell
protein in a way needed to fight infections. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-07/foas-gzn073009.php
