ScienceDaily: Health - November 07, 2024
Top health research news
Sleepiness during the day may be tied to pre-dementia syndrome
Older people who are sleepy during the day or lack enthusiasm for activities due to sleep issues may be more likely to develop a syndrome that can lead to dementia, according to a new study.
Image: Lemberg Vector studio/Shutterstock.com
Five minutes of extra exercise a day could lower blood pressure
New research suggests that adding a small amount of physical activity -- such as uphill walking or stair-climbing -- into your day may help to lower blood pressure.
Using a fan and wetting the skin reduces risk of deadly cardiac strain in hot and humid weather
New collaborative research has shown that using a fan in hot and humid weather reduces cardiac strain in older people, contradicting recommendations from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention in the US. The study looked at the efficacy of different low-cost cooling strategies -- such as electric fans with and without spraying water on the skin -- for older adults, who are known to be at a heightened health risk during hot summer weather.
How hypoxia helps cancer spread
Scientists have identified 16 genes that breast cancer cells use to survive in the bloodstream after they've escaped the low-oxygen regions of a tumor. Each is a potential therapeutic target to stop cancer recurrence, and one -- MUC1 -- is already in clinical trials.
Sewage surveillance proves powerful in combating antimicrobial resistance
Sewage surveillance is emerging as a powerful tool in the fight against antimicrobial resistance with the potential to protect vulnerable communities more effectively.
Use of 'genetic scissors' carries risks
The CRISPR tool is capable of repairing the genetic defect responsible for the immune disease chronic granulomatous disease. However, researchers have now shown that there is a risk of inadvertently introducing other defects.
Probability training: Preventing errors of reasoning in medicine and law
A new study shows how students can better understand and interpret conditional probabilities.
Detecting evidence of lung cancer in exhaled breath
Exhaled breath contains chemical clues to what's going on inside the body, including diseases like lung cancer. And devising ways to sense these compounds could help doctors provide early diagnoses -- and improve patients' prospects. Researchers report developing ultrasensitive, nanoscale sensors that in small-scale tests distinguished a key change in the chemistry of the breath of people with lung cancer.
The cost of childbirth and postpartum health care results in significant, ongoing financial hardship, particularly for lower-income families with commercial insurance. About half of people who give birth in the United States are covered by commercial health insurance, which typically requires cost-sharing in the form of deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance.
Bioengineers shed light on dosing challenges for cancer immunotherapy
A team of bioengineers has developed a mathematical model that clarifies why interleukin-12 (IL-12) -- a potent immune-boosting protein that holds promise for cancer treatment -- loses effectiveness over time when used as an immunotherapeutic. The research challenges long-held assumptions about IL-12 s behavior in the body and offers a path toward safer and more effective dosing regimens.
Newly discovered neurons change our understanding of how the brain handles hunger
A new cell type provides a missing piece of the neural network regulating appetite.
What happens in your brain while you watch a movie
By scanning the brains of people while they watched movie clips, neuroscientists have created the most detailed functional map of the brain to date. The fMRI analysis shows how different brain networks light up when participants viewed short clips from a range of independent and Hollywood films including Inception, The Social Network, and Home Alone. The team identified different brain networks involved in processing scenes with people, inanimate objects, action, and dialogue. They also revealed how different executive networks are prioritized during easy- versus hard-to-follow scenes.
Cracking the code of DNA circles in cancer: Potential therapy
Tiny circles called ecDNA are critical in cancer development and drug resistance. An international team publishes landmark studies detailing new findings and potential therapies.
A new study changes the way we understand memory. Until now, memories have been explained by the activity of brain cells called neurons that respond to learning events and control memory recall. Neurologists have now expanded this theory by showing that non-neuronal cell types in the brain called astrocytes -- star-shaped cells -- also store memories and work in concert with groups of neurons called engrams to regulate storage and retrieval of memories.
New haptic patch transmits complexity of touch to the skin
Thin, flexible device could help people with visual impairments 'feel' surroundings. Device comprises a hexagonal array of 19 actuators encapsulated in soft silicone. Device only uses energy when actuators change position, operating for longer periods of time on a single battery charge.
Researchers have uncovered the mechanism in the brain that constantly refreshes memory
Researchers have discovered a neural mechanism for memory integration that stretches across both time and personal experience.
Brain acts like music box playing different behaviors
Neuroscientists have discovered brain cells that form multiple coordinate systems to tell us 'where we are' in a sequence of behaviors. These cells can play out different sequences of actions, just like a music box can be configured to play different sequences of tones. The findings help us understand the algorithms used by the brain to flexibly generate complex behaviors, such as planning and reasoning, and might be useful in understanding how such processes go wrong in psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia.
How cancer immunotherapy may cause heart inflammation in some patients
Some patients being treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors, a type of cancer immunotherapy, develop a dangerous form of heart inflammation called myocarditis. Researchers have now uncovered the immune basis of this inflammation. The team identified changes in specific types of immune and stromal cells in the heart that underlie myocarditis and pinpointed factors in the blood that may indicate whether a patient's myocarditis is likely to lead to death.
Prolonged sitting can sabotage health, even if you're young and active
A new study of more than 1,000 adults, average age 33, found that meeting recommended physical activity guidelines isn't enough to counteract the 60-plus hours per week they spend sitting. To reduce heart disease risk and prevent accelerated aging, they need to sit less and work-out harder.
Toward better surgical outcomes in patients undergoing knee replacement surgery
When performing a knee replacement surgery or total knee arthroplasty, doctors traditionally try to align the hip, knee, and ankle in a straight line, forming a neutral alignment, rather than replicating the patient's original alignment. To understand which approach is better, researchers have conducted a post-operation questionnaire comparing patient-reported outcomes to changes in knee alignment before and after surgery. Their findings may improve current surgical guidelines and patients' long-term quality of life.
Rethinking electric bus depots as 'profitable energy hubs'
How do you electrify a populous city's transit without destabilizing its grid? New research into Beijing's 27,000-bus system explores using depots to generate a solar power.
Microbes in mouth reflect lifestyle choices
According to a new study, the composition of beneficial microorganisms within the mouth differs over a range of subsistence strategies -- from nomadic hunter gatherers to farmers to industrialized groups.
Testing thousands of RNA enzymes helps find first 'twister ribozyme' in mammals
A new method can test the activity of thousands of RNA enzymes, called ribozymes, in a single experiment.
Physicists have investigated to which extent a piece of music can evoke expectations about its progression. They were able to determine differences in how far compositions of different composers can be anticipated. In total, the scientists quantitatively analyzed more than 550 pieces from classical and jazz music.
Ancient immune defense system plays an unexpected role in cancer
Along with defending against pathogens, the body's innate immune system helps to protect the stability of our genomes in unexpected ways -- ways that have important implications for the development of cancer, researchers are discovering.
An extra year of education does not protect against brain aging, study finds
Thanks to a 'natural experiment' involving 30,000 people, researchers were able to determine very precisely what an extra year of education does to the brain in the long term. To their surprise, they found no effect on brain structure and no protective benefit of additional education against brain aging.
Alzheimer's and alcohol use disorder share similar gene expression patterns, study finds
By examining RNA in hundreds of thousands of individual brain cells, scientists further support that alcohol use disorder could accelerate Alzheimer's disease progression, paving the way for future targeted treatments.
Meal timing may be crucial for night shift workers' health
A new study has found that overnight eating may be putting night shift workers at higher risk of chronic health conditions.
What's overweight enough for lower disability after stroke?
Slightly overweight stroke survivors have a lower risk of sustaining disabilities. New research adds another aspect to the obesity paradox but also highlights the importance of considering the population's normal when recommending best practices.
Deaf male mosquitoes don't mate
Romance is a complex affair in humans. There's personality, appearance, seduction, all manner of physical and social cues. Mosquitoes are much more blunt. Mating occurs for a few seconds in midair. And all it takes to woo a male is the sound of a female's wingbeats. Imagine researchers' surprise when a single change completely killed the mosquitoes' libidos.
Defibrillation devices can save lives using 1,000 times less electricity
Researchers used an electrophysiological computer model of the heart's electrical circuits to examine the effect of the applied voltage field in multiple fibrillation-defibrillation scenarios. They discovered far less energy is needed than is currently used in state-of-the-art defibrillation techniques. The authors applied an adjoint optimization method and discovered adjusting the duration and the smooth variation in time of the voltage supplied by defibrillation devices is a more efficient mechanism that reduces the energy needed to stop fibrillation by three orders of magnitude.
Two key genes identified linking rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis
Researchers employed analysis tools and machine learning algorithms to identify two genes linked to rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis that could serve as diagnostic tools and potential targets for treatments. Drawing from a large database of genetic information, they gathered dozens of sequenced genomes from people with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis to look for any similarities, using recently developed computational methods to narrow down their search. They identified genes ATXN2L and MMP14 as significantly associated with the progression of both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis.
Gut microbes play a key role in regulating stress responsiveness throughout the day, research finds
New research from reveals that the gut microbiome regulates the body's diurnal (day-night) rhythms in stress hormones. Depletion of gut microbiota results in disruptions in the brain's core circadian system, and is associated with altered stress hormone rhythms. The research highlights that gut microbes also regulates key stress-responding brain regions throughout the day. Using microbe transplantation, the team confirmed that oscillations of gut microbes across the day are critical for regulating stress hormone secretion.
Bacteria breakthrough could accelerate mosquito control schemes
Mosquito larvae grow faster if they're exposed to particular bacteria, according to a new study that could help global health programs.
Persistent problems with AI-assisted genomic studies
Researchers are warning that artificial intelligence tools gaining popularity in the fields of genetics and medicine can lead to flawed conclusions about the connection between genes and physical characteristics, including risk factors for diseases like diabetes.
AI for real-time, patient-focused insight
Toddlers understand concept of possibility
Children too young to know words like 'impossible' and 'improbable' nonetheless understand how possibility works, finds new work with two- and three-year-olds. The findings demonstrate that young children distinguish between improbable and impossible events, and learn significantly better after 'impossible' occurrences.
Researchers home in on tumor vulnerabilities to improve odds of treating glioblastoma
Researchers have uncovered new targets that could be the key to effectively treating glioblastoma, a lethal type of brain cancer. These targets were identified through a screen for genetic vulnerabilities in patient-derived cancer stem cells that represent the variability found in tumors.
Handling the hype: Researcher seeks to improve science communication
Being a scientist has its challenges. Knowing how to communicate your scientific research in a socially responsible manner can be even more difficult. Thankfully, researchers have identified some of the trade-offs and communication strategies that environmental health scientists can use to communicate more effectively.
AI tool AlphaFold can now predict very large proteins
The AI tool AlphaFold has been improved so that it can now predict the shape of very large and complex protein structures. Researchers have also succeeded in integrating experimental data into the tool. The results are a step toward more efficient development of new proteins for, among other things, medical drugs.
Childhood overweight is associated with socio-economic vulnerability
More children have overweight in regions with high rates of single parenthood, low education levels, low income and high child poverty. The pandemic may also have reinforced this trend.
Space: A new frontier for exploring stem cell therapy
Stem cells grown in microgravity aboard the International Space Station (ISS) have unique qualities that could one day help accelerate new biotherapies and heal complex disease, researchers say. The research analysis finds microgravity can strengthen the regenerative potential of cells. Microgravity is weightlessness or near-zero gravity.
Lying, sitting or all-fours position?
Whether lying on their back, all-fours position, sitting upright or squatting -- women adopt different birthing positions during childbirth. What has not yet been researched is how the respective final birthing position affects the satisfaction of the woman giving birth. Researchers have now investigated precisely this.
Synthetic genes engineered to mimic how cells build tissues and structures
Researchers have developed synthetic genes that function like the genes in living cells. The artificial genes can build intracellular structures through a cascading sequence that builds self-assembling structures piece by piece. The discovery offers a path toward using a suite of simple building blocks that can be programmed to make complex biomolecular materials, such as nanoscale tubes from DNA tiles. The same components can also be programmed to break up the design for different materials.
Remote medical interpreting is a double-edged sword in healthcare communication, researchers find
Remote medical interpreting (RMI) may be hindering healthcare communication rather than helping it, according to a new study.
High levels of omega-3, omega-6 may protect against cancer
In addition to lowering your cholesterol, keeping your brain healthy and improving mental health, new research suggests omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids may help ward off a variety of cancers.
How the keto diet could one day treat autoimmune disorders
Scientists have long suspected the keto diet might be able to calm an overactive immune system and help some people with diseases like multiple sclerosis. Now, they have reason to believe it could be true. Scientists have discovered that the diet makes the gut and its microbes produce two factors that attenuated symptoms of MS in mice.
The Salton Sea -- an area rich with lithium -- is a hot spot for child respiratory issues
Windblown dust from the shrinking Salton Sea harms the respiratory health of children living nearby, triggering asthma, coughing, wheezing and disrupted sleep, USC research shows. The problem is likely to intensify in a hotter climate, with evaporation exposing more and more of the lake bed, or playa, leading to more dust events.
Increased rates of severe human infections caused by Streptococcus subspecies
A concerning increase in global rates of severe invasive infections becoming resistant to key antibiotics has a team of infectious disease researchers studying a recently emerged strain of bacteria called Streptococcus dysgalactiae subspecies equisimilis. These infections range in severity from strep throat to flesh-eating disease.
Exposure to particular sources of air pollution is harmful to children's learning and memory
A new study involving 8,500 children from across the United States has revealed that a form of air pollution, largely the product of agricultural emissions, is linked to poor learning and memory performance in 9- and 10-year-olds. The specific pollutant, ammonium nitrate, is also implicated in Alzheimer's and dementia risk in adults, suggesting that PM2.5 may cause neurocognitive harm across the lifespan.
AI tackles huge problem of antimicrobial resistance in intensive care
Artificial intelligence (AI) can provide same-day assessments of antimicrobial resistance for patients in intensive care -- critical to preventing life-threatening sepsis.
New Huntington's treatment prevents protein aggregation
Patients with Huntington's disease have a genetic mutation that triggers proteins to misfold and clump together in the brain. These clumps interfere with cell function and eventually lead to cell death. The new treatment leverages peptide-brush polymers, which act as a shield to prevent proteins from binding to one another. In studies in mice, the treatment successfully rescued neurons to reverse symptoms.
Revolutionary high-speed 3D bioprinter hailed a game changer for drug discovery
Biomedical engineers have invented a 3D printing system, or bioprinter, capable of fabricating structures that closely mimic the diverse tissues in the human body, from soft brain tissue to harder materials like cartilage and bone.
Scientists discover key to preventing neurodegeneration in Parkinson's and related disorders
A team of researchers has uncovered a groundbreaking mechanism in the formation of harmful protein aggregates that lead to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's Disease. The team, led by Professor Norifumi Shioda and Associate Professor Yasushi Yabuki, identified for the first time that unique RNA structures called G-quadruplexes (G4s) play a central role in promoting the aggregation of alpha-synuclein, a protein associated with neurodegeneration. By demonstrating that inhibiting G4 assembly could potentially prevent the onset of synucleinopathies, this discovery positions G4 as a promising target for early intervention in these diseases.
New research has identified crucial links between dietary choices and the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS). The study explored how enzymes called ceramide synthase 5 and 6 are responsible for the toxic effect of a palm oil-rich diet on neurons in the central nervous system, which causes a subsequent increase in the severity of MS symptoms.
Education, occupation, and wealth affect the risk of cognitive impairment
Socioeconomic factors such as education, occupation, and wealth influence the likelihood of developing cognitive impairment or dementia in later life and whether a person is likely to recover, finds a new study.
Closing in on Parkinson's Disease proteins in extracellular vesicles in the blood
Brain disorders like Parkinson's or Alzheimer's Disease start to develop in patients much earlier than when their first clinical symptoms appear. Treating patients at these early stages could slow or even stop their disease, but there is currently no way to diagnose brain disorders at those pre-symptomatic stages.
Expanded protocols promote early detection in high-risk patients and prevent hospital outbreaks of Candida auris.
Researchers challenge longstanding theories in cellular reprogramming
A team led by researchers has discovered that a group of cells located in the skin and other areas of the body, called neural crest stem cells, are the source of reprogrammed neurons found by other researchers. Their findings refute the popular theory in cellular reprogramming that any developed cell can be induced to switch its identity to a completely unrelated cell type through the infusion of transcription factors.
Research shows therapeutic virtual yoga program can be effective for chronic low back pain
Researchers found that a 12-week therapeutic virtual yoga program for chronic low back pain can be a feasible, safe and effective treatment option.