Stem cells act through multiple mechanisms to benefit mice with neurodegenerative disease

This is a very interesting article describing a study done on mice with the neurological disorder Sandhoff's disease (similar to Tay-sachs). It is a form of neuronal lysosomal storage diesases
in which the brain cannot process lipids in the correct way.
The study found that using stem cells (either embryonic or adult) in combination with drugs significantly offset symptoms of the disease and greatly increased the lifespan of the diseased mice. Moreover, the study proved without a doubt that the stem cells were replacing damaged neurons and transmitting electrical signals. The researchers were able to show a level of integration that had not been previously shown in stem cells. While the stem cells would integrate into the system, it was the drugs that reduced the amount of material the cells would need to metabolize that made the difference. Either treatment alone produced inferior results compared to the combination of the drugs.
This article opens the door for many possibilities in stem cell treatment, especially neurological disorders, many of which have no treatment currently.

http://www.burnham.org/default.asp?contentID=422

Bring Back the Dead?

Dr. Lance Becker at the University of Pennsylvania is reported as saying that periods of one hour or greater after cardiac death, when cell cultures are taken of the oxygen starved tissue, the cells are found to be healthy and living. Why then can the patient not be revived? Apparently it is because cell death occurs at the moment of oxygen reperfusion. The mitochondria in the cell sense this sudden increase in oxygen and initiate apoptosis for not yet understood reasons.

So perhaps the current resuscitation procedurs for heart attack patients is actually the worst possible thing to do, attempting to reoxygenate these deoxygenated tissues as fast as possible when actually a slow reperfusion might be what the tissue ordered. In fact this is what has happened: in a study where 34 patients where reperfused slowly, the discharge rate was 80% as opposed to traditional therapy's rate of 15%. Obviously more research needs to be done in this area, imagine being able to resuscitate people from the 'dead' hours after their heart stopped beating?

Thoratec Receives FDA Approval Of Continued Access Protocol For Bridge ARM Of Its HeartMate II(R) Pivotal Trial

The HeartMate II is a continuous flow device designed to provide long-term cardiac support for advanced-stage heart failure patients. An implantable LVAS (Left Ventricular Assist System) powered by a rotary pumping mechanism, the HeartMate II is designed to have a much longer functional life than pulsatile devices and to operate more simply and quietly. The device provides blood flow through the circulatory system on a continuous basis with only one moving part. It is also smaller and easier to implant than pulsatile devices. The company's product line includes the Thoratec(R) VAD and HeartMate LVAS with more than 11,000 devices implanted in patients suffering from heart failure.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=69922

Major Heart Disease Risk Predicted By Genes

Scientists in Canada have found a piece of DNA in the human genome that increases the chances of heart disease by 40 percent, regardless of other factors such as cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. This according to scientist may help other scientists better understand the biology of heart disease. Results have shown that a region on chromosone 9 was strongly linked to premature heart disease and increased risk was regardless of other known risks linked to cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes and smoking.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/healthnews.php?newsid=69846

Statin Treatment Improves Spatial Memory In Mouse Models Of Alzheimer's

Treatment with Simvastatin, one of the statin drugs widely used for lowering cholesterol in humans, significantly improved spatial memory in mice genetically bred to have an Alzheimer's like disease. In addition various studies have found evidence of a strong relationship between memory deficits and high levels of cholesterol in the brain, suggesting that statin's effects on memory might be due to a reduction in cholesterol biosynthesis. Researchers Florida A&M University found that nNOS (neuronal nitric oxide synthase) levels were significantly higher in the hippocampus and cortex of statin treated groups as compared to similar mice that did not receive statin. Furthermore, the levels of nNOS proteins were statistically higher in the hippocampus of the statin treated animals than in the cortex. nNOS is responsible for the release of nitric oxide, a substance that causes dilation of the blood vessels in the brain, which eventually will increase blood flow and improve circulation to the memory region of the brain. These findings suggest that increases in brain nNos levels may play an important role in statin-induced improvement of spatial reference memory.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=69477

Recent Research Links Heart Disease to Gene Mutations in People of European Decent

I found this article interesting after I had already found a similar article on BBC’s health page. Apparently, teams of researchers have a found a gene that links an increased risk in heart disease and heart attacks to people of European descent. The two different studies found this increased risk associated to mutations in gene 9q21. This gene also happens to be located very close to another set of genes that other researchers recently found to be related to an increased risk in diabetes (genes CDKN2A and CDKN2B). The research was published in Science, but the two articles I found are located at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6615237.stm and http://abcnews.go.com/Health/CardiacHealth/wireStory?id=3136607.

5 speed manual transmission artificial heart

The jarvik 2000 is an Left Ventricular Assist Device that we have discussed in class. However after class, I decided to go look into it a bit more. The jarvik 2000 is a "booster pump", or in other words it is not a beating heart, but is run by a rotary propeller which increases and decreases in speed to simulate pumping. This is really of no surprise. However, what is surprising about the jarvik 2000, is that it has an external control for the patient. The patient controls his own cardiac output by the push of a button. i found this quite interesting. The jarvik 2000's control has five speeds, which can be adjusted, depending on the patients current state. If the patient decides to go for a run, all they need to do, is drop into 5th gear and they are off. Then when they are ready to stop and go take a nap, they just slow them selves down by adjusting their heart to a slower pace. i found this to be very interesting and almost humorous as one can notice from the references to a manual transmission.

lap band weight loss surgery doesn't equal diabetes.

A new study from Dr. Joan F. Carroll of the University of North Texas Health Science Center suggests lap band surgery patients are less likely to develop diabetes. According to Carroll, these patients have an increase in sensitivity to the blood-sugar regulating hormone insulin. Lap band surgery involves placing an elastic band around the stomach to regulate the amount of food that can fit into the stomach. A similar surgery known as gastric bypass does not have these positive effects on insulin. These patients are at a much greater risk of developing diabetes.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070502/hl_nm/obesity_surgery_dc

Neonate Ethics

In light of the devise design project I found this article to be of note. Guyer discusses the benefits and costs of neonatal intensive care and examines the question of who should make the decisions about high-tech interventions.

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/reprint/316/5823/374.pdf

Vitamin D and Calcium Linked to Brain Lesions

High amounts of vitamin D and calcium may have a downside – they are being linked to an increased risk for brain lesions. At one time the thinking was that we couldn’t get enough calcium or vitamin D to help prevent osteoporosis and build strong bones, but this study reports that extra calcium may end up in the blood vessel walls. This can have an extremely undesirable effect for somebody with renal disease, impairing the body’s ability to excrete calcium regularly. The researchers have not found extensive results that conclude calcium as being the direct cause, but hypothesize that the calcification of the blood vessels is directly linked to a higher number of brain lesions and cognitive decline.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=high-calcium-and-vitamin&chanID=sa022&modsrc=reuters

Barbeque Isn't as Good as it Tastes...

Before reading this article I thought the only thing that you could get from barbeque was a full stomach and heart disease, but this article was about a study that linked barbeque to breast cancer. A recent study shows the postmenopausal women who eat more red meat and barbeque have a 47% higher risk of developing breast cancer, and if they eat few fruits and veggies on top of that it increases to 74% higher than those who don’t! Although they aren’t exactly sure why this is, it does back current thinking that red meats should be avoided and replaced with a more plant-based diet. As we learned in class polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heterocyclic amines are known carcinogens produced by cooking meat at high temperatures, but these are only found in cooking or grilling red meat and not in fish or poultry. Also, there are cancer-fighting agents found in fruits and veggies, making them a good way to offset that rack of ribs on game day.


http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=barbecue-lovers-may-have&chanId=sa003&modsrc=reuters

Migraines May Help Fight Mental Decline

Once thought to damage brain function by injuring blood flow, migraines may be more beneficial that once believed. A recent study shows that migraines may not be as bad as they seem. In the study, researchers found that people who experience migraines experience less cognitive decline than those who do not. No clear link has been found, but it is quite possible that underlying biological changes associated with migraines may reduce cognitive decline. Other possibilities may be the types of dieting factors that are necessary for some people who experience migraines, or the medications that are used to help fight migraines may also help fight the cognitive decline that comes with age.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/01/health/01patt.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Bug Brains

Scientists attempts to seek out the origins of the brain. How do they do this? They choose to probe insectoid life forms, performing all sorts of brain surgeries and there is even a mapped cockroach brain.

Link

Your Walking Pace reveals secrets about your Health

While it is healthy to walk quickly, studies have shown that the faster a person’s gait the less healthy they are. The fact that the person has a fast gait is not the reason that he or she is unhealthy; however, the walking speed speaks volumes about a person’s lifestyle. In general, those people who walk quickly have a much faster paced life. The speed that the average person walks has increased 10% worldwide since the 1990s. This increase suggests that people are living much faster paced lives than in the past, limiting time for important health factors such as eating and relaxing. People who live a fast paced life eat quickly, speak quickly, they do not exercise as often as they should, nor do they have time to see family and friends as much as they should. In addition, people who live fast-paced lives generally wear watches, constantly check the time, and become impatient more quickly. So, though walking quickly is not a death sentence, if you are a fast-paced person, be sure to slow it down sometimes and leave some room for the other important aspects in life.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6614637.stm

Agkistrodon Contortrix Contortrix Venom is the Next Step in Breast Cancer Treatment

Scientists have isolated a protein from the venom of a Southern Copperhead that has been linked to fighting breast cancer. On a study done using mice the protein, Contortrostatin, proved to stop the growth of implanted breast cancer tumor cells by up to 70%, and even more importantly it proved to stop the spread of cancer to the lungs by 90%. The protein is an isolated form of the cytotoxic venom that doesn’t destroy tissue, but has proven to suspend the tissue and keep it from growing and spreading to other places in the body. This is important because most serious cases of breast cancer arise from the cancer metastasizing to other areas like the lungs. The protein is also beneficial because it doesn’t kill the cells directly, so it doesn’t have the serious side effects of chemotherapy. Instead, it doesn’t allow the cancer to invade the normal cells surrounding it, and it prevents the blood vessels that are necessary for the tumor to continue growing. The protein is still in the testing stage but scientists are very positive about the possibilities of the new drug.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/159054.stm

Small Animal Imaging Gives Cancer Clues

People in the class may already be familiar with Positron emission tomography (PET) which is used for detecting and following cancer in human patients, but this device could never be used for animals such as mice due to their small size. Researchers have developed a PET scanners sensitive enough to use on mice to study cancerous growth in mice similar to humans. This new PET scanners allows study that could be a model to test treatments to slow or stop the transition of tumors and also look further into how cancers develop.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/08/040810092051.htm

Immune problems with Medical Devices

Biomedical devices is one of the fastest growing fields right now, but unfortunately problems with the different components used in the devices can have potentially harmful effects to the body. It is already known that when a biomedical implant is placed within a patient's body, the body's response to the device is to reject it and could end up in device failure. The body reacts to biomaterials and biological components with an inflammatory and immune reaction respectively. If a biomedical device were to combine different components that could have these reactions, then when they may effect each other because they occur simultaneously. More research needs to be done into how the body could respond to these multiple reactions in order to produce proficient biomedical devices.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/02/050223161713.htm

Ultra-fast Laser Allows Efficient, Accessible Nanoscale Machining

University of Michigan researchers have explained how a femtosecond pulsed laser enables extraordinarily precise nanomachining. One of the biggest problems that exists when dealing with nanotechnology is having a way to build and maintain the devices. The ultra-short pulsed laser used at a very high intensity make it possible to cut away amounts small as 20 nanometers and it also has the ability to do 3-D machining. This could provide a great step into nanotechnology and effectively pursuing its field.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040421234914.htm

Lower Calorie Longevity

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleid=4EBC97BA-E7F2-99DF-368844D1C9C7AFBF

While we've "known" that lower calorie intake is linked to longer lives, the reason has eluded us for some time. Researchers have, however, found a gene in worms that plays a role in the mysterious process. Before this, researchers thought the longevity mechanism was controlled by an insulin signaling pathway. However, by screening a set of genes, they found that by removing the gene pha-4, the effect of a longer life would be completely removed by lower caloric intake.

Ultimately, the article provides a very interesting look into that oh-so-hot field of eluding death. Interesting also to see the inverse relationship between "quality" and "quantity". Could lead to some interesting drugs that allow us to consume what we want without the detrimental effects of that increased metabolism.

Eat a lot of beef? It may affect your son's sperm

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=eat-a-lot-of-beef-it-may&chan

interesting article about the effects a diet can have on a son's reproductive abilities. The title speaks for itself and I found it interesting.

Alzheimer's In Mice

In a study published in Nature, a possible new treatment for Alzheimer's was tested on mice. The new drug is called a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. This drug produces the same result in mice as the "enriched environment" therapy, which helps stimulate memory recovery by means of a healthy, enjoyable environment. The drug makes the mouse's brain produce more synapses and dendrites in order to reverse the disease's effects. The success of this drug in mice with brain atrophy -- similar to Alzheimer's -- seems to indicate that degenerative brain disorders do not completely destroy old memories, merely that they prevent access to the stored memories. If this were true, it would mean that even advanced stages of these brain disorders could be treated successfully.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/healthnews.php?newsid=69341

Abortion Pill Compound Prevents Breast Tumor Growth

According to UC Irvine scientists the compound mifepristone prevented breast tumors by inhibiting progesterone in breast tissue cells. It was found the progesterone plays a role in the development of breast cancer by encouraging the proliferation of mammary cells that carry a breast cancer gene. The compound found in the abortion pill can block that response. The study showed that mifepristone affects the function of mutated BRCA-1 genes in tissues. This gene, when mutated, significantly raises the possibility of breast and ovarian cancers. By age 70, more than 50 percent of women with the mutated BRCA-1 gene develop breast or ovarian cancer. Researchers are hopeful that the compound will lead to new options for women with high risk for developing breast cancer. I found this article interesting because there is such a need for a promising treatment to help slow or cease the progression of breast cancer.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061130191559.htm

Virtual reality device helps multiple sclerosis patients walk

Technion-Israel Institute of Technology scientists have created a virtual reality device that combines auditory and visual feedback to improve walking speed and stride length in patients suffering from Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson's disease. According to researchers, the device combines a wearable, cell phone sized audio component that measures body movement and send feedback to the user through earphones with a visual feedback apparatus. The visual component gives a virtual tiled floor image that is displayed on one eye by a tiny piece that clips onto glasses worn by the user. Users are able to distinguish between the virtual floor and real obstacles. Patients showed an average improvement in walking speed of 12.84% and a stride improvement of 8.3% while wearing the device. I found this article very interesting because it is the first device that responds to the patients motions as apposed to providing only visual or auditory cues.

http://www.news-medical.net/?id=24487

Cholesterol Could Be Key To Treating Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

According to a new study in laboratory fish, added cholesterol may help prevent a wide array of physical defects from alcohol exposure. Researchers at Duke University Medical Center found that alcohol blocks the ability of cholesterol to orchestrate the complex series of events in regulation cell fates and organ development in the embryo. Researchers also found that giving supplemental cholesterol to zebrafish embryos exposed to alcohol restored normal development. The findings suggest that giving alcoholics supplemental cholesterol could help slow down or prevent the occurrence of alcoholic liver disease. I found this article interesting because it gives hope to the prevention of defects in infants born to alcoholic mothers.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070308220529.htm

Domestic Violence and Asthma Linked

A new study from researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health finds a strong association between domestic violence and asthma. Research was performed using a large nationally database of 92000 households in India, where domestic violence is highly prevalent. Respondents were asked if anyone in the household suffered from asthma, and also about a personal history of experiencing or witnessing domestic violence. The study found that women who have experienced domestic violence in the past year had a 37% increased risk of asthma. For women who had lived in a household where a woman had been beaten, there was a 21% increased risk of asthma. It is said that the exposure to violence and other stressors is known to affect the immune system and inflammation, which have a role in asthma development. This article caught my attention because I didn’t realize such a thing could aid in the development of this sort of health risk.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070501115040.htm

New Treatment to Quit Smoking: Brain Damage

Researchers at the University of Southern California recently conducted a study that has led them to believe that the insula, a region of the brain tucked into a deep fold in the cerebral cortex, is responsible for addictive behaviors. During brain scans of patients with different addictions such as cigarettes, the brain would light up simply by showing the patients images of people smoking. However, when 19 cigarette smokers who had suffered damage to the insula were tested, 12 of them said that they no longer had the urge to smoke at all. In a similar study with 50 patients that had suffered damage to other parts of the brain, only 4 actually quit that habit.
This article was very interesting to me because it provides a possible way for treating not only addictions to cigarettes but possibly other addictive behaviors.
This is not to say brain damage is recommended to quit smoking, but understanding exactly what part of the brain is affected allows researchers to pinpoint where therapeutic drugs should be targeted.

http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2007/125/1

Annual treatment for osteoporosis

Compared with a dummy pill, an infusion of Aclasta cut the risk of broken hips by 41% and of spinal breaks by 70%. The researchers say that Aclasta, known technically as zoledronic acid, could provide an alternative to other bisphosphonate drugs, which come in pill form and are usually taken every day. Aclasta is administered in a drip form, but the therapy only takes 15 minutes to complete. A total of 7,765 post-menopausal women took part in the latest trial. Half received a 5mg dose of Aclasta once a year for three years, and the rest a dummy drug. Over the three years, 2.5% of the women in the placebo group suffered a hip fracture compared to 1.4% of the women who received Aclasta.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6615725.stm

Diabetes may cut male fertility

Tests showed DNA in sperm from diabetic men had more signs of damage than in men without the condition. Around 52% of the DNA in the sperm cells was fragmented in diabetic men compared with 32% in men without the condition. The study also found a higher rate of deletions of DNA in the mitochondria - tiny, energy-generating compartments found within cells. Semen volume was significantly less in diabetic men, but there were no significant differences in sperm concentration, structure of the sperm or their ability to move.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6615261.stm

left handedness linked to shorter life span

A recent study has linked being left handed to having a shorter life span. A study of over 12,000 Dutch women followed for 13 years found that being left handed gave you a 40% greater risk of death by any cause, 70% greater risk of dying from cancer, and 30% higher risk of death from circulatory disease. The study is based off the belief that left handedness is caused by an insult early in life that will eventually lead to a premature death. The results of the experiment are far from conclusive, but are nonetheless intriguing. Read the rest of the article here...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/05/01/left.handed.reut/index.html

(being a baseball player, I will forever be jealous of lefties)

Adult stem cells may have smarts to guard against cancer

Some bewildering behavior seen in the stem cells of muscles has led researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine to an unexpected discovery that could explain why cancer isn’t more common. Stem cells found in adult tissues, such as muscles, brain or bone marrow, survive the lifetime of an animal, dividing when needed to replace cells lost to the ravages of bodily wear and tear. Every time that cell divides, it produces one offspring that becomes the new stem cell and one shorter-lived cell that replaces the body’s tissues. In order to split one cell into two, the original must essentially photocopy its genome and then divvy up material so that each cell gets one of every chromosome. Each round of photocopying introduces new genetic errors, some of which could derail essential functions and drive the cell toward cancer.
Cairns suggested that adult stem cells might avoid cancer by shuffling off the newly created, error-ridden chromosome to the offspring that becomes an adult body cell. That keeps the pristine original chromosomes for the long-lived stem cell.

http://med.stanford.edu/research/spotlight/archive/rando-thomas.html

Hormone therapy may prevent Alzheimer's

A recent study shows that starting hormone therapy before the age of 65 may actually decrease the risk of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. This conflicts previous findings that after the age of 65, hormone therapy actually increases the risk of Alzheimer's. It was previously found that decreased levels of estrogen in the brain of women could actually increase the chances of getting Alzheimer's, thus the inspiration for the previous study regarding HRT (hormone replacement therapy). The current study is based purely on observations of women who started HRT before the age of 65, and is less reliable than clinical studies. It was found that women that started estrogen replacement before the age of 65 were 50% less likely to develop Alzheimer's. The biological explanation is based off of preventing the brain from ever "seeing" menopause. In women that start the HRT later, their brains have already "seen" menopause, thus leading to the different results. see the rest of the article here...

http://health.yahoo.com/news/174736;_ylt=AtQBa3Sczn2ONoiTCBHYCPOmxbAB

bone drugs may cause unexpected heart problems

According to this article, research done recently has found a correlation between two similar osteoporosis drugs and irregular heart rhythms. Reclast and Fosamax are two drugs in this class that have been, until now, proven to be almost side effect free. The risk of the side effect is still believed to be minimal, however studies are being done to make sure there isn't a greater risk than was originally thought. In the case of Reclast, it has been proven to be equally as effective as other drugs in the same class, but has almost double the risk of developing the heart arrhythmia as those on other drugs. So far, studies have shown that the overall risk of cardiac death is still tiny and the risk of developing the irregular rhythm is still small. Both drugs fall into the class of biphosphates, and further studies are being done to ensure the safety of the drugs.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/conditions/05/02/bone.drugs.ap/index.html

calorie reduction and longevity: genetic connection

According to this article I found, reducing calorie intake also has genetic background for increasing longevity. The "gene known as pha-4, which is involved in the embryonic development of the intestine in the C. elegans roundworm". This gene is very important in embryogenesis and is therefore connected to the aging process. In many studies, it has been proven that a near starvation diet can improve longevity by up to 40%. The risk of a near starvation diet is not worth the benefit of the increased longevity, but researchers believe by targeting this gene, you can increase longevity without having the meager diet. The main studies are being done on roundworms, and it has been found that this pha-4 gene is essential for the increase in longevity associated with the decreased food intake. There is a similar gene found in humans, and the question that is being raised is whether or not this gene can be modified and still have the longevity effects with a normal diet.

http://health.yahoo.com/news/174731;_ylt=AnNn6LIRpAc4yL6PUohAAQymxbAB

Breast Cancer Research

New research done in the field of breast cancer has yielded interesting results. It seems that the progression of breast cancer can be slowed down by the reintrodcution of a protein that is normally absent in breast cancer cells, Fibulin-2. The exact mechanism is not known but multiple theories exist. A common problem with breast cancer is resistance to tamoxifen. Tamoxifen is used in cancer cells that display the estrogen receptor (ER). Research is being done on other factors that could influence sensitivity to tamoxifen and the impications thereof. Research has also shown that by activating or inhibiting certain signal pathways, cells can model normal cells rather than dense cancerous cell growths. More research has shown that there is a possibility that cancer cell DNA can be made available to enzymatic digestion.

All of these advancements will surely contribute to future development and research of breast cancer treatments. The full article can be found at http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=69180

Tai chi: An ancient art that helps the heart

According to this website post that I found, doing tai chi might help a person with heart failure. I wished they would have gone a little into how they found out about the connection. When Harvard tested the hypothesis, they found that the people who did the tai chi exercises proved to be able to walk further without losing their breathe.

There were two reasons that this might occur. One was that the movements of tai chi require bent legs which would help strengthen the leg muscle. The other was that the deep breaths also required in tai chi would help a person raise their blood-oxygen levels and ease breathlessness.

Of courses their are skeptics. Also stated in this article is that these people may just do better from the added attention. I personally believe that the added exercise did help despite the arguments of skeptics. Getting a person with heart failure up and moving is a good thing. It will help their heart and body to become stronger.

http://health.msn.com/centers/cardio/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100100798

Pistachios May Reduce Heart Disease

According to a study done at Penn. State, pistachios can drastically reduce the amount of LDL cholesterol in a person, thereby reducing the person's risk of heart disease. It also seems that the pistachios accomplish this based on the amount at which they are consumed. For example, the study showed that people who consumed 1.5 ounces (one handful) of pistachios a day had their overall blood cholesterol lowered; but, the study subjects who consumed 3 ounces (two handfuls) of pistachios a day not only had their overall blood cholesterol reduced but also had their ratio of LDL/HDL reduced. This study seems promising and may provide a good treatment for those who suffer from high cholesterol.


http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/society/health/pistachios+reduce+cholesterol/484957

Magnetically Induced Power Nap

In the deepest stages of sleep brain patterns exhibit what is called slow wave activity. At this stage in the sleep cycle, electrical waves appear to pulse across the brain once a second. Slow wave activity is associated with improved mood, learning abilities, and cognitive performance. People who experience insomnia or other sleep disorders may not be able to reap the benefits of slow wave sleep. Thus, researchers in the United States have developed a way of inducing slow wave activity in the brain during sleep. Giulio Tononi and his colleagues have developed a method of using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to induce slow waves in sleeping patients. The magnetic signal is essentially harmless, and the brain activity recorded matches the desired wave form. Although the production of slow wave activity has been accomplished, it has yet to be determined whether or not this therapy results in the same benefits as natural deep sleep. If the magnetically induced deep sleep were to have similar benefits, the TMS therapy could be used to treat insomnia and other sleeping disorders. Also, the device could be used to optimize sleep by allowing a power nap to reap the same benefits of eight hours of sleep.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6614433.stm

Of Dieting and Soup

In recent research done at Penn. State, eating a bowl of soup before a meal has proven to lessen the amount of calories eaten during the proceeding courses. From what has been taught in class, I would venture to guess that this is due to the soup causing the gastric stretch receptors to register "satiation," while not actually providing the abhorrent amount of calories present in other foods. This provides a lower-calorie alternative to fulfill your appetite. However, of course, there are certain soups for which this would obviously not be the case, namely, thick, cream-based soups.



http://health.yahoo.com/news/174680;_ylt=AsfVfUvH8WNWJe9pvdNf0HCmxbAB

New Brain Surgical Techniques

The Miracle on Ice

http://health.msn.com/general/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100158313&GT1=10008


Interesting article about the use of cooling techniques in brain surgery. By cooling to 91.4 Fahrenheit it turns out to be possible to slow brain cell metabolism so that it's possible to conduct an operation that would usually take too long and render the brain dead. Inducing hypothermia is slowly beginning to be seen as a valid surgical technique.

When bloodflow is cut off to the brain, such as in a stroke, the cells begin releasing glutamate, calcium, free radicals etc. that lead to necrosis. Somehow, mild hypothermia slows this down. This particular technique brings about philosophical questions but ultimately the advantages of this technique lie in it's potential to treat stroke and other such diseases.

To Treat the Dead

This article presumes to rethink the idea of death, specifically in the case of a miocardial infarction. Originally, it was thought that cells die within the first few minutes of a heart attack, but according to Dr. Lance Becker, cells actually die when oxygen is perfused back into the blood. Therefore, emergency rooms have been not only not been helping the condition by quickly restarting the heart and perfusing oxygen, but also killing the very cells that they are trying to rescue. A study "showed a remarkable rate of success in treating sudden cardiac arrest with an approach that involved, among other things, a "cardioplegic" blood infusion to keep the heart in a state of suspended animation. Patients were put on a heart-lung bypass machine to maintain circulation to the brain until the heart could be safely restarted. The study involved just 34 patients, but 80 percent of them were discharged from the hospital alive. In one study of traditional methods, the figure was about 15 percent."

'Gym pill' trips fat-burning gene

The Salk Institute team has developed a drug that can switch on a fat burning gene. Mice on a high-fat diet with no exercise resisted weight gain. The drug turns the PPAR-delta gene on. This same gene is activated during exercise. The pill would be used to prevent obesity-related diseases, not to offer easy six-packs. Although the drug assists in fat burning, the researchers warn that it is probably not as beneficial as true exercise. Human trials will begin soon.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6599013.stm

Drinking 'fuels growth of tumour'

A study from the University of Mississippi has shown that drinking even just two alcoholic drinks a day fuels the growth of breast cancer. Currently, breast cancer patients are told to moderate their alcohol consumption. In the study, mice were injected with breast cancer cells. The mice that were given the equivalent of two alcoholic drinks a day developed tumors twice the size of the control mice. They found that alcohol consumption increases the expression of the protein VEGF. This protein helps tumors grow by spurring blood vessel development. It has been known for a long time that alcohol can lead to the development of breast cancer. This research show what happens once the cancer is there.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6611009.stm

Aspirin may increase stroke risk

A new study has shown that elderly people who take aspirin daily to reduce the chance of stroke may actually be increasing their risk. The study shows that the proportion of stroke patients on antithrombotic drugs has risen from 4% to 40% in two decades. People with cardiovascular disease often take aspirin by prescription in order to prevent heart attack or stroke. Many healthy older people also take aspirin daily as a lifestyle choice in order to ward off stroke. The study shows that this probably does more harm than good.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6610713.stm

Gene Therapy

Doctors at London's Moorfields Eye Hospital became the first in the world to use gene therapy to treat an eye disorder. As reported by the BBC, doctors injected copies of a gene into a man's retina to replace his faulty gene. The delicate surgery was performed essentially perfectly, the doctors could not have been happier. So far the results are promising, but it will be months before any conclusions can be drawn about the success of the operation.

Intracellular Calcium

It is a well established fact that intracellular calcium concentrations are extremely important for cell function. This article looks specifically at calcium stores in skeletal muscle. Evidence has indicated that calcium stores in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) are replenished with extracellular calcium by some unknown mechanism. It is hypothesized that the calcium is entering through a channel on the plasma membrane. The aim of this study was to find the current caused by this calcium influx. The researchers monitored intracellular and whole cell voltages and used a fluorescent dye to track the calcium. Surprisingly, they were not able to find anything that would indicate a SR store dependent calcium influx. Based on these results, they believe that there might not be any calcium influx that solely depends on SR store levels and that the SR stores are replenished with cytoplasmic calcium that entered the cell independently. Unfortunately, their results are inconclusive and the controversy continues.

New Evidence in the Development of Human Language

US Researches have new solid evidence about the development of human language. Great apes, such as chimpanzees, bonobos, orang-utans, and gorillas, use body language, gestures, to communicate along with the vocalizations and facial expressions. The discovery is an additional key in how humans developed language. The researchers observed the great apes gesturing to other apes using their right hands to relay on specific messages. In different situations, the same gesture can mean different things; however, this specific gesture, offering the right arm with an open hand, was used in three different, but consistent, situations. In one situation, the ape offering his hand to another ape was begging for food. After a fight, this gesture is a peace offering, paralleling the human behavior to offer to shake an opponents hand after a fight. Finally, a male gesturing to a female ape in this manner was an invitation to have sex. The most interesting development with these gestures is the consistent use of the right hand, the hand operated by the left side the brain, the home to the language control center in humans. This really is an interesting article and you should check it out at:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6610447.stm