SGR 0418 and a hidden population of exotic neutron stars

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Magnetars – the dense remains of dead stars that erupt sporadically with bursts of high-energy radiation – are some of the most extreme objects known in the Universe. A major campaign using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and several other satellites shows magnetars may be more diverse – and common – than previously thought.

The secret lives, and deaths, of neurons

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – As the human body fine-tunes its neurological wiring, nerve cells often must fix a faulty connection by amputating an axon — the "business end" of the neuron that sends electrical impulses to tissues or other neurons. It is a dance with death, however, because the molecular poison the neuron deploys to sever an axon could, if uncontained, kill the entire cell.

Hormone signal drives motor neuron growth, fish study shows

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A discovery made in fish could aid research into motor neuron disease.

Scientists have found that a key hormone allows young zebrafish to develop and replace their motor neurons – a kind of nerve cell found in the spinal cord.

The discovery may aid efforts to create neurons from stem cells in the lab, and support further research into a disorder for which there is still no cure.

Schools should provide opportunities for 60 minutes of daily physical activity to all students

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Improved chemo regimen for childhood leukemia may offer high survival, no added heart toxicity

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Adult day services for dementia patients provide stress relief to family caregivers

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Family caregivers of older adults with dementia are less stressed and their moods are improved on days when dementia patients receive adult day services (ADS), according to Penn State researchers.

"Caregivers who live with and care for someone with dementia can experience extraordinary amounts of stress," said Steven Zarit, professor and head, human development and family studies. "The use of adult day services appears to provide caregivers with a much-needed break that can possibly protect them from the negative health effects caused by chronic stress."

Schools should provide students with daily physical activity, IOM recommends

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HOUSTON – (May 23, 2013) – A new report from the Institute of Medicine says schools should be responsible for helping pupils engage in at least 60 minutes of vigorous or moderate intensity activity during each school day.

No more than half of American youth meet current evidence-based guidelines of at least an hour of vigorous or moderate intensity physical activity daily, according to the report, which was released today.

Researchers find common childhood asthma unconnected to allergens or inflammation

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NEW YORK (May 23, 2013) -- Little is known about why asthma develops, how it constricts the airway or why response to treatments varies between patients. Now, a team of researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College, Columbia University Medical Center and SUNY Downstate Medical Center has revealed the roots of a common type of childhood asthma, showing that it is very different from other asthma cases.

Depression common among children with temporal lobe epilepsy

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A new study determined that children and adolescents with seizures involving the temporal lobe are likely to have clinically significant behavioral problems and psychiatric illness, especially depression. Findings published in Epilepsia, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), highlight the importance of routine psychiatric evaluation for pediatric epilepsy patients—particularly for those who do not respond to anti-seizure medications and require epilepsy surgery.

First successful treatment of pediatric cerebral palsy with autologous cord blood

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