ERSD, heart disease and African-Americans with hypertensive nephrosclerosis

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For most patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), the risk of experiencing a cardiovascular related death is greater than the risk of progressing to end-stage renal disease (ESRD). According to research being presented at the American Society of Nephrology's 41st Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, African Americans with CKD caused by high blood pressure (hypertensive nephrosclerosis) demonstrated a higher risk of progressing to ESRD than dying from heart disease related events.

Study compares survival following different heart disease treatments in patients with ESRD

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For patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) on dialysis who also must be treated for heart disease, stents provide the best one-year survival compared with other revascularization treatments, but bypass surgery provides the best long-term survival, according to a paper being presented at the American Society of Nephrology's 41st Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

UC Davis researchers discover Achilles' heel in pancreatic cancer

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UC Davis Cancer Center researchers have discovered a metabolic deficiency in pancreatic cancer cells that can be used to slow the progress of the deadliest of all cancers.

Published in the October issue of the International Journal of Cancer, study results indicate that pancreatic cancer cells cannot produce the amino acid arginine, which plays an essential role in cell division, immune function and hormone regulation. By depleting arginine levels in cell cultures and animal models, the team was able to significantly reduce pancreatic cancer-cell proliferation.

Growing problem for veterans: Domestic violence

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"The increasing number of veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) raises the risk of domestic violence and its consequences on families and children in communities across the United States," says Monica Matthieu, Ph.D., an expert on veteran mental health and an assistant professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis.

Visualizing asthma-causing immune cells at work

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Immune cells known as eosinophils have a central role in causing asthma. Now, a team of researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, has developed approaches to noninvasively visualize in real-time eosinophil responses in the lungs and airways of mice with a disease that mimics asthma (experimental allergic airway inflammation); they hope that these approaches might be developed to help assess the efficacy of treatments (both old and new) for the disease.

Turtles alter nesting dates due to temperature change says ISU researcher

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AMES, Iowa -- Turtles nesting along the Mississippi River and other areas are altering their nesting dates in response to rising temperatures, says a researcher from Iowa State University.

Fred Janzen, a professor in ecology, evolution and organismal biology, has studied turtle nesting habits and also accumulated research going back decades in order to track the habits of the turtles to find out when they make nests and lay eggs.

Dry spells spelled trouble in ancient China

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Chinese history is replete with the rise and fall of dynasties, but researchers now have identified a natural phenomenon that may have been the last straw for some of them: a weakening of the summer Asian Monsoons.

Such weakening accompanied the fall of three dynasties and now could be lessening precipitation in northern China.

Results of the study, led by researchers from the University of Minnesota and Lanzhou University in China, appear in this week's issue of the journal Science.

Researchers find predictive tests and early treatment delay progression of blood cell cancer

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ROCHESTER, Minn. - Mayo Clinic researchers say they have moved closer to their goal of providing personalized care for a common blood cell cancer. They have found that the use of predictive biomarkers along with two targeted treatments significantly delays the need for conventional chemotherapy in patients with early-stage, but high-risk, chronic lymphoid leukemia (CLL).

New advancements in the use of adult, embryonic stem cells for tissue regeneration

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Indianapolis, Ind. – November 06, 2008 – A major issue in the development of regenerative medicine is the cell sources used to rebuild damaged tissues. In a review of the issue published in Developmental Dynamics, researchers state that inducing regeneration in humans from the body's own tissues by chemical means is feasible, though many questions must be answered before the process can reach clinical status.

Experts discuss future of public health research on Down syndrome

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Atlanta, Ga. – November 06, 2008 – Down syndrome, the most commonly identified cause of cognitive impairment, occurs in approximately 1-in-700 births in the United States. Additionally, nearly 80 percent of fetuses with Down syndrome are lost before birth.