Body

Gene required for radiation-induced protective pigmentation also promotes survival of melanoma cells

Scientists have new insight into the response of human skin to radiation and what drives the most aggressive and deadly form of skin cancer. The research, published by Cell Press in the November 21st issue of the journal Molecular Cell, may be useful in the design of new strategies for prevention of malignant melanoma.

Despite national guidelines, private insurers, ER, federal and state agencies fail to routinely test for HIV

WASHINGTON, DC (November 20, 2008)— While the U.S. AIDS epidemic simmers largely unnoticed by most Americans, a failure to widely implement routine HIV testing continues to fuel its spread, HIV researchers and experts said today. Almost 60,000 Americans were infected with HIV last year, and, nationwide, 50-to-70 percent of new sexually transmitted infections are spread by people who do not know they are infected.Guidelines issued two years ago by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that all Americans ages 13-64 be routinely tested in all healthcare settings.

Children of centenarians live longer, have lower risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes

Boston, Mass. – November 20, 2008 - A recent study appearing in the November issue of Journal of American Geriatrics Society revealed that centenarian offspring (children of parents who lived to be at least 97 years old) retain important cardiovascular advantages from their parents compared to a similarly-aged cohort. The study is the first to assess the health of centenarian offspring over time and could be important for future research, as the subjects may be used as a model of healthy aging.

New technique eliminates toxic drugs in islet transplant in diabetic mice

CHICAGO -- The body's immune system hates strangers. When its security patrol spots a foreign cell, it annihilates it.

This is the problem when people with type 1 diabetes undergo human islet cell transplantation. The islet cells from a donor pancreas produce robust amounts of insulin for the recipient -- often permitting independence from insulin therapy. However, the immune system tries to kill the new hard-working islets.

Bad cholesterol inhibits the breakdown of peripheral fat

[PRESS RELEASE, 20 November 2008] The so called bad cholesterol (LDL) inhibits the breakdown of fat in cells of peripheral deposits, according to a study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet. The discovery reveals a novel function of LDL as a regulator of fat turnover besides its well-established detrimental effects in promoting atherosclerosis.

New method for tracing metal pollution back to its sources

A new way of pinpointing where zinc pollution in the atmosphere comes from could improve pollution monitoring and regulation, says research out this week in the journal Analytical Chemistry.

Imperial College London researchers say their work is a major breakthrough as current methods for analysing zinc pollution only measure pollution in the atmosphere; they do not trace it back to its source.

Stopping germs from ganging up on humans

Keeping germs from cooperating can delay the evolution of drug resistance more effectively than killing germs one by one with traditional drugs such as antibiotics, according to new research from The University of Arizona in Tucson.

John W. Pepper proposes a new strategy in the arms race between humans and germs-- targeting the teamwork within gangs of germs.

Most drugs used to fight infections kill the vulnerable disease-causing organisms, or pathogens, but the resistant ones survive. The next generation will all carry the resistance to the drug.

Surgeons perform world's first pediatric robotic bladder reconstruction

A 10-year-old Chicago girl born with an abnormally small bladder that made her incontinent has become the first patient to benefit from a new robotic-assisted bladder-reconstruction method developed by surgeons at the University of Chicago Medical Center.

The surgeons describe their innovative technique in the December 2008 issue of the journal Urology. They have now performed the operation, using the DaVinci robotic surgical system, six times, with good results and no significant complications.

Biomarkers used to predict chronological and physiological age

Scientists at the Buck Institute for Age Research have identified for the first time biomarkers of aging which are highly predictive of both chronological and physiological age. Biomarkers are biochemical features that can be used to measure the progress of disease or the effects of treatment. The research involves nematode worms, microarrays which measure changes in gene expression, and complex computer algorithms. This is the first step toward identifying similar biomarkers in humans which would provide a means of scientifically validating anti-aging therapies.

Genetic screening no better than traditional risk factors for predicting type 2 diabetes

Screening for a panel of gene variants associated with the risk for type 2 diabetes can identify adults at risk for the disorder but is not significantly better than assessment based on traditional risk factors such as weight, blood pressure and blood sugar levels. A multi-institutional research team, led by a Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) physician, reports their analysis of data from the Framingham Heart Study in the November 20 New England Journal of Medicine.

Kidney injury puts elderly individuals at high risk for developing serious kidney disease

Acute kidney injury (AKI)—which is often caused by trauma, illness, or surgery—predisposes elderly individuals to the most serious form of chronic kidney disease (CKD), known as end stage renal disease (ESRD), according to a study appearing in the January 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). The findings indicate that close medical follow-up is important for maintaining the health of patients who have experienced kidney damage.

Very low birth weight is a risk factor for 1 cause of CKD

Individuals who were underweight at birth are at increased risk of developing a condition called secondary focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, according to a study appearing in the January 2009 issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). Because birth history is often overlooked by kidney specialists who take care of adult patients, this risk factor is likely to be under-recognized.

Landmark study defines benefits of early HIV testing and treatment for infected infants

Testing very young babies for HIV and giving antiretroviral therapy (ART) immediately to those found infected with the virus dramatically prevents illness and death, according to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study found that giving ART to HIV-infected infants beginning at an average age of 7 weeks made them four times less likely to die in the next 48 weeks, compared with postponing ART until signs of illness or a weakened immune system appeared--the standard of care when the study began.

Survival of head and neck cancer patients is greatly affected by coexisting ailments

Current estimates for head and neck cancer survival are largely inaccurate because they widely disregard many of the most common diseases such patients have in addition to their primary cancer, says Jay Piccirillo, M.D., a head and neck specialist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the Siteman Cancer Center and Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

This highlights a broader problem with cancer survival statistics, which generally don't take into account the effect of co-existing conditions, or comorbidities, according to Piccirillo.

Climate change opens new avenue for spread of invasive plants

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Plants that range northward because of climate change may be better at defending themselves against local enemies than native plants.

So concludes a team of scientists including a University of Florida geneticist. The team's findings, reported in today's online edition of Nature, suggest that certain plants could become invasive if they spread to places that were previously too cold for them.