Body

Freezing sperm taken directly from testicles is effective option for infertile couples

Frozen sperm taken by biopsy from testicles in men with no sperm in their semen is as effective as fresh sperm taken by biopsy in helping couples conceive through in vitro fertilization (IVF), according to a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

The researchers also determined that the type of facility where sperm is taken and its distance from the IVF laboratory has no bearing on pregnancy outcomes.

Community pharmacies are effective locations for rapid HIV testing

August 6, 2013 – (BRONX, NY) – Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that community-based pharmacies can be effective locations for offering rapid HIV testing, diagnosing HIV, and connecting those who test positive with medical care quickly. The study is in the August edition of the journal AIDS Patient Care and STDs.

Research looks into lessening the danger of cholesterol-lowering statin drugs

LONDON, ON – Statins, a class of drugs used to lower cholesterol, are among the best selling drugs in North America and around the world. However, statin myopathy, which results in muscle pain and weakness, is a common side effect affecting up to 10 percent of statin users. A recent study led by Dr. Richard Kim of the Lawson Health Research Institute, in collaboration with Dr.

Dartmouth-led team discovers how plants avoid sunburn

A Dartmouth-led team has discovered a group of stress-related proteins that explains how plants avoid sunburn in intense light, a finding that one day could help biotechnologists to develop crops that can better cope with hotter, drier conditions occurring in climate change.

A summer in the country can inspire physicians to practice in rural areas, MU study finds

COLUMBIA, Mo. — According to a recent study, the Summer Community Program offered by the University of Missouri School of Medicine has made a significant impact on physician access in rural communities. The 15-year study showed medical school graduates involved in the program not only entered family practice residency training at higher rates than nonparticipants, but nearly half began their medical careers in rural locations.

Altering organic molecules' interaction with light

Enhancing and manipulating the light emission of organic molecules is at heart of many important technological and scientific advances, including in the fields of organic light emitting devices, bio-imaging, bio-molecular detection. Researchers at MIT have now discovered a new platform that enables dramatic manipulation of the emission of organic molecules when simply suspended on top of a carefully designed planar slab with a periodic array of holes: so-called photonic crystal surface.

Scientists discover key to easing aquaculture's reliance on wild-caught fish

BALTIMORE, MD (August 6, 2013)— For the first time scientists have been able to develop a completely vegetarian diet that works for marine fish raised in aquaculture, the key to making aquaculture a sustainable industry as the world's need for protein increases. The findings led by Aaron Watson and Allen Place at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science's Institute for Marine and Environmental Technology, are published in the August issue of the journal Lipids.

Does physician verbal abuse create a bad working environment -- or the reverse?

A recent study by the RN Work Project found that newly licensed registered nurses (NLRNs) who were verbally abused by nursing colleagues reported lower job satisfaction, unfavorable perceptions of their work environment, and greater intent to leave their current jobs. Now, a new study by the same research team finds that high levels of physician verbal abuse are closely associated with more negative work environments. The RN Work Project is a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Weight loss surgery alters fatty liver disease genes

Research has shown that weight loss surgery can benefit obese individuals in ways that go beyond shedding pounds, for example by causing early remission of type 2 diabetes. Now scientists have found that the surgery can also reverse the symptoms of fatty liver disease. The findings, which are to be published online on August 6 in the Cell Press journal Cell Metabolism, are derived from research on liver samples in normal and obese patients—some with fatty liver disease and some without fatty liver disease.

Women in large urban areas at higher risk of postpartum depression

Women living in large urban centres in Canada with more than 500 000 inhabitants were at higher risk of postpartum depression than women in other areas, according to a study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

Let's have lunch! -- teachers eating with their students provides nutrition education opportunities

Philadelphia, PA, August 6, 2013 – Much attention has focused on school meals, both in the United States and across the globe. Researchers at Uppsala University, Sweden, evaluated teachers eating lunch with the school children. In Sweden, this practice is referred to as "pedagogic meals" because it offers the opportunity of having children learn by modeling adults. The researchers wanted to observe how the teachers interacted with the children during meals in order to better understand how to interpret results of this practice.

Exercise may reduce heart disease risk in liver transplant recipients

New research reveals that metabolic syndrome—risk factors that can lead to heart disease and/or stroke—is common in liver transplant recipients, with rates highest at one year following the procedure. Findings published in Liver Transplantation, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the International Liver Transplantation Society, indicate that exercise could reduce complications from metabolic disease in patients post-transplantation.

Family matters: Evolutionary relationships among species of 'magic' mushrooms shed light on fungi

"Magic" mushrooms are well known for their hallucinogenic properties. Until now, less has been known about their evolutionary development and how they should be classified in the fungal Tree of Life. New research helps uncover the evolutionary past of a fascinating fungi that has wide recreational use and is currently under investigation for a variety of medicinal applications.

Why tumors become drug-resistant

CAMBRIDGE, Mass-- Cancer drugs known as ErbB inhibitors have shown great success in treating many patients with lung, breast, colon and other types of cancer. However, ErbB drug resistance means that many other patients do not respond, and even among those who do, tumors commonly come back.

Illinois scientists put cancer-fighting power back into frozen broccoli

URBANA, Ill. – There was bad news, then good news from University of Illinois broccoli researchers this month. In the first study, they learned that frozen broccoli lacks the ability to form sulforaphane, the cancer-fighting phytochemical in fresh broccoli. But a second study demonstrated how the food industry can act to restore the frozen vegetable's health benefits.