Body

ATS 2013, PHILADELPHIA – Optimal treatment of sleep apnea in patients with prediabetes improves blood sugar (glucose) levels and thus can reduce cardiometabolic risk, according to a study to be presented at the ATS 2013 International Conference in Philadelphia.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Researchers at Mayo Clinic have developed a promising method to distinguish between pancreatic cancer and chronic pancreatitis — two disorders that are difficult to tell apart. A molecular marker obtained from pancreatic "juices" can identify almost all cases of pancreatic cancer, their study shows.

ATS 2013, PHILADELPHIA ─ Gourmands and foodies everywhere have long recognized ginger as a great way to add a little peppery zing to both sweet and savory dishes; now, a study from researchers at Columbia University shows purified components of the spicy root also may have properties that help asthma patients breathe more easily.

The results of the study will be presented at the ATS 2013 International Conference.

A new study shows how complex biochemical transformations may have been possible under conditions that existed when life began on the early Earth.

The study shows that RNA is capable of catalyzing electron transfer under conditions similar to those of the early Earth. Because electron transfer, the moving of an electron from one chemical species to another, is involved in many biological processes – including photosynthesis, respiration and the reduction of RNA to DNA – the study's findings suggest that complex biochemical transformations may have been possible when life began.

NEW YORK, NY (May 19, 2013) — In their quest to learn more about the variability of cells between and within tissues, biomedical scientists have devised tools capable of simultaneously measuring dozens of characteristics of individual cells. These technologies have led to new challenges, however, as scientists now struggle with how to make sense of the resulting trove of data. Now a solution may be at hand.

Residents of Manhattan will not just sweat harder from rising temperatures in the future, says a new study; many may die. Researchers say deaths linked to warming climate may rise some 20 percent by the 2020s, and, in some worst-case scenarios, 90 percent or more by the 2080s. Higher winter temperatures may partially offset heat-related deaths by cutting cold-related mortality—but even so, annual net temperature-related deaths might go up a third.

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have turned their view of osteoarthritis (OA) inside out. Literally. Instead of seeing the painful degenerative disease as a problem primarily of the cartilage that cushions joints, they now have evidence that the bone underneath the cartilage is also a key player and exacerbates the damage. In a proof-of-concept experiment, they found that blocking the action of a critical bone regulation protein in mice halts progression of the disease.

Orlando, FL (May 18, 2013) — The use of a smartphone application significantly improves patients' preparation for a colonoscopy, according to new research presented today at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW). The preparation process, which begins days in advance of the procedure, includes dietary restrictions and requires specific bowel preparation medication to be taken at strict intervals. The better the preparation, the easier it is for doctors to see cancer and precancerous polyps in the colon.

Research presented today at Digestive Disease Week explores new discoveries in liver disease research, with findings about the impact of coffee on autoimmune disease and palliative care for cirrhotic patients.

Orlando, FL (May 18, 2013) — An increasing number of U.S. children are experiencing gastrointestinal issues that require interventions to resolve, according to research presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW).

In 2008, researchers from the University of Southern Denmark showed that the drug thioridazine, which has previously been used to treat schizophrenia, is also a powerful weapon against antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as staphylococci (Staphylococcus aureus).

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a huge problem all over the world: For example, 25 - 50 per cent of the inhabitants in southern Europe are resistant to staphylococci. In the Scandinavian countries it is less than 5 per cent, but also here the risk of resistance is on the rise.

In the race to protect society from infectious microbes, the bugs are outrunning us. The need for new therapeutic agents is acute, given the emergence of novel pathogens as well as old foes bearing heightened antibiotic resistance.

Shelley Haydel, a researcher at Arizona State University's Biodesign Institute has a new approach to developing effective, topical antibacterial agents — one that draws on a naturally occurring substance recognized since antiquity for its medicinal properties: clay.

Many women in Texas who are found to have an abnormality on routine mammogram or discover a lump in one of their breasts end up having an old-fashioned surgical biopsy to find out whether the breast abnormality is malignant. Since 2001, national expert panels have recommended that the first course of action for women with breast lumps or masses should be minimally invasive biopsy.

Researchers at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and City University of New York have invented a proprietary new formulation called VisikolTM that effectively clears organisms to be viewed under microscopes. Visikol can be used in place of chloral hydrate, which is one of the few high-quality clearing solutions currently available but which is tightly regulated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) due to its use as a narcotic.

CHAMPAIGN, lll. — New research indicates that women's reproductive function may be tied to their immune status. Previous studies have found this association in human males, but not females.

The study appears in the American Journal of Human Biology.