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Munich, Germany: A new study has revealed how stem cells work to improve lung function in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).

Previous studies have shown that stem cells can reduce lung inflammation and restore some function in ARDS, but experts are not sure how this occurs. The new study, which was presented at the European Respiratory Society's International Congress today (09 September 2014), brings us a step closer to understanding the mechanisms that occur within an injured lung.

Munich, Germany: A new study has found that factors, such as birth weight, gestational age at birth and lung function, growth and other measures at 8 years, can be used to predict lung function during mid to late teenage years.

The study, presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) International Congress in Munich today (9 September 2014), is part of a growing area of research aiming to understand how early life factors have an impact on the development of disease into adulthood.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Sept. 9, 2014 – Regenerative medicine researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center have addressed a major challenge in the quest to build replacement kidneys in the lab. Working with human-sized pig kidneys, the scientists developed the most successful method to date to keep blood vessels in the new organs open and flowing with blood. The work is reported in journal Technology.

INDIANAPOLIS -- What do skipping school, failing tests and engaging in risky sexual behavior have in common? Lots, according to Indiana University researchers who combed through 80,000 diary entries written by 14- to 17-year-old girls.

Researchers have identified a novel virus that could be the source of a severe, sometimes fatal respiratory disease that has been observed in captive ball pythons since the 1990s. The work is published this week in mBio®, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

Premature infants are at increased risk for a potentially lethal gastrointestinal disease called necrotizing enterocolitis, or NEC. Studies conducted by researchers at Children's Hospital Los Angeles demonstrate that a protein called neuregulin-4 (NRG4)—present in breast milk, but absent from formula—may be protective against the intestinal destruction caused in NEC. Their results will be published online on September 9 in advance of the print edition of the American Journal of Pathology.

PITTSBURGH, Sept. 9, 2014 – A man's likelihood of accumulating fat around his heart – an important indicator of heart disease risk – may be better determined if doctors consider his race and ethnicity, as well as where on his body he's building up excess fat, reveals an international evaluation led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

ORLANDO, FL – SEPTEMBER 9, 2014 – Research published in the journal Nutrition and Metabolic Insights found that regular consumption of mango by obese adults may lower blood sugar levels and does not negatively impact body weight. These are important findings considering that approximately 34 percent of U.S. adults have been classified as obese and given the health concerns related to obesity, such as type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and metabolic syndrome.

The safety of nicotine refill cartridges used in electronic cigarettes needs to be improved to prevent toddlers accidentally swallowing the contents and potentially coming to serious harm, warn doctors in Archives of Disease in Childhood.

The warning follows their treatment of a suspected case in the UK and emerging US data on the substantial rise of unintentional nicotine poisoning from e-cigarettes among the under 5s.

This study of 1358 children investigated whether intermittent montelukast (a drug widely used to treat wheeze and other asthmatic symptoms) compared with placebo, reduced wheezing episodes in children aged 10 months to 5 years, and whether patient outcome differed according to genotype. Study authors found that intermittent montelukast only reduced wheezing episodes in children with arachidonate 5-lipoxygenase (ALOX5) gene promoter 5/5, a gene that has previously been associated with a better response to montelukast in adults.

Munich, Germany: The effects of tear gas are not just short term and could be experienced for up to two weeks after the event, according to a new study.

The study, presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) International Congress in Munich today (10 September 2014), investigated the duration of lung health effects in protesters directly exposed to tear gas.

A meta-analysis comprising 16 studies and 891,426 participants from various regions of the world shows that prediabetes increases the risk of cancer by 15%, with differing risks depending on the type of cancer. The study, published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes) is by Professor Yuli Huang, The First People's Hospital of Shunde, Daliang Town, Shunde District, China, and colleagues.

1. Health insurance not affordable for many under Affordable Care Act

1. Should lung cancer screening be covered for Medicare beneficiaries?

Experts analyze evidence from the National Lung Screening Trial

Bottom Line: Health insurance coverage increased, as expected, among 19- to 25-year-olds after the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) allowed them to remain on their parents' insurance longer but there were no significant changes in perceived health status or the affordability of health care.

Author: Meera Kotagal, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of Washington, Seattle, and colleagues.