Body

In a study published yesterday in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition*, researchers performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of controlled trials to investigate the effects of tree nuts (almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios and walnuts) on blood lipids, lipoproteins, blood pressure and inflammation in adults 18 years and older without prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD). Tree nut consumption was shown to lower total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol and its primary apolipoprotein, ApoB.

The scientific journal Addiction has today published the first cost-effectiveness analysis of financial incentives to help pregnant women stop smoking. The report found that financial incentives are highly cost-effective, with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of £482 ($734) per quality-adjusted life year (QALY), which is well below recommended thresholds in high income countries.

A new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine finds child care centers play a pivotal role when it comes to the physical activity levels of preschoolers. Yet few children get to experience outdoor recess time as it is scheduled. Only 3 in 10 children had at least 60 minutes of a full child-care day outdoors for recess, as is recommended by guidelines.

Polymeric carbon nitrides are organic compounds synthesised to form a yellow powder of a myriad of nanocrystals. The crystalline structure resembles that of graphite because the carbon nitride groups are chemically bound only in layers, while just weak Van der Waals forces provide cohesion between these layers. It was already known that light is able to create an electron-hole pair in this class of materials. So there have already been numerous attempts to employ polymeric carbon nitrides as cost-effective photocatalysts for solar-powered water splitting.

A mechanical valve prosthesis has a better survival record than a biological valve prosthesis, according to a large registry study from Sweden's Karolinska Institutet. The finding, which is published in the European Heart Journal, can be highly significant, since the use of biological valve prostheses has increased in all age groups in recent years.

A new Cochrane Review published today shows that when doctors and patients are encouraged to discuss the need for prescribing antibiotics for acute respiratory infections jointly, fewer are prescribed. This may be useful in the fight against antibiotic resistance.

TORONTO, Nov. 12, 2015--Investments in cancer control--prevention, detection, diagnosis, treatment, and palliative care--are increasingly needed in low- and, particularly, middle-income countries, where most of the world's cancer deaths occur, a paper published today in The Lancet recommends.

Of the 8 million cancer deaths worldwide in 2012, 5 million occurred in middle-income countries and 500,000 in low-income countries, and those numbers are expected to rise substantially mainly due to adult population growth.

In low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), where 5.5 million of the world's 8 million cancer deaths occur each year, most people with cancer have little or no access to treatment and many die in severe pain for lack of inexpensive opioid pain medicine.

HOUSTON - (Nov. 9, 2015) - An estimated 12 million people in the United States experience diagnostic errors annually, but it's time for a change, , said researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center and RTI International in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina in a call to action.

An international team of scientists led by UC San Francisco researchers has mapped out the genetic trajectories taken by melanoma as it evolves from early skin lesions, known as precursors, to malignant skin cancer, which can be lethal when it invades other tissues in the body.

A new review highlights the diverse ways in which genetic-based defense systems found in bacteria can be harnessed to manipulate the microbes for various clinical and research applications. The systems, called CRISPR-Cas systems, naturally protect bacteria by recognizing and cutting genetic elements from potential invaders.

Snowshoe hares and moose, which are both relative newcomers to Alaska's North Slope, may have become established in the area with the help of warming temperatures and thicker vegetation.

A recent study concludes that climate change gradually led to taller shrubs on the North Slope, which provides a habitat boost for animals that take advantage of denser cover.

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Patients who develop ovarian cancer appear to have better outcomes if they have a history of oral contraceptive use, according to a study by Mayo Clinic researchers published in the current issue of the journal BMC Cancer.

To fully understand a plant's nuclear genome, scientists must also study two other genomes found within plant cells---in the "powerhouse" mitochondria and in the photosynthesizing chloroplast organelles. Researchers from the Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria (National Institute of Agricultural Research) in Uruguay have developed a chloroplast genome-sequencing strategy to facilitate this research. The new method could unlock a wealth of untapped chloroplast genome sequence data that can be applied to evolutionary studies.

A "secret shopper" style study by researchers at Johns Hopkins analyzing foot traffic in and out of operating rooms suggests that for the sake of patient safety, OR teams may want to stay put more often.