Brain

Scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Wellcome Trust at the University of Birmingham have carried out "laboratory gunfights" to show that we move faster when we react to something in our environment than we do when we initiate the action ourselves – an idea inspired by cowboy movies but in reality more useful for avoiding oncoming traffic. The research is published today (03 February 2010) in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Between 1997 and 2006, 38% of out-of-clinic suicides by mental health patients were carried out by people absent without leave from the hospital. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Psychiatry suggest that measures to improve the ward environment or prevent patients from leaving psychiatric wards without staff agreement could avoid up to 50 suicide deaths every year.

This release is available in http://chinese..org/zh/emb_releases/2010-02/jaaj-llo012810.php">Chinese.

Boston, Mass. – Taking the next step in more than 20 years of research, researchers at Children's Hospital Boston have linked sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) with low production of serotonin in the brainstem, based on a comparison of brainstem samples from infants dying of SIDS compared to brainstems of infants dying from other, known causes.

The brains of infants who die of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) produce low levels of serotonin, a brain chemical that conveys messages between cells and plays a vital role in regulating breathing, heart rate, and sleep, reported researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health.

PHILADELPHIA - For the first time, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have found that three different degenerative brain disorders are linked by a toxic form of the same protein. The protein, called Elk-1, was found in clumps of misshaped proteins that are the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and Huntington's disease.

Boston (Feb. 2, 2010) – The Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary Cataract Surgery Trainer, a virtual training tool which helps to train physicians to perform cataract surgery, has been shown to enhance teaching in cataract surgery when compared to traditional teaching methods. The results of a multi-center study evaluating the program's effectiveness as a supplement to traditional teaching tools was published in the February issue of Ophthalmology.

Researchers reporting in the February 3rd issue of Cell Metabolism may have a new way to trick the body into consuming more energy. The target in this case is an enzyme that indirectly controls the activity of what the researchers refer to as the "energy master switch." It boils down to this: When you give mice a chemical that blocks the function of the enzyme known as Fyn kinase, they almost immediately begin burning more fat.

• Patients might not be accurately diagnosed
• Patients who do not have major depressive disorder may be prescribed medications that will not work
• Calls for a briefer definition of the DSM-IV criteria for MDD

A report just published by the Danish National IT and Telecom Agency under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation on distance learning at LIFE - Faculty of Life Sciences at University of Copenhagen concludes that LIFE's successful distance learning model could lend itself to widespread use at other universities.

Everyone checks themselves in the mirror now and then, but that experience can be horrifying for individuals suffering from body dysmorphic disorder, or BDD, a psychiatric condition that causes them to believe, wrongly, that they appear disfigured and ugly. These people tend to fixate on minute details — every tiny blemish looms huge — rather than viewing their face as a whole.

(PHILADELPHIA) – New research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine may help more smokers keep their New Year's resolution by helping them quit smoking. Extended use of a nicotine patch – 24 weeks versus the standard eight weeks recommended by manufacturers – boosts the number of smokers who maintain their cigarette abstinence and helps more of those who backslide into the habit while wearing the patch, according to a study which will be published in the February 2 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.

CHICAGO – The American Dietetic Association has published an updated position paper that addresses the nutrition aspects of health care for people with developmental disabilities and special health care needs. It emphasizes prevention, coordination of care, the increasing role of technology and the importance of services provided by registered dietitians and dietetic technicians, registered.

ADA's position paper, published in the February issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, represents the Association's official stance on this health issue:

Imagine that you are emerging from the subway and heading for your destination when you realize that you are going in the wrong direction. For a moment, you feel disoriented, but a scan of landmarks and the layout of the surrounding streets quickly helps you pinpoint your location, and you make it to your appointment with time to spare.

ST. PAUL, Minn. – People who experience memory loss or a decline in their thinking abilities may be at higher risk of stroke, regardless of whether they have been diagnosed with dementia, according to a new study published in the February 2, 2010, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.