Futurity.org » Health & Medicine

Cartilage gets bum rap for osteoarthritis

Catherine Kolf-Johns Hopkins — Mon, 20 May 2013 19:30:26 +0000

JOHNS HOPKINS (US) — Osteoarthritis, a painful disease thought to be primarily a problem with the cartilage that cushions joints, may actually be caused in large part by the bone underneath.

The insight led to a proof-of-concept experiment in which researchers found they could stop progression of the degenerative disease by blocking the action of a critical protein involved in bone regulation. Should that strategy prove sound in further studies, it could help future patients avoid joint replacement surgery.

“Our results are potentially really good news for patients with OA,” says lead researcher Xu Cao, director of musculoskeletal research and professor of orthopedic surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

How to decide if a daily aspirin is harmful

Melissa Blouin-Florida — Mon, 20 May 2013 18:31:49 +0000

U. FLORIDA (US) — A new algorithm outlines factors doctors should consider when deciding whether or not a patient would benefit from a daily dose of aspirin.

Approximately 50 million people in the United States take a daily aspirin to treat or prevent heart disease. Of these, at least half take more than 100 milligrams of the drug—more than one baby aspirin—a day.

Anxiety drug reduces MS symptoms in mice

Charles Casey-UC Davis — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:31:03 +0000

UC DAVIS (US) — An anti-anxiety drug available in Europe helps protect nerve fibers and slows the progression of symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in mice, a study shows.

The findings, published online in the journal EMBO Molecular Medicine , could have therapeutic applications for MS as well as cerebral palsy and leukodystrophies, all disorders associated with loss of white matter, which is the brain tissue that carries information between nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.

The target, a protein referred to as mitochondrial translocator protein (TSPO), had been previously identified but not linked to MS, an autoimmune disease that strips the protective fatty coating off nerve fibers of the brain and spinal cord.

‘Vicious cycle’ in brain keeps obesity going

David Orenstein-Brown — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:24:20 +0000

BROWN (US) — In rat brain cells, obesity blocks the production of a hormone that curbs appetite and inspires calorie burning, according to new research.

The root cause appears to be a breakdown in the protein-processing mechanism of the cells, according to the researchers, who also found that they could intervene to break that cycle by fixing the core protein-processing problem.

Diabetes rises sharply among UK’s young adults

Chris Jones-Cardiff — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:47:03 +0000

CARDIFF U. (UK) — Researchers in the United Kingdom find a significant increase in the overall incidence of type 2 diabetes, with a marked increase among adults under age 40.

The research, published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, examined published data describing the incidence of newly diagnosed cases of type 2 diabetes between 1991 and 2010.

“We have known for some time that the incidence of new cases and prevalence of the total number of people of type 2 diabetes has been increasing in the UK,” says Professor Craig Currie from Cardiff University’s School of Medicine, who led the research.

Peptides kick-start body to fight sepsis

Christopher Jones-Cardiff — Fri, 17 May 2013 00:46:26 +0000

CARDIFF U. (UK) — Peptide molecules derived from the body’s natural immune system can help boost the body’s defense against life-threatening blood poisoning.

In an article published in Science Translational Medicine, researchers report that peptide molecules derived from immune sensors known as Toll-like receptors or TLRs can kick-start the body’s natural immune defense that was affected by blood poisoning.

“Blood poisoning or sepsis is triggered by the body’s overreaction to infection; it can lead to widespread inflammation and blood clotting as well as, in the later stage of the illness when the immune system finally gets exhausted, to profound immunosuppression,” says study leader Mario Labéta from the Cardiff University School of Medicine’s Institute of Infection and Immunity.

Depressed people’s body clocks ‘out of sync’

U. Michigan — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:19:13 +0000

U. MICHIGAN (US) — A new brain study reveals that the circadian clocks of people with depression are altered at the cellular level.

Every cell in our bodies runs on a 24-hour clock, tuned to the night-day, light-dark cycles that have ruled us since the dawn of humanity. The brain acts as timekeeper, keeping the cellular clock in sync with the outside world so that it can govern our appetites, sleep, moods, and much more.

Nose swabs confirm H1N1 flu in seals

Kat Kerlin-UC Davis — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:01:26 +0000

UC DAVIS (US) — A year after the human pandemic began, scientists found H1N1 (2009) infections in two free-ranging northern elephant seals off the central California coast, and antibodies to the virus in 28 more.

Those antibodies indicate more widespread exposure, report the researchers. Between 2009 and 2011, the team tested nasal swabs from more than 900 marine mammals from 10 different species off the Pacific Coast from Alaska to California.

Neither infected seal appeared to be ill, indicating marine mammals may be infected without showing clinical signs of illness. The study, the first report of that flu strain in any marine mammal, appears in PLOS ONE.

Self-destructive nerves can be beneficial

Julia Evangelou Strait-WUSTL — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:56:27 +0000

WASHINGTON U. – ST. LOUIS (US) — A new understanding of how nerve axons degenerate might lead to effective ways to remove damaged nerves before the illness or drug at fault affects healthy nerve tissue.

Many medical issues affect nerves, from injuries in car accidents and side effects of chemotherapy to glaucoma and multiple sclerosis.

Chats with mom may keep students healthy

Sara LaJeunesse-Penn State — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:46:00 +0000

PENN STATE (US) — College students eat better and get more exercise on days when they communicate more with their parents, according to researchers.

“Only a third of college students consume a diet that is consistent with national recommendations,” says Meg Small, research associate in the Prevention Research Center for the Promotion of Human Development at Penn State.