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Study finds a quarter of adults with HIV were abused as children
A new treatment option for Clostridium difficile: Fecal transplantation
Guiding robot planes with hand gestures
Economic and social growth of developing nations may increase obesity, says new Rice University study
JRC maps help match water supply and demand
Text messages help HIV patients stick to antiretroviral drug therapy
Specialist cancer care may improve patient outcomes
Pain relief: poor evidence for non-drug approaches in labour
How Muscle Cells Seal Their Membranes: Researchers Hope to Contribute to the Development of Therapies for Human Myopathies
Few genes control neuronal function
Cancer epigenetics: breakthrough in ID’ing target genes
Scientists suppress the source of interference inhibiting rapid flow of electrons through graphene-based devices
New Imaging Technique Recommended for Brain Cancer Patients
Potential role of parents’ work exposures in autism risk examined
Researchers Identify Optimal Threshold for HbA1c Test for Prediabetes
Research Suggests New Therapeutic Approach for Spinal Cord Injury
A simple, low-cost yoga program can enhance coping and quality of life for the caregivers
Charcoal Studied for Landfill Methane Containment
Rare Transplant Allows Young Woman to Forgo 60 Pills Daily
When women stop breastfeeding linked to child care options, study shows

Study finds a quarter of adults with HIV were abused as children

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 07:30 AM PDT

One in four HIV patients was found to have been sexually abused as a child, according to a two-year Duke University study of more than 600 HIV patients. Traumatic childhood experiences were also linked to worse health outcomes among these patients, who are aged 20 to 71.

A new treatment option for Clostridium difficile: Fecal transplantation

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 07:24 AM PDT

Fecal transplantation through colonoscopy is an effective treatment for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. Additionally, the mortality rate in this study does not appear to be greater than in some previously reported series, suggesting that fecal transplantation itself seems to be a rather safe procedure. CDI is a common cause of both community- and hospital-acquired diarrhea, usually occurring after exposure to antibiotics.

Guiding robot planes with hand gestures

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:53 AM PDT

Aircraft-carrier crew use a set of standard hand gestures to guide planes on the carrier deck. But as robot planes are increasingly used for routine air missions, researchers at MIT are working on a system that would enable them to follow the same types of gestures.

Economic and social growth of developing nations may increase obesity, says new Rice University study

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:38 AM PDT

Developing nations experiencing economic and social growth might also see growing waistlines among their poorest citizens, according to a new study from Rice University and the University of Colorado.

The researchers found that while growth of developing countries may improve conditions such as malnutrition and infectious disease, it may increase obesity among people with lower socio-economic status.

JRC maps help match water supply and demand

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:27 AM PDT

A new assessment of available water resources reveals that large areas in Spain and Eastern Europe have on average less than 200 mm freshwater available every year while the demand for water is three to ten times higher. The findings are part of the JRC report 'Current Water Resources in Europe and Africa', published in the occasion of the 6th World Water Forum held in Marseille, from 12 to 17 March 2012.

Text messages help HIV patients stick to antiretroviral drug therapy

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:10 AM PDT

Mobile phones could play a valuable role in helping HIV patients to take their medication every day, according to a new Cochrane Systematic Review. The researchers found that patients were less likely to miss doses if they were sent weekly mobile phone text message reminders.

Specialist cancer care may improve patient outcomes

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:08 AM PDT

Survival rates for cancer patients may be improved by treatment in specialised cancer centres, according to Cochrane researchers. In a review of recent studies, they found that women diagnosed with gynaecological cancer lived longer when treated in specialist compared to non-specialist units.

Pain relief: poor evidence for non-drug approaches in labour

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:06 AM PDT

There is better evidence for the effectiveness of drug-based approaches for relieving labour pains than non-drug approaches. These are the findings of an all-encompassing publishing in The Cochrane Library, which draws together results from a number of previous reviews on the subject.

How Muscle Cells Seal Their Membranes: Researchers Hope to Contribute to the Development of Therapies for Human Myopathies

Posted: 14 Mar 2012 05:00 AM PDT

Every cell is enclosed by a thin double layer of lipids that separates the distinct internal environment of the cell from the extracellular space. Damage to this lipid bilayer, also referred to as plasma membrane, disturbs the cellular functions and may lead to the death of the cell. For example, downhill walking tears many little holes into the plasma membranes of the muscle cells in our legs. To prevent irreparable damage, muscle cells have efficient systems to seal these holes again.

Few genes control neuronal function

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 09:21 PM PDT

How are 100 billion cells created, each with specific duties? The human brain is evidence that nature can achieve this. Researchers at Linköping University in Sweden have now taken a step closer to solving this mystery.

"Knowledge about the mechanisms that diversify neurons and keep them diverse is necessary in order to cultivate and replace nerve cells in the future," says Mattias Alenius, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience, who has published his research breakthrough in the current issue of the journal PLoS Biology.

Cancer epigenetics: breakthrough in ID’ing target genes

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 08:59 PM PDT

Cancer is usually attributed to faulty genes, but growing evidence from the field of cancer epigenetics indicates a key role for the gene “silencing” proteins that stably turn genes off inside the cell nucleus. A new study from Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) promises to speed research in the field by rapidly identifying the genes that epigenetic proteins can target for silencing.

Scientists suppress the source of interference inhibiting rapid flow of electrons through graphene-based devices

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 05:55 PM PDT

A team of Vanderbilt physicists reports that they have nailed down the source of the interference inhibiting the rapid flow of electrons through graphene-based devices and found a way to suppress it. This discovery allowed them to achieve record-levels of room-temperature electron mobility – the measure of the speed that electrons travel through a material – three times greater than those reported in previous graphene-based devices.

New Imaging Technique Recommended for Brain Cancer Patients

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 12:08 PM PDT

Gliomas, the most common malignant brain tumors in adults, can be difficult to treat because of their aggressive and invasive nature. In treating patients with gliomas, it is increasingly important that doctors be able to detect tumor changes early when there's a better chance for recovery.

Potential role of parents’ work exposures in autism risk examined

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 12:03 PM PDT

Could parental exposure to solvents at work be linked to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in their children? According to an exploratory study by Erin McCanlies, a research epidemiologist from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and colleagues, such exposures could play a role, but more research would be needed to confirm an association. Their pilot study is published online in Springer's Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Researchers Identify Optimal Threshold for HbA1c Test for Prediabetes

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 11:59 AM PDT

The American Diabetes Association recommends hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) testing as one basis for identifying diabetes and prediabetes. Setting a specific HbA1c cutoff threshold for prediabetes, which could be used to determine eligibility for interventions to prevent progression to more serious type 2 diabetes, has generated much debate, with at least three different cutoffs recommended by different professional organizations.

Research Suggests New Therapeutic Approach for Spinal Cord Injury

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 11:55 AM PDT

A new study suggests that administering FTY720, an oral drug that has shown promise in trials for human multiple sclerosis, significantly improves locomotor recovery in mice with spinal cord injury (SCI). The research suggests a possible new avenue to counteract the degeneration of the spinal cord in human SCI. The study will be published in the April 2012 issue of The American Journal of Pathology.

A simple, low-cost yoga program can enhance coping and quality of life for the caregivers

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 11:00 AM PDT

For every individual who’s a victim of Alzheimer’s — some 5.4 million persons in the United States alone — there’s a related victim: the caregiver. Spouse, son, daughter, other relative or friend, the loneliness, exhaustion, fear and most of all stress and depression takes a toll

While care for the caregivers is difficult to find, a new study out of UCLA suggests that using yoga to engage in very brief, simple daily meditation can lead to improved cognitive functioning and lower levels of depression for caregivers.

Charcoal Studied for Landfill Methane Containment

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 10:54 AM PDT

Methane, often used for cooking and heating, is a potent greenhouse gas -- more than 20 times more effective at trapping atmospheric heat than carbon dioxide. A major source of slow methane leaks is old, abandoned landfills and town dumps.

While containing gas at these sites can be expensive, University of Illinois at Chicago researchers believe an effective and cheap way to trap it may be as easy as laying down a covering using charcoal as the key ingredient.

Rare Transplant Allows Young Woman to Forgo 60 Pills Daily

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 10:52 AM PDT

Surgeons at the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System performed a rare living-donor parathyroid gland transplant to help a 22-year-old woman maintain normal calcium levels without the need for high-dose supplementation.

Ashley Slussar, of Joliet, Ill., had all of her parathyroid glands removed in 2006 because they had grown large and were overproducing parathyroid hormone. The hyperparathyroidism was caused by years of kidney disease and dialysis, which she needed to survive.

When women stop breastfeeding linked to child care options, study shows

Posted: 13 Mar 2012 10:47 AM PDT

Mothers participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC, are more likely to discontinue breastfeeding their infants before 6 months of age than non-WIC mothers, especially if they rely upon relatives to provide child care, according to a new study by Juhee Kim, a professor of kinesiology and community health at the University of Illinois.