ScienceDaily: Top Health News

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• Ability to move to a beat linked to brain's response to speech: Musical training may sharpen language processing
• A protein that can mean life or death for cells
• Death and disability from air pollution down 35 percent in the US
• Why kids breathe easier in summer
• Predicting who will have chronic pain
• Red grapes, blueberries may enhance immune function
• New insight into reducing racial, ethnic disparities in diabetes
• Speeding up cancer diagnosis during surgery
• New class of drug targets heart disease
• Host genome controls skin microbiota and inflammation
• Pancreatic stem cells isolated from mice
• Memory problems, emotional stress result in early readmissions of heart patients
• Patient-specific cure discovered for dangerous heart rhythm disorder
• Brain is hard-wired for chronic pain
• Osteoarthritis and the (not so) painful step toward a cure
• Link between oil spill exposure and hematologic, hepatic toxicity
• Portable, low-cost early-warning test for osteoporosis
• Video games improve your motion perception, but only when walking backwards
• Financial incentives motivate sedentary adults to exercise
• New marker identified for early diagnosis of lung cancer
• Why do young adults start smoking?
• Cost-effectiveness analysis aopplied to state breast cancer screening program
• Whole DNA sequencing reveals mutations, new gene for blinding disease
• Vaccinating cattle against E. coli could cut human cases of infection by 85 percent
• Biologists develop new method for discovering antibiotics
• Thyroid hormone key part in the vascular regulation of body temperature
• Depletion of 'traitor' immune cells slows cancer growth in mice
• Could oxytocin be useful in treating psychiatric disorders?
• Misread heart muscle gene a new clue to sudden cardiac death
• Schizophrenia: It’s in the wiring of the brain

Ability to move to a beat linked to brain's response to speech: Musical training may sharpen language processing Posted: 17 Sep 2013 03:11 PM PDT People who are better able to move to a beat show more consistent brain responses to speech than those with less rhythm, according to a new study. The findings suggest that musical training could possibly sharpen the brain's response to language.

A protein that can mean life or death for cells Posted: 17 Sep 2013 10:23 AM PDT Scientists have discovered that the protein Mitofusin 2 plays a crucial role in correctly measuring stress levels, and also makes sure the pathways of cell repair or cell death are effective.

Death and disability from air pollution down 35 percent in the US Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:50 AM PDT Improvements in US air quality since 1990 have sparked a 35 percent reduction in deaths and disability specifically attributable to air pollution.

Why kids breathe easier in summer Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:50 AM PDT Until now, researchers believed that asthma, allergies, and respiratory infections contributed to disorders that affect children's breathing during sleep. Now a new study demonstrates that, contrary to this belief, viruses alone may be responsible for the seasonal variation seen in children.

Predicting who will have chronic pain Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:50 AM PDT Abnormalities in the structure of the brain predispose people to develop chronic pain after a lower back injury, according to new research. The findings could lead to changes in the way physicians treat patients' pain by treating it aggressively with medication early on to prevent the pain from becoming chronic. Most scientists have assumed chronic back pain stems from the injury site.

Red grapes, blueberries may enhance immune function Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:50 AM PDT In an analysis of 446 compounds for their the ability to boost the innate immune system in humans, researchers discovered just two that stood out from the crowd -- the resveratrol found in red grapes and a compound called pterostilbene from blueberries.

New insight into reducing racial, ethnic disparities in diabetes Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:50 AM PDT Despite higher rates of diabetes in black and Hispanic women, the rate at which women die of diabetes-related diseases such as cardiovascular disease and cancer is the same for all postmenopausal women, regardless of race or ethnicity, according to a new study.

Speeding up cancer diagnosis during surgery Posted: 17 Sep 2013 09:48 AM PDT Experts have developed a highly accurate prototype technique which can produce a detailed 'spectroscopic fingerprint' of each tissue layer removed during surgery. This technique — which can produce detailed maps of the tissue rich in information at the molecular level — has the potential to speed up and improve the diagnosis of cancer tissue during the operation as well as reduce unnecessary surgery.

New class of drug targets heart disease Posted: 17 Sep 2013 08:33 AM PDT Researchers have created a drug that replaces key peptide linked with heart failure, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Host genome controls skin microbiota and inflammation Posted: 17 Sep 2013 08:30 AM PDT Numerous studies have linked gut microbiota with various diseases such as obesity or diabetes. Little is known, however, on how gut and skin microbiota composition is controlled. In a recent study, researchers show that composition of skin microbiota is controlled by the host genome and that skin bacteria may have a greater influence on inflammatory diseases than previously thought. Their landmark findings will open the door to identify gene variants controlling skin microbiota and to define their link to various diseases such as skin inflammatory disorders.

Pancreatic stem cells isolated from mice Posted: 17 Sep 2013 08:30 AM PDT Scientists have succeeded in growing stem cells that have the ability to develop into two different types of cells that make up a healthy pancreas. The research team has isolated and grown stem cells from the pancreases of mice using a 3-D culture system previously developed by the scientists. The results could eventually lead to ways to repair damaged insulin-producing beta cells or pancreatic duct cells.

Memory problems, emotional stress result in early readmissions of heart patients Posted: 17 Sep 2013 08:29 AM PDT Heart patients' mental state and thinking abilities may help predict whether costly and potentially dangerous early hospital readmission will follow their release after treatment, according to the results of a significant new study.

Patient-specific cure discovered for dangerous heart rhythm disorder Posted: 17 Sep 2013 06:39 AM PDT A research team has successfully and completely reversed the effects of the hERG (human ether-a-go-go-related gene) mutation in long QT syndrome 2 in patient-specific heart cells, scoring a world's first. This novel experiment paves the way for the better understanding on how drugs affect cell and intra-cell disordered function and allows safe testing of new compounds on patients' own cells, without the risk of side effects to the patients themselves.

Brain is hard-wired for chronic pain Posted: 17 Sep 2013 06:39 AM PDT Researchers used brain scans to show that the structure of the brain may predict whether a person will suffer chronic low back pain. The results support the growing idea that the brain plays a critical role in chronic pain, a concept that may lead to changes in the way doctors treat patients.

Osteoarthritis and the (not so) painful step toward a cure Posted: 17 Sep 2013 06:38 AM PDT A novel technique for imaging muscle function while in motion has been developed. Research in this area could uncover the root of musculoskeletal disorders, such as the development of osteoarthritis following ACL surgery.

Link between oil spill exposure and hematologic, hepatic toxicity Posted: 17 Sep 2013 06:03 AM PDT A new study reports that workers exposed to crude oil and dispersants used during the Gulf oil spill cleanup display significantly altered blood profiles, liver enzymes, and somatic symptoms compared to an unexposed control group. Investigators found that platelet counts were significantly decreased in the exposed group, while both hemoglobin and hematocrit levels were notably increased. Their findings suggest that oil spill cleanup workers are at risk for developing hepatic or blood-related disorders.

Portable, low-cost early-warning test for osteoporosis Posted: 17 Sep 2013 06:02 AM PDT A handheld device for diagnosing the early signs of osteoporosis could be available for clinical use within five years.

Video games improve your motion perception, but only when walking backwards Posted: 17 Sep 2013 06:01 AM PDT Psychologists examined whether action video game players had superior motion perception. They discovered that playing first-person action games can enhance your perception of movement – but only when you're walking backwards.

Financial incentives motivate sedentary adults to exercise Posted: 17 Sep 2013 05:56 AM PDT A review study finds that financial incentives – as modest as $5 per week – can increase the amount of exercise people do.

New marker identified for early diagnosis of lung cancer Posted: 17 Sep 2013 05:56 AM PDT A protein called isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH1) is present at high levels in lung cancers and can be detected in the blood, making it a noninvasive diagnostic marker for lung cancers.

Why do young adults start smoking? Posted: 17 Sep 2013 05:56 AM PDT The risk of becoming a smoker among young adults who have never smoked is high: 14% will become smokers between the ages of 18 and 24, and three factors predict this behaviour.

Cost-effectiveness analysis aopplied to state breast cancer screening program Posted: 16 Sep 2013 01:20 PM PDT When public health budgets are constrained, mammography screening should begin later and occur less frequently, a cost-effectiveness analysis program concludes.

Whole DNA sequencing reveals mutations, new gene for blinding disease Posted: 16 Sep 2013 01:20 PM PDT Researchers have tested DNA with the use of whole genome sequencing, a technique that takes into account all variants from both the coding and noncoding regions of the human genome. With this approach the authors report a number of unique RP mutations, a previously undescribed disease gene called NEK2 that involves the retinal photoreceptors, and structural DNA rearrangements originating in introns.

Vaccinating cattle against E. coli could cut human cases of infection by 85 percent Posted: 16 Sep 2013 01:20 PM PDT Vaccinating cattle against the E. coli O157 bacterium could cut the number of human cases of the disease by 85 percent, according to scientists.

Biologists develop new method for discovering antibiotics Posted: 16 Sep 2013 01:20 PM PDT Biologists have developed a revolutionary new method for identifying and characterizing antibiotics, an advance that could lead to the discovery of new antibiotics to treat antibiotic resistant bacteria.

Thyroid hormone key part in the vascular regulation of body temperature Posted: 16 Sep 2013 01:17 PM PDT Researchers have discovered a reason why people with disorders of the thyroid gland may be more sensitive to environmental temperature. According to the study, a previously unknown link has been found between the effects of thyroid hormone on blood vessels, and how this in turn affects body temperature.

Depletion of 'traitor' immune cells slows cancer growth in mice Posted: 16 Sep 2013 01:15 PM PDT Scientists have developed a strategy to slow tumor growth and prolong survival in mice with cancer by targeting and destroying a type of cell that dampens the body's immune response to cancer.

Could oxytocin be useful in treating psychiatric disorders? Posted: 16 Sep 2013 07:33 AM PDT The hormone oxytocin could play a role in treating psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, according to new research.

Misread heart muscle gene a new clue to sudden cardiac death Posted: 16 Sep 2013 06:10 AM PDT Scientists have discovered that a drug that increases the risk of sudden cardiac death interacts with mistranslated protein-coding genes present in heart muscle.

Schizophrenia: It’s in the wiring of the brain Posted: 16 Sep 2013 06:10 AM PDT Just as wires must be insulated to effectively carry electrical impulses, nerve cells must be insulated by myelin to effectively transmit neural impulses. Using typical magnetic resonance imaging or MRI, one can visually distinguish parts of the brain that look white and parts that look gray. A new study has used two types of brain imaging to characterize abnormalities in the white matter in schizophrenia patients.

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