ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

Stopping at red lights exposes drivers to high levels of air pollution Posted: 12 Feb 2015 06:20 PM PST UK commuters spend an average of about 1.5 hours a day at the wheel. Road vehicles in particular are known to emit polluting nanoparticles which contribute to respiratory and heart diseases. Now, researchers have found that where drivers spend just 2% of their journey time passing through traffic intersections managed by lights, this short duration contributes to about 25% of total exposure to these harmful particles.

New mechanism that controls immune responses discovered Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:35 PM PST Researchers have identified a common signaling mechanism to produce interferon -- one of the main proteins used to signal the immune system when the body needs to defend itself against a virus, tumor, or other diseases.

New research shows possibility of cure for HPV positive throat cancer patients Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:35 PM PST Researchers from Canada have shown for the first time that some patients with HPV positive oropharyngeal cancer can be cured, even after the disease has spread to other organs.

Middle-aged men at highest risk of suicide after breathing poor air Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:33 PM PST Scientists have found an increased risk of suicide associated with short-term air pollution exposure.

The company you keep: Dual role for key T cell factor Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:33 PM PST When fighting chronic viral infections or cancers, a key division of the immune system, known as CD8 T cells, sometimes loses its ability to effectively fight foreign invaders. Overcoming so-called T cell exhaustion is crucial to treating persistent infections but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood.

Universal access to physical activity could save billions in health costs Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:46 PM PST A little more than half of family health teams in Ontario offer physical activity services such as classes or counselling to encourage exercise among patients, and new research finds that standardizing access could help reduce the $6.8-billion cost associated with a sedentary lifestyle. There is a link between a lack of physical activity and chronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and obesity.

Making teeth tough: Beavers show way to improve our enamel Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:45 PM PST Beavers don't brush their teeth or drink fluoridated water, but a new study reports beavers do have protection against tooth decay built into the chemical structure of their teeth: iron. This pigmented enamel, the researchers found, is both harder and more resistant to acid than regular enamel, including that treated with fluoride. This discovery is among others that could lead to a better understanding of human tooth decay, earlier detection of the disease and improving on current fluoride treatments.

First evidence of Seoul hantavirus found in wild rat population in the Netherlands Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:40 PM PST Researchers report discovering the first evidence of Seoul hantavirus (SEOV) in the wild rat population in the Netherlands. The discovery comes on the heels of similar ones in France, Belgium and the United Kingdom in recent years, and has some researchers concerned about the potential spread of the virus to humans.

Lack of ID checks for buying cigarettes in New York City Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:39 PM PST An investigation found that more than a quarter of New York City retailers did not request identification from young adults buying cigarettes. The study was conducted in anticipation of the minimum purchase age for cigarettes rising from 18 to 21.

Common biomarkers of sleep debt found in humans, rats Posted: 12 Feb 2015 11:14 AM PST Researchers found common molecules signifying perturbed metabolism in response to sleep restriction in a comprehensive metabolic profiling of blood from both rats and humans. Their findings point to an overall shift in how lipids are metabolized and evidence of systemic oxidative stress.

Observing stem cells maturing into blood cells in living mouse Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:18 AM PST In the bone marrow, blood stem cells give rise to a large variety of mature blood cells via progenitor cells at various stages of maturation. Scientists have developed a way to equip mouse blood stem cells with a fluorescent marker that can be switched on from the outside. Using this tool, they were able to observe, for the first time, how stem cells mature into blood cells under normal conditions in a living organism.

Key to blocking influenza virus may lie in a cell's own machinery Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:16 AM PST Researchers have found an unexpected way the immune system fights the flu virus: By targeting cells' protein-cutting enzymes, which the virus needs to mature and spread.

Microbes prevent malnutrition in fruit flies, and maybe humans, too Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:15 AM PST A new study sheds significant new light on a surprising and critical role that microbes may play in nutritional disorders such as protein malnutrition.

Researchers design 'evolutionary trap' to thwart drug resistance Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:15 AM PST Using theoretical and experimental approaches, researchers have developed a two-pronged strategy that uses an evolving cell population’s adaptive nature against it.

Aggressive form of HIV uncovered in Cuba: HIV to AIDS in three years Posted: 12 Feb 2015 09:22 AM PST Engaging in unprotected sex with multiple partners increases the risk of contracting multiple strains of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Once inside a host, these strains can recombine into a new variant of the virus. One such recombinant variant observed in patients in Cuba appears to be much more aggressive than other known forms of HIV. Patients progress to AIDS within three years of infection -- so rapidly that they may not even realize they were infected.

Bubonic bottleneck: Scientists overturn dogma on the plague Posted: 12 Feb 2015 09:20 AM PST Researchers discover that the accepted theory of how Yersinia pestis microbes travel from fleabite to lymph node is off base. Most bacteria get trapped in a bottleneck and never make it to the lymph node, where infection takes root. Finding out why could lead to new ways to stop the pathogen.

Two cell-signaling molecules found to suppress the spread of melanoma Posted: 12 Feb 2015 07:27 AM PST In what is believed to be the largest epigenetic analysis to date of cell-signaling molecules in early-stage melanoma, researchers have identified two tiny bits of non-coding genetic material in primary tumors that appear critical to stalling the cancer’s spread -- and essentially setting the biological fate of the disease.

Cerebral palsy: It can be in your genes Posted: 12 Feb 2015 06:24 AM PST Medical researchers have made what they believe could be the biggest discovery into cerebral palsy in 20 years.

Hand washing focus in hospitals has led to rise in worker dermatitis Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:51 AM PST A new study has revealed that the incidence of dermatitis has increased 4.5 times in health care workers following increased hand hygiene as a drive to reduce infections such as MRSA has kicked in.

Investigation reveals network of links between public health scientists and sugar industry Posted: 11 Feb 2015 05:40 PM PST Public health scientists and a government committee working on nutritional advice receive funding from the very companies whose products are widely held to be responsible for the obesity crisis, an investigation by The BMJ reveals. Recipients of research funding from sugar and other related industries include members of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN), which is currently updating official advice on carbohydrates consumption, and researchers working for the Medical Research Council's Human Nutrition Research unit (HNR).

Order matters: Sequence of genetic mutations determines how cancer behaves Posted: 11 Feb 2015 03:30 PM PST The order in which genetic mutations are acquired determines how an individual cancer behaves, according to new research.

Light shed on defense systems of human body: Sieve-like structure in lymph nodes Posted: 11 Feb 2015 05:32 AM PST Researchers have uncovered a sieve-like structure in lymph nodes that regulates the transport of proteins and migration of white blood cells into lymph nodes. The discovery will provide new insights into rapid defense responses in the human immune system.

Caution concerning the possible health benefits of alcohol: Beneficial only for women over 65? Posted: 10 Feb 2015 06:20 PM PST Any health benefits from alcohol may be limited to women aged 65 and over -- and even then may have been exaggerated by existing studies. High alcohol consumption has been associated with more than 200 acute and chronic conditions. Globally, more than three million deaths each year are attributed to alcohol.

Protein linked to longevity and enhanced cognition protects against Alzheimer's symptoms in mice Posted: 10 Feb 2015 06:20 PM PST Scientists report that raising levels of the life-extending protein klotho can protect against learning and memory deficits in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.