Researchers identify major cause of age-related memory loss
A team of Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers, led by Nobel laureate Eric R. Kandel, MD, has found that deficiency of a protein called RbAp48 in the hippocampus is a significant...
View ArticleResearchers discover a potential cause of autism
Problems with a key group of enzymes called topoisomerases can have profound effects on the genetic machinery behind brain development and potentially lead to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according...
View ArticleStudy could result in new approach to prevent diabetes-induced birth defects
A research team at the University of Maryland School of Medicine has identified a cell signaling pathway which plays a significant role in causing developmental defects of the fetal spinal cord and...
View ArticleScientists identify ALS disease mechanism
Researchers have tied mutations in a gene that causes amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other neurodegenerative disorders to the toxic buildup of certain proteins and related molecules in cells,...
View ArticleResearchers aim to use light—not electric jolts—to restore healthy heartbeats
When a beating heart slips into an irregular, life-threatening rhythm, the treatment is well known: deliver a burst of electric current from a pacemaker or defibrillator. But because the electricity...
View ArticleStudy: Marijuana top illegal drug used worldwide
Marijuana is the most popular illegal drug used worldwide, but addictions to popular painkillers like Vicodin, Oxycontin and codeine kill the most people, according to the first-ever global survey of...
View ArticleSchool-age drinking increases breast cancer risk
Here's a sobering fact for millions of young women heading back to school: The more alcohol they drink before motherhood, the greater their risk of future breast cancer.
View ArticleShould everyone over 65 take a statin?
(HealthDay)—Men and women over 65 who are at risk for cardiovascular disease but don't have any known heart problems might benefit from cholesterol-lowering drugs, a new study suggests.
View ArticleAnti-fungal drug not tied to most birth defects, study says
(HealthDay)—Although some reports have shown that high doses of the anti-fungal drug fluconazole (Diflucan) may raise the risk of birth defects, a new Danish review finds that more commonly prescribed...
View ArticleYour spouse's voice is easier to hear—and easier to ignore
With so many other competing voices, having a conversation on a bustling subway or at a crowded cocktail party takes a great deal of concentration. New research suggests that the familiar voice of a...
View ArticleThe brain system that stops worriers just going with the flow
(Medical Xpress)—Chronic worriers are more likely to use analytical thought processes when making decisions rather than relying on 'gut instincts', according to a new University of Sussex study...
View ArticleWhy smokers gain weight when they quit smoking
Most smokers put on a couple of kilos when they quit smoking. This is not due to an increased calorie intake, but to a change in the composition of the intestinal flora after quitting smoking, as a...
View ArticleResearchers discover link between expression of GATM and pain associated with...
(Medical Xpress)—A large team with members from several research institutions across the U.S. has found a possible link between the expression of the gene for glycine amidinotransferase (GATM) and pain...
View ArticlePrescription sleep aids a common choice for American insomnia
(HealthDay)—About 4 percent of American adults—more than 8.5 million people—have used a prescription sleep aid in the past month, and the use increases with age, U.S. health officials reported Thursday.
View ArticleScientists detail critical role of gene in many lung cancer cases
Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have shown that a well-known cancer-causing gene implicated in a number of malignancies plays a far more critical role in...
View ArticleResearchers use RNAi to silence genes that cause transthyretin amyloidosis
(Medical Xpress)—An international team of researchers has discovered a way to silence the genes that cause transthyretin amyloidosis—a fatal genetic disease. In their paper published in the New England...
View ArticleLearning a new language alters brain development
The age at which children learn a second language can have a significant bearing on the structure of their adult brain, according to a new joint study by the Montreal Neurological Institute and...
View ArticleBad to the bone: Some breast cancer cells are primed to thrive
When a cancer cell sloughs off the edge of a tumor in the breast, it faces a tough road to survive. The cell must not only remain physically intact as it rushes through blood vessels, but it also must...
View ArticleStudy discovers gene that causes devastating mitochondrial diseases
Researchers have identified a novel disease gene in which mutations cause rare but devastating genetic diseases known as mitochondrial disorders.
View ArticleNeuroscientists find a key to reducing forgetting—it's about the network
A team of neuroscientists has found a key to the reduction of forgetting. Their findings, which appear in the journal Neuron, show that the better the coordination between two regions of the brain, the...
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