Permanent changes in brain genes may not be so permanent after all
In normal development, all cells turn off genes they don't need, often by attaching a chemical methyl group to the DNA, a process called methylation. Historically, scientists believed methyl groups...
View ArticleHealth care savings: Reducing inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions
Inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions are a major public health concern, costing millions of dollars in unnecessary health care costs annually and contributing to the problem of antibiotic-resistant...
View ArticlePesticide exposure linked to Alzheimer's disease
Scientists have known for more than 40 years that the synthetic pesticide DDT is harmful to bird habitats and a threat to the environment.
View ArticleYoga can lower fatigue, inflammation in breast cancer survivors
Practicing yoga for as little as three months can reduce fatigue and lower inflammation in breast cancer survivors, according to new research.
View ArticleStudy examines the development of children's prelife reasoning
Most people, regardless of race, religion or culture, believe they are immortal. That is, people believe that part of themselves–some indelible core, soul or essence–will transcend the body's death and...
View ArticleGossip and ostracism may have hidden group benefits
Conventional wisdom holds that gossip and social exclusion are always malicious, undermining trust and morale in groups. But sharing this kind of "reputational information" could have benefits for...
View ArticleResearchers find ancient plague DNA in teeth
An international team of scientists has discovered that two of the world's most devastating plagues – the plague of Justinian and the Black Death, each responsible for killing as many as half the...
View ArticleMale-female communication at conception shapes the health of offspring, study...
(Medical Xpress)—A father's input is important for his child's future health right from the moment of conception, with the quality of his seminal fluid playing a major and unique role in that process,...
View ArticleNew study analyzes content of nightmares and bad dreams
According to a new study by researchers at the University of Montreal, nightmares have greater emotional impact than bad dreams do, and fear is not always a factor. In fact, it is mostly absent in bad...
View ArticleConverting adult human cells to hair-follicle-generating stem cells
If the content of many a situation comedy, not to mention late-night TV advertisements, is to be believed, there's an epidemic of balding men, and an intense desire to fix their follicular deficiencies.
View ArticleHow the brain processes musical hallucinations
A woman with an "iPod in her head" has helped scientists at Newcastle University and University College London identify the areas of the brain that are affected when patients experience a rare...
View ArticleGenetically diverse cancer cells key to brain tumor resistance
(Medical Xpress)—For a cancer cell, it pays to have a group of eccentric friends.
View ArticleNew MRI approach dramatically speeds up results
(Medical Xpress)—Two Yale researchers have developed a way to significantly reduce the time it takes to get magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) results by encoding an entire image with just a single line...
View ArticleGene family mutation, autism linked
(Medical Xpress)—Harvard Medical School researchers at McLean Hospital have found that a gene family linked to autism, EphB, is essential for proper brain wiring during development. The findings...
View ArticleThree new feline viruses raise questions about transmission and disease
(Medical Xpress)—Pathogen researchers at Colorado State University have discovered a family of cancer-causing viruses in several U.S. populations of bobcats, mountain lions and domestic cats, raising...
View ArticleNew operating principle of potassium channels discovered
Neurons transmit information with the help of special channels that allow the passage of potassium ions. Defective potassium channels play a role in epilepsy and depression. The scientists working with...
View ArticleNatural plant compound prevents Alzheimer's disease in mice
(Medical Xpress)—A chemical that's found in fruits and vegetables from strawberries to cucumbers appears to stop memory loss that accompanies Alzheimer's disease in mice, scientists at the Salk...
View ArticleStudy shows mirror image scratching offers some relief
(Medical Xpress)—A study of mirrors and the tricks they can play on the mind has led to a finding that people scratching a mirror image of an arm instead of the one that truly itches, can provide some...
View ArticleWhat makes us human? Unique brain area linked to higher cognitive powers
Oxford University researchers have identified an area of the human brain that appears unlike anything in the brains of some of our closest relatives.
View ArticleMelatonin shows potential to slow tumor growth in certain breast cancers
An early stage study shows melatonin – a hormone that regulates the body's sleep and awake cycles – may have the potential to help slow the growth of certain breast cancer tumors, according to...
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