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Wednesday, December 12, 2012

ScienceDaily: Top Health News

ScienceDaily: Top Health News


Predator-producing bacteria may be battling in human intestines

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 04:35 PM PST

Researchers have found that a bacteriophage unique to the Enterococcus faecalis strain V583 acts as a predator, infecting and harming similar, competing bacteria. They believe these lab results suggest what goes on in the human intestine.

Concussions affect children's brains even after symptoms subside

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 04:31 PM PST

Brain changes in children who have sustained a mild traumatic brain injury, or concussion, persist for months following injury -- even after the symptoms of the injury are gone, according to a new study. The findings highlight the potential benefit of using advanced imaging techniques to monitor recovery in children following concussions.

Colic treatment? Manipulative therapies may be beneficial treatment for infantile colic

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 04:31 PM PST

Infantile colic is a distressing problem, characterized by excessive crying of infants and it is the most common complaint seen by physicians in the first 16 weeks of a child's life. It is usually considered a benign disorder because the symptoms generally disappear by the age of five or six months. However, the degree of distress caused to parents and family life is such that physicians often feel the need to intervene. Some studies suggest that there are longer-lasting effects. It has been suggested that certain gentle, low velocity manipulative techniques such as those used in osteopathy and chiropractic, might safely reduce the symptoms associated with infantile colic, specifically excessive crying time.

Want your baby to learn? Research shows sitting up helps

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 01:35 PM PST

New research shows that something as simple as the body position of babies while they learn plays a critical role in their cognitive development.

How our sense of touch is a lot like the way we hear

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 12:44 PM PST

Researchers have found that the timing and frequency of vibrations produced in the skin when exploring surfaces play an important role in how humans use the sense of touch to gather information, drawing a powerful analogy to the auditory system.

My, what big teeth you have! Threatening objects appear closer

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 12:44 PM PST

When we're faced with things that seem threatening, whether it's a hairy spider or an angry mob, our goal is usually to get as far away as we can. Now, new research suggests that our visual perception may actually be biased to help motivate us to get out of harm's way.

Even moderate smoking associated with sudden death risk in women

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 12:40 PM PST

Even light-to-moderate cigarette smoking is associated with a significant increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death in women. The risk of sudden cardiac death rose 8 percent for each five years of smoking. However, within 15-20 years of smoking cessation the risk of sudden cardiac death drops to that of a nonsmoker.

Alzheimer's biomarkers inhibited in animal model by targeting astrocytes

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 11:52 AM PST

Researchers have published an article which provides direct evidence that activated astrocytes could play a harmful role in Alzheimer's disease.

Holiday shopping madness: When do consumers seek to punish fellow shoppers for behaving badly?

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 10:04 AM PST

Consumers seek to punish fellow consumers who violate social norms while shopping but also make exceptions depending on the situation, according to a new study.

Novel laser technique reveals how the inner ear amplifies sound

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 10:02 AM PST

Researchers have described how the ear amplifies incoming sound using an innovative laser technique.

Battling brittle bones with … broccoli and spinach?

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 10:02 AM PST

A new study from engineering researchers shows, for the first time, how the little-understood protein osteocalcin plays a significant role in the strength of our bones. The findings could lead to new strategies and therapeutics for fighting osteoporosis and lowering the risk of bone fracture.

Foreign multidrug resistant bacteria contained in Toronto hospital

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 08:30 AM PST

A hospital in Canada detected the presence of New Delhi Metallo-ß-lactamase-1-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (NDM1-Kp), a multidrug resistant bacteria that is resistant to carbapenems, one of the last lines of antibiotics. The retrospective report analyzes risk factors and infection control strategies taken to prevent the spread of NDM1-Kp.

Anti-aging gene identified as tumor suppressor in mice: Mice without pro-longevity gene SIRT6 had higher risk of gastrointestinal cancers

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 08:30 AM PST

A new study sheds more light on how an anti-aging gene suppresses cancer growth, new research shows.

Salmonella spreads by targeting cells in our gut, study shows

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 08:29 AM PST

Scientists have gained fresh insights into how the salmonella bug makes us ill. Researchers have found that the bacteria are able to change key cells that line the intestine, enabling the bugs to thrive.

Emotion in voices helps capture listener's attention, but in the long run the words are not remembered as accurately

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 08:27 AM PST

Emotion in voices helps capture the listener's attention, but in the long run the words are not remembered as accurately. Does the emotion in our voice have a lasting effect? According to new research, emotion helps us recognize words quicker and more accurately straight away. In the longer term however, we do not remember emotionally intoned speech as accurately as neutral speech. When we do remember the words, they have acquired an emotional value; for example words spoken in a sad voice are remembered as more negative than words spoken in a neutral voice.

Device helps children with disabilities access tablets

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:32 AM PST

Researchers are trying to open the world of tablets to children whose limited mobility makes it difficult for them to perform the common pinch and swipe gestures required to control the devices.

Postpartum women less stressed by threats unrelated to the baby

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:32 AM PST

Following the birth of a child, new mothers may have an altered perception of stresses around them, showing less interest in threats unrelated to the baby. This change to the neuroendocrine circuitry could help the mothers adapt to the additional stress often accompanying newborns, say researchers.

Effective immunotherapy for melanoma hinges on blocking suppressive factors, study suggests

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:32 AM PST

Researchers have found that delayed tumor growth and enhanced survival of mice bearing melanoma were possible by blocking the reconstitution of myeloid-derived suppressor cells and Tregs (suppressors of anti-tumor activity) after total body irradiation had eliminated them. Blocking myeloid-derived suppressor cells and regulatory T-cell reconstitution improved adoptive T-cell therapy, an immunotherapy designed to suppress tumor activity.

Epigenetics may be a critical factor contributing to homosexuality, study suggests

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:32 AM PST

Epigenetics -- how gene expression is regulated by temporary switches, called epi-marks -- appears to be a critical and overlooked factor contributing to the long-standing puzzle of why homosexuality occurs. According to the study, sex-specific epi-marks, which normally do not pass between generations and are thus "erased," can lead to homosexuality when they escape erasure and are transmitted from father to daughter or mother to son.

New coronavirus has many potential hosts, could pass from animals to humans repeatedly

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:32 AM PST

The SARS epidemic of 2002-2003 was short-lived, but a novel type of human coronavirus that is alarming public health authorities can infect cells from humans and bats alike, a fact that could make the animals a continuing source of infection, according to a new study.

Bedroom TV viewing increases risk of obesity in children: More than 2 hours of TV a day adds significantly to children's waist size

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:32 AM PST

The average American child from age 8 to 18 watches about 4.5 hours of TV each day. 70 percent have a TV in the bedroom and about one-third of youth aged 6-19 is considered obese. Researchers have now established the relationship between having and watching TV in the bedroom and childhood obesity, specifically high waist circumference.

Does the brain become unglued in autism?

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:30 AM PST

A new study suggests that autism is associated with reductions in the level of cellular adhesion molecules in the blood, where they play a role in immune function. Cell adhesion molecules are the glue that binds cells together in the body. Deficits in adhesion molecules would be expected to compromise processes at the interfaces between cells, influencing tissue integrity and cell-to-cell signaling. In the brain, deficits in adhesion molecules could compromise brain development and communication between nerve cells.

Feeling lonely linked to increased risk of dementia in later life

Posted: 10 Dec 2012 05:04 PM PST

Feeling lonely, as distinct from being/living alone, is linked to an increased risk of developing dementia in later life, indicates new research.

Males hit by vehicles twice as likely to die

Posted: 10 Dec 2012 10:27 AM PST

According to a newly published study, male pedestrians struck by vehicles are more than twice as likely to die as their female counterparts.

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