ScienceDaily: Top Health News

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• Woman with quadriplegia feeds herself chocolate using mind-controlled robot arm
• Resistance to cocaine addiction may be passed down from father to son
• Ordinary heart cells become 'biological pacemakers' with injection of single gene
• New technique could make cell-based immune therapies for cancer safer and more effective
• Even the smallest stroke can damage brain tissue and impair cognitive function
• Kidney failure under the microscope
• Significant link found between daytime sleepiness and vitamin D
• The mu opioid receptor genotype may be a marker for those who drink for alcohol's rewarding effects
• Chronic alcohol and marijuana use during youth can compromise white-matter integrity
• Alcohol marketers use drinker identity and brand allegiance to entice underage youth
• Negative emotionality may make some people more prone to alcohol or other drug problems
• Ibrutinib has 'unprecedented' impact on mantle cell lymphoma

Woman with quadriplegia feeds herself chocolate using mind-controlled robot arm Posted: 17 Dec 2012 12:09 AM PST Reaching out to "high five" someone, grasping and moving objects of different shapes and sizes, feeding herself dark chocolate. For Jan Scheuermann and a team of researchers, accomplishing these seemingly ordinary tasks demonstrated for the first time that a person with longstanding quadriplegia can maneuver a mind-controlled, human-like robot arm in seven dimensions (7D) to consistently perform many of the natural and complex motions of everyday life.

Resistance to cocaine addiction may be passed down from father to son Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST New research reveals that sons of male rats exposed to cocaine are resistant to the rewarding effects of the drug, suggesting that cocaine-induced changes in physiology are passed down from father to son.

Ordinary heart cells become 'biological pacemakers' with injection of single gene Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Researchers have reprogrammed ordinary heart cells to become exact replicas of highly specialized pacemaker cells by injecting a single gene -- a major step forward in the decade-long search for a biological therapy to correct erratic and failing heartbeats.

New technique could make cell-based immune therapies for cancer safer and more effective Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Scientists have shown for the first time the effectiveness of a new technique that could allow the development of more-specific, cell-based immune therapies for cancer.

Even the smallest stroke can damage brain tissue and impair cognitive function Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Blocking a single tiny blood vessel in the brain can harm neural tissue and even alter behavior, a new study in animals has shown. But these consequences can be mitigated by a drug already in use, suggesting treatment that could slow the progress of dementia associated with cumulative damage to miniscule blood vessels that feed brain cells.

Kidney failure under the microscope Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:24 AM PST Better targeted treatments for 20 percent of renal failure patients are on the horizon following a key discovery about the role of white blood cells in kidney inflammation.

Significant link found between daytime sleepiness and vitamin D Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST A new study suggests that there is a significant correlation between excessive daytime sleepiness and vitamin D, and race plays an important factor.

The mu opioid receptor genotype may be a marker for those who drink for alcohol's rewarding effects Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Previous research has found that individuals who become more energized, talkative, and/or social when they drink – versus sedated or sleepy – are more likely to drink more heavily. A new study examined the impact of a mutation of the mu opioid receptor gene on the effects of drinking. Findings indicate that the OPRM1 genotype seems to moderate the pleasant and stimulating effects to alcohol among alcohol-dependent individuals.

Chronic alcohol and marijuana use during youth can compromise white-matter integrity Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Chronic alcohol and marijuana during youth is associated with worsened neurocognitive abilities into later adolescence and adulthood. A new study examines fiber tract integrity affected by adolescent alcohol and marijuana use for 1.5 years. Results support previous findings of reduced white-matter integrity in these youth.

Alcohol marketers use drinker identity and brand allegiance to entice underage youth Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Underage youth are regularly exposed to alcohol marketing. New research has examined associations between alcohol marketing and binge drinking by youth. Results indicate these associations are mediated by drinker identity and brand allegiance, which are actively cultivated by alcohol marketers.

Negative emotionality may make some people more prone to alcohol or other drug problems Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Sensitivity to the stimulating effects of alcohol and other drugs is a risk marker for their problematic use. Negative emotionality has also been associated with substance use. New findings indicate that a high level of negative emotionality may lead to problem drinking when it occurs together with sensitivity to a drug-based reward.

Ibrutinib has 'unprecedented' impact on mantle cell lymphoma Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:08 PM PST An international study of ibrutinib in people with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) continues to show unprecedented and durable results with few side effects.

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