news 2017

The theory that education protects against Alzheimer's disease has been given further weight by new research from the University of Cambridge, funded by the European Union. The study is published today in The BMJ . Many studies have shown that certain risk factors are more common in people with Alzheimer's disease, but determining whether these factors actually cause Alzheimer's is more difficult Hugh Markus Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia.

About 15 million Americans will have either Alzheimer's dementia or mild cognitive impairment by 2060, up from approximately 6.08 million this year, according to a new study by researchers at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. The findings highlight the need to develop measures that could slow the progression of the disease in people who have indications of neuropathological changes that could eventually lead to Alzheimer's dementia, said Ron Brookmeyer, professor of biostatistics at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and the study's lead author.

Using a bioinformatics and experimental approach, scientists at EPFL have found that rendering mitochondria resistant to damage can halt diseases caused by amyloid toxicity, such as Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia and neurodegeneration worldwide. A major hallmark of the disease is the accumulation of toxic plaques in the brain, formed by the abnormal aggregation of a protein called beta-amyloid inside neurons.

Rates of psychosis can be close to eight times higher in some regions compared to others, finds a new study led by researchers at King's College London, UCL and the University of Cambridge. The study, published today in JAMA Psychiatry , was the biggest international comparison of incidence of psychotic disorders, and the first major study of its kind in more than 25 years.

Drawings taken from Lancaster University's 'Metaphor Menu', a collection of examples of different ways in which people described their experiences with cancer Analysis led by Lancaster University researchers suggests that spontaneous humour is used and appreciated by people with cancer and can be a helpful way of dealing with distressing, taboo or embarrassing circumstances.

For many people with advanced Type 2 diabetes, taking insulin is a regular part of their routine, helping them control their blood sugar by signaling the metabolism of glucose. But recently, researchers have been investigating GLP-1, a peptide that gets activated when people eat, triggering insulin through a more natural pathway.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new study finds that viruses share some genes exclusively with cells that are not their hosts. The study, reported in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology, adds to the evidence that viruses swap genes with a variety of cellular organisms and are agents of diversity, researchers say.

Rates of psychosis can be close to eight times higher in some regions compared to others, finds a new study led by researchers at UCL, King's College London and the University of Cambridge. The study, published today in JAMA Psychiatry , was the biggest international comparison of incidence of psychotic disorders, and the first major study of its kind in more than 25 years.

In the SLAY method, each bacterium is genetically engineered to produce a molecule on its cell surface that is part peptide and part tether-like a playground tetherball. This arrangement allows the peptides to mimic free-floating drugs in the human body. Ashley Tucker/University of Texas at Austin AUSTIN, Texas - Biologists at The University of Texas at Austin have developed a method for rapidly screening hundreds of thousands of potential drugs for fighting infections, an innovation that holds promise for combating the growing scourge of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

When parents struggle to juggle family and work responsibilities, they become tired, stressed, cranky and unhappy, which has an impact on family relationships and their children's wellbeing. Jobs that are overly demanding at the expense of family time put the mental health of employees' children at risk, a new study led by ANU has found.

Exhaust fumes, soot and dust spewed out from road traffic in the UK capital may be putting the health of thousands of unborn babies at risk. The findings come from a study of more than half a million infants, which suggests that pregnant mothers exposed to air pollution from London's busy roads are more likely to give birth to babies that are underweight or smaller than they should be.

Exposure to air pollution on city streets is enough to counter the beneficial health effects of exercise in older adults, according to new research. The findings, published in The Lancet, show that short term exposure to air pollution in built up areas like London's busy Oxford Street can prevent the positive effects on the heart and lungs that can be gained from walking.

Scientists have identified a protein involved in the life cycle of the malarial parasite, paving the way for a new vaccine to reduce disease spread. Malaria, a disease caused by the transfer of the Plasmodium parasite from certain mosquitos to humans, is responsible for 429,000 deaths every year according to the World Health Organisation.

A landmark trial funded by Diabetes UK suggests it is possible to put Type 2 diabetes into remission using an intensive low calorie diet-based weight management programme delivered entirely in primary care. The first year findings of DiRECT (Diabetes Remission Clinical Trial) show almost half (45.6%) of those who took part in the programme were in remission after 12 months.

Researchers seeking to pinpoint the cause of a rise in Legionnaires' disease over the past decade in Connecticut discovered a link between those living near some of the state's rivers and within specific watersheds. An analysis of 17 years of data by lead author Kelsie Cassell, M.P.H. '17 and a post graduate research assistant at the Yale School of Public Health, found that elevated rainfall and greater stream flow were associated with an increased incidence of the disease.

Maintaining sufficient vitamin D levels may help to prevent the onset of inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, research led by the University of Birmingham has discovered. The research also found that while Vitamin D can be effective at preventing the onset of inflammation, it is less effective once inflammatory disease is established because diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis leads to vitamin D insensitivity.

Imagine you're in a restaurant, hungry, anxious and a bit irritable awaiting your food order to arrive at the table. The server exits the kitchen with a tray full of steaming plates and a flood of relief washes over you. But the server ferries the food right past you to another table, and the unpleasant sensation of hunger returns - at least until you take the first bite of your very own meal.

Carnegie Mellon University engineers and cognitive neuroscientists have demonstrated that a new high-density EEG can capture the brain's neural activity at a higher spatial resolution than ever before. This next generation brain-interface technology is the first non-invasive, high-resolution system of its kind, providing higher density and coverage than any existing system.

ANN ARBOR-Research has shown that a woman's emotional and physical health during pregnancy impacts a developing fetus. However, less is known about the effect of past stressors and posttraumatic stress disorder on an expectant woman. To that end, researchers at the University of Michigan measured the stress hormone cortisol in pregnant women from early pregnancy to when their baby was 6 weeks old.

MIT engineers have devised a 3-D printing technique that uses a new kind of ink made from genetically programmed living cells. The cells are engineered to light up in response to a variety of stimuli. When mixed with a slurry of hydrogel and nutrients, the cells can be printed, layer by layer, to form three-dimensional, interactive structures and devices.