http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Cinnamon: Can the red-brown spice with the unmistakable fragrance and variety of uses offer an important benefit? The common baking spice might hold the key to delaying the onset of –– or warding off –– the effects of Alzheimer's disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-scientists-cinnamon-compounds-potential-ability.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 23 May 2013 15:41:05 EST news288542270 By discovering the new mechanism by which estrogen suppresses lipid synthesis in the liver, UC Irvine endocrinologists have revealed a potential new approach toward treating certain liver diseases. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-reveals-mechanism-estrogen-suppression-liver.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 15:40:01 EST news288540951 UCLA researchers examining outcomes for advanced heart-failure patients over the past two decades have found that, coinciding with the increased availability and use of new therapies, overall mortality has decreased and sudden cardiac death, caused by the rapid onset of severe abnormal heart rhythms, has declined. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-death-decline-advanced-heart-failure.html Cardiology Thu, 23 May 2013 15:36:08 EST news288542160 Aortic arch pulse wave velocity, a measure of arterial stiffness, is a strong independent predictor of disease of the vessels that supply blood to the brain, according to a new study published in the June issue the journal Radiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-mri-based-vascular-disease-brain.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 15:35:43 EST news288542100 Chinese and U.S. scientists have used virus isolated from a person who died from H7N9 avian influenza infection to determine whether the virus could infect and be transmitted between ferrets. Ferrets are often used as a mammalian model in influenza research, and efficient transmission of influenza virus between ferrets can provide clues as to how well the same process might occur in people. The research was supported, in part, by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-ferrets-pigs-susceptible-h7n9-avian.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 23 May 2013 15:16:52 EST news288540994 An anti-cancer drug reverses memory deficits in an Alzheimer's disease mouse model, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health researchers confirm in the journal Science. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-drug-reverses-alzheimer-disease-deficits.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 23 May 2013 14:06:26 EST news288536778 Can economic incentives such as gift cards, T-shirts, and time off from work motivate members of the public to increase their donations of blood? http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-economic-incentives-blood-donation-negative.html Health Thu, 23 May 2013 14:01:36 EST news288536486 Teams of highly respected Alzheimer's researchers failed to replicate what appeared to be breakthrough results for the treatment of this brain disease when they were published last year in the journal Science. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-multiple-teams-unable-high-profile-alzheimer.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 23 May 2013 14:00:13 EST news288536227 Since the discovery of Prontosil in 1932, sulfonamide antibiotics have been used to combat a wide spectrum of bacterial infections, from acne to chlamydia and pneumonia. However, their side effects can include serious neurological problems like nausea, headache, dizziness, hallucinations and even psychosis. In a recent Science publication, EPFL researchers have shown for the first time how sulfonamides can interfere with a patient's nervous system. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-antibiotics-sulfonamide-nervous-side-effects.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 14:00:09 EST news288536311 Scientists at the National Institutes of Health report they have discovered in mouse studies that a small molecule released in the spinal cord triggers a process that is later experienced in the brain as the sensation of itch. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-scientists-molecule-triggers-sensation.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 14:00:01 EST news288536360 (Medical Xpress)—The human brain is able to identify individuals' voices by comparing them against an internal 'average voice' prototype, according to neuroscientists. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-brain-internal-average-voice-prototype.html Neuroscience Thu, 23 May 2013 13:43:48 EST news288535418 Little is known about why asthma develops, how it constricts the airway or why response to treatments varies between patients. Now, a team of researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College, Columbia University Medical Center and SUNY Downstate Medical Center has revealed the roots of a common type of childhood asthma, showing that it is very different from other asthma cases. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-common-childhood-asthma-unconnected-allergens.html Inflammatory disorders Thu, 23 May 2013 13:34:48 EST news288534882 A new study determined that children and adolescents with seizures involving the temporal lobe are likely to have clinically significant behavioral problems and psychiatric illness, especially depression. Findings published in Epilepsia, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), highlight the importance of routine psychiatric evaluation for pediatric epilepsy patients—particularly for those who do not respond to anti-seizure medications and require epilepsy surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-depression-common-children-temporal-lobe.html Neuroscience Thu, 23 May 2013 13:32:51 EST news288534764 A new coronavirus has now claimed 22 lives worldwide out of 44 lab-confirmed cases, mostly in Saudi Arabia, World Health Organization officials said Thursday. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-deaths-worldwide-coronavirus.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 23 May 2013 12:16:03 EST news288530157 Gaucher disease causes debilitating and sometimes fatal neurodegeneration in early childhood. Recent studies have uncovered a link between the mutations responsible for Gaucher disease and an increased risk of developing Parkinson's disease later in life. New research published online on May 23 in the Cell Press journal Cell Metabolism indicates that the neurodegeneration found in Gaucher disease stems from defects in processes that break down and remove unwanted material from cells. This defective trash removal in cells can lead to the toxic build-up of proteins found to be responsible for neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease, providing insight into the link between the two diseases. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-defective-cellular-gaucher-patients-parkinson.html Parkinson's & Movement disorders Thu, 23 May 2013 12:14:20 EST news288530028 Family caregivers of older adults with dementia are less stressed and their moods are improved on days when dementia patients receive adult day services (ADS), according to Penn State researchers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-adult-day-dementia-patients-stress.html Health Thu, 23 May 2013 12:10:58 EST news288529840 Treating pediatric leukemia patients with a liposomal formulation of anthracycline-based chemotherapy at a more intense-than-standard dose during initial treatment may result in high survival rates without causing any added heart toxicity, according to the results of a study published online today in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-chemo-regimen-childhood-leukemia-high.html Cancer Thu, 23 May 2013 12:10:12 EST news288529804 Spanish researchers have discovered that the daily clearance of neutrophils from the body stimulates the release of hematopoietic stem cells from the bone marrow into the bloodstream, according to a report published today in the journal Cell. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-discarded-immune-cells-relocation-stem.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 12:07:44 EST news288529649 A brief visual task can predict IQ, according to a new study. This surprisingly simple exercise measures the brain's unconscious ability to filter out visual movement. The study shows that individuals whose brains are better at automatically suppressing background motion perform better on standard measures of intelligence. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-motion-quotient-iq-ability-filter.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 23 May 2013 12:02:02 EST news288529313 A discovery made in fish could aid research into motor neuron disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-hormone-motor-neuron-growth-fish.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 12:00:39 EST news288529229 Scientists have uncovered a survival mechanism that occurs in breast cells that have just turned premalignant-cells on the cusp between normalcy and cancers-which may lead to new methods of stopping tumors. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-protein-preps-cells-survive-stress.html Cancer Thu, 23 May 2013 12:00:03 EST news288529037 Given the implications for the overall health, development, and academic success of children, schools should play a primary role in ensuring that all students have opportunities to engage in at least 60 minutes per day of vigorous or moderate-intensity physical activity, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. Recent estimates suggest that only about half of school-age children meet this evidence-based guideline for promoting better health and development. The report recommends that most daily physical activity occur during regular school hours in physical education classes, recess or breaks, and classroom exercises, with additional opportunities available through active commutes to and from school, before- and after-school programs, and participation in intramural or varsity sports. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-schools-opportunities-minutes-daily-physical.html Health Thu, 23 May 2013 11:52:06 EST news288528720 Bochum's medics have succeeded in treating cerebral palsy with autologous cord blood. Following a cardiac arrest with severe brain damage, a 2.5 year old boy had been in a persistent vegetative state – with minimal chances of survival. Just two months after treatment with the cord blood containing stem cells, the symptoms improved significantly; over the following months, the child learned to speak simple sentences and to move. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-successful-treatment-pediatric-cerebral-palsy.html Medical research Thu, 23 May 2013 11:51:31 EST news288528685 As the human body fine-tunes its neurological wiring, nerve cells often must fix a faulty connection by amputating an axon—the "business end" of the neuron that sends electrical impulses to tissues or other neurons. It is a dance with death, however, because the molecular poison the neuron deploys to sever an axon could, if uncontained, kill the entire cell. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-secret-deaths-neurons.html Neuroscience Thu, 23 May 2013 11:50:43 EST news288528637 A study by researchers at Henry Ford Hospital found "substantial evidence" that a regenerative process involving damaged nerve fibers in the spinal cord could hold the key to better functional recovery by most stroke victims. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-regenerating-spinal-cord-fibers-treatment.html Neuroscience Thu, 23 May 2013 11:50:08 EST news288528379 Frequent heartburn was positively associated with cancers of the throat and vocal cord among nonsmokers and nondrinkers, and the use of antacids, but not prescription medications, had a protective effect, according to data published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-frequent-heartburn-cancers-throat-vocal.html Cancer Thu, 23 May 2013 11:33:02 EST news288527567 Researchers at Lund University have succeeded in preventing very early symptoms of Huntington's disease, depression and anxiety, by deactivating the mutated huntingtin protein in the brains of mice. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-breakthrough-huntington-disease.html Neuroscience Thu, 23 May 2013 11:32:40 EST news288527467 Nervous about that upcoming job interview? You might want to take steps to reduce your jitters, especially if you are a man. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-anxious-men-fare-worse-job.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 23 May 2013 11:20:01 EST news288525787 A known difficulty in fighting influenza (flu) is the ability of the flu viruses to mutate and thus evade various medications that were previously found to be effective. Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have shown recently that another, more promising, approach is to focus on improving drugs that boost the body's natural flu killer system. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-boosting-body-natural-flu-killers.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 23 May 2013 11:06:47 EST news288525999 22 May 2013, Paris, France: The Lotus Valve, a second-generation transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) device, was successfully implanted in all of the first 60 patients in results from REPRISE II reported at EuroPCR 2013, which showed good device performance and low mortality at 30 days. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-second-generation-tavi-devicelotus-valveshows-good.html Cardiology Thu, 23 May 2013 11:04:25 EST news288525804