http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress provides the latest news from University of Cambridge As health services strive to improve quality and reduce costs, researchers study the benefits – and the pitfalls – of 'pay for performance' in hospitals. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-price-health.html Health Thu, 23 May 2013 08:30:07 EST news288515062 Researchers have pinpointed a catalytic trigger for the onset of Alzheimer's disease – when the fundamental structure of a protein molecule changes to cause a chain reaction that leads to the death of neurons in the brain. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-scientists-molecular-trigger-alzheimer-disease.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Mon, 20 May 2013 15:00:01 EST news288269429 (Medical Xpress)—Development of a sophisticated artificial pancreas holds potential to transform the lives of patients with Type 1 diabetes. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-artificial-pancreas-tabs-sugar.html Diabetes Thu, 16 May 2013 08:22:45 EST news287911356 By tracking changes in patients' blood, Cambridge scientists have created a new way of looking at how tumours evolve in real-time and develop drug resistance. The research was published in the print edition of Nature today. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-scientists-simple-blood-track-tumour.html Cancer Fri, 03 May 2013 07:48:48 EST news286786120 (Medical Xpress)—Gathering evidence from children about alleged sex abuse is problematic. Research shows that when interviewers are trained in a protocol that favours open-ended questions more cases lead to charges and more charges lead to prosecution. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-child-abuse.html Psychology & Psychiatry Fri, 05 Apr 2013 07:30:04 EST news284364731 (Medical Xpress)—The latest research into the intricate processes that let substances into and out of cells will help to lay the foundations for the next generation of therapies for major diseases. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-shape-shifting-therapy.html Medical research Tue, 12 Mar 2013 07:59:21 EST news282293950 Research paves the way for new approaches in the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension, a progressive lung disease that can lead to heart failure within three years. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-breathtaking-treatments-fatal-lung-disease.html Medical research Mon, 11 Mar 2013 10:05:45 EST news282215135 A novel tool exploits baker's yeast to expedite the development of new drugs to fight multiple tropical diseases, including malaria, schistosomiasis, and African sleeping sickness. The unique screening method uses yeasts which have been genetically engineered to express parasite and human proteins to identify chemical compounds that target disease-causing parasites but do not affect their human hosts. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-tool-tropical-diseases.html Medical research Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:10:01 EST news281124813 Psychogenic diseases, formerly known as 'hysterical' illnesses, can have many severe symptoms such as painful cramps or paralysis but without any physical explanation. However, new research from the University of Cambridge and UCL (University College London) suggests that individuals with psychogenic disease, that is to say physical illness that stems from emotional or mental stresses, do have brains that function differently. The research was published today, 25 February, in the journal Brain. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-reveals-people-severe-unexplained-psychological.html Neuroscience Sun, 24 Feb 2013 19:10:01 EST news280917450 Every so often, research laboratories and hospitals testing patients for the superbug methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have come across an oddity: a strain that appeared to be MRSA because it was resistant to antibiotics but one that tested negative with the 'gold standard' molecular test. The quirky cases were so infrequent that they were usually filed away for future analysis or disregarded. Until, that is, PhD student Laura Garcia-Alvarez from Cambridge's Department of Veterinary Medicine had the tenacity to look a little further at a bacterial strain she had spotted in cows' milk. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-superbugs.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 14 Feb 2013 09:10:01 EST news280054477 Scientists at the University of Cambridge have developed a tool capable of predicting the number of individuals expected to develop a first episode of psychotic disorder -disorders characterised by altered perceptions such as hallucinations or delusions – within regions of England and Wales. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-tool-incidence-psychosis.html Psychology & Psychiatry Wed, 13 Feb 2013 09:20:04 EST news279967805 (Medical Xpress)—Natural killer cells – a vital part of the immune system – have a dual role in protecting against infection and ensuring reproduction. Scientists suggest that the multi-tasking ability of these cells helped humans to spread out of Africa. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-natural-killer-cells-vital-role.html Immunology Fri, 08 Feb 2013 07:29:32 EST news279530965 A ground-breaking imaging system to track malarial infection of blood cells in real time has been created by a collaboration catalysed by the University's Physics of Medicine Initiative.After over a decade of research into malaria, biologists Dr Teresa Tiffert and Dr Virgilio Lew at the Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience found their efforts to observe a key stage of the infection cycle severely hindered by the limits of available technology. An innovative collaboration with physicist Dr Pietro Cicuta at the Cavendish Laboratory and bio-imaging specialist Professor Clemens Kaminski in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology is now yielding new insights into this devastating disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-malaria-weak.html Medical research Thu, 07 Feb 2013 07:40:02 EST news279444409 (Medical Xpress)—Stealth is a well-known concept in military tactics. Almost since the invention of radar, the hunt began for counter-technologies to hide aircraft and missiles from detection – most successfully by modifying the composition and shape of surfaces to confound detection. In a biological parallel, the African sleeping sickness parasite Trypanosoma brucei also has a stealth-like trick for altering its surface to confound recognition by the human immune system. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-sickness-stealth.html Immunology Tue, 05 Feb 2013 07:05:07 EST news279270291 New research reveals a potential way for how parents' experiences could be passed to their offspring's genes. The research was published today, 25 January, in the journal Science. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-epigenetic-reprogramming-inherited.html Genetics Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:00:07 EST news278258273