Medicine

Daniel O’Connor, M.D., Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine has studied about 265 twin pairs over the past few years, which has led him to some surprising discoveries. "By studying many traits and genes, we have started to put together unexpected stories," he said. Studying genetic variations in twins provides scientists with data on traits that are heritable, or passed down through human DNA, versus those determined by the environment, age or how a person cares for his or her health, factors such as medical care or diet…

Two papers by Columbia and Harvard researchers report for the first time that astrocytes (the most abundant non-neuronal cells in the central nervous system), which carry a mutated gene known to cause some cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/Lou Gehrig's disease), induce motor neuron death. This indicates that astrocytes may contribute to ALS by releasing a toxic factor that damages neurons. These findings, posted online by Nature Neuroscience on April 15, suggest that developing an effective therapy for ALS would require overcoming the destructive effects of astrocytes and replacing…

In a study appearing in the March 22 New England Journal of Medicine, scientists supported by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) have discovered a connection between a specific gene and the inflammatory skin condition vitiligo, as well as a possible host of autoimmune diseases. Vitiligo is a chronic condition in which melanocytes (the cells that make pigment) in the skin are destroyed. As a result, white patches appear on the skin in different parts of the body. Similar patches also appear on both the mucous…

University of Cincinnati (UC) neuroradiologists believe a brain imaging approach that combines standard magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans with specialized contrast-enhanced techniques could lead to more effective diagnoses in patients with difficult-to-detect blood clots in veins of the brain. James Leach, MD, reports these findings in the April issue of the American Journal of Neuroradiology. This is the first study to correlate the clinical importance of data gleaned from standard MRI scans and detailed contrast-enhanced imaging techniques in patients with chronic thrombosis (blood…

I know I talk too much about web 2.0 and medicine anyway, but I promise I’ll never say a word about web 4.0. Now, I just would like to present a new site which will cover what web 3.0 or the so-called semantic web is about. According to Wikipedia: Humans are capable of using the Web to carry out tasks such as finding the Finnish word for “car”, to reserve a library book, or to search for the cheapest DVD and buy it. However, a computer cannot accomplish the same tasks without human direction because web pages are designed to be read by people, not machines. The semantic web is a vision of…

In advanced cancer, anti-tumor therapies often work only partially or not at all, and tumors progress following treatment. Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center scientists have now linked a treatment-induced growth factor to the cancer’s future spread. The team led by Carlos Arteaga, M.D., reports in the May issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation that radiation and chemotherapy increase circulating levels of the growth factor TGF-beta, circulating cancer cells, and tumor metastases in a mouse model of metastatic breast cancer. Blocking TGF-beta in the model prevented tumor metastases,…

University of Cincinnati (UC) neuroradiologists believe a brain imaging approach that combines standard magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans with specialized contrast-enhanced techniques could lead to more effective diagnoses in patients with difficult-to-detect blood clots in veins of the brain. James Leach, MD, reports these findings in the April issue of the American Journal of Neuroradiology. This is the first study to correlate the clinical importance of data gleaned from standard MRI scans and detailed contrast-enhanced imaging techniques in patients with chronic thrombosis (blood…

Tailor-made dietary fiber may be able to flush artery-clogging cholesterol from the body and lower the risk of heart disease, according to a new study by University of Guelph researchers. The study found that a fiber-rich plant extract from a legume grown in India can reduce cholesterol in pigs. The results were published in the March issue of the Journal of Nutrition. Although the study relied on animal models, the researchers say the result would most likely be the same in people and they hope further studies by human nutritionists will provide confirmation. They also want to find ways to…

A new report published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) shows that patients treated with bronchial thermoplasty, the first non-drug treatment for asthma, demonstrated an overall improvement in asthma control. Co-Principal Investigators, Dr. Gerard Cox, respirologist at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton’s Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health, and Professor at McMaster University, and Dr. John Miller, Division Head of Thoracic Surgery at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and McMaster University authored the study. The study revealed improved asthma control at one…

Web 2.0 + Medicine = Medicine 2.0. You must have read the BMJ article: How Web 2.0 is changing medicine. I’ve been searching for med 2.0 links for days now, and I hope you’ll like them. Some of them will definitely be known, but some must be new. Let’s start with two studies: Use Of Web Sites To Obtain Health Care Information Increasing (Medicalnewstoday.com) According to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, about 113 million U.S. residents searched for health care information online in 2006, and eight million individuals search online daily for information about diets, diseases…