ScienceDaily: Top Health News

Fingerprint patterns are linked to limb development genes

Posted: 06 Jan 2022 08:15 AM PST

In the most comprehensive analysis to date, researchers found that the shapes of fingerprints -- whether they are circular, wavy, or winding -- are influenced by the genes responsible for limb development instead of skin patterning. The study could help scientists better understand the association between genes and phenotypical traits in humans.

Decoding protein assembly dynamics with artificial protein needles

Posted: 06 Jan 2022 07:02 AM PST

Protein assembly is essential for the formation of ordered biological structures, but imagine engineering one! This is exactly what researchers have now accomplished with protein needles. By regulating the tip-to-tip interactions of these needles, they allowed for their self-assembly into lattice structures, ordered monomeric states, and fiber assemblies, paving the way for the controlled construction of more of such protein architectures.

Portable prostate cancer test may help reach underserved men

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 05:28 PM PST

A highly portable and rapid prostate cancer screening kit could provide early warning to populations with higher incidence of prostate cancer and particularly those with limited access to health care, such as African American men.

Nearly 2 million children worldwide develop asthma as a result of breathing in traffic- related pollution

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 05:27 PM PST

Nearly 2 million new cases of pediatric asthma every year may be caused by a traffic-related air pollutant, a problem particularly important in big cities around the world, according to a new study.

Findings open the way to more precise diagnoses and treatments of Alzheimer’s disease

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 12:13 PM PST

An international team has made a significant breakthrough in understanding why Alzheimer's disease progresses so rapidly in some people that they die within three years. The researchers found a link between strains of misshapen and fast-replicating tau protein and accelerated cognitive decline -- a critical result that illuminates the variations in Alzheimer's disease and could help lead to more precise diagnoses and targeted therapies. Such work could lead to changes in Alzheimer's care, possibly giving patients and families more accurate prognoses.

Engineered nanomaterial captures off-target cancer drug to prevent tissue damage

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 12:13 PM PST

Standard chemotherapies may efficiently kill cancer cells, but they also pose significant risks to healthy cells, resulting in secondary illness and a diminished quality of life for patients. To prevent the previously unavoidable damage, researchers have developed a new class of nanomaterials engineered to capture chemotherapy drugs before they interact with healthy tissue.

Modern humans developed a more effective protection against oxidative stress

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 12:13 PM PST

Very few proteins in the body have a change that makes them unique compared to the corresponding proteins in Neanderthals and apes. Researchers have now studied one such protein, glutathione reductase, which protects against oxidative stress. They show that the risk for inflammatory bowel disease and vascular disease is increased several times in people carrying the Neanderthal variant.

Timing of brain injury in pregnancy, birth may impact motor and language outcomes

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 12:13 PM PST

A new study that mapped the neural connections of newborns with two different kinds of brain injuries found the maps looked very different -- and were linked to significantly different developmental outcomes years later.

Division of labor among genetic switches

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 11:00 AM PST

Two X chromosomes are actually one too many. Female mammalian cells hence switch off one of them – but only when the cells start to specialize into tissues. A research team has now discovered how cells 'count' their chromosomes and at the same time sense which stage of development they are in.

How a brain networks enables human conversation

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 10:45 AM PST

A new study has identified a brain circuit that is active while we plan our spoken replies during conversation. The work promises to guide the design of new therapies for the 7.5 million Americans who have trouble using their voices, say the study authors.

Immuno-CRISPR assay could help diagnose kidney transplant rejection early on

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 10:45 AM PST

Researchers have developed a CRISPR-based assay that can sensitively and non-invasively detect a biomarker of acute kidney rejection in urine. This could someday help diagnose rejection earlier and without a biopsy.

Living in outer space: Changes in blood flow volume may be at the heart of worsening eyesight

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 10:45 AM PST

The long-term risks of living in space include bone loss, cosmic radiation and muscle weakness, so leaving gravity behind certainly has its obstacles -- and yet, that doesn't stop people from venturing out of the stratosphere. Some of these potential hurdles have already been studied extensively or are currently being investigated, but researchers have found an important but underserved area of space to study: the brain and gravity's effect on eyesight.

Single blood sample can detect women at risk of pre-eclampsia

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 09:24 AM PST

A study of pregnant women's blood RNA has found specific molecular profiles that identify women at risk of pre-eclampsia. These insights can identify complications before a woman experiences symptoms.

World’s fastest blade runner gets no competitive advantage from prostheses, study shows

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 09:23 AM PST

A new study provides the most comprehensive data ever collected from elite runners with bilateral leg amputations, including the world's fastest 400-meter sprinter, Blake Leeper.

How LPS prevents or promotes development of asthma and allergic disease by airborne allergens

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 09:23 AM PST

Many experiments show that exposure to LPS during exposure to environmental allergens protects against developing asthma or allergic disease. Yet other numerous experiments show that the presence of LPS during exposure to environmental allergens does the opposite -- it promotes the development of asthma and other allergic disease. Now researchers detail a series of mechanistic steps that reveal a surprising answer -- the key to LPS' promoting or preventing the allergic reaction lies in the allergen itself.

Can we go from scarface to scarless?

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 08:14 AM PST

Researchers examined skin regeneration over two years in various body parts of the adult newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster. Their wounds were very quickly healed over several days without prolonged inflammation. Because of this rapid healing, granulation/dermal fibrosis, and therefore scarring, did not occur. The skin was able to fully regenerate. These findings provide evidence that this newt species may be an ideal model system to study and prevent scar formation in human skin.

Taking high-dose vitamin D supplements for five years did not affect the incidence of cardiovascular disease or cancer

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 08:14 AM PST

A trial found that taking a much higher dose of vitamin D than recommended for five years did not affect total mortality or the incidence of cardiovascular disease or cancer in older men and women.

Virtual reality could help make therapy easier

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 08:14 AM PST

A new study has found 30 per cent of people prefer to talk about their negative experiences with a virtual reality avatar, rather than a person.

Superbug MRSA arose in hedgehogs long before clinical use of antibiotics

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 08:14 AM PST

Scientists have found evidence that a type of the antibiotic resistant superbug MRSA arose in nature long before the use of antibiotics in humans and livestock, which has traditionally been blamed for its emergence. Hedgehogs carry a fungus and a bacteria on their skin, and the two are locked in a battle for survival. The fungus secretes antibiotics to kill the bacteria, but in response the bacteria has evolved antibiotic resistance -- becoming Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. Up to 60% of hedgehogs carry a type of MRSA called mecC-MRSA, which causes 1 in 200 of all MRSA infections in humans. Natural biological processes, not antibiotic use, drove the initial emergence of this superbug on hedgehogs around 200 years ago.

A novel compound might defeat multidrug-resistant bacteria common in hospitals

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 08:13 AM PST

Increasingly, hospitalized patients contract infections that evade current antibiotics including colistin, long used as a last treatment option. The discovery of a new colistin variant might make it possible to outmaneuver these pathogens.

Adult epilepsy treatment reduces seizures in children

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 07:32 AM PST

A surgical treatment commonly used to reduce epileptic seizures in adults also is effective and safe for children, according to a new study. The study is one of the first to investigate responsive neurostimulation system (RNS)--a device similar to a pacemaker that sends electric charges to the heart, which delivers stimulation directly to the brain when needed to prevent seizures--in children.

Drug modifies epigenome in aggressive brain tumors

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 07:31 AM PST

The researchers showed for the first time that the DNA methylome of these brain tumors can be reprogrammed. The study said that this is the first time DNA methylome reprogramming has occurred with any solid human tumor.

Researchers urge: 'Prescribe aspirin based on benefit-to-risk not age'

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 06:45 AM PST

Recent guidelines have restricted aspirin use in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease to patients under 70, and more recent guidance to patients under 60. Yet, the risks of heart attacks and strokes increase markedly with age. Researchers urge that to do the most good for the most patients in primary prevention of heart attacks and strokes, health care providers should make individual clinical judgements about prescribing aspirin on a case-by-case basis and based on benefit-to-risk not age. They conducted an updated meta-analysis, which adds the results of the four recent trials to the previous comprehensive meta-analysis of six earlier major trials, and aspirin produced a statistically significant 13 percent reduction in cardiovascular disease with similar benefits at older ages in each of the individual trials.

New target may help protect bones as we age

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 06:45 AM PST

Drugs we take like prednisone can weaken our bones and so can aging, and scientists working to prevent both have some of the first evidence that the best target may not be the logical one. They are finding that in aging bone, the mineralocorticoid receptor, better known for its role in blood pressure regulation, is a key factor in bone health.

How oral bacteria suppress protection against viral growth

Posted: 05 Jan 2022 06:43 AM PST

Researchers have discovered details of how proteins produced by oral epithelial cells protect humans against viruses entering the body through the mouth. They also found that oral bacteria can suppress the activity of these cells, increasing vulnerability to infection.

Roundworm linked to lower lung-function and asthma in younger males

Posted: 04 Jan 2022 08:22 AM PST

Exposure to the parasitic roundworm Ascaris lumbricoides among young men can cause a striking reduction in lung function and nearly five times higher odds of having asthma compared to the non-exposed, study shows.

Babies born during pandemic's first year score slightly lower on a developmental screening test

Posted: 04 Jan 2022 08:22 AM PST

Babies born during the pandemic's first year -- even to moms who did not have COVID during pregnancy -- scored lower on a screening test of social and motor skills compared to pre-pandemic babies, according to a new study.