Doc versus machine
Increasingly powerful computers using ever-more sophisticated programs are challenging human supremacy in areas as diverse as playing chess and making emotionally compelling music. But can digital diagnosticians match, or even outperform, human physicians? The answer, according to a new study, is “not quite.”
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
For women, caffeine could be ally in warding off dementia
Among a group of older women, self-reported caffeine consumption of more than 261 mg per day was associated with a 36 percent reduction in the risk of incident dementia over 10 years of follow-up. This level is equivalent to two to three 8-oz cups of coffee per day, five to six 8-oz cups of black tea, or seven to eight 12-ounce cans of cola.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Children could point the way to new HIV treatments
Children with HIV who can resist the disease progressing could point the way to new treatments for HIV infection that are more widely applicable to infected adults and children alike, an international team of researchers has found.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Why do more men than women commit suicide?
Why do more men die when they attempt suicide than women? The answer could lie in four traits, finds scientists. There are over 6,000 British lives lost to suicide each year, and nearly 75 per cent of those are male. However, research has found women are more likely to suffer from depression, and to attempt to take their own life.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Historical analysis examines sugar industry role in heart disease research
Using archival documents, a new report examines the sugar industry’s role in coronary heart disease research and suggests the industry sponsored research to influence the scientific debate to cast doubt on the hazards of sugar and to promote dietary fat as the culprit in heart disease.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Potentially harmful chemicals widespread in household dust
Household dust exposes people to a wide range of toxic chemicals from everyday products, according to a new study. A multi-institutional team conducted a first-of-a-kind meta-analysis, compiling data from dust samples collected throughout the United States to identify the top ten toxic chemicals commonly found in dust.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
The new findings heart repair research
Scientists trying to find ways to regenerate a damaged heart have shed more light on the molecular mechanisms that could one day make this a reality. Whilst other organs such as the liver can regenerate, the heart muscle has very little ability to do so after suffering damage, such as a heart attack.
In the womb the body is able to produce heart muscle cells but soon after birth it effectively stops producing them.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Entitlement — a damning recipe for happiness
Entitlement–a personality trait driven by exaggerated feelings of deservingness and superiority–may lead to chronic disappointment, unmet expectations and a habitual, self-reinforcing cycle of behavior with dire psychological and social costs, according to new research. In a new theoretical model, researchers have mapped how entitled personality traits may lead to a perpetual loop of distress.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Antimicrobial chemicals found with antibiotic-resistance genes in indoor dust
Researchers have found links between the levels of antimicrobial chemicals and antibiotic-resistance genes in the dust of an aging building used for athletics and academics. One of the antimicrobials seen in the study is triclosan, a commonly used antibacterial ingredient in many personal care products.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Drugs in the water? Don’t blame the students
With nearly sixty percent of American adults now taking prescription medications–from antidepressants to cholesterol treatments–there is growing concern about how many drugs are flowing through wastewater treatment facilities and into rivers and lakes. Research confirms that pharmaceutical pollution can cause damage to fish and other ecological problems–and may pose risks to human health too.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Use it or lose it: Stopping exercise decreases brain blood flow
We all know that we can quickly lose cardiovascular endurance if we stop exercising for a few weeks, but what impact does the cessation of exercise have on our brains? New research examined cerebral blood flow in healthy, physically fit older adults (ages 50-80 years) before and after a 10-day period during which they stopped all exercise.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Researchers report new Zika complication
If zika didn’t seem scary enough in the media, there is new data showing that there could be a new neurological complication of infection with the Zika virus.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
How long do you want to live? Your expectations for old age matter
Why do some people want to live a very long time, while others would prefer to die relatively young? In a latest study, a team of researchers investigated how long young and middle-aged adults in the United States say they want to live in relation to a number of personal characteristics. The results showed that more than one out of six people would prefer to die younger than age 80, before reaching average life expectancy.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
In cells, some oxidants are needed
Within our bodies, high levels of reactive forms of oxygen can damage proteins and contribute to diabetic complications and many other diseases. But some studies are showing that these reactive oxygen species (ROS) molecules sometimes can aid in maintaining health–findings now boosted by a surprising discovery by researchers.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Cloth masks offer poor protection against air pollution
Results of a new study by environmental health scientists suggest that inexpensive cloth masks worn by people who hope to reduce their exposure to air pollution vary widely in effectiveness and could be giving users a false sense of security, especially in highly polluted areas.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Intestinal flora effects drug response
Intestinal flora has multiple influences on human health, but researchers have revealed that it is also likely to have an effect on the body’s response to drugs. Recent research suggests that changes in the intestinal flora, caused by antibacterial and antibiotic drugs or individual differences between people, may have an effect on a person’s response to drugs including side effects. The research focused on the changes in proteins due to the condition of intestinal flora that affect the response to drugs in the liver and kidneys.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Is depression in parents, grandparents linked to grandchildren’s depression?
If you read my blog often, it’s no surprise I suffer from PTSD, depression, and anxiety issues. Maybe it’s from my military service, but maybe it’s my father’s, or his father’s, maybe it’s an insidious family legacy that was just never noticed. This is because having both parents and grandparents with major depressive disorder (MDD) was associated with higher risk of MDD for grandchildren, which could help identify those who may benefit from early intervention.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Microcephaly discoveries in non-Zika cases explain abnormal brain growth
Long before Zika virus made it a household word, the birth defect called microcephaly puzzled scientists and doctors — even as it changed the lives of the babies born with it during the pre-Zika era. But new discoveries reported by an international team of scientists may help explain what happens in the developing brains of babies still in the womb, causing them to be born with small brains and heads.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
New neurons created through exercise don’t cause you to forget old memories
Fellow exercise enthusiasts, you can breath a sigh of relief and so can your brain. Research has found that exercise causes more new neurons to be formed in a critical brain region, and contrary to an earlier study, these new neurons do not cause the individual to forget old memories, according to new research.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Tracking how HIV disrupts immune system informs vaccine development
One of the main mysteries confounding development of an HIV vaccine is why some people infected with the virus make the desired antibodies after several years, but a vaccine can’t seem to induce the same response.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
It’s in the eyes: Alzheimer’s detected before symptoms
Scientists may have overcome a major roadblock in the development of Alzheimer’s therapies by creating a new technology to observe — in the back of the eye — progression of the disease before the onset of symptoms. Clinical trials are to start in July to test the technology in humans.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
In doctors we trust — especially when they admit to bias
A doctor’s guidance may reassure us more than we realize -especially if she says she is likely to recommend treatment in her field of expertise, known as “specialty bias.” Doing research in a real-world healthcare setting, researchers have found that when surgeons revealed their bias toward their own specialty, their patients were more likely to perceive them as trustworthy. And patients are more apt to follow their recommendation to have surgical treatment.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Even when help is just a click away, stigma is still a roadblock
Stigma is a major barrier preventing people with mental health issues from getting the help they need. Even in a private and anonymous setting online, someone with greater self-stigma is less likely to take that first step to get information about mental health concerns and counseling.
What happens in the Lab doesn't have to stay in the Lab!
Experimental antibiotic treats deadly MRSA infection
The antibiotic arms race is on, while we are rushing to find new antibiotics, bacteria are working on finding ways around them. With that in mind, a new experimental antibiotic developed by a team of scientists successfully treats the deadly MRSA infection and restores the efficacy of a commonly prescribed antibiotic that has become ineffective against MRSA.
