By Nina Pullano In hospitals, in our food, and even in the ocean, antibiotic resistance is a problem scientists are hurrying to address. Researchers discovered one potential solution to the crisis — and it’s more old-school than you might think. Alkaline soil from the Boho Highlands of Northern Ireland contains a new strain of bacteria...
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Short or long sleep associated with Pulmonary Fibrosis
by University of Manchester Scientists have discovered that people who regularly sleep for more than 11 hours or less than 4 hours are 2-3 times more likely to have the incurable disease, pulmonary fibrosis, compared to those that sleep for 7 hours in a day. They attribute this association to the body clock. The study...
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Microbes are at work in our bodies, and researchers have figured out what they’re up to
An algorithm akin to the annoyingly helpful one that attempts to auto-complete text messages and emails is now being harnessed for a better cause. NSF-funded researchers at Drexel University are using its pattern-recognition ability to identify microbial communities in the human body by sifting through volumes of genetic code. Their method could speed the development...
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Science seeks a better way to measure stress, anxiety and depression
Doctors and researchers are equipped with objective tests to detect and measure many serious illnesses. But when it comes to mental illness, no such tests exist. Nationally, some 20% of the population will experience a mental health disorder during their lifetime, and globally these disorders cost the economy $2.5 trillion every year. Yet there are...
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Could MDMA help treat mental health conditions?
Ecstasy — or methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) — is a recreational drug that is illegal in the United States. However, some researchers believe that it could aid in mental health therapy. A new study in mice puts this idea to the test. New research in mice investigates what gives MDMA its positive effects on sociability. MDMA is...
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Combining neurologic and blood pressure drugs reduces breast tumor development in mice
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER WASHINGTON — Adding a medication used to treat epilepsy, bipolar disorder and migraines to a blood pressure medicine reversed some aspects of breast cancer in the offspring of mice at high risk of the disease because of the high fat diet fed to their mothers during pregnancy. Conversely, this treatment combination...
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Cycles of reward: New insight into ADHD treatment
Neural processes involved in ADHD Date: October 30, 2019 Source: Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) Graduate UniversitySummary:Researchers have investigated the actions of the drug in rats. Using dopamine cell recordings, electrochemical monitoring and computer modeling, they discovered a type of feedback loop that modulates dopamine levels in the rats’ brains in response to...
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Sleep-Disordered Breathing Tied to Accelerated Aging
Megan Brooks June 13, 2019 SAN ANTONIO — Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), and the disruption in nightly sleep it causes, speeds up the aging process, according to preliminary research. SDB is a common disorder that results in oxidative stress and inflammation and is associated with several age-related health disorders. However, it hasn’t been well studied with...
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Possible dementia vaccine closer after mice studies
Human trials tipped within two years FLINDERS UNIVERSITY A preventive treatment for dementia may proceed to clinical trials after successful animal testing. The US-led research is looking to develop effective immunotherapy via a new vaccine to remove ‘brain plaque’ and tau protein aggregates linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Recent success in bigenic mice models supports progression...
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What comes first, beta-amyloid plaques or thinking and memory problems?
by American Academy of Neurology The scientific community has long believed that beta-amyloid, a protein that can clump together and form sticky plaques in the brain, is the first sign of Alzheimer’s disease. Beta-amyloid then leads to other brain changes including neurodegeneration and eventually to thinking and memory problems. But a new study challenges that...