Tag: Chronic Illness

New cardiac fibrosis study identifies key proteins that translate into heart disease

Using cutting-edge technologies, researchers at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, have developed the first genome-wide dataset on protein translation during fibroblast activation, revealing a network of RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) that play a key role in the formation of disease-causing fibrous tissue in the heart. Their findings, published in the journal Circulation, could help in the search

Psychiatric disorders may be linked to unnecessary oophorectomies

Undergoing a hysterectomy, especially in conjunction with removal of the ovaries, can take a major toll on a woman’s mental health. A new study, however, turns the tables on this relationship and investigates the psychiatric symptoms that may prompt a woman to undergo an oophorectomy, even after confirmation of a nonmalignant diagnosis. Study results are

Osteoarthritis linked to higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have investigated the link between osteoarthritis and mortality in an epidemiological study. It was shown that the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease was higher for people with osteoarthritis than for the rest of the population. Using population registers, the researchers studied approximately 469,000 people living in Skåne, Sweden,

Long-term statin use associated with lower glaucoma risk: Study finds that people who used statins for five years or more had a 21 percent lower chance of primary open-angle glaucoma

A new study brings the connection between statin use and risk of glaucoma into sharper focus. Investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital have found that using statins for five or more years is associated with lower risk of primary open-angle glaucoma. Results of the study were published recently in JAMA Ophthalmology. Glaucoma, a leading cause

ALS patients may benefit from more glucose

Increased glucose, transformed into energy, could give people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, improved mobility and a longer life, according to new findings by a University of Arizona-led research team. Physicians have long known that people with ALS experience changes in their metabolism that often lead to rapid weight loss in a process called

A new drug target for chemically induced Parkinson’s disease

More than three decades ago, scientists discovered that a chemical found in a synthetic opioid, MPTP, induced the onset of a form of Parkinson’s disease. In a new study led by scientists from the School of Veterinary Medicine, researchers found that an enzyme in the body can metabolize compounds formed in the brain from alkaloids

Growing life expectancy inequality in US cannot be blamed on opioids alone

A new University of Michigan study challenges a popularized view about what’s causing the growing gap between the lifespans of more- and less-educated Americans — finding shortcomings in the widespread narrative that the United States is facing an epidemic of “despair.” Some influential studies have argued that growing life expectancy inequality is driven by so-called

Massive sequencing study links rare DNA alterations to type 2 diabetes: Scientists identify new genetic targets for disease research and potentially drug development

An international consortium of scientists has analyzed protein-coding genes from nearly 46,000 people, linking rare DNA alterations to type 2 diabetes. The study, one of the largest known of its type, includes data from people of European, African American, Hispanic/Latino, East Asian, and South Asian ancestries. From this large cohort — roughly 21,000 individuals with

Appendix removal associated with development of Parkinson’s disease: Data from 62 million records explores relationship between the gut and the nervous system disorder

Patients who had their appendix removed were more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease than those whose appendix remained in place, according to the largest study to address the relationship between the two conditions. The retrospective study involving more than 62 million patient records from 26 health systems will be presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW)

Mental well-being predicts leisure time physical activity in midlife: Different exercise activities are related to the different dimensions of well-being in midlife

Men and women with high mental well-being at the age of 42 were more physically active at the age of 50 compared to those who got lower scores in mental well-being at age 42. Different exercise activities are related to the different dimensions of well-being in midlife. Mental well-being was investigated through three dimensions: emotional,

It’s OK to indulge once in a while, study suggests: The body adapts to occasional short-term overeating: Body focuses on removing glucose to preserve insulin sensitivity in short-term overeating bout

Overeating has been found to impair blood sugar (glucose) control and insulin levels. A new study suggests that the duration of a bout of overeating can affect how the body adapts glucose and insulin processing when calorie intake increases. The article is published ahead of print in the American Journal of Physiology — Endocrinology and

Healthy hearts need two proteins working together: Research could be a step toward a treatment to prevent heart attacks

Two proteins that bind to stress hormones work together to maintain a healthy heart in mice, according to scientists at the National Institutes of Health and their collaborators. These proteins, stress hormone receptors known as the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR), act in concert to help support heart health. When the signaling between

Research reveals how the most common ALS mutation dooms cells: Scientists offer insight into the toxicity at the heart of devastating neurological disorders

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists have cracked the mystery surrounding the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease. The research suggests possible new approaches to diagnosis and treatment of the lethal disorder. The findings appear online today in the journal Molecular Cell. About 35 percent of ALS cases

People with obesity often ‘dehumanized,’ study finds

New research, published in Obesity, has found that people with obesity are not only stigmatised, but are blatantly dehumanised. Obesity is now very common in most of developed countries. Around one third of US adults and one quarter of UK adults are now medically defined as having obesity. However, obesity is a complex medical condition

Predictors that determine toxic fats in the liver

Accumulation of fat in the liver, known as fatty liver disease, is experienced by over 5.5 million Australians, including more than 40% of all adults over the age of 50. Fatty liver develops from a combination of both genetic and environmental causes, which influence the age of onset and severity of the disease. Experts are

New form of hereditary osteoporosis

A research group headed by Professor Outi Mäkitie, University of Helsinki, Finland, identified in families with childhood-onset osteoporosis disease-causing mutations in a gene that had previously not been connected with the skeletal system or osteoporosis. “Through extensive genetic research, we identified a gene defect underlying osteoporosis in two Finnish families with several affected family members.

Depression increases risk of early death in older adults

A research team designed a study to investigate the role depression symptoms play in an increased risk of death over time. The team also examined the role heart disease and stroke play in the link between depression symptoms and increased risk of death. As we age, we become more likely to experience symptoms of depression.

Brain condition related to long-term spaceflights needs more attention, data: Researchers sound alarm as humans prepare for extended time in space

More people today are poised to explore space than ever before; those who do will experience the effects of microgravity on the human body. Recognizing the need for more data related to those effects, Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) neuroradiologist Donna Roberts, M.D., and co-author Lonnie G. Petersen, M.D.,Ph.D., University of California San Diego,

Blocking toxic-protein production in ALS

Patients with ALS frequently have a string of repeated DNA code in the cells of their brain, carrying hundreds to thousands of copies within the gene C9orf72. New research looks at what triggers these repeated sequences to eventually produce the toxic proteins that are associated with ALS, frontotemporal dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases in patients