Researchers have identified 107 genes that increase a person’s risk of developing the eye disease glaucoma, and now developed a genetic test to detect those at risk of going blind from it. The research, led by Flinders University and QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, has been published in the international Nature Genetics journal. In a […]
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Most diseases have a genetic component. To better understand disease, researchers led by the Garvan Institute of Medical Research are analysing genetic information to determine what keeps us healthy. In a world first, the team has compiled a genome reference database of thousands of healthy older Australians, which has the potential to predict disease-linked gene […]
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Information gathered from routine visits to the doctor is enough to accurately predict a person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, according to new research led by scientists from Regenstrief Institute, Indiana University and Merck. The researchers developed and tested machine learning algorithms using data from electronic medical records to identify patients who […]
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A new study published by The BMJ today adds to evidence that rosiglitazone – a drug used to treat type 2 diabetes – is associated with an increased risk of heart problems, especially heart failure. This study is the most comprehensive evaluation of the cardiovascular risk of rosiglitazone ever done. Rosiglitazone belongs to a class […]
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A plant-based diet may be key to lowering risk for heart disease. Penn State researchers determined that diets with reduced sulfur amino acids — which occur in protein-rich foods, such as meats, dairy, nuts and soy — were associated with a decreased risk for cardiovascular disease. The team also found that the average American consumes […]
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Billions of cardiac muscle cells are lost during a heart attack. The human heart cannot replenish these lost cells, so the default mechanism of repair is to form a cardiac scar. While this scar works well initially to avoid ventricular rupture, the scar is permanent, so it will eventually lead to heart failure and the […]
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Chronic inflammation, which results when old age, stress or environmental toxins keep the body’s immune system in overdrive, can contribute to a variety of devastating diseases, from Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s to diabetes and cancer. Now, scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have identified a molecular “switch” that controls the immune machinery responsible for chronic […]
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Sometimes the end of an intestinal infection is just the beginning of more misery. Of those who contract traveler’s diarrhea, for example, an unlucky few go on to develop irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract. Scientists aren’t sure exactly how this happens, but some think an infection may contribute to […]
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Emerging viral infections—from bird flu to Ebola to Zika infections—pose major threats to global public health, and understanding their origins can help investigators design defensive strategies against future outbreaks. A new study provides important insights on the potential origins of the most recent outbreak of viral pneumonia in China, which started in the middle of […]
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Living near major roads or highways is linked to higher incidence of dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis (MS), suggests new research published recently in the journal Environmental Health. Researchers from the University of British Columbia analyzed data for 678,000 adults in Metro Vancouver. They found that living less than 50 metres from […]
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