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news archive: Sep-Oct 2005
Health & longevity news archive: September-October 2005
Italian laboratory clones 14 pigs
(Oct 29, 2005)
The Italian researchers who produced the first horse clone have announced
the birth of 14 cloned piglets. The animals were born several weeks
ago at the Laboratory of Reproductive Technology in Cremona. Research
leader Prof Cesare Galli said the pigs would help in understanding
animal to human organ transplants. Scientists have now cloned sheep,
mice, cattle, goats, rabbits, cats, pigs, mules and dogs.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Ginseng 'helps to ward off colds'
(Oct 26, 2005)
Taking the herbal remedy ginseng reduces the risk of developing a
cold, a Canadian study says. The University of Alberta team found
just one in 10 people taking daily ginseng capsules had two colds
or more, compared to a quarter of others. Researchers also found ginseng
reduced the severity of colds, the Canadian Medical Association Journal
reported. But UK doctors said that while many people did use the herbal
remedy, the evidence was still anecdotal.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
The killer at the door
(Oct 16, 2005)
'There's a lot of looting going on in pharmacies, but to no avail.The
drugs are being distributed in convoys, with military jeeps in front
and behind. Masks costing a dollar are being sold on street corners
for $20. E-mailed ads for counterfeit drugs are filling up my inbox.'
It sounds the stuff of science fiction; to even describe such a breakdown
of society is to invite accusations of alarmist hype and scaremongering.
But this imaginary account of an American woman in the middle of a
deadly flu pandemic was published last spring in the journal Nature,
as part of a special edition it produced on the threat. It wanted
to look at how a nation would cope from the very first outbreak to
the peak of the disease.
Read
more. Source: The Observer |
Brain area 'more than just motor'
(Oct 10, 2005)
A brain area presumed to be involved only in co-ordinating movement
also controls higher functions, such as vision, mounting evidence
suggests. Traditionally, higher mental processing has been seen as
the cerebrum's job - the evolutionary newest and largest part of the
brain. The cerebellum or "little brain", which sits below the cerebrum,
was thought to control balance and movement. A study of brain-injured
infants shows this view is too simplistic.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
1918 killer flu 'came from birds'
(Oct 8, 2005)
The Spanish flu virus that killed up to 50 million people in 1918-19
was probably a strain that originated in birds, research has shown.
US scientists have found the 1918 virus shares genetic mutations with
the bird flu virus now circulating in Asia. Writing in Nature, they
say their work underlines the threat the current strain poses to humans
worldwide.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Exercise now to cut dementia risk
(Oct 5, 2005)
Exercising for half an hour at least twice a week during midlife can
significantly cut a person's risk of dementia later, say researchers.
People in their late 40s and early 50s who do this could reduce their
risk of dementia by about 50%, according to a study reported in Lancet
Neurology. Those who are genetically prone to Alzheimer's disease
could see a reduction of about 60%, it adds. The Swedish team said
the findings had large disease prevention implications.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
A symmetrical face isn't just prettier –
it's healthier too
(Oct 2, 2005)
Those fortunate enough to have symmetrical faces have probably already
discovered that they attract the opposite sex. Now they are being
told such fine features actually mean they are healthier. For the
perfectly proportioned face is also an indication that the body it
sits atop is well prepared to fight off infection. The common cold,
asthma and flu are all more likely to be combated efficiently by those
whose left side matches their right.
Read
more. Source: Independent |
SARS virus may have spread from bats
(Oct 2, 2005)
Bats are the natural hosts of a group of coronaviruses closely related
to the virus responsible for deadly outbreaks of SARS among humans,
according to a new study. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
triggered a global health crisis after emerging in China's southern
Guangdong province in November 2002, causing nearly 800 deaths worldwide,
including 349 in China. Scientists are vying to unravel the origins
of the SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV), which causes the disease.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
AIDS virus 'could be weakening'
(Sep 29, 2005)
The virus which causes AIDS may be getting less powerful, researchers
say. A team at the Institute of Tropical Medicine, in Antwerp, compared
HIV-1 samples from 1986-89 and 2002-03. They found the newer samples
appeared not to multiply as well, and were more sensitive to drugs
— some other studies argue they are becoming more resistant.
The researchers, writing in the journal AIDS, stressed their work
in no way meant efforts to prevent the spread of HIV should be scaled
down.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Left-handers face greater cancer risk
(Sep 27, 2005)
Left-handed women face double the risk of developing breast cancer
before the menopause compared with right-handed women, according to
a new study. This sounds like a strange coincidence. But researchers
who have just completed a study on the odd association say that exposure
to hormone-like chemicals in the womb may be to blame for both.
Read
more. Source: Nature |
Down's syndrome recreated in mice
(Sep 23, 2005)
Scientists have been able to introduce most of a human chromosome
into mice — and create the most successful recreation of Down's
syndrome so far. The Medical Research Council hopes the step will
help research into Down's and other chromosomal conditions. They say
it is a significant technical development, as it had previously been
possible to place only fragments of chromosomes into mouse cells.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Green tea 'cuts Alzheimer's risk'
(Sep 21, 2005)
An ingredient of green tea may help to protect the brain against the
ravages of Alzheimer's disease, research in the US suggests. University
of South Florida scientists found the component prevented Alzheimer's-like
damage in the brains of mice bred to develop symptoms. The component
— EGCG — is already strongly suspected of offering protection
against certain cancers. The study is published in the Journal of
Neuroscience.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Vitamin C 'helps to fight cancer'
(Sep 16, 2005)
High doses of vitamin C injected into the bloodstream may help fight
cancer, a US study says. Scientists found that intravenous vitamin
C in the form of ascorbate killed cancer cells in lab tests. The findings
contradict earlier studies, but the Maryland-based Institutes of Health
said they had looked at lower-dose oral vitamin C.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Stiff upper lips may impair memories
(Sep 16, 2005)
Bad news for Brits: keeping a stiff upper lip during upsetting events
can impair your memory. James Gross at Stanford University in California
and Jane Richards at the University of Texas at Austin showed 57 volunteers
a disturbing film about a surgical procedure, then asked them questions
about their emotional state, how much effort they put into hiding
their feelings, and their memory of events in the film. They found
people who made the most effort to keep their emotions in check had
the worst recall for what they had seen.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
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