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news archive: Mar-Apr 2006
Health & longevity news archive: March-April 2006
Salvage prospect for 'junk' DNA
(Apr 26, 2006)
A mathematical analysis of the human genome suggests that so-called
"junk DNA" might not be so useless after all. The term junk DNA
refers to those portions of the genome which appear to have no
specific purpose. But a team from IBM has identified patterns,
or "motifs", that were found both in the junk areas of the genome
and those which coded for proteins. The presence of the motifs
in junk DNA suggests these portions of the genome have an important
functional role.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Small changes 'add years to life'
(Apr 25, 2006)
Making small changes to your lifestyle can have a significant
impact on how long you will live, research has shown. The Cambridge
University study looked at over 25,000 people. It found that stopping
smoking, exercising more and eating better could give you the
life expectancy of a person 11 to 12 years younger.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Brain games aim to boost your IQ
(Apr 25, 2006)
Computer games have long been derided by critics as mindless,
brain-rotting fun. But a new wave of games is turning the cliché
on its head. Nintendo has sold nearly five million copies of its
three Nintendo DS brain training games since the series launched
in Japan a year ago. The first title in the series, Dr Kawashima's
Brain Training: How Old Is Your Brain?, sees players follow a
daily regime of brain-enhancing exercises and is due to be released
in the UK in June.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Med diet 'reduces dementia risk'
(Apr 18, 2006)
Eating a "Mediterranean-style" healthy diet significantly reduces
the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, a study has suggested.
US researchers looked at the diet and health of 2,200 people over
four years. The more people kept to a Mediterranean diet, the
less likely they were to develop Alzheimer's, according to the
Annals of Neurology study. Alzheimer's experts said the research
added to evidence that a healthy diet could have a protective
effect.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Cell division rewind button found
(Apr 13, 2006)
Scientists have found a way to reverse the process of cell division,
previously thought to be unstoppable. The finding by US researchers
could have important implications for cancer, which is caused
by cells dividing uncontrollably. Writing in Nature, the team
explained how controlling a key protein can interrupt the process.
UK experts on cancer cell behaviour said the research aided understanding
of how cells should divide.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Are near-death experiences a dream?
(Apr 11, 2006)
People who have had near-death experiences are more likely to
mix up dreams and reality than those who have not, researchers
say. At times of extreme danger or trauma, many people report
out-of-body experiences, seeing intense lights, or a feeling of
peace. "Near-death experiences are more common than people realize,"
says neurophysiologist Kevin Nelson of the University of Kentucky,
Lexington, lead author of the study published in Neurology.
Read
more. Source: Nature |
Weak brain links 'explain autism'
(Apr 10, 2006)
The difficulties people with autism have in relating to others
could be due to poor communication between brain areas, scientists
suggest. It may explain why they do not interact well, as the
weak links mean they benefit less from social situations. It had
been thought that their lack of social skills was due to abnormalities
in particular brain areas. The study in Neuroimage, carried out
by University of London researchers, compared brain scans of 32
people.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Cutting calories may boost your lifespan
(Apr 5, 2006)
People who substantially cut their calorie intake develop some
of the traits associated with longevity discovered in animal tests,
a new study reveals. Cutting calories reduced body temperature
and levels of the metabolism hormone insulin, as well as decreasing
DNA damage, showed the study. But follow-up tests are necessary
to find out if these biological effects, which occurred relatively
quickly, last for more than a few months. Scientists hoping to
understand the biological mechanisms that control ageing have
increasingly given attention to the idea that reducing food intake
can extend life.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Lab-grown bladders 'a milestone'
(Apr 4, 2006)
US scientists have successfully implanted bladders grown in the
lab from patients' own cells into people with bladder disease.
The researchers, from North Carolina's Wake Forest University,
have carried out seven transplants, and in some the organ is working
well years later. The achievement, details of which have been
published online by The Lancet, is being described as a "milestone".
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Smart brains 'grow differently'
(Apr 3, 2006)
Clever people outsmart their peers not because they have more
grey matter but because part of their brain develops differently,
a Nature study suggests. The US National Institute of Mental Health
used scans to study development of the cortex, which is responsible
for thinking, in 307 children. They found smarter youngsters tended
to have a thin cortex aged seven, but this thickened rapidly by
the age of 12.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
'Mind control' over muscle power
(Mar 31, 2006)
Thinking about the way your muscles work could physically boost
your strength, research suggests. A Hull University team asked
30 subjects to do biceps curls and found their muscles worked
more when they focused on what the muscles were doing. But lower
rates of muscle activity were recorded when they simply visualised
themselves lifting the weight.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Scientists divided over longevity
(Mar 29, 2006)
The increase in life expectancy enjoyed by many societies is a
triumph of modern science. Our understanding of the human body
and how to repair it when it breaks down have continued to push
"old age" into the distance - and researchers intend to keep pushing.
But the claims made by Dr Aubrey de Grey, a scientist at the University
of Cambridge, UK, that lifespan can be increased by over 1,000
years, have proven too much for some; and a dispute has now broken
out within the gerontology community.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Doubts cast on oily fish benefits
(Mar 24, 2006)
There is no evidence of a clear benefit to health from fats which
are commonly found in oily fish, researchers say. Consumption
of omega-3 fatty acids is thought to protect against heart disease
and UK guidelines advise eating four portions of oily fish a week.
But the British Medical Journal review of 89 earlier studies looking
at heart disease, cancer or strokes found no evidence the fats
offered protection. Heart experts said people should not stop
eating oily fish, such as salmon.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Grammar revealed in the love songs of whales
(Mar 24, 2006)
The love song of a humpback whale sounds magnificently free-flowing
and improvised to the casual human listener. But fresh mathematical
analysis of shows there are complex grammatical rules. Using syntax,
the whales combine sounds into phrases, which they further weave
into hours-long melodies packed with information. Although the
researchers say these songs don't meet the linguistic rigor necessary
for a true language, this is the first evidence that animals other
than humans use a hierarchical structure of communication.
Read
more. Source: LiveScience |
Sixth sense can come from within
(Mar 24, 2006)
To sense where the various parts of our body are, we sometimes
rely on signals that originate in our brain rather than in our
fingers or toes, a new study shows. The so-called sixth sense,
known as proprioception, is essential to many basic actions, including
walking without having to look at your feet or touching your nose
with your eyes closed. But scientists have long pondered how this
sense works.
Read
more. Source: Nature |
Babies can learn words as early as 10 months
(Mar 22, 2006)
A two-year-old can quickly link an object – whether a flashy
rattle or a boring latch – to a word. Even a one-year-old
can follow a parent's gaze to an object and match it with a word
being spoken. But although anecdotal evidence seems to show that
babies younger than one year can learn words, it remains unclear
whether they are in fact mastering language. Now a new study reveals
that 10-month-old infants can link words and objects, but only
if the object is already interesting to them.
Read
more. Source: Scientific American |
Chillies turn up the heat on tumours
(Mar 16, 2006)
The same component of jalapeño peppers that makes them burn the
tongue also appears to kill prostate cancer cells. Prostate tumours
in mice treated with the compound, called capsaicin, shrank to
one-fifth the size of those in non-treated mice, found a new study.
To explore capsaicin’s effect, Phillip Koeffler of the Cedars-Sinai
Medical Center in Los Angeles, and colleagues exposed human prostate
cancer cells in a laboratory dish to the natural compound. They
found that capsaicin dramatically slowed the proliferation of
the cells in the dish.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Singing frog's 'ultrasonic croak'
(Mar 16, 2006)
A rare Chinese frog has entered the record books as the first
amphibian known to communicate using ultrasound. Until now, only
a few mammals – such as bats, whales and dolphins –
have been found to use the very high frequency sound to contact
each other. The frog may have evolved the mechanism to be heard
above the babble of running water, scientists tell this week's
edition of the journal Nature.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Mum's exercise boosts baby's brain
(Mar 7, 2006)
Pregnant mice who take daily runs boost the production of new
brain cells in their babies; but investigators say it is premature
to say whether the same could be true in humans. Researchers already
knew that exercise in adult animals can bump up the production
of new neurons in a region of the brain called the hippocampus,
which is involved in learning and memory. But now it seems that
the effect can be passed from mother to offspring.
Read
more. Source: Nature |
Chronic fatigue brain injury link
(Mar 6, 2006)
Some cases of chronic fatigue syndrome could be due to brain "injuries"
caused during the early stages of glandular fever, scientists
suggest. A University of New South Wales team has followed people
with Epstein-Barr virus since 1999. They suggest those who remained
ill after the virus had gone had suffered a "hit-and-run injury"
to the brain. Writing in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, they
said the brain appears to keep behaving as if a person is ill.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Marital rows 'harm heart health'
(Mar 4, 2006)
Marital rows do not just produce harsh words and hot air –
they can harden your arteries too, a study suggests. But the cause
of the damage differs depending on your gender, the research by
University of Utah scientists involving 150 couples found. They
said arterial disease in women was linked to either partner demonstrating
hostility, but in men it was linked to either showing controlling
behaviour.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
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