Take Control! Exploring How Self-Discipline Works and How We Might Boost It

Converging scientific evidence – not to mention a great deal of life experience – tells us that self-control is an important ability. It helps us keep our cool, get things done, and resist the things that tempt us. Scientists believe that gaining a clearer understanding of how self-control works could provide critical insights into addressing some of the large-scale problems facing society today, including obesity and addiction.Numerous studies have found evidence for the idea of self-control as a limited resource, but emerging research suggests that this model may not tell the whole story. Research published in the journals of the Association for Psychological Science explores the various mechanisms – metabolic, cognitive, motivational, affective – thought to underlie self-control.

Source:ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHOLOGICAL SCINECES

Fruit and Vegetable Pulp may Help Prevent Cancer

A new discovery shows that much of the antioxidant compounds in fruits and vegetables are actually attached to the fiber in the pulpy parts of these foods. The discovery was made by a University of Queensland scientist. 
Fiber has long been known to clean the bowel but Anneline Padayachee of University of Queensland has revealed that it also delivers cleansing antioxidants to the colon.
 According to her the fibre delivers the compounds, called polyphenols, to the colon and releases them there, helping to prevent cancerous cell damage, News.com.au. reported. 
In the case of black carrots, which are rich in polyphenols, 80 per cent of their antioxidants are found in the fibrous, pulpy parts. 
According to Dr Padayachee, who presented her research at a Fresh Science event in Melbourne, what her study showed is that it important that people either eat whole fruit and vegetables or, if they are juicing them, drink pulpy juices rather than clear thinned-out juices to get antioxidants into their system. 
"To gain the benefits of polyphenols, you need to consume everything, the whole vegetable or fruit, including the fibrous pulp if you're juicing it," the website quoted Dr Padayachee as saying. 
"Not only will you have a clean gut but a healthy gut full of polyphenols," she added. 
Scientists are now researching whether fibre can be used to deliver and release medicines to the colon and will look at ways of using fruit and vegetable pulps in different manufactured food products.
Source-ANI
 

New Research Aims to Predict Who is More at Risk of Getting Cancer

Researchers at the University of Southampton have launched a new study that aims to develop a way of predicting who is more at risk of getting cancer. 
Led by Paul Little, Professor of Primary Care Research, the CANcer DIagnosis Decision rules (CANDID) study, funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) School for Primary Care Research (NIHR SPCR), will collect and analyse clinical information and blood samples from 20,000 patients who have had lung or colon cancer. The aim is to determine which signs and symptoms are most predictive of those who go on to be diagnosed with the disease.Genetic testing will be carried out after the recruitment phase of the study to establish how much extra information genetics provides over and above the clinical information. 
The £2 million five-year study is the largest award made by the NIHR SPCR and aims to improve the referral process patients go through before being diagnosed. Currently GPs must refer urgent cases within two weeks and for other cases, up to 62 days for referral; however it has been reported that some patients have to wait much longer and some have visited their GP more than once before being referred. 
Professor Little comments: "We need to improve both the early referral rates for cancer but, at the same time, we do not want to overload the system with lots of people who are at a low risk of having cancer and may have negative side-effects of being over-investigated. Waiting for results and dealing with the possibility of having cancer can be a distressing and daunting time for patients and their families, our research aims to aid the patient pathway and help medical professionals, so every patient is dealt with in the most appropriate way and in a timely fashion." 
The study will use patient samples from the eight centres within the NIHR National School for Primary Research: Southampton, Oxford, Bristol, Birmingham, Nottingham, University College London, Manchester and Keele. 
The NIHR SPCR Director, Professor Richard Hobbs adds: 'The NIHR School for Primary Care Research is pleased to be supporting this ambitious new study, the funding for which was made possible after we had redesigned the way that the School funds its research to enable larger, collaborative, longer term research to compete with short term single centre studies. 
"The UK presently spends only around 5 per cent of its overall health research budgets on prevention and for many diseases, and cancer in particular, the earlier it is recognised and diagnosed, the better the prognosis or outcomes. This is why CANDID is important for patients and the NHS. Pleasingly, this major prospective research also builds on earlier research into symptoms that may predict cancer based on retrospective data, some of which was also supported by the NIHR SPCR.
Source:University of Southampton  
 

Medicated Chewing Gum Helps Prevent Motion Sickness

New chewing gum formulation aims to prevent motion sickness. This research is being presented at the 2012 American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Annual Meeting and Exposition in Chicago, Ill., Oct. 14 – 18, an international event anticipating more than 8,000 attendees. 
Lead researcher Mohsen Sadatrezaei of RoshaDarou Co. and a team of researchers consisting of Niloufar Pouyan, Zoherh JafariAzar and Alireza Ghaffari from the Islamic Azad University School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Tehran, Iran), have developed a medicated gum that will improve patient compliance and faster absorption through the cheek, which will alleviate motion sickness sooner. A sensory panel was used to test faster absorption through the buccal cavity, which will result in earlier onset of action against motion sickness. Panelists also ranked the gum on bitterness and easiness to chew. The main challenge in delivering drugs through chewing gum is masking the bitter taste of its active ingredient," said Sadatrezaei. "We have formulated dimenhydrinate as chewing gum with acceptable taste and sensory attributes. Dimenhydrinate is among the best drug candidates for treatment of motion sickness, providing a comfortable and acceptable drug delivery." The final formulation has great potential for dimenhydrinate chewing gum commercialization. Moreover, the outcome of the study can be used as a platform to incorporate other active ingredients with objectionable taste into chewing gum. 
Source:Eurekalert
  

 

Source-Eurekalert

 

Source-Eurekalert

 
 

Onions and Hair Loss

In the era where doctors and scientists have developed vaccines and medicines for major disease around the world, the permanent and efficient cure for hair loss is still not found. 
Thick, lustrous and healthy hair is characteristic of youth and a crowning glory for men and women. Hair fall causes stress and depression. Change in lifestyle, pollutants in the environment, and certain health issues can cause excessive hair fall.
  Surprisingly, onion is an ingredient in some commercially manufactured hair-loss treatments. Though it may sound odd, it is a potential ingredient for treating alopecia, or male pattern baldness. 
Onions are effective against hair fall since they are a rich source of sulfur. Sulfur stimulates blood circulation and reduces skin inflammation. Sulfur is also known as a “beauty mineral” since it is vital in the development of collagen, the major protein which gives the skin smoothness and durability to hair. This means that the right amount of sulfur levels in our blood and body can reduce hair loss and induce hair growth. Onion juice strengthens hair, and prevents fungal infection in the scalp; it opens blocked pores of the hair follicles. 
According to clinical evidence, many commercial non-FDA approved hair loss treatments have very little scientific basis of legitimate clinical studies. Onions however have been used in a small study, which suggests that they could be used in the treatment of a type of hair loss called alopecia areata. 
In a study by the Iraqi researchers, published in the Journal of Dermatology in July 2002, it was found that in hair loss patients, topically applied crude onion juice to the scalp had a significantly higher rate of hair growth than the group of patients who received a placebo. 73% of people who applied raw onion juice to their scalp experienced positive results. 
Male baldness usually follows a distinct pattern. According to the American Hair Loss Association - alopecia areata is a primary cause of hair falls in both men and women. Unfortunately there are no treatments that are particularly effective in this condition. 
Application of onion juice has been approved by the FDA and is clinically proven to help reduce or prevent hair loss. The American Hair Loss Association calls it the “first line of attack” to stop hair loss. The second approved treatment is topical minoxidol, which can be used by both men and women. Minoxidol increases blood flow to the scalp. However, it is best to consult a doctor before applying any topical medicines. 
Applying the paste of onions for growth of hair is worth a shot for those people who are stressed and worried about excessive hair fall. Onions can be applied in different ways but the most effective method is when the onions are grated in a food processor and the juice is directly applied to the scalp. It should be left on the scalp for 40 minutes and washed off with a mild shampoo. 
Reference: 
http://www.articlesbase.com/medicine-articles/hair-loss-onion-treatment-for-hair-loss-443206.html
http://male-hair-loss-remedies.blogspot.in/2011/10/onion-juice-to-nourish-regrow-hair-and.html 

 

Studies Reveal How Brain Influences Dietary Disorders

A number of new studies are looking into how the brain influences dietary disorders such as obesity, diabetes and binge eating. 
The findings were presented at Neuroscience 2012, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news about brain science and health.
 Scientists are ultimately searching for new ways to treat diet-related disorders while raising awareness that diet and obesity affect mental as well as physical health. 
Today's new findings show that: 

• Being obese appears to affect cognitive function, requiring more effort to complete a complex decision-making task (Timothy Verstynen, PhD, abstract 802.20, see attached summary).
  
• Brain images suggest that when people skip breakfast, the pleasure-seeking part of the brain is activated by pictures of high-calorie food. Skipping breakfast also appears to increase food consumption at lunch, possibly casting doubt on the use of fasting as an approach to diet control (Tony Goldstone, MD, PhD, abstract 798.02, see attached summary).
  
• A study in rats suggests they may be able to curb binge-eating behavior with medication used to keep substance abusers clean and sober (Angelo Blasio, PhD, abstract 283.03, see attached summary).

Other recent findings discussed show that: 

• Amidst growing concern that diet-related metabolic disorders such as diabetes impair brain function, an animal study reports that a high-sugar diet may affect insulin receptors in the brain and dull spatial learning and memory skills. But omega-3 supplements may at least partially offset this effect (Rahul Agrawal, PhD, see attached summary).
  
• Evidence from a rat study suggests that a new compound under development to treat compulsive eating disorders and obesity may be effective at blocking a specific receptor in the brain that triggers food cravings and eating when activated by "food related cues," such as pictures or smells, irrespective of the body's energy needs (Chiara Giuliano, PhD, see attached summary).

"These are fascinating studies because they show the brain is an often overlooked yet significant organ in an array of dietary disorders," said press conference moderator Paul Kenny, PhD, of The Scripps Research Institute in Florida, an expert on addiction and obesity. "Many of these findings have the potential to lead to new interventions that can help reduce the ranks of the obese, helping those who struggle daily with dietary decisions reassert control over what they eat." 
Source-Eurekalert
 

Researchers Identify Gene Behind Skin Disease

A gene that plays key role in causing a type of skin disease has been discovered by British researchers. 
A team led by the University of Dundee has identified the "p34 gene" that plays a key role in causing punctate PPK, according to the BBC Monday.
 The condition causes dots of hard, thickened skin which are painful and uncomfortable. 
It is believed the discovery will allow for easier diagnosis of punctate PPK and help developing new therapies.
Source-IANS
 

Mechanisms of action for green tea extract in breast cancer prevention identified

An oral green tea extract, Polyphenon E, appears to inhibit vascular endothelial growth factor and hepatocyte growth factor, both of which promote tumor cell growth, migration and invasion.

Researchers made this discovery during a secondary analysis of a phase Ib randomized, placebo-controlled study of Polyphenon E in a group of 40 women with hormone receptor-negative breast cancer. Katherine D. Crew, M.D., assistant professor of medicine and epidemiology at Columbia University Medical Center in New York, N.Y., presented the data at the 11th Annual AACR International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research, held here Oct. 16-19, 2012.

"Many preclinical studies have looked at epigallocatechin-3-gallate, or EGCG, which is one of the main components of green tea, and the various possible mechanisms of its action against cancer, but it is very difficult to do those same kinds of studies in humans," Crew said. "This study was too small to say for sure if green tea will prevent breast cancer, but it may move us forward in terms of understanding antitumor mechanisms."

In the primary analysis, presented at last year's Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research meeting, 40 women were randomly assigned to 400 mg, 600 mg or 800 mg of Polyphenon E or to placebo twice daily for six months. During that time, researchers collected blood and urine samples from participants at baseline and at two, four and six months.

In this secondary analysis, Crew and colleagues used the blood and urine samples to examine biologic endpoints, such as inflammatory proteins, growth factors and lipid biomarkers, which might point to the mechanism of action behind green tea extract. Biomarker data were available for 34 of the 40 patients.

Women assigned to the extract had an average 10-fold increase in green tea metabolites compared with placebo. In addition, they had a significant reduction in hepatocyte growth factor levels at two months compared with women assigned to placebo. However, at the four-month and six-month follow-ups, the difference was no longer statistically significant.

The researchers also identified a trend toward decreased total serum cholesterol and decreased vascular endothelial growth factor in women assigned to the extract.

According to Crew, it is still too early to recommend green tea extract to prevent breast cancer. Currently, researchers are conducting several ongoing studies to explore the use of oral green tea extract in high-risk women for the primary prevention of breast cancer.

Source:American Association for Cancer Research 

Low calcium diet linked to higher risk of hormone condition in women

Moderate calcium supplementation in women should be encouraged, says editorial

Primary hyperparathyroidism or PHPT is caused by overactive parathyroid glands secreting too much parathyroid hormone, which can result in weak bones, fractures and kidney stones. In recent years, several studies have also suggested a link between untreated PHPT and an increased risk of high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke.

PHPT affects one in 800 people during their lifetime. It is most common in post-menopausal women between 50-60 years of age.

Calcium intake is known to influence parathyroid hormone production and therefore may be important in the development of PHPT. However, no study to date has explored this relation in detail over many years.

So a team of US-based researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital set out to examine the association between calcium intake and risk of developing primary hyperparathyroidism in women.

They tracked 58,354 US women participating in the Nurses' Health Study I aged between 39 and 66 years in 1986 with no history of PHPT. Calcium intake (from both dietary sources and supplements) was assessed every four years using food frequency questionnaires over a 22-year period.

During follow-up, 277 cases of PHPT were confirmed.

Women were divided into five equal groups, according to intake of dietary calcium. After adjusting for several factors including age, body mass index and ethnicity, women in the group with the highest intake of dietary calcium had a 44% reduced risk of developing PHPT compared with the group with the lowest intake.

Even for women taking a modest 500 mg/day of calcium supplements, the risk of developing PHPT was 59% lower than those taking no calcium supplements.

Further analyses to test these results did not significantly change the association between calcium intake and risk of PHPT.

The authors point out that "there could be unknown confounders that we did not control for in our analysis." However, they conclude: "Increased calcium intake, including both dietary and supplemental calcium, is independently associated with a reduced risk of developing primary hyperparathyroidism in women."

And they suggest that future research "should examine other environmental and lifestyle risk factors that could chronically stimulate the parathyroid gland and thereby affect subsequent development of primary hyperparathyroidism."

An accompanying editorial says this study "provides evidence to support physicians in confidently encouraging female patients to take calcium supplements."

James Norman, Chief of Surgery at the Norman Parathyroid Center in Florida argues that daily calcium supplements in modest doses "are likely to provide more benefits than risks" …. and, over many years, even a moderate increase in calcium concentration probably helps reduce the incidence of parathyroid tumors."

Source:BMJ-British Medical Journal 

Viruses act like 'self-packing suitcases'

Researchers at the University of Leeds have identified a crucial stage in the lifecycle of simple viruses like polio and the common cold that could open a new front in the war on viral disease.

The team are the first to observe at a single-molecule level how the genetic material (genome) that forms the core of a single-strand RNA virus particle packs itself into its outer shell of proteins. Lead researcher Professor Peter Stockley said their results overturn accepted thinking about the process and could open a chink in the armour of a wide range of viruses.

"If we can target this process, it could lead to a completely new class of anti-virals that would be less likely to create resistant viruses than existing drugs, which tend to target individual proteins," Professor Stockley said.

A number of important viruses like the common cold and polio have RNA (ribonucleic acid) instead of DNA as their genetic material. The observations reveal that the viruses' RNA initially has a much greater volume than the virus particles created after they are packed inside their protein shell.

"We realised that the RNA genome must have to be intricately folded to fit into the final container, just like when you pack to go on holiday and need to fold your clothes to fit into the space in your suitcase," said co-author Dr Roman Tuma from the University of Leeds' Faculty of Biological Sciences.

When the team added proteins to the viral RNA they saw an immediate collapse in its volume.

"It seems that viral RNAs have evolved a self-folding mechanism that makes closing the 'viral suitcase' very efficient. It's as though 'the suitcase and the clothes' work together to close the lid and protect the content," Dr Tuma said.

"The viral RNAs, and only the viral RNAs, can do this trick of folding up to fit as soon as they see the 'suitcase' coming. That's the important thing. If we can interfere in that process we've got a completely novel drug target in the lifecycle of viruses," Professor Stockley said.

"At the moment there are relatively few antiviral drugs and they tend to target enzymes that the virus encodes in its genome. The problem is that the drugs target one enzyme initially and, within the year, scientists are identifying strains that have become resistant. Individual proteins are extremely susceptible to this mutation. A fundamental process like the one we're looking at opens the possibility of targeting the collective behaviour of essential molecules, which could be much less susceptible to developing resistance," explained Professor Stockley.

The same phenomenon is seen in both bacterial and plant viruses. "While we have not proved it yet, I would put money on animal viruses showing the same mechanism too," Professor Stockley added.

The team used sophisticated instrumentation custom built at the University that allowed them to make the first ever single-molecule measurements of viral assembly. This allowed researchers to observe individual viral particles one at a time. "The specific collapse, which can only be seen in such assays, was totally unexpected and overturns the current thinking about assembly," Professor Stockley said.

The team also includes PhD student Alexander Borodavka, whose Wellcome Trust studentship funded the new research. They have recently secured a grant from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) to extend their research.

"We're now perfectly positioned to pursue questions about how this mechanism works in other viruses and we're already thinking about ways to start designing new antiviral drugs that would target this newly recognised feature of viral lifecycles," Professor Stockley said.

Source:University of Leeds 

Study shows elevated risk of blood clots in women taking birth control containing drospirenone

 A U.S. Food and Drug Administration-funded study led by the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research found an increased risk of arterial thrombotic events (ATE) and venous thromboembolic events (VTE) — commonly referred to as blockage of arteries and blood clots, respectively — associated with drospirenone-containing birth control pills compared to four low-dose estrogen combined hormonal contraceptives.

The study appears in the current online issue of Contraception.

"We found that starting use of drospirenone-containing combined hormonal contraceptives was associated with a 77 percent increase in the risk of hospitalization for VTE and doubling of the risk for ATE compared to the risk associated with use of the four low-dose estrogen CHCs,"" said Stephen Sidney, MD, MPH, director of Research Clinics at the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research and lead author of the study. "Though the absolute incidence of venous thromboembolic events is low, the growing number of studies showing an increased risk of venous thromboembolic events with drospirenone suggests that drospirenone-containing combined hormonal contraceptives should be used cautiously for women seeking hormonal contraception. We also need more information on the risk of arterial thrombotic events with drospirenone-containing combined hormonal contraceptives because few data have been published."

"To put these numbers into perspective, the risk of developing blood clots is higher when using any birth control pills than not using them, but still remains lower than the risk of developing blood clots in pregnancy and in the postpartum period," said Sidney. "Nonetheless, health care professionals should consider the risks and benefits of drospirenone-containing birth control pills and a woman's risk for developing a blood clot before prescribing these drugs."

Drospirenone (DRSP) is a synthetic version of the female hormone, progesterone, also referred to as a progestin. During the past 10 years, three new combined hormonal contraceptives (CHC) preparations have been approved for use by the FDA, including drospirenone/ethinyl estradiol pills (DRSP), the norelgestromin /ethinyl estradiol transdermal patch (NGMN), and the etonogestrel/ethinyl estradiol vaginal ring (ETON). Since then, there have been several studies evaluating the risk of thrombotic and thromboembolic events compared to low-dose estrogen CHCs that have been on the market for longer periods of time.

"The results have been mixed, and it is unclear whether the differences in findings arose from differences in study methodologies or differences in the populations studied. As a result, there is a great deal of concern and confusion among women and their health care providers regarding the safety of these newer preparations relative to older CHCs," Sidney said.

"We performed this retrospective cohort study to address methodological issues using a 'New User' design. We assessed the risk of each of the three newer CHCs relative to low-dose estrogen CHCs in a cohort of new users of CHCs from four geographically and demographically diverse health plans."

The study cohort consisted of 573,680 women, ages 10-55, who were identified as "new users," which was defined as first exposure to any of the three DRSP-containing CHCs or the four low-dose estrogen CHCs during the 2001-2007 study period. The cohort was drawn from two integrated health care programs (Kaiser Permanente Northern California and Kaiser Permanente Southern California) and two state Medicaid programs (Tennessee and Washington).

"While the absolute risks for venous thromboembolic events in patients taking drospirenone-containing birth control pills is low, this research helps inform the conversation health care providers have with patients about their oral contraceptive options," said Tracy Flanagan, MD, director of Women's Health at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. "We offer many oral contraceptive choices and can offer alternatives to drospirenone-containing pills that may be more appropriate for an individual patient. The risks and benefits of any contraceptive should be weighed carefully against the risk of an unintended pregnancy."

The comparator CHCs included levonorgestrel/ethinyl estradiol tablets (LNG10-20), levonorgestrel/ethinyl estradiol tablets (LNG15-30), norethindrone/ethinyl estradiol tablets (NETA), and norgestimate/ethinyl estradiol tablets [NGM].

New users of DRSP had 1.77 times the risk for VTE and 2.01 times the risk of ATE relative to new users of the low-dose estrogen comparators. The increased risk of DRSP was limited to the 10-34 years age group for VTE and 35-55 years group for ATE.

Use of the NGMN patch and ETON vaginal ring were not associated with increased risk of either thromboembolic or thrombotic outcomes. However, the patch and ring are used by far fewer women than DRSP-containing birth control pills.

In a Drug Safety Communication dated April 10, 2012, the FDA wrote that based on its review of observational studies, it has concluded that "drospirenone-containing birth control pills may be associated with a higher risk for blood clots than other progestin-containing pills." The FDA advises that, even though it is unclear whether the increased risk seen for blood clots in some of the epidemiologic studies is actually due to drospirenone-containing birth control pills, women should talk to their health care professional about their risk for blood clots before deciding which birth control method to use.

Source:

Kaiser Permanente Division of Research California

The Future of Cancer Treatment: First-of-its-kind Self-Assembled Nanoparticle for Targeted and Triggered Thermo-Chemotherapy

Excitement around the potential for targeted nanoparticles (NPs) that can be controlled by stimulus outside of the body for cancer therapy has been growing over the past few years.  More specifically, there has been considerable attention around near-infrared (NIR) light as an ideal method to stimulate nanoparticles from outside the body. NIR is minimally absorbed by skin and tissue, has the ability to penetrate deep tissue in a noninvasive way and the energy from NIR light can be converted to heat by gold nanomaterials for effective thermal ablation of diseased tissue.

In new research from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), researchers describe the design and effectiveness of a first-of-its-kind, self assembled, multi-functional, NIR responsive gold nanorods that can deliver a chemotherapy drug specifically targeted to cancer cells and selectively release the drug in response to an external beam of light while creating heat for synergistic thermo-chemo mediated anti-tumor efficacy.  The study is electronically published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition."The design of this gold nanorod and its self-assembly was inspired by nature and the ability of complimentary strands of DNA to hybridize on their own without imposing complicated chemical processes on them," explained Omid Farokhzad, MD, an anesthesiologist, director of the Laboratory of Nanomedicine and Biomaterials at BWH, and senior author of this study.  "Each functionalized DNA strand individually, and the self assembled components as a system, play a distinct yet integrative role resulting in synergistic targeted and triggered thermo-chemotherapy capable of eradicating tumors in our pre-clinical models."One DNA strand is attached to the gold nanorod and the complementary strand is attached to a stealth layer and a homing molecule that keeps the system under the radar of the immune system while targeting it directly to cancer cells. When the DNA strands come together, the targeted gold nanorod is formed and the double stranded DNA serves as the scaffold for binding the chemotherapy drug, doxorubicin, which can be released in response to NIR light that concurrently results in generation of heat by the gold nanorods."This new platform is comprised of three distinct functional components and each plays a role in contributing to the triple punch of triggered thermotherapy, controlled doxorubicin release, and cancer cell targeting," explained Zeyu Xiao, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at BWH and lead author of this study.To demonstrate the robust capability of this nanorod system, Farokhzad and colleagues used a pre-clinical model to evaluate the in vivo anti-tumor efficacy in two different tumor models and four different groups with different drug regiments, each group varying in weight and tumor size. Researchers administrated an injection of the novel, self-assembled nanoparticle and then 10 minutes post-injection, the tumors were irradiated using NIR light that activated the nanoparticle using the gold nanorod and created heat.  The results showed that this platform successfully delivered heat and anti-cancer drugs and synergistically eradicated tumors.  

Source:Brigham womens Hospital

Vegetarians Live Longer Than Meat Eaters: Study

Foods frequently consumed in vegetarian diet reduce a person's risk for diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes, and boost brain health, states study. In the '70s and '80s, a series of studies from Loma Linda University in California, which has tracked tens of thousands of Seventh-day Adventists since 1958, were the first to show that vegetarians live longer than meat eaters, according to the Huffington Post. In 2002, Loma Linda received a grant from the National Institutes of Health gave to continue the research on Seventh-day Adventists, branding this round of research Adventist Health Study 2.

 The study, which is midway to completion and includes 96,000 people from the United States and Canada, presents findings just as dramatic, principal investigator Gary E. Fraser, MD, PhD, said at the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics' 2012 Food 'n' Nutrition Conference and Expo. Vegetarian Adventist men live to an average of 83.3 years and vegetarian women 85.7 years - 9.5 and 6.1 years, respectively, longer than other Californians, Fraser explained. The Adventist Health Study 2 also found that Vegans are, on average, 30 pounds lighter than meat eaters. Vegans are also five units lighter on the BMI scale than meat-eaters. Vegetarians and vegans are also less insulin resistant than meat-eaters. Lean people are also more likely to exercise regularly, eat plants, and avoid cigarettes than overweight people, suggesting that numerous factors are boosting the overall health of these participants. Pesco-vegetarians and semi-vegetarians who limit animal products, but still eat meat once a week or so, have "intermediate protection" against lifestyle diseases. Perhaps the most staggering finding is that obesity cuts an African-American's life span by 6.2 percent. The study population is 25 percent African-American and half vegetarian.

Source-ANI

 

Love Hormone may Help People Beat Alcoholism

Oxytocin - commonly known as love hormone can help people beat alcohol addiction, say University of North California scientists. 11 alcohol-dependent volunteers received two daily doses of an oxytocin nasal spray or a placebo during the first three days of a detox programme, conducted by Cort Pedersen at the University and his team.The volunteers were also given lorazepam - a detox drug - when their withdrawal symptoms reached a specific level. The researchers found that the oxytocin group had fewer alcohol cravings and milder withdrawal symptoms than the placebo group, and used just one-fifth of the lorazepam. "Four [oxytocin] volunteers didn't need any lorazepam at all," New Scientist quoted Pedersen as saying. This is good news as lorazepam is highly addictive. While it reduces anxiety and seizures during alcohol withdrawal, users can experience insomnia and cravings when they come off the drug. How oxytocin helps to aid withdrawal is still unclear, but it has no known side effects. And Pedersen hopes that alcoholics who take the hormone will be less likely to experience the unpleasant symptoms that can lead to relapse.
Source-ANI

Spirituality key to Chinese medicine success

Study explores why Chinese medicine has stood the test of time

Are the longevity and vitality of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) due to its holistic approach? Indeed, Chinese medicine is not simply about treating illness, but rather about taking care of the whole person—body, mind, and spirit. According to an analysis¹ of TCM's origins and development by Lin Shi from Beijing Normal University and Chenguang Zhang from Southwest Minzu University in China, traditional Chinese medicine is profoundly influenced by Chinese philosophy and religion. To date, modern science has been unable to explain the mechanisms behind TCM's effects. The study is published online in Springer's journal Pastoral Psychology, in a special issue² dedicated to the psychology of religion in China.
The essence of TCM lies in its foundation in spirituality, religion, and philosophy, making it quite different from Western medicine and leading it to be viewed by some as magical and mysterious. Chinese medicine is an ancient discipline with a long developmental history and is very much influenced by religion and spirituality. Shi and Zhang's paper examines in detail six aspects of traditional Chinese medicine: its history; its fundamental beliefs; spirituality in traditional Chinese healing rituals; spirituality in the traditional Chinese pharmacy; spirituality in health maintenance theories; and spirituality of master doctors of traditional Chinese medicine.
This analysis shows, among other things, that the underlying premise of Chinese medicine is that the mind and body of a person are inseparable. To be in good health, a person must have good spirit and pay attention to cultivating their spirit. Chinese doctors see "people" not "diseases" and equate "curing diseases" with "curing people."
According to the authors: "Good health and longevity are what we pursue. More and more people are concerned about ways to prevent disease and strengthen their bodies, which is the emphasis of traditional Chinese medicine. It pays attention to physical pains, and at the same time is also concerned with spiritual suffering. Therefore, TCM can teach people to be indifferent towards having or not having, to exist with few desires and feel at ease, to keep the body healthy and the mind quiet, and to achieve harmony between the body and the mind and then to achieve harmony with the world and nature."

References
1. Shi, L., & Zhang, C. (2012), Spirituality in traditional Chinese medicine, Pastoral Psychology, DOI 10.1007/s11089-012-0480-x.
2. Dueck, A., & Han, B. (eds.), Psychology of religion in China (special issue), Pastoral Psychology, 61(5 & 6), http://www.springerlink.com/content/0031-2789/61/5-6/

Zinc deficiency mechanism linked to aging, multiple diseases

A new study has outlined for the first time a biological mechanism by which zinc deficiency can develop with age, leading to a decline of the immune system and increased inflammation associated with many health problems, including cancer, heart disease, autoimmune disease and diabetes.
The research was done by scientists in the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University and the OSU College of Public Health and Human Sciences. It suggests that it's especially important for elderly people to get adequate dietary intake of zinc, since they may need more of it at this life stage when their ability to absorb it is declining.
About 40 percent of elderly Americans and as many as two billion people around the world have diets that are deficient in this important, but often underappreciated micronutrient, experts say.
The study was published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, based on findings with laboratory animals. It found that zinc transporters were significantly dysregulated in old animals. They showed signs of zinc deficiency and had an enhanced inflammatory response even though their diet supposedly contained adequate amounts of zinc.
When the animals were given about 10 times their dietary requirement for zinc, the biomarkers of inflammation were restored to those of young animals.
"The elderly are the fastest growing population in the U.S. and are highly vulnerable to zinc deficiency," said Emily Ho, an LPI principal investigator. "They don't consume enough of this nutrient and don't absorb it very well."
"We've previously shown in both animal and human studies that zinc deficiency can cause DNA damage, and this new work shows how it can help lead to systemic inflammation," Ho said.
"Some inflammation is normal, a part of immune defense, wound healing and other functions," she said. "But in excess, it's been associated with almost every degenerative disease you can think of, including cancer and heart disease. It appears to be a significant factor in the diseases that most people die from."
As a result of this and what is now know about zinc absorption in the elderly, Ho said that she would recommend all senior citizens take a dietary supplement that includes the full RDA for zinc, which is 11 milligrams a day for men and 8 milligrams for women. Zinc can be obtained in the diet from seafood and meats, but it's more difficult to absorb from grains and vegetables – a particular concern for vegetarians.
"We found that the mechanisms to transport zinc are disrupted by age-related epigenetic changes," said Carmen Wong, an OSU research associate and co-author of this study. "This can cause an increase in DNA methylation and histone modifications that are related to disease processes, especially cancer. Immune system cells are also particularly vulnerable to zinc deficiency."
Research at OSU and elsewhere has shown that zinc is essential to protect against oxidative stress and help repair DNA damage. In zinc deficiency, the risk of which has been shown to increase with age, the body's ability to repair genetic damage may be decreasing even as the amount of damage is going up.
Medical tests to determine zinc deficiency are rarely done, scientists say, and are not particularly accurate even if they are done. The best approach is to assure adequate intake of the nutrient through diet or supplements, they said, especially in the elderly.
Even though elderly people have less success in absorbing zinc, the official RDA for them is the same as in younger adults. That issue should be examined more closely, Ho said.
Levels of zinc intake above 40 milligrams per day should be avoided, researchers said, because at very high levels they can interfere with absorption of other necessary nutrients, including iron and copper.
Source: Oregon State University

Social contact can ease pain related to nerve damage, animal study suggests

Companionship has the potential to reduce pain linked to nerve damage, according to a new study.
Mice that were paired with a cage-mate showed lower pain responses and fewer signs of inflammation in their nervous system after undergoing surgery that affected their nerves than did isolated mice, suggesting that the social contact had both behavioral and physiological influences.
The social contact lowered the pain response and signs of inflammation even in animals that had experienced stress prior to the nerve injury.
These mice experienced a specific kind of nerve-related pain called allodynia, which is a withdrawal response to a stimulus that normally would not elicit a response – in this case, a light touch to the paw.
"If they were alone and had stress, the animals had increased inflammation and allodynia behavior," said Adam Hinzey, a graduate student in neuroscience at Ohio State University and lead author of the study. "If the mice had a social partner, both allodynia and inflammation were reduced."
More than 20 million Americans experience the nerve pain known as peripheral neuropathy as a consequence of diabetes or other disorders as well as trauma, including spinal cord injury. Few reliable treatments are available for this persistent pain.
"A better understanding of social interaction's beneficial effects could lead to new therapies for this type of pain," Hinzey said.
Hinzey described the research during a press conference Monday (10/15) in New Orleans at Neuroscience 2012, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.
In the study, researchers paired one group of mice with a single cage-mate for one week while other mice were kept socially isolated. For three days during this week, some mice from each group were exposed to brief stress while others remain nonstressed.
Researchers then performed a nerve surgery producing sensations that mimic neuropathic pain on one group of mice and a sham procedure that didn't involve the nerves on a control group.
After determining a baseline response to a light touch to their paws, researchers tested all groups of mice behaviorally for a week after the surgery. Mice that had lived with a social partner, regardless of stress level, required a higher level of force before they showed a withdrawal response compared to isolated mice that were increasingly responsive to a lighter touch.
"Animals that were both stressed and isolated maintained a lower threshold – less force was needed to elicit a paw withdrawal response. Animals that were pair housed and not stressed withstood a significantly greater amount of force applied before they showed a paw withdrawal response," Hinzey said. "Within animals that were stressed, pairing was able to increase the threshold required to see a withdrawal response."
He and colleagues examined the animals' brain and spinal cord tissue for gene activation affecting production of two proteins that serve as markers for inflammation. These cytokines, called interleukin-1 beta (IL-1B) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), are typically elevated in response to both injury and stress.
Compared to animals that received a sham procedure, isolated mice with nerve damage had much higher levels of IL-1B gene expression in their brain and spinal cord tissue. The researchers also observed a significant decrease in gene activity related to IL-6 production in the spinal cords of nonstressed animals compared to the mice that were stressed.
"We believe that socially isolated individuals are physiologically different from socially paired individuals, and that this difference seems to be related to inflammation," said Courtney DeVries, professor of neuroscience at Ohio State and principal investigator on this work. "These data showed very nicely that the social environment is influencing not just behavior but really the physiological response to the nerve injury.
Source:OSU

"Biggest Loser" study finds modest diet and exercise can sustain weight loss

Exercise and healthy eating reduce body fat and preserve muscle in adults better than diet alone, according to a study funded and conducted by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health. The study was recently published online in Obesity and will be in a future print edition.
NIDDK senior investigator Kevin Hall, Ph.D., analyzed the individual effects of daily strenuous exercise and a restricted diet by examining data from 11 participants from the reality television program "The Biggest Loser." The program shows obese adults losing large amounts of weight over several months. Participants were initially isolated on a ranch followed by an extended period at home.
"By including the show's contestants as voluntary study participants, this research took advantage of a cost-efficient opportunity to study a small group of obese individuals already engaged in an intensive lifestyle intervention," said Hall, who has no financial ties and no other affiliation to the show.
Researchers measured body fat, total energy expenditure and resting metabolic rate — the energy burned during inactivity — three times: at the start of the program, at week 6, and at week 30, which was at least 17 weeks after participants returned home. Participation in the program led to an average weight loss of 128 pounds, with about 82 percent of that coming from body fat, and the rest from lean tissue like muscle. Preserving lean tissue, even during rapid and substantial weight loss, helps maintain strength and mobility and reduces risk of injury, among other benefits.
Hall used a mathematical computer model of human metabolism — currently intended for research conducted by scientists and health professionals — to calculate the diet and exercise changes underlying the observed body weight loss. Because the TV program was not designed to directly address how the exercise and diet interventions each contributed to the weight loss, the computer model simulated the results of diet alone and exercise alone to estimate their relative contributions.
At the competition’s end, diet alone was calculated to be responsible for more weight loss than exercise, with 65 percent of the weight loss consisting of body fat and 35 percent consisting of lean mass like muscle. In contrast, the model calculated that exercise alone resulted in participants losing only fat, and no muscle. The simulation of exercise alone also estimated a small increase in lean mass despite overall weight loss.
The simulations also suggest that the participants could sustain their weight loss and avoid weight regain by adopting more moderate lifestyle changes — like 20 minutes of daily vigorous exercise and a 20 percent calorie restriction — than those demonstrated on the television program.
More than two-thirds of U.S. adults age 20 and older are overweight or obese, and more than one-third of adults are obese. Excess weight can lead to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and certain cancers.
"This study reinforces the need for a healthy diet and exercise in our daily lives," said NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers. "It also illustrates how the science of metabolism and mathematical modeling can be used to develop sound recommendations for sustainable weight loss — an important tool in the treatment of obesity — based on an individual’s unique circumstances."
The NIDDK, a component of the NIH, conducts and supports research on diabetes and other endocrine and metabolic diseases; digestive diseases, nutrition and obesity; and kidney, urologic and hematologic diseases. Spanning the full spectrum of medicine and afflicting people of all ages and ethnic groups, these diseases encompass some of the most common, severe and disabling conditions affecting Americans. For more information about the NIDDK and its programs.
Source:NIH

Gold Nanoparticle Prostate Cancer Treatment Found Safe in Dogs, MU Study Shows

Currently, large doses of chemotherapy are required when treating certain forms of cancer, resulting in toxic side effects. The chemicals enter the body and work to destroy or shrink the tumor, but also harm vital organs and drastically affect bodily functions. Now, scientists at the University of Missouri have proven that a new form of prostate cancer treatment that uses radioactive gold nanoparticles, and was developed at MU, is safe to use in dogs. Sandra Axiak-Bechtel, an assistant professor in oncology at the MU College of Veterinary Medicine, says that this is a big step for gold nanoparticle research.
“Proving that gold nanoparticles are safe to use in the treatment of prostate cancer in dogs is a big step toward gaining approval for clinical trials in men,” Axiak-Bechtel said. “Dogs develop prostate cancer naturally in a very similar way as humans, so the gold nanoparticle treatment has a great chance to translate well to human patients.”
For their treatment, Kattesh Katti, a curators’ professor of radiology and physics in the School of Medicine and the College of Arts and Science, and other MU scientists, have found a more efficient way of targeting prostate tumors by using radioactive gold nanoparticles. This new treatment would require doses that are thousands of times smaller than chemotherapy and do not travel through the body inflicting damage to healthy areas.
“We found remarkable results in mice, which showed a significant reduction in tumor volume through single injections of the radioactive gold nanoparticles,” said Katti. “These findings have formed a solid foundation, and we hope to translate the utility of this novel nanomedicine therapy to treating human cancer patients.”
Current treatments for prostate cancer are not effective in patients who have aggressive prostate cancer tumors. Most of the time, prostate cancers are slow-growing; the disease remains localized and it is easily managed. However, aggressive forms of the disease spread to other parts of the body, and is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in U.S. men. The MU scientists believe their treatment will be able to shrink aggressive tumors or eliminate them completely. Axiak-Bechtel says this treatment can be safe and effective in dogs as well as humans because dogs are the only other mammal to naturally contract the aggressive form of prostate cancer.
“Being able to test the gold nanoparticle treatment on dogs is very helpful, because dogs develop these tumors naturally,” Axiak-Bechtel said. “Because dogs can’t tell us how they feel, many times they are diagnosed with the disease too late, but this treatment gives us some hope that we can still combat aggressive tumors.”
Axiak-Bechtel and Katti, who is also a senior research scientist at the MU Research Reactor, have been working with colleagues in the Department of Radiology and Cathy Cutler at the MU Research Reactor, to develop the gold nanoparticle treatment. This research was presented at the 2012 World Veterinary Cancer Conference in Paris.
This study is a result of collaboration through the One Health, One Medicine area of Mizzou Advantage. Mizzou Advantage is a program that focuses on four areas of strength: food for the future, media of the future, one health, one medicine, and sustainable energy. The goals of Mizzou Advantage are to strengthen existing faculty networks, create new networks and propel Mizzou’s research, instruction and other activities to the next level.
Source: University of Missouri

Study suggests how expanding waistlines may contribute to cancer

Fat progenitor cells may contribute to cancer growth by fortifying the vessels that provide needed blood to tumors, according to preclinical research findings by investigators at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).
The results were reported in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
Studies of groups of people have demonstrated a link between obesity and certain cancers; however, the physiological causes have not been identified.  The World Health Organization reports that in 2008 there were more than 1.4 billion obese adults in the world and that cancer claimed the lives of 7.6 million that year.
Some researchers have theorized that what obese people eat may affect cancer progression. However, although diet is an important factor, the direct effect of excess fat tissue on tumors has to be taken into consideration, said Mikhail Kolonin, Ph.D., senior author and associate professor at the Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine at the Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine for the Prevention of Human Diseases at UTHealth.
The UTHealth scientists found a new link between tumor growth and obesity. They report that tumors emit a signal that attracts progenitor cells from white adipose tissue in mouse models of cancer. These cells in turn support the network of blood vessels that nourish tumors - a process called tumor angiogenesis.
“For the first time, we have demonstrated that excess fat is a key factor in cancer progression regardless of the diet contributing to the extra weight,” Kolonin said.
“In an attempt to understand how fat tissue fuels tumor growth, our laboratory has focused on a possible role of adipose stromal progenitor cells. These cells serve as stem cells in fat tissue. We have discovered that they expand in obesity and are mobilized into the systemic circulation,” Kolonin said.
“Our experiments show that fat progenitors are recruited by tumors, where they incorporate into blood vessels and become fat cells,” said Yan Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., the study’s lead author and research scientist at the UTHealth Medical School. “We found that obese animal fat progenitor cells recruited by tumors improved vascular function and, therefore, increased survival and proliferation of cancer cells.”
Chieh Tseng, study author and graduate research assistant at the The University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston, said, “Our work has the potential to help a lot of people. Currently, we are investigating the molecular mechanisms of fat progenitor cell homing to tumor. We are also screening for new molecules targeting the pathways through which cells traffic from fat tissue to promote tumor growth.”
“The next step in this research would be to inactivate fat progenitor cells in an effort to slow cancer progression,” said Kolonin, who is on the faculty of the graduate school and is the holder of the Jerold B. Katz Distinguished Professorship in Stem Cell Research at UTHealth.
Other UTHealth study authors include Alexes Daquinag, Ph.D., Felipe Amaya-Manzanares and Olga Sirin, Ph.D.
The study, which is titled “Stromal Progenitor Cells from Endogenous Adipose Tissue Contribute to Populations of Pericytes and Adipocytes in Tumor Microenvironment,” was supported by the Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas and the American Cancer Society.
Source:The University of Texas