Body | Page 4274 | Science Codex

Children with insomnia may have impaired heart rate variability

Children with insomnia and shorter sleep duration had impaired modulation of heart rhythm during sleep, Pennsylvania researchers reported at the American Heart Association's 50th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention.

In a study of young children, researchers showed that insomnia symptoms were consistently associated with impaired heart variability measures. They also found a significant but less consistent pattern with shortened sleep duration and decreased heart rate variability.

Coffee associated with reduced risk of hospitalization for heart rhythm disturbances

SAN FRANCISCO, March 2, 2010 — Coffee drinkers may be less likely to be hospitalized for heart rhythm disturbances, according to a new study by the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, Calif. The researchers, who note the findings may be surprising because patients frequently report palpitations after drinking coffee, are presenting the study at the American Heart Association's 50th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention in San Francisco on March 5, 2010.

Long-acting beta-agonists most effective step-up therapy for children with poorly controlled asthma

For children whose asthma is not well controlled and on low doses of inhaled corticosteroids, a long-acting beta-agonist (LABA) may be the most effective of three possible step-up treatments. National Jewish clinician-scientists Stanley Szefler, Joseph Spahn, Ronina Covar Gary Larsen and Lynn Taussig, and colleagues in the NIH-funded Childhood Asthma Research and Education Network published their findings March 2, 2010, online in the New England Journal of Medicine.

An apple a day? Study shows soluble fiber boosts immune system

URBANA – A new University of Illinois study touts the benefits of soluble fiber—found in oats, apples, and nuts, for starters—saying that it reduces the inflammation associated with obesity-related diseases and strengthens the immune system.

Barnacles prefer upwelling currents, enriching food chains in the Galapagos

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — There's been a rich debate in marine ecological circles about what happens to a key food source along rocky coastlines dominated by upwelling. The literature is filled with studies suggesting that the larvae of simple prey organisms such as barnacles and mussels hitch a ride on the coast-to-offshore currents typical of upwelling and are thus mostly absent in the coastal tidal zones.

State payer mandates to cover cancer trials offer heterogeneous protection for patients

A 2001 federal law mandates care for Medicare-eligible patients enrolled in clinical trials; however, only 25 state laws cover clinical-trial related medical costs for non-Medicare patients, and these offer less protection than the federal law. A lawyer explains these findings in a special article published online March 2 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Secondhand smoke raises risk of hardened arteries among 13-year-olds

DALLAS, March 2, 2010 — Frequent exposure to environmental tobacco smoke among 13-year-olds is associated with an increased risk of future blood vessel hardening and greater risks of other heart disease factors, according to new research published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, a journal of the American Heart Association.

Test of implantable cardioverter defibrillator linked to cognitive problems

DALLAS, March 2, 2010 — A standard test of the implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) is linked to significant thought-processing problems that improve for most patients within a year after the device is inserted, according to research reported in Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology, a journal of the American Heart Association.

Developing web technologies to share secure information

Dr. Lalana Kagal and fellow researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are developing a standard policy language to achieve flexible and dynamic Web security when information is shared between agencies, countries and organizations.

The research, funded under the Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Program, supports recent Ph.D. graduates and encourages basic research like that of Kagal and her team members, Fatih Turkmen and Matt Cherian.

New studies reveal downstream processes of ion channel inactivation

Two studies by researchers at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine reveal new details of the mechanisms of ion channel inactivation. The papers appear in the March issue of The Journal of General Physiology (www.jgp.org).

UCLA engineers develop faster method to detect bacterial contamination in coastal waters

Currently, beachgoers are informed about water-quality conditions based on results from the previous day's sample. Scientists must collect samples in the field, then return to a lab to culture them for analysis — a process that takes a minimum of 24 hours.

Now, engineers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have sped up the process of analyzing bacterial concentrations to under one hour, through the development of a new in-field, rapid-detection method.

Baby monkeys receive signals through their mother's breast milk

Among rhesus macaque monkeys, mothers who weigh more and have had previous pregnancies produce more and better breast milk for their babies than mothers who weigh less and are less experienced. Scientists from the Smithsonian Institution and the University of California, Davis are using this natural variation in breast milk quality and quantity to show that a mother's milk sends a reliable signal to infants about their environment.

Recently analyzed fossil was not human ancestor as claimed, anthropologists say

AUSTIN, Texas—A fossil that was celebrated last year as a possible "missing link" between humans and early primates is actually a forebearer of modern-day lemurs and lorises, according to two papers by scientists at The University of Texas at Austin, Duke University and the University of Chicago.

In an article now available online in the Journal of Human Evolution, four scientists present evidence that the 47-million-year-old Darwinius masillae is not a haplorhine primate like humans, apes and monkeys, as the 2009 research claimed.

Exercise counters negative effects of weight regain, researchers find

COLUMBIA, Mo. – With the obesity rate rising for American adults and children, health concerns such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease are a frequent reality. Although obesity itself is a major risk factor for disease, most of the threat may be associated with a cluster of risk factors called the metabolic syndrome (MetS). Losing weight can improve health and reduce these risk factors, but many people have difficulty keeping the weight off.

Using own skin cells to repair hearts on horizon

HOUSTON, March 2, 2010 – A heart patient's own skin cells soon could be used to repair damaged cardiac tissue thanks to pioneering stem cell research of the University of Houston's newest biomedical scientist, Robert Schwartz.

His new technique for reprogramming human skin cells puts him at the forefront of a revolution in medicine that could one day lead to treatments for Alzheimer's, diabetes, muscular dystrophy and many other diseases.