Culture
Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries in older adults, causing more than 800,000 hospitalizations and about 30,000 deaths in the U.S. every year. Some risk factors are well-known -- advanced age, problems with vision or balance, muscle weakness -- but an under-recognized factor is early Alzheimer's disease. Older people in the earliest stages of Alzheimer's, before cognitive problems arise, are more likely to suffer a fall than people who are not on track to develop dementia.
Thanks to the sniffling noses, coughs, and colds that accompany the colder months of the year, we are all too familiar with the seasonal patterns of some respiratory viruses. A new review published in Frontiers in Public Health suggests that COVID-19, the illness caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, will likely follow suit and become seasonal in countries with temperate climates, but only when herd immunity is attained.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (SEPTEMBER 15, 2020). Researchers at the University of Calgary have developed and validated a clinical prediction scale that can be used to determine which patients are more likely to experience inadequate pain control following elective spine surgery. Armed with this knowledge, spine surgeons can ensure that patients obtain appropriate patient education and individualized clinical care with the goal of improved postoperative pain management.
A new study from the Prevention Research Center of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation of DUI arrests in California shows that arrests increase as distance to the southern border decrease, and that this may be due to greater availability of alcohol in the border area.
HSE University researchers have found microRNA molecules that are potentially capable of repressing the replication of human coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2. It turns out that the virus uses miRNA hsa-miR-21-3p to inhibit growth in the first stages of infection in order to delay the active immune response. The results of the research have been published in the journal PeerJ.
A new study comprehensively reveals how civil wars impact wildlife in countries affected by conflict.
Researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA), in the UK, Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), Brazil, and University of Agostinho Neto (UAN), Angola, found that the main impacts of civil wars on native mammals are often indirect, ultimately arising from institutional and socio-economic changes, rather than from direct military tactics.
Research from the University of Kent has found that TRESK, a calcium regulated two-pore potassium channel, regulates the brain's central circadian clock to differentiate behaviour between day and night.
It was previously understood that the brain's circadian clock, otherwise known as the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), depends on multiple mechanisms to ensure rhythmic electrical activity that varies between day and night. Yet, this research has clarified that TRESK plays a crucial role in this system. The mechanism was previously unknown.
PITTSBURGH, Sept. 14, 2020 - University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists have isolated the smallest biological molecule to date that completely and specifically neutralizes the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is the cause of COVID-19. This antibody component, which is 10 times smaller than a full-sized antibody, has been used to construct a drug--known as Ab8--for potential use as a therapeutic and prophylactic against SARS-CoV-2.
PULLMAN, Wash. - More political candidates may be shifting primarily to social media to advertise rather than TV, according to a study of advertising trends from the 2018 campaign season. The study, published recently in American Political Science Review, also found that Facebook political ads were more partisan, less negative and less issue-focused than those on TV.
Hydroxylated polychlorinated biphenyls (OH-PCBs) are metabolites of PCBs and known endocrine disruptors in humans. Of particular concern regarding this kind of effect has been the disruption of the thyroid hormone homeostasis by OH-PCBs. Some OH-PCB congeners are involved in disrupting TH transport by competitive binding to the thyroid hormone transport protein, transthyretin (TTR) in mammalian blood. Prenatal OH-PCBs exposure may disrupt fetal brain development during the critical period of thyroid hormone action.
Colorectal cancer is the third most common cause of cancer deaths in the United States and advanced colorectal polyps are a major risk factor. These high-risk patients have a three-fold higher risk of developing colorectal cancer and therefor a three-year follow up interval of colonoscopy is generally recommended. Many clinicians rely on self-reports from their high-risk patients about their need and proper interval for repeat surveillance colonoscopy.
Lugano, Switzerland, 14 September 2020 - Delays and cancellation of cancer treatments and other safety measures undertaken to minimise the risk of exposure to the coronavirus (COVID-19) have generated a huge backlog in oncology care and research. The threat of delayed diagnoses looms while oncology professionals face burnout, according to new studies discussed at the ESMO Virtual Congress 2020.
But is only COVID-19 to blame?
A drug used to treat cirrhosis of the liver may be an effective treatment for a form of Dementia and motorneuron disease, scientists have discovered.
The research, led by the University of York in collaboration with the University of Sheffield, used brain cells from fruit flies and rats to model the neurodegeneration process which occurs in patients with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD).
Immune reactions caused by vaccination can help protect the organism, or sometimes may aggravate the condition. It is especially important now when multiple vaccines against COVID-19 are being developed. The top immunologists analyse types of immune response to predict what kind of vaccine would be the best.
Visuospatial training exercises can train the brain to reduce motion sickness, providing a potential remedy for future passengers riding in autonomous vehicles. Researchers at WMG, University of Warwick reduced motion sickness by over 50% using the training tool and it was found to be effective in both a driving simulator and on-road experimentation.WMG's 3xD simulator at the University of Warwick