Body

In a "look-back" analysis of data stored on 130 patients with pancreatic cysts, scientists at Johns Hopkins have used gene-based tests and a fixed set of clinical criteria to more accurately distinguish precancerous cysts from those less likely to do harm. The findings may eventually help some patients in real time safely avoid surgery to remove harmless cysts. A report on the findings is published in the November issue of Gastroenterology.

A group of researchers from Lomonosov Moscow State University in collaboration with Russian Science Foundation developed a unique method for the selective study of electron transport chain in living mitochondria by using nondestructive analysis. The study was published in Scientific Reports.

HOUSTON -- (Nov. 17, 2015) -- When it comes to needles and drawing blood, most patients agree that bigger is not better. But in the first study of its kind, Rice University bioengineers have found results from a single drop of blood are highly variable, and as many as six to nine drops must be combined to achieve consistent results.

AKRON, Ohio (November 17, 2015) - Leading experts in hand hygiene, skin health science and the human microbiome recently published, "Review of Human Hand Microbiome Research" in The Journal of Dermatological Science. According to the report, hands are like a busy intersection, constantly connecting our microbiome to the microbiomes of other people, places and things. Hands are an important and evolving microbiome research field of study because of their critical nature to overall human health.

SEATTLE -- Advanced prostate cancer is a disease notoriously resistant to treatment. New research by scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of California, San Francisco sheds light on a new mode of drug resistance to emerging therapies in metastatic prostate cancer. This discovery ultimately may help predict which patients may benefit most from treatment.

Scientists from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in collaboration with researchers from University of California campuses at Merced and Davis have found that a secreted protein predominantly expressed in bone inhibits prostate cancer metastasis to bone.

Their research appears in recent editions of the journals, PLOS ONE and Microarrays.

Researchers at University of Exeter have developed a new test to help diagnoses diabetes, which they say will lead to more effective diagnosis and patient care.

Research published in the journal Diabetes Care, shows how a genetic test can help doctors to differentiate between type 1 and type 2 diabetes in young adults.

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 17, 2015 - Achieving a healthy weight before becoming pregnant and gaining an appropriate amount of weight during pregnancy significantly reduce the risk of the baby dying in his or her first year of life, according to new research from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

LA JOLLA, CA - Nov. 17, 2015 - Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have new weapons in the fight against HIV.

Their new study, published Nov. 17, 2015 as the cover article of the journal Immunity, describes four prototype antibodies that target a specific weak spot on the virus. Guided by these antibodies, the researchers then mimicked the molecular structure of a protein on HIV when designing their own potential HIV vaccine candidate.

JUPITER, FL - November 17, 2015 - Tuberculosis has been infecting humans for several millennia, making it one of the most horribly successful diseases in history. Today, it is still a major killer, responsible for some 1.5 million deaths each year.

In a substantial number of cases--some two billion, in fact--the tuberculosis bacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) isn't active at all. Instead, it hides inside cell aggregates, latent and persistent, waiting to break out.

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Obesity and Type 2 diabetes have been linked to several health issues, including an increased risk of bone fractures. In a new animal study, University of Missouri researchers examined how the development of obesity and insulin resistance contribute to bone-fracture risk and whether exercise prevents weight gain and diabetes and protects bone health. They found obesity and Type 2 diabetes negatively affected bone, but exercise prevented weight gain and diabetes and increased bone strength.

EAST LANSING, Mich. --- Young adult women who watched "Fifty Shades of Grey" found the relationship between the characters Christian and Anastasia somewhat exciting and romantic, but also expressed grave concerns about Christian's abusive behavior, new research finds.

A study by Michigan State University scholars suggests women aged 18-24 -- a prime period for exploring love and sexuality -- are able to recognize a harmful relationship marked by controlling and manipulative behavior, stalking and emotional and sexual abuse.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- A mathematical model developed by Brown University researchers is shedding new light on how zebrafish get their iconic stripes. The model helps to demonstrate how two dynamic processes--the movement of pigment cells across the skin, and the birth and death of cells as the fish grows--combine to keep zebrafish stripes in line.

The model is described in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface.

DUBLIN, November 17, 2015 - The average cost of maternity care for a woman in a midwife-led unit is €182 less than in a consultant-led unit, according to new research conducted by the School of Nursing and Midwifery and School of Medicine (Health Policy and Management) at Trinity College Dublin.

The study, which involved 1,635 low-risk women cared for in the HSE Dublin North-East region between 2004 and 2009, found that the average cost of caring for a woman in midwife-led units (MLU) was €2,598, compared to €2,780 in consultant-led units (CLU).

The behavior of a type of white blood cell can indicate how soon patients will be back on their feet after hip surgery, according to a study by scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The scientists plan to use the findings to develop a diagnostic blood test that patients can undergo before surgery.