Health & Medicine : Science World Report

Apr 16, 2012 01:00 PM EDT

Prenatal Exposure to Air Pollution Linked to Childhood Obesity

Overall, 17% of children in the United States are obese, and in inner-city neighborhoods, the prevalence is as high as 25%. While poor diets and physical inactivity are the main culprits, there is new evidence that air pollution can play a role.

Apr 16, 2012 10:27 AM EDT

New Hope in HIV Prevention Research: International Microbicide Conference Focuses on What Works and Next Steps

Researchers, activists and funders are meeting this week in Sydney to discuss the state of HIV prevention research. The biennial International Microbicides Conference, which was opened on Sunday evening by the Honorable Tanya Plibersek MP, Australian Minster of Health, is taking place amid renewed o...

Apr 16, 2012 09:46 AM EDT

Haiti Launches Anti-cholera Vaccination Campaign

The Haitian government along with international partners including the World Health Organization launched a vaccination campaign against cholera on Saturday targeting 100,000 people in vulnerable areas of the impoverished Caribbean country.

Apr 16, 2012 08:49 AM EDT

Large International study finds memory in adults impacted by versions of four genes

Two research studies, co-led by UC Davis neurologist Charles DeCarli and conducted by an international team that included more than 80 scientists at 71 institutions in eight countries, has advanced understanding of the genetic components of Alzheimer's disease and of brain development. Both studies ...

Apr 16, 2012 07:59 AM EDT

Latest Research Confirms Genetic Susceptibility to Lung Cancer

Previous research has shown that Asian patients with lung cancer are more likely to harbor epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations. Furthermore, Asian patients with lung cancer are more likely to be non-smokers than Western patients with lung cancer. Research in the May 2012 issue of the I...

Apr 15, 2012 06:41 PM EDT

International Team Uncovers New Genes That Shape Brain Size, Intelligence

In the world's largest brain study to date, a team of more than 200 scientists from 100 institutions worldwide collaborated to map the human genes that boost or sabotage the brain's resistance to a variety of mental illnesses and Alzheimer's disease. Published April 15 in the advance online edition ...

Apr 13, 2012 04:37 PM EDT

Test Links Strains of Common Parasite to Severe Illness in US Newborns

Scientists have identified which strains of the Toxoplasma gondii parasite, the cause of toxoplasmosis, are most strongly associated with premature births and severe birth defects in the United States. The researchers used a new blood test developed by scientists at the National Institute of Allergy...

Apr 13, 2012 03:05 PM EDT

Discovery Could Help to Develop Drugs for Organ Transplant and Cancer Patients

The finding eventually could lead to new drugs to regulate the immune system by, for example, revving it up to attack tumor cells or tamping it down to prevent the rejection of transplanted organs.

Apr 13, 2012 02:00 PM EDT

Being in Power Does Not Always Magnify Personality

"If you want to test a man's character, give him power," said Abraham Lincoln. It's a truism that power magnifies personality-but is it true? A new study says no. "Before, people thought that disposition is linked to will; it's mainly internally driven," says University College London psychologist A...

Apr 13, 2012 01:50 PM EDT

Changes in Gene Expression May Help Explain High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy

Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine researchers have discovered that changes in the gene expression of a key enzyme may contribute to high blood pressure and increase susceptibility to forming blood clots in pregnant women with preeclampsia.

Apr 12, 2012 04:35 PM EDT

Studies Reveal How Cells Distinguish Between Disease-causing and Innocuous Invaders

The specific mechanisms by which humans and other animals are able to discriminate between disease-causing microbes and innocuous ones in order to rapidly respond to infections have long been a mystery to scientists. But a study conducted on roundworms by biologists at UC San Diego has uncovered som...

Apr 12, 2012 02:16 PM EDT