People with mental health problems have a lower life expectancy, according to a large-scale population based study published July 31 in the British Medical Journal. The findings may prompt further research into the way doctors treat patients with even mild psychological problems.
A team of researchers from UCL (University College London) and the University of Edinburgh analysed data from over 68,000 adults aged 35 years and over who took part in the Health Survey for England from 1994 to 2004.
Participants in the study had been evaluated for mental health problems using a recognised scale ranging from no symptoms to severe symptoms of depression and anxiety. The team then looked to see whether people who reported these symptoms during the study were more likely to have died over an 8 year period. They also examined whether there was an association with death from cardiovascular disease, cancer or from external causes of death.
Their results reveal that people who experienced symptoms of anxiety or depression had a lower life expectancy than those without any such symptoms. Even people with minor symptoms of mental health problems seemed to have a higher risk of death from several major causes, including cardiovascular disease.
August 1, 2012
Childhood Mistreatment Primes Brain for Mental Illness
Changes in the brain linked to childhood abuse and maltreatment may prime a child for future mental health problems, new research finds.
The study, which compared the brains of teenagers who had been abused as children with those of very similar teens who had not experienced any mistreatment, is one of the first to follow individuals before they are diagnosed with a mental illness. That strengthens the case for a causal link between the damage and the disease, the researchers said.
"Maltreatment makes the subjects vulnerable to major depressive disorder and substance disorder," study researcher Hao Huang, a scientist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, told LiveScience. "And the damage can be seen even before they develop any disorder." [Top 10 Controversial Psychiatric Disorders]
The study, which compared the brains of teenagers who had been abused as children with those of very similar teens who had not experienced any mistreatment, is one of the first to follow individuals before they are diagnosed with a mental illness. That strengthens the case for a causal link between the damage and the disease, the researchers said.
"Maltreatment makes the subjects vulnerable to major depressive disorder and substance disorder," study researcher Hao Huang, a scientist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, told LiveScience. "And the damage can be seen even before they develop any disorder." [Top 10 Controversial Psychiatric Disorders]
July 31, 2012
Pollution can make citizens, both rich and poor, go green
Nothing inspires environmentalism quite like a smog-filled sky or a contaminated river, according to a new study that also indicates that environmentalism isn't just for the prosperous.
People living in China's cities who say they've been exposed to environmental harm are more likely to be green: re-using their plastic grocery bags or recycling. Moreover, the study, published this week in the international journal AMBIO, indicates that the poor would sacrifice economic gain to protect their environment.
"The human and natural worlds are tightly coupled and we cannot protect the environment without empirical studies on how rich and poor people are understanding and reacting to the natural world around them." said Jianguo "Jack" Liu, a co-author of the AMBIO paper and director of the Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability (CSIS) at Michigan State University.
People living in China's cities who say they've been exposed to environmental harm are more likely to be green: re-using their plastic grocery bags or recycling. Moreover, the study, published this week in the international journal AMBIO, indicates that the poor would sacrifice economic gain to protect their environment.
"The human and natural worlds are tightly coupled and we cannot protect the environment without empirical studies on how rich and poor people are understanding and reacting to the natural world around them." said Jianguo "Jack" Liu, a co-author of the AMBIO paper and director of the Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability (CSIS) at Michigan State University.
A closer look at the consuming gaze
Rows of chip bags in a vending machine, endless bottles of shampoo on pharmacy shelves, long lines of books arranged in the bestsellers section at the bookstore. From supermarket shelves to barroom beer selection, long lines of horizontally arranged products are the norm when it comes to the shopping experience.
But how does where a product is placed on the storeroom shelf influence which option a consumer will ultimately choose? It turns out that the shopper's eye has a very central focus.
"Consumers are more likely to purchase products placed in the middle of a display -- without even being aware of it," says Onur Bodur. The associate professor from Concordia's John Molson School of Business co-authored a study forthcoming in the Journal of Consumer Research with marketing researchers at HEC in France and the Aston Business School in England.
But how does where a product is placed on the storeroom shelf influence which option a consumer will ultimately choose? It turns out that the shopper's eye has a very central focus.
"Consumers are more likely to purchase products placed in the middle of a display -- without even being aware of it," says Onur Bodur. The associate professor from Concordia's John Molson School of Business co-authored a study forthcoming in the Journal of Consumer Research with marketing researchers at HEC in France and the Aston Business School in England.
July 24, 2012
Mass psychosis in the US - How Big Pharma got Americans hooked on anti-psychotic drugs.
Has America become a nation of psychotics? You would certainly think so, based on the explosion in the use of antipsychotic medications. In 2008, with over $14 billion in sales, antipsychotics became the single top-selling therapeutic class of prescription drugs in the United States, surpassing drugs used to treat high cholesterol and acid reflux.
Once upon a time, antipsychotics were reserved for a relatively small number of patients with hard-core psychiatric diagnoses - primarily schizophrenia and bipolar disorder - to treat such symptoms as delusions, hallucinations, or formal thought disorder. Today, it seems, everyone is taking antipsychotics. Parents are told that their unruly kids are in fact bipolar, and in need of anti-psychotics, while old people with dementia are dosed, in large numbers, with drugs once reserved largely for schizophrenics. Americans with symptoms ranging from chronic depression to anxiety to insomnia are now being prescribed anti-psychotics at rates that seem to indicate a national mass psychosis.
It is anything but a coincidence that the explosion in antipsychotic use coincides with the pharmaceutical industry's development of a new class of medications known as "atypical antipsychotics." Beginning with Zyprexa, Risperdal, and Seroquel in the 1990s, followed by Abilify in the early 2000s, these drugs were touted as being more effective than older antipsychotics like Haldol and Thorazine. More importantly, they lacked the most noxious side effects of the older drugs - in particular, the tremors and other motor control problems.
Once upon a time, antipsychotics were reserved for a relatively small number of patients with hard-core psychiatric diagnoses - primarily schizophrenia and bipolar disorder - to treat such symptoms as delusions, hallucinations, or formal thought disorder. Today, it seems, everyone is taking antipsychotics. Parents are told that their unruly kids are in fact bipolar, and in need of anti-psychotics, while old people with dementia are dosed, in large numbers, with drugs once reserved largely for schizophrenics. Americans with symptoms ranging from chronic depression to anxiety to insomnia are now being prescribed anti-psychotics at rates that seem to indicate a national mass psychosis.
It is anything but a coincidence that the explosion in antipsychotic use coincides with the pharmaceutical industry's development of a new class of medications known as "atypical antipsychotics." Beginning with Zyprexa, Risperdal, and Seroquel in the 1990s, followed by Abilify in the early 2000s, these drugs were touted as being more effective than older antipsychotics like Haldol and Thorazine. More importantly, they lacked the most noxious side effects of the older drugs - in particular, the tremors and other motor control problems.
Does Thinking Really Hard Burn More Calories?
Although the average adult human brain weighs about 1.4 kilograms, only 2 percent of total body weight, it demands 20 percent of our resting metabolic rate (RMR)—the total amount of energy our bodies expend in one very lazy day of no activity. RMR varies from person to person depending on age, gender, size and health. If we assume an average resting metabolic rate of 1,300 calories, then the brain consumes 260 of those calories just to keep things in order. That's 10.8 calories every hour or 0.18 calories each minute. (For comparison's sake, see Harvard's table of calories burned during different activities). With a little math, we can convert that number into a measure of power:
—Resting metabolic rate: 1300 kilocalories, or kcal, the kind used in nutrition
—1,300 kcal over 24 hours = 54.16 kcal per hour = 15.04 gram calories per second
—15.04 gram calories/sec = 62.93 joules/sec = about 63 watts
—20 percent of 63 watts = 12.6 watts
So a typical adult human brain runs on around 12 watts—a fifth of the power required by a standard 60 watt lightbulb. Compared with most other organs, the brain is greedy; pitted against man-made electronics, it is astoundingly efficient. IBM's Watson, the supercomputer that defeated Jeopardy! champions, depends on ninety IBM Power 750 servers, each of which requires around one thousand watts.
—Resting metabolic rate: 1300 kilocalories, or kcal, the kind used in nutrition
—1,300 kcal over 24 hours = 54.16 kcal per hour = 15.04 gram calories per second
—15.04 gram calories/sec = 62.93 joules/sec = about 63 watts
—20 percent of 63 watts = 12.6 watts
So a typical adult human brain runs on around 12 watts—a fifth of the power required by a standard 60 watt lightbulb. Compared with most other organs, the brain is greedy; pitted against man-made electronics, it is astoundingly efficient. IBM's Watson, the supercomputer that defeated Jeopardy! champions, depends on ninety IBM Power 750 servers, each of which requires around one thousand watts.
Light at Night May Raise Depression Risk, Study Suggests
Constant exposure to light at night can cause depression, a new study in animals suggests.
In the study, hamsters exposed to dim light at night for four weeks showed signs of depression, such as less interest in drinking sugar water they usually enjoy, compared with animals not exposed to light at night, the study found.
The findings suggest exposure to artificial light at night may have contributed to the rising rates of depression over the last 50 years, said study researcher Tracy Bedrosian, a doctoral student in neuroscience at Ohio State University.
"The advent of electrical lighting permitted humans to stray from natural day-night cycles," potentially disturbing our biological rhythms and leading to changes in behavior, Bedrosian said.
But the study also suggests good news: the negative effects of light at night were reversed in the animals after just two weeks of normal lighting conditions, the researchers said.
"People who stay up late, in front of the television and computer, may be able to undo some of the harmful effects just by going back to a regular light-dark cycle and minimizing their exposure to artificial light at night," Bedrosian said.
In the study, hamsters exposed to dim light at night for four weeks showed signs of depression, such as less interest in drinking sugar water they usually enjoy, compared with animals not exposed to light at night, the study found.
The findings suggest exposure to artificial light at night may have contributed to the rising rates of depression over the last 50 years, said study researcher Tracy Bedrosian, a doctoral student in neuroscience at Ohio State University.
"The advent of electrical lighting permitted humans to stray from natural day-night cycles," potentially disturbing our biological rhythms and leading to changes in behavior, Bedrosian said.
But the study also suggests good news: the negative effects of light at night were reversed in the animals after just two weeks of normal lighting conditions, the researchers said.
"People who stay up late, in front of the television and computer, may be able to undo some of the harmful effects just by going back to a regular light-dark cycle and minimizing their exposure to artificial light at night," Bedrosian said.
Social deprivation hurts child brain development, study finds
Children who grow up in institutions instead of with families have major deficits in brain development, a study of Romanian orphans has shown.
The findings, published online Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, underscore the importance of an enriched environment during infancy and childhood and may help explain the increased rates of depression and anxiety disorders known to exist among institutionalized children.
The report comes from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, which has been following 136 Romanian orphans for 12 years, ever since the children were infants. The project is unique because it is the first to randomly assign children either to foster care or to the institutional care of orphanages.
The findings, published online Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, underscore the importance of an enriched environment during infancy and childhood and may help explain the increased rates of depression and anxiety disorders known to exist among institutionalized children.
The report comes from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, which has been following 136 Romanian orphans for 12 years, ever since the children were infants. The project is unique because it is the first to randomly assign children either to foster care or to the institutional care of orphanages.
July 23, 2012
Wealthy hiding $21 trillion in tax havens, report says
The "super-rich elite" are hiding more than $21 trillion US in tax havens around the world, an amount roughly equal to the combined GDP of the United States and Japan, according to a new report.
Commissioned by the Tax Justice Network, an independent British organization, the report is said to be the most comprehensive ever done concerning what it calls the “offshore economy.”
Researched and written by James Henry, an expert on tax havens, the report states the hidden money could be as large as $32 trillion, and represents a massive black hole in the world's economy.
The amount of tax income lost "is large enough to make a significant difference to the finances of many countries,” Henry noted.
Commissioned by the Tax Justice Network, an independent British organization, the report is said to be the most comprehensive ever done concerning what it calls the “offshore economy.”
Researched and written by James Henry, an expert on tax havens, the report states the hidden money could be as large as $32 trillion, and represents a massive black hole in the world's economy.
The amount of tax income lost "is large enough to make a significant difference to the finances of many countries,” Henry noted.
July 20, 2012
Test Decodes Dolphins’ Math Skills
Dolphins could teach humans a thing or two about finding Nemo. The aquatic mammals may pinpoint prey hidden in bubbles by using mental math.
By adjusting the volume of sonar clicks, then processing the incoming echoes, dolphins might have solved a problem that still stymies man-made sonar: how to peer through frothy water. Using clicks that mimic an Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, scientists devised a system that weeds out sound clutter from underwater bubbles.
“It’s really ingenious, actually,” says oceanographer Grant Deane of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, Calif. “I think it’s very clever work, and there are a number of significant applications for it.”
Using something like a fireman’s hose, researchers shot bubbles into a huge water tank set underground. The bubbles cloaked a submerged target: a steel ball slightly smaller than a baseball. Then, the researchers sent out short bursts of sound — the faux dolphin clicks — underwater, collected the echoes, and processed the data mathematically to figure out the steel ball’s location.
By adjusting the volume of sonar clicks, then processing the incoming echoes, dolphins might have solved a problem that still stymies man-made sonar: how to peer through frothy water. Using clicks that mimic an Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, scientists devised a system that weeds out sound clutter from underwater bubbles.
“It’s really ingenious, actually,” says oceanographer Grant Deane of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, Calif. “I think it’s very clever work, and there are a number of significant applications for it.”
Using something like a fireman’s hose, researchers shot bubbles into a huge water tank set underground. The bubbles cloaked a submerged target: a steel ball slightly smaller than a baseball. Then, the researchers sent out short bursts of sound — the faux dolphin clicks — underwater, collected the echoes, and processed the data mathematically to figure out the steel ball’s location.
Vitamin D may protect lung function in smokers
Vitamin D deficiency is associated with worse lung function and more rapid decline in lung function over time in smokers, suggesting that vitamin D may have a protective effect against the effects of smoking on lung function, according to a new study from researchers in Boston.
"We examined the relationship between vitamin D deficiency, smoking, lung function, and the rate of lung function decline over a 20 year period in a cohort of 626 adult white men from the Normative Aging Study," said lead author Nancy E. Lange, MD, MPH, of the Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital. "We found that vitamin D sufficiency (defined as serum vitamin D levels of >20 ng/ml) had a protective effect on lung function and the rate of lung function decline in smokers."
The findings were published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
"We examined the relationship between vitamin D deficiency, smoking, lung function, and the rate of lung function decline over a 20 year period in a cohort of 626 adult white men from the Normative Aging Study," said lead author Nancy E. Lange, MD, MPH, of the Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital. "We found that vitamin D sufficiency (defined as serum vitamin D levels of >20 ng/ml) had a protective effect on lung function and the rate of lung function decline in smokers."
The findings were published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
July 19, 2012
Mouse with human immune system may revolutionize HIV vaccine research
One of the challenges to HIV vaccine development has been the lack of an animal model that accurately reflects the human immune response to the virus and how the virus evolves to evade that response. In the July 18 issue of Science Translational Medicine, researchers from the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), MIT and Harvard report that a model created by transplanting elements of the human immune system into an immunodeficient mouse addresses these key issues and has the potential to reduce significantly the time and costs required to test candidate vaccines.
"Our study showed not only that these humanized mice mount human immune responses against HIV but also that the ability of HIV to evade these responses by mutating viral proteins targeted by CD8 'killer' T cells is accurately reflected in these mice," says Todd Allen, PhD, senior author of the report. "For the first time we have an animal model that accurately reproduces critical host-pathogen interactions, a model that will help facilitate the development an effective vaccine for HIV." Recent studies by Allen's team and others have revealed that immune control of HIV is significantly limited by the ability of the virus to evade immune responses by rapidly mutating.
"Our study showed not only that these humanized mice mount human immune responses against HIV but also that the ability of HIV to evade these responses by mutating viral proteins targeted by CD8 'killer' T cells is accurately reflected in these mice," says Todd Allen, PhD, senior author of the report. "For the first time we have an animal model that accurately reproduces critical host-pathogen interactions, a model that will help facilitate the development an effective vaccine for HIV." Recent studies by Allen's team and others have revealed that immune control of HIV is significantly limited by the ability of the virus to evade immune responses by rapidly mutating.
Green plants reduce city street pollution up to eight times more than previously believed
Trees, bushes and other greenery growing in the concrete-and-glass canyons of cities can reduce levels of two of the most worrisome air pollutants by eight times more than previously believed, a new study has found. A report on the research appears in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology.
Thomas Pugh and colleagues explain that concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and microscopic particulate matter (PM) -- both of which can be harmful to human health -- exceed safe levels on the streets of many cities. Past research suggested that trees and other green plants can improve urban air quality by removing those pollutants from the air. However, the improvement seemed to be small, a reduction of less than 5 percent. The new study sought a better understanding of the effects of green plants in the sometimes stagnant air of city streets, which the authors term "urban street canyons."
The study concluded that judicious placement of grass, climbing ivy and other plants in urban canyons can reduce the concentration at street level of NO2 by as much as 40 percent and PM by 60 percent, much more than previously believed. The authors even suggest building plant-covered "green billboards" in these urban canyons to increase the amount of foliage. Trees were also shown to be effective, but only if care is taken to avoid trapping pollutants beneath their crowns.
Thomas Pugh and colleagues explain that concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and microscopic particulate matter (PM) -- both of which can be harmful to human health -- exceed safe levels on the streets of many cities. Past research suggested that trees and other green plants can improve urban air quality by removing those pollutants from the air. However, the improvement seemed to be small, a reduction of less than 5 percent. The new study sought a better understanding of the effects of green plants in the sometimes stagnant air of city streets, which the authors term "urban street canyons."
The study concluded that judicious placement of grass, climbing ivy and other plants in urban canyons can reduce the concentration at street level of NO2 by as much as 40 percent and PM by 60 percent, much more than previously believed. The authors even suggest building plant-covered "green billboards" in these urban canyons to increase the amount of foliage. Trees were also shown to be effective, but only if care is taken to avoid trapping pollutants beneath their crowns.
German scientists create world's lightest material
Aerographite made by scientists at Hamburg and Kiel universities, is 75 times lighter than polystyrene and four times lighter than the previous record holder for the world's lightest material.
The jet-black, carbon-based material is causing a stir in scientific circles across the world, wrote Die Welt newspaper on Tuesday.
“Our work is causing great discussions in the scientific community. Aerographite weights four times less than world-record-holder up to now,” co-author Matthias Mecklenburg, a PhD student at the Hamburg University of Technology told the paper.
Weighing just 0.2 milligrams per cubic centimetre, Aerographite is also water repellent, conducts electricity and, unlike many other light materials, is able to withstand high pressures.
“Other materials become weaker and less stable when exposed to such stress. Also, the newly constructed material absorbs light rays almost completely. One could say it creates the blackest black,” said Hamburg Professor Karl Schulte.
“It is able to be compressed up to 95 percent and be pulled back to its original form without any damage,” Professor Rainer Adelung of Kiel University told the paper.
The jet-black, carbon-based material is causing a stir in scientific circles across the world, wrote Die Welt newspaper on Tuesday.
“Our work is causing great discussions in the scientific community. Aerographite weights four times less than world-record-holder up to now,” co-author Matthias Mecklenburg, a PhD student at the Hamburg University of Technology told the paper.
Weighing just 0.2 milligrams per cubic centimetre, Aerographite is also water repellent, conducts electricity and, unlike many other light materials, is able to withstand high pressures.
“Other materials become weaker and less stable when exposed to such stress. Also, the newly constructed material absorbs light rays almost completely. One could say it creates the blackest black,” said Hamburg Professor Karl Schulte.
“It is able to be compressed up to 95 percent and be pulled back to its original form without any damage,” Professor Rainer Adelung of Kiel University told the paper.
New metric for obesity strongly correlated to premature death
Researchers have developed a new metric to measure obesity, called A Body Shape Index, or ABSI, that combines the existing metrics of Body Mass Index (BMI) and waist circumference and shows a better correlation with death rate than do either of these individual measures.
The full results are reported July 18 in the open access journal PLoS ONE, and the work was led by Nir Krakauer of City College of New York.
The authors analyzed data from over 14,000 US adults taken as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and conclude that the new measure, which has little correlation with height, weight, or BMI, appears to be a substantial risk factor for premature death.
"Measuring body dimensions is straightforward compared to other most medical tests, but it's been challenging to link these with health," Krakauer comments. "Our results give evidence that the power-law scaling of waist circumference, weight, and other body measurements can be used to develop body shape indices that point to added risk."
The full results are reported July 18 in the open access journal PLoS ONE, and the work was led by Nir Krakauer of City College of New York.
The authors analyzed data from over 14,000 US adults taken as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and conclude that the new measure, which has little correlation with height, weight, or BMI, appears to be a substantial risk factor for premature death.
"Measuring body dimensions is straightforward compared to other most medical tests, but it's been challenging to link these with health," Krakauer comments. "Our results give evidence that the power-law scaling of waist circumference, weight, and other body measurements can be used to develop body shape indices that point to added risk."
July 18, 2012
The laser-powered bionic eye that gives 576-pixel grayscale vision to the blind
After a lot of theorizing, postulating, and non-human trials, it looks like bionic eye implants are finally hitting the market — first in Europe, and hopefully soon in the US. These implants can restore sight to completely blind patients — though only if the blindness is caused by a faulty retina, as in macular degeneration (which millions of old people suffer from), diabetic retinopathy, or other degenerative eye diseases.
The first of these implants, Argus II developed by Second Sight, is already available in Europe. For around $115,000, you get a 4-hour operation to install an antenna behind your eye, and a special pair of camera-equipped glasses that send signals to the antenna. The antenna is wired into your retina with around 60 electrodes, creating the equivalent of a 60-pixel display for your brain to interpret. The first users of the Argus II bionic eye report that they can see rough shapes and track the movement of objects, and slowly read large writing.
The second bionic eye implant, the Bio-Retina developed by Nano Retina, is a whole lot more exciting. The Bio-Retina costs less — around the $60,000 mark — and instead of an external camera, the vision-restoring sensor is actually placed inside the eye, on top of the retina. The operation only takes 30 minutes and can be performed under local anesthetic.
The first of these implants, Argus II developed by Second Sight, is already available in Europe. For around $115,000, you get a 4-hour operation to install an antenna behind your eye, and a special pair of camera-equipped glasses that send signals to the antenna. The antenna is wired into your retina with around 60 electrodes, creating the equivalent of a 60-pixel display for your brain to interpret. The first users of the Argus II bionic eye report that they can see rough shapes and track the movement of objects, and slowly read large writing.
The second bionic eye implant, the Bio-Retina developed by Nano Retina, is a whole lot more exciting. The Bio-Retina costs less — around the $60,000 mark — and instead of an external camera, the vision-restoring sensor is actually placed inside the eye, on top of the retina. The operation only takes 30 minutes and can be performed under local anesthetic.
Scientists Produce World’s Lightest Material
A network of porous carbon tubes that is three-dimensionally interwoven at nano and micro level—this is the lightest material in the world. It weights only 0.2 mg per cubic centimetre, and is therefore 75 times lighter than Styrofoam, but it is very strong nevertheless. Scientists of Kiel University (KU) and Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) have named their joint creation “Aerographite”. The scientific results were published as the title story in the scientific journal Advanced Materials on July 3.
The properties:
It is jet-black, remains stable, is electrically conductive, ductile and non-transparent. With these unique properties and its very low density the carbon-made material “Aerographite“ clearly outperformes all similar materials.
“Our work is causing great discussions in the scientific community. Aerographite weights four times less than world-record-holder up to now,” says Matthias Mecklenburg, co-author and Ph.D. student at the TUHH. The hitherto lightest material of the world, a nickel material that was presented to the public about six months ago, is also constructed of tiny tubes. Only, nickel has a higher atomic mass than carbon.
The properties:
It is jet-black, remains stable, is electrically conductive, ductile and non-transparent. With these unique properties and its very low density the carbon-made material “Aerographite“ clearly outperformes all similar materials.
“Our work is causing great discussions in the scientific community. Aerographite weights four times less than world-record-holder up to now,” says Matthias Mecklenburg, co-author and Ph.D. student at the TUHH. The hitherto lightest material of the world, a nickel material that was presented to the public about six months ago, is also constructed of tiny tubes. Only, nickel has a higher atomic mass than carbon.
How Your Chicken Dinner Is Creating a Drug-Resistant Superbug
Adrienne LeBeouf recognized the symptoms when they started. The burning and the urge to head to the bathroom signaled a urinary tract infection, a painful but everyday annoyance that afflicts up to 8 million U.S. women a year. LeBeouf, who is 29 and works as a medical assistant, headed to her doctor, assuming that a quick course of antibiotics would send the UTI on its way.
That was two years ago, and LeBeouf has suffered recurring bouts of cystitis ever since. She is one of a growing number of women, and some men, who have unknowingly become infected with antibiotic-resistant versions of E. coli, the ubiquitous intestinal bacterium that is the usual cause of UTIs.
There is no national registry for drug-resistant infections, and so no one can say for sure how many resistant UTIs there are. But they have become so common that last year the specialty society for infectious-disease physicians had to revise its recommendations for which drugs to prescribe for cystitis -- and many infectious-disease physicians and gynecologists say informally that they see such infections every week.
Dr. Jehan El-Bayoumi, LeBeouf's physician and an associate professor of medicine at George Washington University Medical Center, said she has seen "a really significant increase, especially within the past two to three years."
That was two years ago, and LeBeouf has suffered recurring bouts of cystitis ever since. She is one of a growing number of women, and some men, who have unknowingly become infected with antibiotic-resistant versions of E. coli, the ubiquitous intestinal bacterium that is the usual cause of UTIs.
There is no national registry for drug-resistant infections, and so no one can say for sure how many resistant UTIs there are. But they have become so common that last year the specialty society for infectious-disease physicians had to revise its recommendations for which drugs to prescribe for cystitis -- and many infectious-disease physicians and gynecologists say informally that they see such infections every week.
Dr. Jehan El-Bayoumi, LeBeouf's physician and an associate professor of medicine at George Washington University Medical Center, said she has seen "a really significant increase, especially within the past two to three years."
July 17, 2012
Combo of gold and tea may effectively treat cancer better than chemo
Gold may have more than just monetary value. It may be an effective tool against fighting deadly forms of cancer as well.
Scientists from the University of Missouri have discovered a way to target prostate tumors by using radioactive gold nanoparticles in combination with a compound found in tea leaves. They say the treatment could be drastically less harmful than chemotherapy options.
Currently, cancer patients require large doses of chemotherapy to help eradicate their cancer cells. However, while the chemicals help to shrink tumors, they also spread throughout other parts of the body, harming vital organs and causing various adverse health effects.
According to this most recent study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the new gold/tea treatment would require doses that are thousands of times smaller than typical chemotherapy. The compound also travels directly to the tumor’s source without spreading throughout the rest of the body and causing harm to other areas.
Scientists from the University of Missouri have discovered a way to target prostate tumors by using radioactive gold nanoparticles in combination with a compound found in tea leaves. They say the treatment could be drastically less harmful than chemotherapy options.
Currently, cancer patients require large doses of chemotherapy to help eradicate their cancer cells. However, while the chemicals help to shrink tumors, they also spread throughout other parts of the body, harming vital organs and causing various adverse health effects.
According to this most recent study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the new gold/tea treatment would require doses that are thousands of times smaller than typical chemotherapy. The compound also travels directly to the tumor’s source without spreading throughout the rest of the body and causing harm to other areas.
People Living Near the Sea May Be Healthier
Living near the beach may come with an extra perk: better health.
A new study analyzed information from more than 48 million people in England and found that the nearer they lived to the coast, the more likely people were to report good health within the past year.
The results held even after the researchers took into account possible health factors such as age, sex, socioeconomic status, and whether they lived near parks or other green spaces.
The difference from living near the coast was relatively small. About 1 percent more of the people living within half a mile of the sea reported good health than did the people more than 30 miles from the sea.
But a small effect, when applied to an entire population, can have a substantial impact on public health, said study researcher Ben Wheeler of Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry in Exeter, England.
A new study analyzed information from more than 48 million people in England and found that the nearer they lived to the coast, the more likely people were to report good health within the past year.
The results held even after the researchers took into account possible health factors such as age, sex, socioeconomic status, and whether they lived near parks or other green spaces.
The difference from living near the coast was relatively small. About 1 percent more of the people living within half a mile of the sea reported good health than did the people more than 30 miles from the sea.
But a small effect, when applied to an entire population, can have a substantial impact on public health, said study researcher Ben Wheeler of Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry in Exeter, England.
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