Archives

More than half of all older adults complain about having difficulties sleeping. Most don't bother seeking treatment. Those who do usually turn to medications, which can lead to other health problems. Now, researchers report that practicing Tai Chi Chih, the Westernized version of the 2,000-year-old Chinese martial art, promotes sleep quality in older adults with moderate sleep complaints.

Today if doctors devote a full day to analysis and expert thought, they may be able to provide just half a dozen patients with a diagnosis of the precise type of brain tumor they face. Now researchers have devised an automated technique that can give a preliminary analysis of the precise brain tumor type within seconds.

Scientists have determined that AMD3100, originally developed in acquired immune deficiency syndrome treatment, could markedly inhibit spreading of colorectal cancer cells by blocking a new pair of ligands and its unique receptor. This effect differs from the usual inhibition by a conventional chemotherapic agent that is more specific to cancer cells with high metastatic potential.

Researchers have discovered a new family of agents that inhibit the growth of estrogen-dependent breast cancer cells. The finding has opened an avenue of research into new drugs to combat estrogen-dependent breast cancers.

In a development that may lessen the epidemic of diarrhea-related deaths among children in developing countries, scientists have discovered a novel compound that might lead to an inexpensive, easy-to-take treatment.

Teenagers' obesity-related medical complications improve just six months after laparoscopic gastric banding surgery, according to outcomes data. The study reports that the small group of extremely obese teenagers who received the minimally invasive surgery, also called the Lap-Band procedure, as part of a clinical trial lost an average of 20 pounds after six months and had significant improvements in abdominal fat, triglyceride measurements (levels of fat in the blood) and blood sugar levels as measured by hemoglobin A1c -- all risk factors for diabetes and heart disease.

An automatic image retrieval system has been created, whereby law enforcement agencies will be able to match scars, marks and tattoos to identify suspects and victims.

Researchers have shed new light how bacteria like the ones that cause Legionnaires' disease and Q-fever raise such havoc in human patients. In order to survive, the gram-negative bacteria use genes that have evolved in tandem with ones in their hosts to essentially disarm immune system cells trying to kill them, the scientists report in the journal Science.