A study led by researchers from the Texas A&M University System and Central Texas Veterans Health Care System, or CTVHCS, shows how a protein known as STING could be a therapeutic target for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD. The study, “Expression of STING Is Increased in Liver Tissues from Patients with NAFLD and Promotes […]
Drugs that stop mosquitoes catching malaria could help eradicate the disease
Researchers have identified compounds that could prevent malaria parasites from being able to infect mosquitoes, halting the spread of disease. Preventing transmission of malaria is a key part of efforts to eliminate the disease. A person can be cured of the disease using drugs that wipe out the replicating form of the parasite, but still […]
Inexpensive testing spurs cancer patients’ relatives to assess own disease risk
An online initiative offering low-cost genetic testing to relatives of people with genetic mutations that increase their risk of cancer encourages the “cascade” testing that can help to identify healthy people at risk of the disease, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Color Genomics, a genetic […]
Newly formed blood vessels may contribute to eye disease
Newly formed blood vessels may be cracks in the barrier between the bloodstream and the eye, according to a Northwestern Medicine study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A novel experiment led by Jing Jin, MD, Ph.D., assistant professor of Medicine in the Department of Nephrology and Hypertension and senior author […]
Mother battling agonizing ‘suicide disease’ after knee surgery
‘It’s like cutting off a finger – every second of the day’: Mother-of-two, 42, reveals knee surgery left her with skin condition so painful it’s called ‘suicide disease’ because it drives sufferers take their own lives Kristin Fast, 42, of Phoenix, Arizona, ruptured the ACL in her left leg in February 2018 and was told […]
Canine melanoma study identifies genetic basis of disease, potential drug targets
As a veterinarian, Dr. Carolyn Duregger is familiar with the telltale signs of canine melanoma. So when she gave her own dog, Parker, a routine oral examination, the 1-centimeter-diameter discolored lump in the pup’s upper right gums took her breath away. “It’s an aggressive cancer with poor prognosis that I’ve seen many times. My stomach […]
Online searches about cardiovascular disease follow strong seasonal and geographical patterns
There is a strong seasonal pattern in seeking cardiovascular health information on Google, with higher search activity during winter months, according to a new study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Investigators also found that US states with higher deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) have higher CVD-related search volumes compared with regions with lower CVD mortality. […]
Predicting how splicing errors impact disease risk
No one knows how many times in a day, or even an hour, the trillions of cells in our body need to make proteins. But we do know that it’s going on all the time, on a massive scale. We also know that every time this happens, an editing process takes place in the cell […]
Is it safe for women with heart disease to become pregnant?
Is it safe for women with heart disease to become pregnant? Usually, according to ten-year results from the ROPAC registry reported in a late breaking science session today at ESC Congress 2018. Professor Jolien Roos-Hesselink, one of the principal investigators, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, the Netherlands, said: “Pregnancy is safe for most women with heart […]
Few people at risk for heart disease understand food labels
Many consumers have difficulty using and understanding food labels, especially men and people at risk for heart disease, according to research presented at ESC Congress 2018 today. Diet is considered a modifiable risk factor for heart disease prevention. In Ireland, as in many other nations, food labels provide nutritional information to help consumers make informed […]