Health & Medicine
-
Health & Medicine
Upsetting a Delicate Balance: One gene may underlie various immune diseases
One form of an immune-system gene shows up more frequently in people with diabetes or certain thyroid diseases than in people free of those illnesses.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & Medicine
Do more infections mean less asthma?
Young infants kept out of day care and having no more than one older sibling are significantly more likely to develop asthma than are babies who have greater exposure to other children.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & Medicine
Protein implicated in Parkinson’s disease
Inhibiting the natural protein cyclo-oxygenase-2, or COX-2, might help fight Parkinson's disease.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & Medicine
Selenium’s Value to Prostate Health
Prostate cancer remains the most common malignancy among U.S. men, and internationally it ranks fourth. Though few studies have offered much insight into what triggers this disease, a growing number of researchers have found evidence suggesting that dietary selenium protects men against this cancer. The seafood in this bowl of sushi can be a rich […]
By Janet Raloff -
Health & Medicine
Antibiotic for Huntington’s disease?
In mice genetically engineered to develop an illness similar to Huntington's disease, the drug minocycline significantly delays the onset of symptoms and death.
By John Travis -
Health & Medicine
Microbes implicated in heart disease
Viruses and bacteria besides chlamydia may play a role in human heart disease through an immune reaction to a heartlike protein they produce.
By John Travis -
Health & Medicine
Genes of cholera germ deciphered
The bacterium that causes cholera has nearly 4,000 genes on its two circular chromosomes.
By John Travis -
Health & Medicine
Teen taters, too
The epidemic of adolescent obesity may owe more to a paucity of exercise than to a growing intake of calories.
By Janet Raloff -
Health & Medicine
Athletes develop whey-better muscles
Dietary supplements coupling whey and creatine promote the development of bigger, stronger muscles in experienced body builders.
By Janet Raloff -
Health & Medicine
Little vessels react to magnetic switch
Magnets can act like vascular switches, increasing or decreasing blood flow to a region of the body.
By Janet Raloff -
Health & Medicine
Don’t Belittle this Vitamin
As vitamins go, B6 doesn’t fly high on the radar screen of most consumers. However, owing to its many benefits–which include protecting DNA–this unsung nutritional hero shouldn’t be neglected, argue a pair of scientists. Last week, they reported data showing that when people consume diets low in this vitamin, their blood has higher rates of […]
By Janet Raloff -
Health & Medicine
Infectious Notion
Lessons from gene therapy promote viruses as cancer fighters.
By Ruth Bennett