Archive for the ‘General’ Category
Junk DNA drives Cancer Growthh
May 10th, 2010 | 
Author: Researchers from the University of Leeds, UK, the Charité University Medical School and the Max Delbrück Centre for Molecular Medicine (MDC) in Berlin, Germany, have discovered a new driving force behind cancer growth. Their studies have identified how ‘junk’ DNA promotes the growth of cancer cells in patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
The work focused on cancerous cells of Hodgkin’s lymphoma (the Hodgkin-/Reed Sternberg cells) that originate from white blood cells (antibody-producing B cells). Unusually, this type of lymphoma cell does not contain a so-called ‘growth factor receptor’ that normally controls the growth of other B-cells.
They found that the lymphoma cells’ growth was dependent on a receptor that normally regulates the growth of other immune cells, but it is not usually found in B-cells. However in this case, the Hodgkin-/Reed Sternberg cells ‘hijacked’ this receptor for their own purposes by activating some of the ‘junk DNA’. In fact the lymphoma cells activated hundreds, if not thousands, of LTRs all over the genome, not just one.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100502173845.htm
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Environmental factors and Parkinson’s disease
A case-control study was performed in Belgrade in order to investigate the association between Parkinson’s disease (PD) and some environmental factors. During the period 2001-2005, 110 new PD cases and 220 hospital controls were interviewed. Cases and controls were matched by sex, age (+/-2 years), and place of residence (urban/rural). According to multivariate conditional logistic regression analysis, PD was positively asssociated with exposure to insecticides (odds ratio (OR) 3.22, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.32-7.87), dyes (OR 25.33; 95% CI, 2.89-222.0), and naphtha and its derivates (OR 9.53; 95% CI, 1.04-86.96), and with gardening (OR 5.51; 95% CI, 3.04-10.01), well water drinking (OR 2.62; 95% CI, 1.40-4.90), and spring water drinking (OR 2.19; 95% CI, 1.15-4.16). Negative association was found for service-sector working (OR 0.15; 95% CI, 0.04-0.59). The results obtained did not changed after adjustment for smoking. The findings of the present study support the role of environmental factors in the occurence of PD.
New Gene Associated With Increased Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease
Researchers have identified a gene that appears to increase a person’s risk of developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type of Alzheimer’s disease.
“Only recently have common variants in genes other than APOE been convincingly shown to be associated with a person’s risk of developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease,” said senior author Margaret Pericak-Vance, PhD, Director of theUniversity of Miami Miller School of Medicine’s John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics in Miami, Florida.
The study found that individuals with a particular variation in the gene MTHFD1L may be almost twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease as those people without the variation.
http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20100414/new-alzheimers-gene-identified
HRT helps ward off colon cancer
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) cuts a woman’s risk of developing colon cancer, new research confirms.
Millions of women stopped taking HRT when a Women’s Health Initiative study showed in 2002 that the hormones raised the risk of stroke, heart disease and breast cancer. But the Women’s Health Initiative had also found that HRT protected against colon cancer.
For example, women who used hormones for less than four years cut their colon cancer risk by about one-quarter; four to eight years of HRT cut risk by a third; nine to 14 years of use halved risk; and 15 years or more of HRT reduced risk by two-thirds.
Alzheimer’s Risk Cut by a Third Eating Veggies, Fish, Poultry
Those who adhered most to diets rich in dark, leafy vegetables, poultry, fish and nuts and low in red meat, butter and fatty dairy products had a 38 percent lower risk of getting Alzheimer’s disease than those who followed that plan the least, according to a report published April 12th 2010 in the Archives of Neurology. These foods may protect blood vessels in the brain, preventing tiny strokes that may contribute to Alzheimer’s.
Red more: http://archneur.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/2010.84?home
Link between Chemical Exposure and Breast Cancer
New study finds that breast tissue is more sensitive to adverse effects if exposure occurs when breast cells are still proliferating, so exposure to chemicals while a woman is still young can increase her risk of breast cancer after menopause.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Oncology/BreastCancer/19321
BPA may be influencing the susceptibility of mammary cancer
Bisphenol-A (BPA) the chemical used to make hard plastics, line cans, and create carbonless receipts, raises the risk of breast cancer in rats and the FDA has raised an alarm about the potential harm BPA can cause; Wisconsin, Minnesota and Connecticut banned its use in children’s products. Environmentalists, public health organizations and child safety advocates are seeking to ban Bisphenol A (BPA). Last year, Chicago became the first city to ban BPA. New study links breast cancer in rat offsprings exposed during pregnancy to BPA.
exposure to diethyl phthalate (DEP) associated with increased risk of BC
Women with higher exposure to additives used in some personal care and food products may have an increased risk of breast cancer.
Researchers conducting a study of phthalate exposure and breast cancer among Mexican women reported that metabolites of one type of phthalate are associated with at least twice the risk of breast cancer.
Exposure to phthalates has been associated with a number of adverse health outcomes in humans, and particularly in men. Few studies have however investigated the health effects of these widely used chemicals in women. This is the first human study to evaluate associations between exposure to phthalates and breast cancer.
http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.0901091
Vitamin D is essential
Vitamin D is known for the maintenance of mineral homeostasis and normal skeletal architecture. However, apart from these traditional calcium-related actions, 1,25- (OH)2D3 and its synthetic analogs are being increasingly recognized for their potent antiproliferative, prodifferentiative, and immunomodulatory activities. Potential therapeutic applications include in inflammation (rheumatoid ar- thritis, psoriatic arthritis), in dermatological indications (pso- riasis, actinic keratosis, seborrheic dermatitis, photoaging), in osteoporosis (postmenopausal and steroid-induced osteopo- rosis), cancers (prostate, colon, breast, myelodysplasia, leu-kemia, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, and basal cell carcinoma), secondary hyperparathyroidism, and autoimmune diseases (systemic lupus erythematosus, type I diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and organ transplantation).
The researchers found that immune systems’ killer cells, known as T cells, rely on vitamin D to become active and remain dormant and unaware of the possibility of threat from an infection or pathogen if vitamin D is lacking in the blood. These findings by Danish researchers could help the fight against infectious diseases and global epidemics, they said, and could be particularly useful in the search for new vaccines.
Increase price of fast foods affects behavior toward healthier diets
A new study that followed participants for 20 years shows both weight and risk for diabetes decreased for people in communities where fast food prices increased.
Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill conducted a study using data from more than 5,000 participants who were followed for 20 years. When prices of fast foods and sodas went up 10 percent, participants consumed an average of 7.1 percent fewer calories from soda and 11.5 percent fewer calories from pizza, translating to about 56 fewer calories a day. This could lead to about three to four pounds lost each year.
read more:
http://professional.diabetes.org/News_Display.aspx?TYP=9&CID=77158
