Medicine posts
- June 9, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 447 views
Antidepressants Carry Equal Risks
by Shaheen Lakhan in Brain Blogger
For nearly a decade, the public has heeded warnings of suicidal behavior related to antidepressant use in children and adolescents. However, the use of antidepressants in this population is still increasing. Initially, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), the most common class of antidepressants prescribed for children, were the only drugs associated with the increase in [...]... Read more »
Bridge JA, Iyengar S, Salary CB, Barbe RP, Birmaher B, Pincus HA, Ren L, & Brent DA. (2007) Clinical response and risk for reported suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in pediatric antidepressant treatment: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association, 297(15), 1683-96. PMID: 17440145
Gibbons RD, Hur K, Bhaumik DK, & Mann JJ. (2006) The relationship between antidepressant prescription rates and rate of early adolescent suicide. The American journal of psychiatry, 163(11), 1898-904. PMID: 17074941
Hetrick S, Merry S, McKenzie J, Sindahl P, & Proctor M. (2007) Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for depressive disorders in children and adolescents. Cochrane database of systematic reviews (Online). PMID: 17636776
Jick H, Kaye JA, & Jick SS. (2004) Antidepressants and the risk of suicidal behaviors. JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association, 292(3), 338-43. PMID: 15265848
March J, Silva S, Petrycki S, Curry J, Wells K, Fairbank J, Burns B, Domino M, McNulty S, Vitiello B.... (2004) Fluoxetine, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and their combination for adolescents with depression: Treatment for Adolescents With Depression Study (TADS) randomized controlled trial. JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association, 292(7), 807-20. PMID: 15315995
Olfson M, Marcus SC, & Shaffer D. (2006) Antidepressant drug therapy and suicide in severely depressed children and adults: A case-control study. Archives of general psychiatry, 63(8), 865-72. PMID: 16894062
Schneeweiss S, Patrick AR, Solomon DH, Dormuth CR, Miller M, Mehta J, Lee JC, & Wang PS. (2010) Comparative safety of antidepressant agents for children and adolescents regarding suicidal acts. Pediatrics, 125(5), 876-88. PMID: 20385637
Schneeweiss S, Patrick AR, Solomon DH, Mehta J, Dormuth C, Miller M, Lee JC, & Wang PS. (2010) Variation in the risk of suicide attempts and completed suicides by antidepressant agent in adults: a propensity score-adjusted analysis of 9 years' data. Archives of general psychiatry, 67(5), 497-506. PMID: 20439831
Simon GE, Savarino J, Operskalski B, & Wang PS. (2006) Suicide risk during antidepressant treatment. The American journal of psychiatry, 163(1), 41-7. PMID: 16390887
Vitiello B, Silva SG, Rohde P, Kratochvil CJ, Kennard BD, Reinecke MA, Mayes TL, Posner K, May DE, & March JS. (2009) Suicidal events in the Treatment for Adolescents With Depression Study (TADS). The Journal of clinical psychiatry, 70(5), 741-7. PMID: 19552869
- June 8, 2010
- 08:03 PM
- 944 views
Group-based CBT for pain in primary care
by Adiemusfree in Healthskills: Skills for Healthy Living
I briefly discussed yesterday the content of this six-session group-based cognitive behavioural approach for chronic pain, delivered in the community. Today I want to look a little more closely at the way the programme was delivered and how the findings might differ from what happens in New Zealand. To refresh your memory, this is a … Read more... Read more »
Lamb, S., Hansen, Z., Lall, R., Castelnuovo, E., Withers, E., Nichols, V., Potter, R., & Underwood, M. (2010) Group cognitive behavioural treatment for low-back pain in primary care: a randomised controlled trial and cost-effectiveness analysis. The Lancet, 375(9718), 916-923. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)62164-4
- June 7, 2010
- 10:15 PM
- 361 views
5 New Advances in Cutaneous Surgery
by James Gormley in DermMatters
Currently, we are in the midst of a skin cancer epidemic, with the annual rates of all forms of skin cancer increasing each year. Surgical removal is most often used for the treatment of skin cancers and the techniques to improve this procedure are constantly evolving. With this in mind, here are five advances in cutaneous surgery. It is hoped that dermatologists will find these ideas useful and might consider implementing them in their daily practice.... Read more »
Irene Vergilis-Kalner. (2010) 5 New Advances in Cutaneous Surgery. DermMatters. info:other/URL
- June 7, 2010
- 03:35 PM
- 1,138 views
Group-based CBT for troublesome low back pain
by Adiemusfree in Healthskills: Skills for Healthy Living
These two papers have created a bit of a storm in the health news recently – a six-session CBT group programme for chronic low back pain that not only provides good outcomes, but is also cost-effective? Unbelievable! And it’s not delivered exclusively by any specific health professionals. AND it’s delivered in primary care! My take … Read more... Read more »
Hansen, Z., Daykin, A., & Lamb, S. (2010) A cognitive-behavioural programme for the management of low back pain in primary care: a description and justification of the intervention used in the Back Skills Training Trial (BeST; ISRCTN 54717854). Physiotherapy, 96(2), 87-94. DOI: 10.1016/j.physio.2009.09.008
Lamb, S., Hansen, Z., Lall, R., Castelnuovo, E., Withers, E., Nichols, V., Potter, R., & Underwood, M. (2010) Group cognitive behavioural treatment for low-back pain in primary care: a randomised controlled trial and cost-effectiveness analysis. The Lancet, 375(9718), 916-923. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)62164-4
- June 7, 2010
- 06:05 AM
- 796 views
Acupuncture – the mysterious case of the missing razor
by Lorimer Moseley in BodyInMind
Acupuncture is all the rage in the treatment of pain. Recent clinical guidelines in the UK recommend it in the treatment of persistent back pain. This decision is somewhat controversial and has led to much discussion, because while the research in back pain suggests people feel somewhat better after acupuncture, it also demonstrates with clarity [...]... Read more »
Witt CM, Lüdtke R, Wegscheider K, & Willich SN. (2010) Physician characteristics and variation in treatment outcomes: are better qualified and experienced physicians more successful in treating patients with chronic pain with acupuncture?. The journal of pain : official journal of the American Pain Society, 11(5), 431-5. PMID: 20439056
MOFFET, H. (2008) Traditional acupuncture theories yield null outcomes: a systematic review of clinical trials. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 61(8), 741-747. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2008.02.013
Madsen, M., Gotzsche, P., & Hrobjartsson, A. (2009) Acupuncture treatment for pain: systematic review of randomised clinical trials with acupuncture, placebo acupuncture, and no acupuncture groups. BMJ, 338(jan27 2). DOI: 10.1136/bmj.a3115
Kalauokalani D, Cherkin DC, Sherman KJ, Koepsell TD, & Deyo RA. (2001) Lessons from a trial of acupuncture and massage for low back pain: patient expectations and treatment effects. Spine, 26(13), 1418-24. PMID: 11458142
Linde K, Witt CM, Streng A, Weidenhammer W, Wagenpfeil S, Brinkhaus B, Willich SN, & Melchart D. (2007) The impact of patient expectations on outcomes in four randomized controlled trials of acupuncture in patients with chronic pain. Pain, 128(3), 264-71. PMID: 17257756
Bausell RB, Lao L, Bergman S, Lee WL, & Berman BM. (2005) Is acupuncture analgesia an expectancy effect? Preliminary evidence based on participants' perceived assignments in two placebo-controlled trials. Evaluation , 28(1), 9-26. PMID: 15677384
Madsen MV, Gøtzsche PC, & Hróbjartsson A. (2009) Acupuncture treatment for pain: systematic review of randomised clinical trials with acupuncture, placebo acupuncture, and no acupuncture groups. BMJ (Clinical research ed.). PMID: 19174438
Kaptchuk TJ, Stason WB, Davis RB, Legedza AR, Schnyer RN, Kerr CE, Stone DA, Nam BH, Kirsch I, & Goldman RH. (2006) Sham device v inert pill: randomised controlled trial of two placebo treatments. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 332(7538), 391-7. PMID: 16452103
Kaptchuk TJ, Kelley JM, Conboy LA, Davis RB, Kerr CE, Jacobson EE, Kirsch I, Schyner RN, Nam BH, Nguyen LT.... (2008) Components of placebo effect: randomised controlled trial in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 336(7651), 999-1003. PMID: 18390493
- June 6, 2010
- 09:26 PM
- 853 views
Best Drugs for Alcohol Withdrawal
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
Alcohol withdrawal is a physically and psychologically painful experience. Some patients with alcohol dependence have physiological tolerance and withdrawal symptoms. Alcohol withdrawal can be dangerous. Some will experience withdrawal seizures and death during withdrawal can occur.Treatment of alcohol withdrawal typically involves medication to reduce the effects of detoxification. Benzodiazepines such as Valium (diazepam) or Ativan (lorazepam) typically are effective and routinely used. However, the benzodiazepine agents are themselves potentially addictive and some may be hesitant to use them for fear of misuse--particularly in the outpatient setting.A recent study examined the effect of two alternatives to the benzodiazepines in alcohol withdrawal. This Italian study examined 111 patients treated with either pregabalin, (Lyrica in the U.S.), tiapride (a typical antipsychotic available in Europe) and the benzodiazepam lorazepam (Ativan).The primary findings from the study were:All three treatments showed reduction in withdrawal symptomsThe pregabalin group had better improvement on headache and orientation symptoms. The pregabalin group had the highest number of subjects remaining free from alcohol useThe subjects in the is study were being treated at a day hospital. Some detoxification programs in the U.S. are primarily inpatient programs of 2 to 3 days duration. The program in this day treatment program lasted 14 days. Drug therapy was administered by medical personnel and by a family member overnight.Pregabalin shares many characteristics with gabapentin (Neurontin in the U.S.). A maximum dose of 450 mg/day of pregablin in the study translates to about 1200 mg of gabapentiin daily. This would translate to about $2.00 per day and relieve the worry about misuse common with benzodiazepines.This study supports use of the non-benzodiazepine pregabalin in day treatment programs treating alcohol dependence. Photo from Oklahoma Aquarium Courtesy of Yates PhotographyMartinotti G, di Nicola M, Frustaci A, Romanelli R, Tedeschi D, Guglielmo R, Guerriero L, Bruschi A, De Filippis R, Pozzi G, Di Giannantonio M, Bria P, & Janiri L (2010). Pregabalin, tiapride and lorazepam in alcohol withdrawal syndrome: a multi-centre, randomized, single-blind comparison trial. Addiction (Abingdon, England), 105 (2), 288-99 PMID: 20078487... Read more »
Martinotti G, di Nicola M, Frustaci A, Romanelli R, Tedeschi D, Guglielmo R, Guerriero L, Bruschi A, De Filippis R, Pozzi G.... (2010) Pregabalin, tiapride and lorazepam in alcohol withdrawal syndrome: a multi-centre, randomized, single-blind comparison trial. Addiction (Abingdon, England), 105(2), 288-99. PMID: 20078487
- June 6, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 388 views
Trick of the Light – Optical Illusions Can’t be Beat
by Shaheen Lakhan in Brain Blogger
You know ‘em, you love ‘em: Suddenly, pictures bulge out in three dimensions, or static dots begin to swirl, or you see colors that aren’t really there. Tricking your eye is as easy as the well-known “finger sausage” maneuver: Hold out your arms, point your index fingers toward each other, then move them slowly together [...]... Read more »
Kuriki I, Ashida H, Murakami I, & Kitaoka A. (2008) Functional brain imaging of the Rotating Snakes illusion by fMRI. Journal of vision, 8(10), 16-10. PMID: 19146358
- June 4, 2010
- 11:45 AM
- 1,629 views
Increased Physical Activity Prevents the Accumulation of Abdominal Fat
by Travis Saunders, MSc in Obesity Panacea
One of the most interesting things about exercise is that it results in important health improvements even in the absence of weight loss. For example, just a single session of exercise can result in improved insulin sensitivity, increased levels of HDL cholesterol (aka the "good" cholesterol) and reductions in plasma triglyceride levels - all tremendously important markers of disease risk. In addition to these metabolic changes, new research by our friend and former labmate Lance Davidson suggests once-again that exercise can also prevent the accumulation of abdominal fat, independent of changes in overall body fat percentage.... Read more »
Davidson, LE, Tucker, L, & Peterson, T. (2010) Physical Activity Changes Predict Abdominal Fat Change in Midlife Women. Journal of Physical Activity and Health. info:/
- June 4, 2010
- 12:35 AM
- 784 views
Friday Weird Science: The Baby is Due, is it Time to Get It ON?!
by Evil Monkey in Neurotopia
Sci, like everyone else around here, isn't immune to the sands of time. She's getting older, along with all of her friends, who are pairing up and settling down. This means two things:
1) Sci has been a bridesmaid SIX TIMES and counting so far. The tales she could tell...
2) Sci friends are having BABIES. LOTS AND LOTS OF BABIES. 400 BABIES!
(Sci is often accused of have GRATUITOUS AMOUNTS OF ENERGY. Also, she has to wonder if these guys had ever tried the energy gel called "Chocolate Outrage". It may or may not be my favorite)
And of course with all these babies comes lots of information about babies and pregnancy. Sci has now learned about conception timing, morning sickness, the things being pregnant does to your bladder, the things having babies does to your sleep, the many amazing colors babies can produce substances in, etc, etc. And she heard one "fact" that made her ears perk up. It was this one:
Having sex and achieving orgasm when you're due can help induce labor.
And her first thought was...well...can it?
(Sci saw this once with someone who was pregnant with twins. It was massively cool to watch her stomach and see an arm or a nose or a hand slide by.)
Tan et al. "Coitus and orgasm at term: effect on spontaneous labour and pregnancy outcome" Singapore Medical Journal, 2009. Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post...... Read more »
Tan PC, Yow CM, & Omar SZ. (2009) Coitus and orgasm at term: effect on spontaneous labour and pregnancy outcome. Singapore medical journal, 50(11), 1062-7. PMID: 19960160
- June 3, 2010
- 05:56 PM
- 746 views
Can Statin Drugs Prevent Alzheimer's Disease?
by William Yates, M.D. in Brain Posts
In an era of rising numbers of patients with dementia, it is imperative to look for valid prevention strategies. Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia represent the two most common forms of dementia throughout the world. Treating known cardiovascular risk factors (smoking, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, obesity and diabetes) will likely reduce the risk for vascular dementia. There is some support that use of the cholesterol-lowering drugs in the statin class may also reduce risk of dementia of the Alzheimer's type.Li and colleagues from the University of Washington present an in informative study in the early online section of the Journal of the American Geriatric Society. The key elements of their study design include:3392 members of a HMO ages 65 and older followed and average of 6.1 yearsSubjects assesses biennially for dementia and Alzheimer's diseaseSubjects typed for status of Alzheimer's risk gene apolipoprotein ESubject use of statins identified by pharmacy database of HMOThe key findings from the study were:Subjects taking statins had a 38% reduction of incident dementia (95% confidence interval 3% to 60% reduction)The reduced risk was limited to those less than 80 at study entryStatin use was associated with lower risk of Alzheimer's disease in those with the APOE e4 genotype but not in those without this genotypeThe authors note in the discussion section that their study is consistent with a growing body of research supporting a role for statins in reducing dementia risk. They note that this effect may be limited to early in the development of dementia. Statins may not be able to effect the course of dementia once significant neuronal damage occurs.Research in this area to date has been observational in nature. A randomized controlled trial is needed to definitively answer the potential for statins to prevent or delay Alzheimer's disease. The current study suggests such a study will need to consider starting preventive treatment in middle age or early-old-age populations with the APOE e4 allele.Photo of Carolina Wren Courtesy of Yates PhotographyLi, G., Shofer, J., Rhew, I., Kukull, W., Peskind, E., McCormick, W., Bowen, J., Schellenberg, G., Crane, P., Breitner, J., & Larson, E. (2010). Age-Varying Association Between Statin Use and Incident Alzheimer's Disease Journal of the American Geriatrics Society DOI: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2010.02906.x... Read more »
Li, G., Shofer, J., Rhew, I., Kukull, W., Peskind, E., McCormick, W., Bowen, J., Schellenberg, G., Crane, P., Breitner, J.... (2010) Age-Varying Association Between Statin Use and Incident Alzheimer's Disease. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. DOI: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2010.02906.x
- June 3, 2010
- 02:58 PM
- 3,055 views
Antibiotics and Synthetic Biology
The model for bacterial death by antibiotics was fairly simply until recently. Antibiotics work by targeting a certain area of the bacteria; beta-lactams target the cell wall, Rifamycins target RNA synthesis, tetracyclins inhibit protein synthesis etc. The theory was that by inhibiting these processes, a certain vital function within the bacteria would be stopped, leading to its death.However due to research done by Kohanski (references below) the story is looking a bit more complicated. Looking at three different classes of antibiotics they found that no matter what the site of action, all the antibiotics induced hydroxyl radicals. This was in bactericidal drugs, which actually kill bacteria, rather than bacteristatic ones (which just prevent cell growth). They also demonstrated that this mechanism of hydroxyl radical production was the end product of a chain of reactions involving damage to the TCA cycle (aka the Krebs cycle - which is a major part of respiration) which lead to damage to iron-sulphur clusters and subsequent production of the DNA-damaging hydroxyl radicals. This is shown diagramatically below, and this first paper was covered by Jim at Mental Indigestion with some great follow-up comments and discussion.They've recently put out a review (second reference below) of which I find the most exciting parts are the two little extra-information boxes. One of them covers drug synergy and the second covers synthetic biology, both of which I'm getting increasingly more interested in.Drug synergyOne of the most useful things about modelling drug actions is it can help to show which drugs would work most effectively in pairs. Using two drugs together can have many potential effects; it can make the treatment more effective, sometimes is can make the treatment less effective and of course some can be dangerous for the patient. Work on drug synergy showed that aminoglycoside antibiotics (which affect RNA synthesis) become more affective when given simultaneously with B-lactam antibiotics (which lead to cell wall breakdown) as the increased cell wall breakdown helps the aminoglycosides to get inside the cell. Conversely, drugs that inhibit protein synthesis are less effective when given at the same time as drugs which inhibit DNA synthesis as making it harder to synthesise proteins from sub-optimal DNA actually makes the cell more able to survive.These interactions will affect the dosage of drugs used during synergistic treatments, and it is hoped that using two different types of antibiotics at low doses might be more healthy for the patient, and might help to combat against antibacterial resistance to one of the drugs.Synthetic BiologyAnother interesting concept the paper brings attention too is the potential use of synthetic biology to aid in both the study and application of antibiotic-related death systems. By using synthetic genes to disrupt or alter the proposed antibiotic network novel drug targets could be discovered. If turned into a high-throughput system this would be far more useful than the current screening system which tests for a potential drugs interaction with a target, rather than the ability of this interaction to lead to cell death. Synthetic genes can be delivered into the bacterial cell via bacteriophages. Adding a synthetic gene into a bacteriophage for bacteria cell delivery has been attempted successfully before when they were used to enhance E. coli cell death by delivering genes for proteins that disrupted the DNA-repair system within the bacteria. This allowed faster and more effective killing of the bacteria at lower doses of antibiotic.At a time when bacteria are fast becoming resistant to even the front line jobs, research that suggests novel ways of killing bacteria can produce some very useful outcomes. Using combinations of drugs at lower concentrations, or aiding antibiotics by introducing them along with synthetic genes in bacteriophages allows an increased shelf-life of the drugs that we currently possess as well as providing potential systems to aid the discovery of new antibiotics.---Kohanski MA, Dwyer DJ, Hayete B, Lawrence CA, & Collins JJ (2007). A common mechanism of cellular death induced by bactericidal antibiotics. Cell, 130 (5), 797-810 PMID: 17803904Kohanski MA, Dwyer DJ, & Collins JJ (2010). How antibiotics kill bacteria: from targets to networks. Nature reviews. Microbiology, 8 (6), 423-35 PMID: 20440275---Follow me on Twitter!... Read more »
Kohanski MA, Dwyer DJ, Hayete B, Lawrence CA, & Collins JJ. (2007) A common mechanism of cellular death induced by bactericidal antibiotics. Cell, 130(5), 797-810. PMID: 17803904
Kohanski MA, Dwyer DJ, & Collins JJ. (2010) How antibiotics kill bacteria: from targets to networks. Nature reviews. Microbiology, 8(6), 423-35. PMID: 20440275
- June 3, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 402 views
Exercise – It Works For Depression
by Shaheen Lakhan in Brain Blogger
I’m currently reading with great pleasure Tony Schwartz’s new book, The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working – The Four Forgotten Needs That Energize Great Performance. Schwartz’s main premise is that we need balance — between activity and rest on the physical level, between performance and renewal on the emotional level, between left and right brain [...]... Read more »
Babyak M, Blumenthal JA, Herman S, Khatri P, Doraiswamy M, Moore K, Craighead WE, Baldewicz TT, & Krishnan KR. (2000) Exercise treatment for major depression: maintenance of therapeutic benefit at 10 months. Psychosomatic medicine, 62(5), 633-8. PMID: 11020092
Blumenthal JA, Babyak MA, Moore KA, Craighead WE, Herman S, Khatri P, Waugh R, Napolitano MA, Forman LM, Appelbaum M.... (1999) Effects of exercise training on older patients with major depression. Archives of internal medicine, 159(19), 2349-56. PMID: 10547175
- June 3, 2010
- 03:00 AM
- 1,231 views
Narcotic treatment contracts and the state of the evidence
by Peter Lipson in Science-Based Medicine
Opium derivatives—and later, synthetic opioids—have probably been used for millennia for the relief of pain. Given human biology, they’ve probably been abused for just as long. Opiate use disorders are a daily fact for primary care physicians; the use of these drugs has become more and more common for chronic non-cancer pain. [...]... Read more »
Starrels JL, Becker WC, Alford DP, Kapoor A, Williams AR, & Turner BJ. (2010) Systematic review: treatment agreements and urine drug testing to reduce opioid misuse in patients with chronic pain. Annals of internal medicine, 152(11), 712-20. PMID: 20513829
- June 2, 2010
- 06:11 PM
- 1,170 views
Acupuncture, Adenosine and Cycling Fish
by Lorimer Moseley in BodyInMind
You may have heard this story as it is all over the popular press right now. We are told that scientists have discovered some of the mechanisms underlying acupuncture analgesia. As always with alternative therapy reports the media have enthusiastically bitten off the hand of the press release (see this great account from the blog [...]... Read more »
Goldman N, Chen M, Fujita T, Xu Q, Peng W, Liu W, Jensen TK, Pei Y, Wang F, Han X.... (2010) Adenosine A1 receptors mediate local anti-nociceptive effects of acupuncture. Nature neuroscience. PMID: 20512135
Madsen, M., Gotzsche, P., & Hrobjartsson, A. (2009) Acupuncture treatment for pain: systematic review of randomised clinical trials with acupuncture, placebo acupuncture, and no acupuncture groups. BMJ, 338(jan27 2). DOI: 10.1136/bmj.a3115
- June 2, 2010
- 04:00 PM
- 1,141 views
Another overhyped acupuncture study misinterpreted
by David Gorski in Science-Based Medicine
Perhaps the most heavily studied of “alternative medicine” modalities is acupuncture. Although it’s hard to be sure as to the reason, I tend to speculate that part of the appeal to trying to do research in this area is because acupuncture is among the most popular of actual “alt-med” modalities, as opposed to science-based medical [...]... Read more »
Goldman, N., Chen, M., Fujita, T., Xu, Q., Peng, W., Liu, W., Jensen, T., Pei, Y., Wang, F., Han, X.... (2010) Adenosine A1 receptors mediate local anti-nociceptive effects of acupuncture. Nature Neuroscience. DOI: 10.1038/nn.2562
- June 2, 2010
- 01:05 PM
- 824 views
Mutation and Selection in a Lung Cancer Genome
by Daniel Koboldt in Massgenomics
A letter to Nature this week presents the whole-genome sequencing of a non-small-cell-lung cancer tumor. Over 500 validated mutations (530 SNVs and 43 structural variants) offer an unprecedented view of genetic variation and selection in solid tumors.
Using arrays of self-assembling DNA nanoballs (DNBs, i.e., the Complete Genomics platform), Lee et al sequenced a primary lung [...]... Read more »
Lee W, Jiang Z, Liu J, Haverty PM, Guan Y, Stinson J, Yue P, Zhang Y, Pant KP, Bhatt D.... (2010) The mutation spectrum revealed by paired genome sequences from a lung cancer patient. Nature, 465(7297), 473-7. PMID: 20505728
- June 2, 2010
- 11:41 AM
- 1,291 views
New Publication: Big Breasts, An Indicator of Dangerous Fat Deposition?
by Travis Saunders, MSc in Obesity Panacea
In June of last year, I discussed the results of a large epidemiological study in women that showed that women with larger breasts have an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes.
As soon as Travis and I read this study, we knew we had to do a follow-up study of our own to see if this finding was simply spurious or if there was actually something to large breasts that indicated health risk - beyond that explained by obesity per se.
The project that Travis and I began over a year ago has culminated in both a hot-off-the-press publication in the journal Obesity, as well as my presentation at this year's Obesity Society meeting in Washington D.C.
In the study, we used body composition data acquired through MRI on about 100 premenopausal women to directly quantify breast size. By using MRI data we significantly improved the methodology used by the authors of the original study on breast size and diabetes risk, who relied on over 20 year recall of cup size as their key measure.
First, we sought to examine if breast tissue volume was associated with any cardiometabolic risk factors, such as glucose tolerance (a known antecedent to type 2 diabetes) and various blood lipids. Since the original authors found an association between cup size and diabetes risk, we expected to find an association between breast volume and cardiometabolic risk factors.
What did we actually find? Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post...... Read more »
Janiszewski, P., Saunders, T., & Ross, R. (2009) Breast Volume is an Independent Predictor of Visceral and Ectopic Fat in Premenopausal Women. Obesity. DOI: 10.1038/oby.2009.336
- June 2, 2010
- 01:57 AM
- 1,067 views
Bulimia and the Vaso-Vagal Reflex
by Evil Monkey in Neurotopia
This is another post in Sci's investigation into the current studies being performed on eating disorders, particularly binge eating and bulimia. Usually I try to focus on the dysregulation of reward-related systems in these disorders, but this paper will be a little different.
Faris et al. "De-Stabilization of the Positive Vago-Vagal Reflex in Bulimia Nervosa" Physiology and Behavior, 2008.
It's kind of in the nature of an eating disorder that there aren't any really funny pictures or something that Sci can put in here.
So before we go forward, here's a kitten.
(ahhhhh.) Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post...... Read more »
FARIS, P., HOFBAUER, R., DAUGHTERS, R., VANDENLANGENBERG, E., IVERSEN, L., GOODALE, R., MAXWELL, R., ECKERT, E., & HARTMAN, B. (2008) De-stabilization of the positive vago-vagal reflex in bulimia nervosa. Physiology , 94(1), 136-153. DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2007.11.036
- June 1, 2010
- 04:13 PM
- 880 views
The fine line between Hype and Hope in breast cancer
by Sally Church in Pharma Strategy Blog
While on the road here in San Francisco at the American Urology Association, I received an email from someone about latest news surrounding the breast cancer vaccine published in Nature Medicine. Expecting to find some snippets on how this vaccine...... Read more »
Jaini, R., Kesaraju, P., Johnson, J., Altuntas, C., Jane-wit, D., & Tuohy, V. (2010) An autoimmune-mediated strategy for prophylactic breast cancer vaccination. Nature Medicine. DOI: 10.1038/nm.2161
- June 1, 2010
- 01:03 PM
- 768 views
Experimental virus treatment is still in development
by Cancer Research UK in Cancer Research UK - Science Update
Over the last week or so, we’ve received a lot of enquiries to our helpline and email service about a new experimental cancer drug called reolysin. This followed several reports in the national press the week previously. Reolysin is a relatively new drug developed from a fairly harmless type of virus called a reovirus. Most [...]... Read more »
Harrington, K., Karapanagiotou, E., Roulstone, V., Twigger, K., White, C., Vidal, L., Beirne, D., Prestwich, R., Newbold, K., Ahmed, M.... (2010) Two-Stage Phase I Dose-Escalation Study of Intratumoral Reovirus Type 3 Dearing and Palliative Radiotherapy in Patients with Advanced Cancers. Clinical Cancer Research, 16(11), 3067-3077. DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-10-0054
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