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Popular Articles

Potential Diabetes Cure Following Discovery Of Genetic Toggle Switch
Scientists have identified a master regulator gene for early embryonic development of the pancreas and other organs, putting researchers closer to coaxing stem cells into pancreatic cells as a possible cure for type1 diabetes.

Obama Presses Lawmakers On Health Reform
In President Obama"s push for health reform, "new fault lines are opening up everywhere you look. Liberals are worried that Obama is going squishy on including a strong, government-run "public option" among the health-care choices available to Americans. Conservatives are warning that the legislation won"t do enough to control health costs. Rural lawmakers are complaining that proposed Medicare cuts will fall too hard on their states," TIME reports. "And those are just the arguments going on among the Democrats. It"s all a sign that the season for hard decisions has arrived. Obama continues to project an air of confidence about the most audacious undertaking of his presidency" (Tumulty, 7/16).
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Breast Cancer Risk Signalled By Wet Ear Wax And Unpleasant Body Odors
If having malodorous armpits (called osmidrosis) and goopy earwax isn"t bad enough, a discovery by Japanese scientists may add a more serious problem for women facing these cosmetic calamities. That"s because they"ve found that a gene responsible for breast cancer causes these physical symptoms. The report describing this finding is featured on the cover of The FASEB Journal"s June 2009 print issue, and should arm physicians with another clue for detecting breast cancer risk.
Oncology

Primary Insomnia Linked To A Neurochemical Abnormality

A research abstract presented on June 9, at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, is the first demonstration of a specific neurochemical abnormality in adults with primary insomnia (PI), providing greater insight to the limited understanding of the condition"s pathology. Results indicate that gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), the most common inhibitory transmitter in the brain, is reduced by nearly 30 percent in individuals who suffer from primary insomnia for more than six months. These findings suggest that primary insomnia is a manifestation of a neurobiological state of hyperarousal, which is present during both waking and sleep at physiological and cognitive levels. According to principal investigator Dr. John Winkelman of Brigham and Women"s Hospital, at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Mass., the recognition that primary insomnia is associated with a specific neurochemical deficiency helps validate the often misunderstood complaint of insomnia. "Recognition that insomnia has manifestations in the brain may increase the legitimacy of those who have insomnia and report substantial daytime consequences," he said. "Insomnia is not just a phenomenon observed at night, but has daytime consequences for energy, concentration and mood." The study included 16 non-medicated individuals (eight of whom were women) with PI and 16 individuals (seven women) who were deemed normal sleepers. Global brain GABA levels were measured in both groups. PI was established through clinical interviews, sleep diary, actigraphy use and polysomnograpy. Winkelman published similar results in the Nov. 1, 2008, issue of the journal SLEEP. Abstract Title: Reduced brain GABA in primary insomnia: preliminary data from 4T proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) Presentation Date: Tuesday, June 9 Category: Sleep Disorders - Insomnia Abstract ID: 0768 Kelly Wagner American Academy of Sleep Medicine


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