Deep magnet stimulation shown to improve symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorderChaim Sheba Medical Center (Israel) September 8, 2019
Researchers have found that focusing powerful non-invasive magnet stimulation on a specific brain area can improve the symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). This opens the way to treat the large minority of sufferers who do not respond to conventional treatment. The work is presented at the ECNP Conference in Copenhagen*. OCD is broadly defined...
Deep magnet stimulation shown to improve symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder
Chaim Sheba Medical Center (Israel) September 8, 2019
Researchers have found that focusing powerful non-invasive magnet stimulation on a specific brain area can improve the symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). This opens the way to treat the large minority of sufferers who do not respond to conventional treatment. The work is presented at the ECNP Conference in Copenhagen*. OCD is broadly defined as recurrent thoughts or urges, or excessive repetitive behaviours which an individual feels driven to perform. Around 12 adults in every thousand suffer from OCD in any given year, although 2.3% of adults will suffer at some point in their life. It is generally treated through exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy (which exposes the patient to the content of his obsessionsurges without performing the compulsions) and medication, such as SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors e.g. fluoxetine (Prozac/Sarafem) or Sertraline (Paxil) or Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors e.g. clomipramine (Anafranil), however between a third and a half of patients don't respond well to treatment.
(NEXT)
Curcumin attenuates monosodium urate inflammation associated with gout episodes
Sichuan Medical College (China), September 6, 2019
According to news originating from Sichuan, People’s Republic of China, research stated, “Gouty arthritis is characterized by the deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) within synovial joints and tissues due to increased urate concentrations. In this study, we explored the effect of the natural compound curcumin on the MSU crystal-stimulated inflammatory response.”
Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research, “THP-1-derived macrophages and murine RAW264.7 macrophages were pretreated with curcumin for 1 h and then stimulated with MSU suspensions for 24 h. The protein level of TLR4, MyD88, and IkBa, the activation of the NF-kB signaling pathway, the expression of the NF-kB downstream inflammatory cytokines, and the activity of NLRP3 inflammasome were measured by western blotting and ELISA. THP-1 and RAW264.7 cells were loaded with MitoTracker Green to measure mitochondrial content, and MitoTracker Red to detect mitochondrial membrane potential. To measure mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, cells were loaded with MitoSOX Red, which is a mitochondrial superoxide indicator. The effects of curcumin on mouse models of acute gout induced by the injection of MSU crystals into the footpad and synovial space of the ankle, paw and ankle joint swelling, lymphocyte infiltration, and MPO activity were evaluated.
(NEXT)
High blood pressure treatment may slow cognitive decline
Columbia University School of Pubic Health, September 8, 2019
High blood pressure appears to accelerate cognitive decline among middle-aged and older adults, but treating high blood pressure may slow this down, according to a preliminary study presented by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public at the American Heart Association's Hypertension 2019 Scientific Sessions."The findings are important because high blood pressure and cognitive decline are two of the most common conditions associated with aging, and more people are living longer, worldwide," said L.H. Lumey, professor of Epidemiology at Columbia Mailman School and senior author. According to the American Heart Association's 2017 Hypertension Guidelines, high blood pressure affects approximately 80 million U.S. adults and one billion people globally. Moreover, the relationship between brain health and high blood pressure is a growing interest as researchers examine how elevated blood pressure affects the brain's blood vessels, which in turn, may impact memory, language, and thinking skills.
(NEXT)
Fatty foods necessary for vitamin E absorption, but not right away
Oregon State University, September 8, 2019
A fresh look at how to best determine dietary guidelines for vitamin E has produced a surprising new finding: Though the vitamin is fat soluble, you don't have to consume fat along with it for the body to absorb it. "I think that's remarkable," said the study's corresponding author, Maret Traber of Oregon State University, a leading authority on vitamin E who's been researching the micronutrient for three decades. "We used to think you had to eat vitamin E and fat simultaneously. What our study shows is that you can wait 12 hours without eating anything, then eat a fat-containing meal and vitamin E gets absorbed." The study was published today in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Vitamin E, known scientifically as alpha-tocopherol, has many biologic roles, one of which is to serve as an antioxidant, said Traber, a professor in the OSU College of Public Health and Human Sciences, and Ava Helen Pauling Professor at Oregon State's Linus Pauling Institute. Federal dietary guidelines call for 15 milligrams of vitamin E daily (by comparison, 65-90 milligrams of vitamin C are recommended). The new research could play a role in future vitamin E guidelines.
(NEXT)
Researchers find acupuncture reduces alcohol withdrawal symptoms in rats
Daegu University (South Korea), September 7, 2019
A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in the Republic of Korea and one from the U.S., has found that using acupuncture on alcohol-dependent rats can reduce withdrawal symptoms. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, the group describes their study of a certain type of acupuncture and its relation to withdrawal symptoms in rats, and what they found. Alcohol is very addictive—those who become hooked on it find it very difficult to stop drinking. As the researchers note, relapse is very high, despite a host of current treatment options. Because of that, the team began looking into other treatment options that might reduce the numbers of people who go back to drinking after treatment. More specifically, they studied what they describe as withdrawal-associated impairment in β-endorphin neurotransmission in a part of the hypothalamus, and tested a treatment using acupuncture.
(NEXT)
Mouthwash Cancels Out Key Benefits of Exercise, Study Finds
University of Plymouth (UK), September 6, 2019
Your mouthwash could have a bizarre effect on how exercise affects your body, a new study this week suggests. The study found that swigging mouthwash can prevent exercise from lowering your blood pressure as it normally does. Strange as that sounds, the results highlight just how important the bacteria living in our mouths really are to us. According to study author Raul Bescos, a nutritional physiologist based at the University of Plymouth in the UK, his team wasn’t really interested in studying mouthwash’s effects on exercise by itself. It’s been long known that exercise opens up and dilates our blood vessels, in part by getting our bodies to produce more nitric oxide. But even after we’re done jogging and stop producing excess nitric oxide, our circulation is still affected, with our blood pressure remaining lower than it was for hours—a phenomenon known as post-exercise hypotension. There are various theories for why this happens, but no one’s completely figured it out.
(NEXT)
Why You Should Ditch Sugar In Favor of Honey
GreenMedInfo, September 8th 2019
While honey and sugar share similar degrees of sweetness, the differences in the way our bodies respond to them are profound. Technically, honey and sugar (sucrose) both exist because they are food for their respective species. In the case of sugarcane, a member of the the grass family (Poaceae) which includes wheat, maize and rice, sucrose provides energy for its leaves and is an easily transportable source of energy for other parts of the plant, such as the root, that do not produce their own energy. Honey, of course, is produced by bees from the nectar of flowers solely for the purpose of food. Beyond this obvious similarity, the differences between honey and sugar, however, are much more profound. First, honey is a whole food and sucrose is not. In other words, sucrose is an isolate – technically only one chemical compound – lifted from a background of hundreds of other components within the whole plant, whereas honey is composed of an equally complex array of compounds, many of which are well-known (including macronutrients and micronutrients, enzymes, probiotics and prebiotics, etc.), others whose role is still completely a mystery.
