Author: healthadmin
Relapse to cocaine use is not simply a matter of weak willpower. New research shows that persistent biological changes in the brain may be to blame. Scientists have found that cocaine use changes the brain’s circuitry and can make it very difficult to resist the urge to return to the drug. Researchers at Michigan State University have discovered that cocaine changes the function of the hippocampus. This area of the brain plays an important role in memory and learning. Their research was supported by the National Institutes of Health. scientific progressexplains why cocaine dependence is so difficult to treat and…
Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine We have discovered a potential new strategy to combat Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, conditions associated with the toxic buildup of tau and alpha-synuclein protein clumps in the brain. The team reports: nature communications Tubulin, a component of microtubules, the “railroads” inside cells, can prevent tau and alpha-synuclein from forming toxic clumps and instead channel them into their normal, healthy roles. “Tau and alpha-synuclein are well known for their role in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. In these diseases, these proteins can misfold and stick together to form harmful aggregates, damaging…
Deforestation, the collapse of fisheries, and the disappearance of pollinators rarely pose a national security threat. However, there is growing recognition that the loss of nature poses serious risks to political stability. “Nature is the foundation of national security,” authors from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) wrote in a recent assessment that draws a direct line between protecting vital ecosystems and securing a country’s future. Biodiversity loss threatens water, food, clean air, and other vital resources on which human societies depend. And the risk is not only due to the decline of local nature. The…
A state law banning insurance pre-authorization for buprenorphine, a leading treatment for opioid use disorder, may not help more patients stay on treatment for the recommended minimum 180 days, Weill Cornell Medicine researchers report. Prescribed buprenorphine can be a lifesaving treatment that reduces opioid craving and withdrawal symptoms, but compliance rates are low. Posted on March 6th JAMA Health Forumthis study investigated whether state laws prohibiting private insurance plans from requiring prior authorization improve treatment retention, which is critical to reducing relapse, overdose risk, and death. From 2023 to 2024, overdose deaths experienced the largest annual decline since 2019, but…
Innate immune sensors known as pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) detect specific molecular components of bacterial or viral invaders. PRRs transfer signals that result in the production of interferon, which induces immune cells. However, until now, the exact mechanism of how these signals are transferred has remained a mystery. In a new study, an international research team led by Dr Eva Rieser and Professor Henning Walchak from the University of Cologne has shown that the enzyme ANKIB1 is important for the process of innate immune signaling. This study revealed that ANKIB1 catalyzes a highly specific type of molecular modification called K11…
Researchers at Kanazawa University Cancer Institute and Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) have uncovered an important mechanism by which stomach cancer metastasizes to distant organs. Their work shows that cancer cells stimulate Wnt signaling in surrounding stromal fibroblasts to produce hyaluronic acid, creating a supportive microenvironment that promotes metastasis. These findings provide new insights into how metastatic tumors become established and suggest promising strategies to prevent gastric cancer progression. Big challenges in gastric cancer Gastric cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide, primarily because it often metastasizes to other organs, such as the liver. Although the…
Florida Atlantic University has received a $2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to investigate how immune-related receptors in neurons play fundamental roles in brain function, behavior, and psychiatric health. The award, funded by the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, supports groundbreaking research that challenges long-held assumptions about how the brain works. The project, led by principal investigator Dr. Neiquan, a professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt School of Medicine and a member of the FAU Stiles Nicholson Brain Institute, focuses on a receptor called interleukin-1 receptor type 1…
A new peer-reviewed paper calls for meaning, purpose and spirituality to be treated as core elements of lifestyle medicine, rather than optional add-ons. Because these directly impact a patient’s ability to adopt and maintain health-promoting behaviors. This paper, “Meaning, Purpose, and Spirituality in the Clinical Practice of Lifestyle Medicine,” grew out of the 2025 National Summit held by the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) in collaboration with the Global Positive Health Institute and funded by the Ardmore Institute of Health. The summit brought together nearly 100 experts to translate decades of research into practical clinical guidance. The authors synthesize…
Scientists have identified two non-intoxicating compounds derived from cannabis that may help reduce liver fat while improving metabolic health. The compounds CBD and CBG appear to support the liver in two important ways. These increase the organ’s ability to store backup energy and restore the activity of cellular systems that break down harmful waste products. Combining these effects may provide new plant-based strategies to treat the most common chronic liver diseases worldwide. The study was led by Professor Joseph (Yossi) Tam, Dr. Riad Hinden, PhD student Radka Kočvarova, and Tam’s team at the Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew…
Nerve cells in the brain are constantly bombarded with information from various senses simultaneously. How can the brain prioritize what’s most important? Imagine a friend meeting you at the station and showing you the way home. You will have to find your own way back. After that, remembering only the smell of freshly baked bread at a kiosk or the noise of a construction site won’t help you find your way. So what happens in our brains when we have to prioritize among the large number of impressions we receive? In a new study published in the journal Nature Communications,…