Pecan-enriched diet shown to reduce cholesterol: People at risk for cardiovascular disease showed improvements
While the proper pronunciation of pecan remains a subject of debate, University of Georgia researchers have shown the tree nut can dramatically improve a person’s cholesterol levels. Participants at risk for cardiovascular disease who ate pecans during an eight-week intervention showed significant improvements in total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol, in […]
Scientists identify live immune cells in a coral and sea anemone
A new study led by scientists at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and the Ben Gurion University of the Negev has identified specialized immune cells in the cauliflower coral and starlet sea anemone that can help fight infection. The findings are important to better understand how reef-building corals […]
Targeting mitochondria shows promise in treating obesity: Molecule that changes the shape of mitochondria corrects obesity
A team of University of California, Irvine, scientists have discovered a novel pharmacological approach to attenuate the mitochondrial dysfunction that drives diet-induced obesity. The results of their study were published recently in the journal, EMBO Molecular Medicine. Consuming a high-fat diet can lead to obesity and metabolic disorders such as diabetes and fatty liver. Palmitate, […]
UNMC Mourns Surgeon Killed in Plane Crash
The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha is mourning the tragic loss of one of their own. James Edney, MD, a professor emeritus in the department of surgery and former chief of the division of surgical oncology, died August 7 in a small plane crash in Minnesota, the medical school announced, citing a […]
Growing evidence of vitamin K benefits for heart health
New Edith Cowan University (ECU) research has found that people who eat a diet rich in vitamin K have up to a 34 percent lower risk of atherosclerosis-related cardiovascular disease (conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels). Researchers examined data from more than 50,000 people taking part in the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health study […]
‘It Was Complete Chaos’: What We Heard This Week
“It was complete chaos.” — Wajiha Jurdi Kheir, MD, an ophthalmologist at American University of Beirut Medical Center, describing her experience treating patients after last year’s blast at the nearby Port of Beirut in Lebanon. “We’ve had this flat ‘there’s no evidence boosters are indicated’ message. The messaging should be, ‘yes, we’re going to need […]
A microRNA network is the putative mediator of reductive stress in the heart: Understanding how reductive stress is controlled may help personalize treatment of heart failure patients, leading to better outcomes
Last year, University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers reported that reductive stress — an imbalance in the normal oxidation/reduction homeostasis — caused pathological changes associated with heart failure in a mouse model. This was a follow-up to their 2018 clinical study that about one in six heart failure patients shows reductive stress. Now, in the […]
How landscapes of fear affect the songbirds in our backyards: New research suggests that fear is responsible for underweight nestlings
A team of researchers headquartered at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has recently discovered that fear plays an important, unrecognized role in the underdevelopment, and increased vulnerability, of backyard songbirds. Scientists have long known that urban songbirds face a host of increased challenges, from habitat loss to altered food sources and a larger population of […]
New DNA study provides critical information on conserving rainforest lizards
A study published June 16 in Biotropicaby a team of researchers at the University of Washington, the UW Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, WWF Hong Kong and the University of Colombo has provided an important road map to conserving rough-nosed horned lizards in Sri Lanka. Rough-nosed horned lizards, or Ceratophora aspera, are small […]
Thawing permafrost releases greenhouse gas from depth: After 2020 heat wave: methane concentrations in Siberian air point to gas emission from limestone
In a study led by the University of Bonn (Germany), geologists compared the spatial and temporal distribution of methane concentrations in the air of northern Siberia with geological maps. The result: the methane concentrations in the air after last year’s heat wave indicate that increased gas emissions came from limestone formations. The study is published […]