Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles

From Oxygen Transport To Melanin Formation: Activation Mechanism Of Key Enzymes Explained
Pandinus imperator, the emperor scorpion, is not only popular as a pet, but is also of interest for research purposes. The reason for this is its blue blood, which transports oxygen and distributes it throughout the body. Like tyrosinase, the key enzyme in melanin synthesis, the blue blood pigment hemocyanin found in the emperor scorpion and other arthropods belongs to a group of special molecules that occur in all organisms and that have many different functions: coloring the skin, hair and eyes, immune response, wound healing or the brown discoloration of fruit. "When these enzymes mutate, this may result in albinism, or in birth marks when production of the pigment melanin increases, as often seen in melanoma," explains Professor Heinz Decker of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. The biophysicist has been studying hemocyanins and the associated tyrosinases for the past 20 years. In cooperation with researchers, Dr. Cong and Dr. Chiu, from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston he has now been able to show for the first time exactly how the enzymes become active, thereby fulfilling their various functions. This work was published in the journal Structure on 13 May.

Blogs Comment On Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings, Health Reform, Other Topics
The following summarizes selected women"s health-related blog entries.~ "Judge Sotomayor Provides Important Testimony on the Constitutional Right to Privacy and Its Application to Reproductive Rights," Marcia Greenberger, Womenstake: "One major line of questions, asked repeatedly throughout the hearings" for President Obama"s Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor was her "views on the constitutional right to privacy," Greenberger writes, adding, "Given that this right is central to women"s lives, protecting" such "decisions involving whether to bear children ... and having consensual adult sexual relations, it is important to analyze Judge Sotomayor"s answers carefully." According to Greenberger, because Sotomayor "had not ruled directly on the right to privacy as a federal judge, her testimony in this area warrants particular attention." Following questions from senators such as Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Sotomayor portrayed a "clear agreement with the right to privacy and strong description of the court"s current precedents regarding Roe and women"s health," which "lend[s] further support to the view from her legal record that she would not undermine Roe v. Wade if confirmed to the Supreme Court" (Greenberger, Womenstake, 7/16). ~ "Major Steps Forward for Health Care Reform," Thao Nguyen, Womenstake: Nguyen, outreach manager for the National Women"s Law Center, reports that the health care reform legislation passed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee is "particularly important for women because of the critical headway it makes towards women"s ability to secure access to quality, affordable health care throughout their lives." The bill "works towards confronting many of the particular obstacles faced by women in our current health care system," such as banning the "discriminatory" practice of basing insurance premiums on gender, even when maternity benefits are excluded, Nguyen writes. The bill also bans insurance companies from rejecting patients based on medical history, which has prevented many domestic violence survivors and women who have had caesarean sections from obtaining coverage. Nguyen concludes that "the momentum for health care reform could not have come at a more needed time" because women and their families "need quality, affordable and comprehensive health more than ever" (Nguyen, Womenstake, 7/15).~ "Democrats for Life of America Ousts Member Who Supports Contraception," Feministing: Feministing reports that Democrats for Life of America removed Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) from its advisory board because he supports efforts to improve access to contraception. According to Ryan, he was dismissed from the board after four years after attempting to persuade the group to support contraceptive use as a way to avoid unintended pregnancies. According to the blog, "This is why we call anti-choicers "anti-choice": because they"re not just about making abortion illegal." It adds, "They don"t want women to have access to contraception either -- something that 98% of American women will use at some point in their lives" (Feministing, 7/15). ~ "Umpires, Perspective and the Supreme Court," Jim Wallis, Sojourners" "God"s Politics": "During his opening remarks for his own confirmation hearing in 2005, Chief Justice [John] Roberts made" an analogy between judges and umpires "that has gotten a lot of play in the media and has already been used quite a few times during" Sotomayor"s confirmation hearing, Wallis writes. He adds that "nothing in the world would frustrate me more than an umpire who would call the game differently based upon the color of the jersey that" players were wearing. "But I haven"t seen that happen," Wallis writes, adding, "In fact, the biggest problem we face isn"t an umpire that has favored one team over the other, but umpires who make mistakes in their rulings and judgment because of their lack of perspective." He adds that Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) and "others w
News of the day
Cheerleading Is Leading Cause Of Catastrophic Injury In Young Women
As a bright, young cheerleader trying out for the high school varsity squad, 14-year-old Laura Jackson had everything going for her.
Diagnostics

Link Between Healthy Lifestyle And Cardiovascular Health Confirmed

Two large US studies published in a leading journal this month support the already substantial body of evidence that shows choosing to follow a healthy lifestyle helps prevent cardiovascular disease: one found it linked to lower risk of heart failure in men and the other found it linked to lower risk of high blood pressure in women. Both studies are published in the July 22-29 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association. For the first study, first author Dr Luc Djoussç©, of the Brigham and Women"s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues used data covering 20,900 men taking part in the Physicians" Health Study in the US and who were followed for an average of 22.4 years. They found that following any one of six modifiable healthy lifestyle factors was linked to a lower lifetime risk of heart failure compared to not following any. The six lifestyle factors were: maintaining a normal body weight, never smoking, taking regular exercise, drinking moderate amounts of alcohol, eating plenty of cereals, and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables. The researchers also found that the more healthy lifestyle choices the men followed, the lower their lifetime risk of heart failure. For example, the lifetime risk for heart failure was about 1 in 5 (21.2 per cent) for those men who didn"t follow any of the healthy lifestyle choices (ie they smoked, they were overweight, they did not have a diet rich in cereals, fruit and vegetables, and they did not take regular exercise). But for those who followed four or more healthy lifestyle choices, the lifetime risk was 1 in 10 (10.1 per cent). The findings have major implications for public health, especially since heart failure is now known to be a leading cause of acute hospital admission and the most prevalent chronic cardiovascular condition, according a press statement made by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). In the second study, first author Dr John P. Forman, also from Brigham and Women"s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues, used data covering more than 80,000 women taking part in the Nurses" Health Study, described by the ESC as one of the "world"s landmark studies in women"s health epidemiology". All of the women"s blood pressure was normal (120/80 or less) and they were free of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer at the start of the study which followed them for 14 years. The researchers found that following any one of six modifiable healthy lifestyle factors was linked to lower blood pressure. The six modifiable lifestyle factors were: keeping to a normal BMI (under 25), exercising vigorously every day, following a heart-healthy diet, consuming a modest amount of alcohol, using non-narcotic pain relievers no more than once a week, and taking a folic acid supplement. A heart-healthy diet was described as eating lots of fruits, nuts, legumes and other vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy products, low sodium intake, and not consuming much red or processed meat or sugary drinks. In this study too the researchers found a cluster effect: following all six lifestyle choices was linked to an 80 per cent lower risk of developing high blood pressure. Only 0.3 per cent of the women in the study followed all 6 lifestyle choices. The ESC said this study also had important implications for public health. ESC spokesman Professor Joep Perk from Oskarshamn District Hospital in Sweden, told the press that there wasn"t enough research on preventing poor health in women and called this study "an important piece of evidence". "The Nurses" Health Study is an observational study, but because of the numbers involved I"m sure the results will be valid in broader female populations," he added. Talking about the 80 per cent reduction in risk of high blood pressure found in the women who followed all 6 lifestyle choices, Perk said this was like the findings of the Interheart study, the 2004 global study led by McMaster University in Canada. That study found that 90 per cent of first heart attacks were linked to 9 lifestyle factors. "So there"s a consistent pattern here," said Perk, it suggests, he said, that: "Four out of five cases of hypertension or heart attack are amenable to lifestyle intervention. So, most of us can do something about prevention." "It"s a public health issue, and we need to put our heads together," he urged. Perk said the two studies affirmed the ESC message on cardiovascular disease prevention: *Don"t smoke. *Exercise for at least 30 minutes every day. *Use calorie control and exercise to keep your BMI in the normal range. BMI stands for Body Mass Index: it is the ratio of your weight in kilos to the square of your height in metres. A normal BMI is between 20 and 25. Thus a person who weighs 80 kilos (176 pounds) and stands 183 cm tall (6 feet) has a BMI of 23.9 which is in the normal range. "These two studies yet again confirm the wisdom of this advice, and provide even more evidence to translate our knowledge into action" said Perk. "Relation between modifiable lifestyle factors and lifetime risk of heart failure." Luc Djousse; Jane A. Driver; J. Michael Gaziano. JAMA. 2009;302(4):394-400. "Diet and Lifestyle Risk Factors Associated With Incident Hypertension in Women." John P. Forman; Meir J. Stampfer; Gary C. Curhan JAMA . 2009;302(4):401-411. Additional European Society of Cardiology. Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD Copyright: Medical News Today Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009