Category Health/Medical

Researchers have developed a silk composite for significantly improved tendon regeneration and repair. Just mentioning a ruptured Achilles tendon would make anyone wince. Tendon injuries are well known for their lengthy, difficult and often incomplete healing processes. Sudden or repetitive motion, experienced by athletes and factory workers, for example, increases the risk of tears or ruptures in the tendons; thirty percent of all people will have a tendon injury, with the risk being highest in women. What’s more, those who suffer from these injuries are more prone to further injuries at the site or never recover fully.

Tendons are bands of fibrous connective tissue that attach muscles to bones...

During experiments in animal models, researchers at the University of Kansas have discovered a possible new approach to immunization against Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Their method uses a recombinant methionine (Met)-rich protein derived from corn that was then oxidized in vitro to produce the antigen: methionine sulfoxide (MetO)-rich protein. This antigen, when injected to the body, goads the immune system into producing antibodies against the MetO component of beta-amyloid, a protein that is toxic to brain cells and seen as a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. The findings have been just published in the peer-reviewed open-access journal Antioxidants.

“As we age, we have more oxidative stress, and then beta-amyloid and other proteins accumulate and become oxidized and aggregated ...

In mice, ‘turning over’ cells reverses cognitive, behavior problems. New research in mice raises the prospects for development of post-concussion therapies that could ward off cognitive decline and depression, two common conditions among people who have experienced a moderate traumatic brain injury.

The study in mice clarified the role of specific immune cells in the brain that contribute to chronic inflammation. Using a technique called forced cell turnover, researchers eliminated these cells in the injured brains of mice for a week and then let them repopulate for two weeks.

“It’s almost like hitting the reset butt...

Atrial fibrillation, the most common cardiac rhythm abnormality, has been linked to one-third of ischemic strokes, the most common type of stroke. But atrial fibrillation is underdiagnosed, partly because many patients are asymptomatic.

Artificial intelligence-enabled electrocardiography (ECG) was recently shown to identify the presence of brief episodes of atrial fibrillation, and the ability of an AI-enabled ECG algorithm to predict atrial fibrillation up to 10 years before clinical diagnosis has been confirmed in a population-based study conducted by Mayo Clinic researchers.

A new population-based study from Mayo Clinic now offers evidence that the algorithm can help identify patients at greater risk of cognitive decline...