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    Category Health/Medical

    Why are some people more Calm in Stressful Situations than others?

    December 18, 2015, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Japanese macaques are exposed to stress during rank fights. Credit: Konstanze Meindl

    Japanese macaques are exposed to stress during rank fights. Credit: Konstanze Meindl Hightlights: A putative COMT splice mutant (HT3) was associated with increased cortisol excretion. •This haplotype was widely distributed among males. •Cortisol excretion was inversely correlated with physical aggression. •No correlation between cortisol and social rank was found.

    Certain genes, such as the COMT gene, are thought to play a role in determining our stress response. Researchers have now studied this gene in macaques, a genus of Old World monkeys, and for the first time have shown that a specific variant of the gene is associated with higher excretion of the stress hormone cortisol. The gene variant may also influence social rank among the animals.

    Animals that live in groups face a vari...

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    Peptide released during Exercise boosts Muscle’s Capacity for Energy production, Increases Exercise Tolerance

    December 17, 2015, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    A new University of Iowa study in mice indicates that exercise causes muscle to release a peptide that improves energy production and endurance. Credit: Ekaterina Subbotina

    A new University of Iowa study in mice indicates that exercise causes muscle to release a peptide that improves energy production and endurance. Credit: Ekaterina Subbotina

    The study shows that Musclin, is an “exercise factor” – a hormone-like substance made by skeletal muscle in response to exercise and released into the bloodstream. The study shows that increased levels of circulating musclin trigger a signaling cascade that improves muscle performance and promotes production of mitochondria in muscle cells.

    “Exercise is an extremely powerful way to improve people’s health, but unfortunately, increasing physical activity can be really difficult in many circumstances,” says Assoc. Prof. L Zingman, MD...

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    Drug that Interferes with Metabolic activity of Gut Microbes could one day treat Heart disease in humans

    December 17, 2015, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    This visual abstract depicts how drugging the gut microbiota with a nonlethal inhibitor that blocks production of the metabolite trimethylamine reduces the formation of atherosclerotic lesions and represents the first step toward treatment of cardiometabolic diseases by targeting the microbiome. Credit: Wang et al./Cell 2015

    This visual abstract depicts how drugging the gut microbiota with a nonlethal inhibitor that blocks production of the metabolite trimethylamine reduces the formation of atherosclerotic lesions and represents the first step toward treatment of cardiometabolic diseases by targeting the microbiome. Credit: Wang et al./Cell 2015

    Dietary supplementation with a compound that is naturally abundant in red wine and olive oil prevented gut microbes from turning unhealthy foods into metabolic byproducts that clog arteries. The findings suggest that a Mediterranean diet exerts its beneficial health effects by altering the activity of gut microbes...

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    Scientists find New Vessel for Detecting Autism

    December 16, 2015, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    found nestin labeling in cells of the vascular system, indicating blood vessels plasticity. Evidence of angiogenesis was seen throughout superior temporal cortex (primary auditory cortex), fusiform cortex (face recognition center), pons/midbrain and cerebellum in postmortem brains from ASD patients but not control brains. We found significant increases in both nestin and CD34, which are markers of angiogenesis localized to pericyte cells and endothelial cells, respectively. This labeling profile is indicative of splitting (intussusceptive), rather than sprouting, angiogenesis indicating the blood vessels are in constant flux rather than continually expanding.

    found nestin labeling in cells of the vascular system, indicating blood vessels plasticity. Evidence of angiogenesis was seen throughout superior temporal cortex (primary auditory cortex), fusiform cortex (face recognition center), pons/midbrain and cerebellum in postmortem brains from ASD patients but not control brains. We found significant increases in both nestin and CD34, which are markers of angiogenesis localized to pericyte cells and endothelial cells, respectively. This labeling profile is indicative of splitting (intussusceptive), rather than sprouting, angiogenesis indicating the blood vessels are in constant flux rather than continually expanding.

    Evidence of autism may be found in the composition and malfunction of the brain’s blood vessels, a team of scientists has found...

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