Maternal Use Of Acetaminophen During Pregnancy May Be Associated With Overweight In Girls, Study Indicates

Girls born to mothers who frequently used acetaminophen while pregnant may be more likely to be overweight at age 11 years compared with girls whose mothers did not use acetaminophen while pregnant,” researchers concluded after evaluating “acetaminophen use for the mothers of 30,127 children aged seven years and 24,934 children aged 11 years during pregnancy.” The study authors concluded, “Acetaminophen is a possible obesogen that should be evaluated for its potential to promote weight gain.” The findings were published online in the journal Obesity. https://www.healio.com/endocrinology/diabetes/news/online/%7B6714e5e7-9e4d-496f-abf9-3217cb91b85a%7D/maternal-acetaminophen-use-during-pregnancy-tied-to-excess-weight-in-girls

Another Reason to Love Chocolate?

A new study by researchers at the University of Illinois suggests that three of the phenolic compounds in cocoa bean shells have powerful effects on the fat and immune cells in mice, potentially reversing the chronic inflammation and insulin resistance associated with obesity. Similar to batteries within cells that burn fat and glucose to generate energy, mitochondria can become damaged when high levels of fat, glucose and inflammation occur in the body, de Mejia said. When the scientists treated adipocytes with the aqueous extract or the three phenolic compounds individually, damaged mitochondria in the cells were repaired and less fat accumulated in the adipocytes, blocking inflammation and restoring the cells' insulin sensitivity, Rebollo-Hernanz said. https://www.technologynetworks.com/drug-discovery/news/another-reason-to-love-chocolate-320922?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73914729&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8Pg3OaauZc5xCkDUT_UikCjSnEWryENtKW_If3vQCsBHIll4Sgj9rs-YDvyzW84RGScREub-5MpggwZsERa7-VQOW0Vg&_hsmi=73914729

Metformin May Blunt Health Benefits Of Exercise, Study Indicates

“The diabetes drug metformin, sometimes taken to slow aging, may blunt the health benefits of exercise,” research indicated. The findings of the 53-older adult study were published earlier this year in the journal Aging Cell. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/19/well/move/an-anti-aging-pill-think-twice.html

Sleeping With Artificial Light at Night Associated With Weight Gain in Women

The results varied with the level of artificial light at night exposure. For example, using a small nightlight was not associated with weight gain, whereas women who slept with a light or television on were 17% more likely to have gained 5 kilograms, approximately 11 pounds, or more over the follow-up period. The association with having light coming from outside the room was more modest. https://www.technologynetworks.com/diagnostics/news/sleeping-with-artificial-light-at-night-associated-with-weight-gain-in-women-320840?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73826443&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9hh2dHuXDh3sTpZAkamg7OKBrjRQSeSjPdLXnSZLgZZdz_5VQEFn7g2RZ5lIyyT_R-9nGh_vOT2sou74id_DDY7y8L1w&_hsmi=73826443

Obesity Rate Among Preschool Children Declining, CDC Report Finds

reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published new data showing preschool children who receive “government food aid are reaching healthier body mass indexes...signaling a steady decline in obesity rates.” The data show “obesity rates dropped to about 14% in 2016...down from 16% in 2010.” The findings, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, also show all “racial and ethnic groups recorded a statistically significant decline in obesity.” https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/06/18/childhood-obesity-rates-down-us-preschoolers-study/1494257001/

Cancer-sniffing Dogs Detect Lung Cancer With 97% Accuracy

https://www.technologynetworks.com/cancer-research/news/cancer-sniffing-dogs-detect-lung-cancer-with-97-accuracy-320744?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73782566&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9b0KhbX7SR2wtPIZ88goJ69vbvj2E_cXvy6A3UXRYgfuQzFreHO1VH51pT9tWEK3y-2x0bv_hAyknqOlUA7NioicuZtA&_hsmi=73782566

Diabetic Amputations Rising, CDC Data Show

reports that as “America’s epidemic of obesity continues, Type 2 diabetes has become so common that it’s easy to forget how serious a disease it is”; but “even for people who have witnessed its ravages in family members, there’s something about an amputation that really brings home how insidiously destructive diabetes is.” Although amputation rates “among people with diabetes in the United States dropped for about 15 years, but recent reports issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention highlight a disturbing trend: Amputation rates have been rising in people under 65 with diabetes since 2009.” The trend, data show, “was particularly strong for so-called minor amputations of toes and feet, which rose by 62 percent between 2009 and 2015.” However, “major amputations – those done above or just below the knee – were also up by 29 percent.” https://www.inquirer.com/health/amputation-increasing-diabetes-surgery-insulin-20190616.html

Flour Sold at Walmart and Target Nationwide is Being Recalled Due to E. Coli Concerns

https://wnep.com/2019/06/14/flour-sold-at-walmart-and-target-nationwide-is-being-recalled-due-to-e-coli-concerns/

World’s First Reported Spontaneous Clearance of HIV, Without Treatment

Remarkably, a 73-year old man in Sydney with a unique combination of genetic and immunological characteristics appears to have spontaneously cleared his HIV infection. The details of his viral burden and immunological responses have been published in the Journal of Virus Eradication. John Zaunders, Senior Hospital Scientist at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, comments on the finding: “The patient belongs to a small group of HIV+ patients who were first recognized as unusually asymptomatic in 1992, and all found to be infected by transfusion products from a single donor, who was also asymptomatic. At that time they had been infected, prior to the availability of the HIV antibody test, for more than 10 years with no apparent decrease in CD4 cell count. They were one of the first groups of HIV controllers to be described.” The patient (referred to here as the “Sydney Patient”) was the last recipient to be identified, 15 years after his original transfusion. Along with the eight other recipients, he was unaware of any possible HIV infection, until the Red Cross Blood Service went back to test recipients who may have received infectious transfusion products, including from the index asymptomatic blood donor. https://www.technologynetworks.com/biopharma/news/worlds-first-reported-spontaneous-clearance-of-hiv-without-treatment-320602?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73685318&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9Hi-8ddwMmBP8ua3fR2jO1lR-8DsG9tWHdjrGeuQBmggC8qohRhyVImamQ0_VYyNRqRF8t1eMZP_G6IyrYAP77yG1j1A&_hsmi=73685318

Sleep Deprivation Ups Mental Health Risk in College Kids Dose-response relationship not accounted for by insomnia and/or depressed mood alone

College students who didn't get enough sleep had more depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues, a researcher reported here. In adjusted models, a dose-response relationship was seen between lack of sleep and all mental health variables examined in an analysis of data from the National College Health Assessment (NCHA), according to Thea Ramsey, a research assistant at the UA Sleep & Health Research Program at the University of Arizona in Tucson. Student athletes got more sleep overall in the study, and they had better overall mental health than non-athletes, but the relationship between insufficient sleep and mental health issues was found to be similar between student athletes and non-athletes, Ramsey and colleagues reported at SLEEP 2019, the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS). https://www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcoverage/apss/80445?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2019-06-14&eun=g721819d0r&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%202019-06-14&utm_term=NL_Daily_DHE_Active

Endocannabinoid Signaling Drives Overeating in the Mouse Brain

The researchers detected high activity of endocannabinoids at cannabinoid CB1 receptors in the gut of mice that were fed a high-fat and sugar -- or Western -- diet for 60 days. This overactivity, they found, prevented the food-induced secretion of the satiation peptide cholecystokinin, a short chain of amino acids whose function is to inhibit eating. This resulted in the mice overeating. Cannabinoid CB1 receptors and cholecystokinin are present in all mammals, including humans. https://www.technologynetworks.com/neuroscience/news/endocannabinoid-signaling-drives-overeating-in-the-mouse-brain-320531?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73600339&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--_2sPcLdSajLSfBQeK0NfMaKga0zSzUAH_cqoFLYLxF1cXlXy1OWvNAiVeB8Hp8Bn7bzkNPtcoC1jXPuMv6Ge3hQNbpA&_hsmi=73600339

Acne Drug Could Help Combat Hardening of the Arteries

This hardening, or biomineralisation, is essential for the production of bone, but in arteries it underlies a lot of cardiovascular disease and other diseases associated with ageing like dementia," said Shanahan. "We wanted to find out what triggers the formation of calcium phosphate crystals, and why it seems to be concentrated around the collagen and elastin which makes up much of the artery wall." I'd been thinking for years that hardening of the arteries was linked to DNA damage, and that DNA damage is a pathway switched on by many agents including smoking and lipids," Working together with Cycle Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge-based company, the researchers identified six known molecules that they thought might inhibit the PARP enzymes. Detailed experiments with these showed that the antibiotic minocycline was highly effective in preventing hardening of the arteries. https://www.technologynetworks.com/drug-discovery/news/acne-drug-could-help-combat-hardening-of-the-arteries-320519?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73600339&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--_2sPcLdSajLSfBQeK0NfMaKga0zSzUAH_cqoFLYLxF1cXlXy1OWvNAiVeB8Hp8Bn7bzkNPtcoC1jXPuMv6Ge3hQNbpA&_hsmi=73600339

Hyperglycemia Appears To Show Signs Of Impairing Brain Development In Kids With T1D,

“Hyperglycemia showed signs of impairing brain development in children,” researchers concluded in a study including 137 kids diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D). The “children with type 1 diabetes had significantly less total brain growth, as well as slower regional gray and white matter growth compared with children without diabetes,” investigators found in the study that included structural magnetic resonance imaging. The findings were presented at a medical conference. https://www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcoverage/ada/80399

Sleeping With Lights On May Increase Risk For Obesity In Women, Study Suggests

reports “at the start of the study, women were typically overweight but not yet obese, according to their body mass index (BMI),” but “after almost six years of follow-up, women who slept with a television or light on in the room were 22 percent more likely to be overweight and 33 percent more likely to be obese than women who slept in total darkness without even a nightlight or the glow from an alarm clock.” https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-obesity-sleep/sleeping-with-lights-or-tv-on-tied-to-obesity-idUSKCN1TB1YB

Easy Tweaks Help Night Owls Shift Their Circadian Rhythms

Night owls’ are individuals whose internal body clock dictates later-than-usual sleep and wake times – in this study participants had an average bedtime of 2.30am and wake-up time of 10.15am. Disturbances to the sleep/wake system have been linked to a variety of health issues, including mood swings, increased morbidity and mortality rates, and declines in cognitive and physical performance. “Having a late sleep pattern puts you at odds with the standard societal days, which can lead to a range of adverse outcomes – from daytime sleepiness to poorer mental wellbeing,” says study co-author Dr Andrew Bagshaw from the University of Birmingham's Centre for Human Brain Health. “We wanted to see if there were simple things people could do at home to solve this issue. This was successful, on average allowing people to get to sleep and wake up around two hours earlier than they were before. Most interestingly, this was also associated with improvements in mental wellbeing and perceived sleepiness, meaning that it was a very positive outcome for the participants. We now need to understand how habitual sleep patterns are related to the brain, how this links with mental wellbeing and whether the interventions lead to long-term changes.” Twenty-two healthy individuals participated in the study. For a period of three weeks participants in the experimental group were asked to: Wake up 2-3 hours before regular wake up time and maximise outdoor light during the mornings. Go to bed 2-3 hours before habitual bedtime and limit light exposure in the evening. Keep sleep/wake times fixed on both work days and free days. Have breakfast as soon as possible after waking up, eat lunch at the same time each day, and refrain from eating dinner after 7pm. The results highlighted an increase in cognitive (reaction time) and physical (grip strength) performance during the morning when tiredness is often very high in ‘night owls’, as well as a shift in peak performance times from evening to afternoon. It also increased the number of days in which breakfast was consumed and led to better mental well-being, with participants reporting a decrease in feelings of stress and depression. “Establishing simple routines could help ‘night owls’ adjust their body clocks and improve their overall physical and mental health. Insufficient levels of sleep and circadian misalignment can disrupt many bodily processes putting us at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes,” Professor Debra Skene from the University of Surrey said. Dr Facer-Childs said ‘night owls’, compared to ‘morning larks’, tended to be more compromised in our society due to having to fit to work/school schedules that are out of sync with their preferred patterns. “By acknowledging these differences and providing tools to improve outcomes we can go a long way in a society that is under constant pressure to achieve optimal productivity and performance,” she said. https://www.technologynetworks.com/neuroscience/news/easy-tweaks-help-night-owls-shift-their-circadian-rhythms-320393?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73509145&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9noj_ZW79m-wQ2OJQUxrY7rMgxpmeDOEcT1bpqdSUOIGQqSXShgTAx3v7-wf2UrdOdcpjG3msIBoBkur9Lfz3Dvzq6hw&_hsmi=73509145

Kinds Of Foods Eaten, Order In Which They Are Eaten May Affect Odds Of Developing T2D,

The kind of foods you eat, and even the order in which you eat them, can affect your odds of developing type 2 diabetes [T2D],” researchers concluded in three studies presented at a medical conference. The studies revealed that “switching to a mostly plant-based diet (but one that could still include meat and dairy) could reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes by as much as 60%.” In addition, “eating greater amounts of vitamins B2 and B6 was linked to a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, while getting more B12 in the diet seemed to be associated with a higher risk of” T2D. Finally, “people who ate vegetables before having meat or rice had lower blood sugar levels, along with positive changes in their hunger hormones.” https://consumer.healthday.com/diabetes-information-10/type-ii-diabetes-news-183/what-and-how-you-eat-affects-your-odds-for-type-2-diabetes-747231.html

Study: Cholesterol in eggs tied to cardiac disease, death

One large egg contains nearly 200 milligrams of cholesterol, roughly the same amount as an 8-ounce steak, according to the USDA. Other foods that contain high levels of cholesterol include processed meats, cheese and high-fat dairy products. While the new research does not offer specific recommendations on egg or cholesterol consumption, it found that each additional 300 milligrams of cholesterol consumed beyond a baseline of 300 milligrams per day was associated with a 17 percent higher risk of cardiovascular disease and an 18 percent higher risk of death. Eating several eggs a week "is reasonable," said Tucker, who noted they include nutrients beneficial to eye and bone health. "But I recommend people avoid eating three-egg omelets every day. Nutrition is all about moderation and balance." Research results also determined that study participants' exercise regimen and overall diet quality, including the amount and type of fat they consumed, did not change the link between cholesterol in one's diet and risk of cardiovascular disease and death. "This is a strong study because the modeling adjusted for factors such as the quality of the diet," Tucker said. "Even for people on healthy diets, the harmful effect of higher intake of eggs and cholesterol was consistent." https://medicalxpress.com/news/2019-06-cholesterol-eggs-tied-cardiac-disease.html

How Do We Choose Our Food?

The Geneva scientists demonstrate that even in mice the relationship to food is highly influenced by social interactions, to the point of disrupting physiological regulatory mechanisms. But beyond food choices, this study highlights the neurobiological mechanisms of social interactions and the learning they generate. “Understanding what networks and mechanisms are needed to integrate new information received from another individual and how this information is then used to adapt to the environment are fundamental questions,” says Michaël Loureiro. “Indeed, these mechanisms appear to be dysfunctional in some neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorders." The social difficulties of people with autism may indeed stem from an inability of the sensory cortex to properly treat stimuli received from outside. Peer information would be poorly integrated into the prefrontal cortex and its transmission disrupted, making it difficult to interpret external stimuli from the outset. https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/how-do-we-choose-our-food-320344?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73460114&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8iLdJyPgtcB033hsACP3xVXtDY3EGOXaHOr7VycAv21mZDvtsRfEhlRljr3HII1E4XRZ4bv0bowFHy5Kcmw5EWx4C-Cg&_hsmi=73460114

Americans Consume 74,000-121,000 Microplastic Particles Annually, Study Shows

“Americans eat, drink and breathe between 74,000 and 121,000 microplastic particles each year depending on their age and sex, new research suggests,” and “those who exclusively drink bottled water rather than tap water can add up to 90,000 plastic particles to their estimated annual total.” https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/05/health/microplastic-particle-ingestion-study/index.html

Research Suggests Teens Using Dietary Supplements May Be At Risk For Serious Injury, Death

eports, “Teenagers using dietary supplements to lose weight, gain weight or build muscle could be putting themselves at risk for serious harm and even death.” Researchers “looked at reports of health problems that occurred after kids, teens or young adults took vitamins or supplements.” The researchers identified 977 cases of health problems, with “40 percent of which involved trips to an emergency room, hospitalization, disability or death. The remaining cases involved trips to a doctor’s office.” The findings were published in the Journal of Adolescent Health. https://www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/teenagers-can-be-seriously-harmed-dietary-supplements-n1013696

Longer Weight-Loss Program Tied To Greater Sustained Improvements In Patients With Obesity And Prediabetes Compared To Shorter Program, Study Indicates

reports researchers found that “adults with obesity and prediabetes experienced greater sustained improvements in both HbA1c and fasting glucose when assigned to a 24-session behavioral weight-loss program vs. similar adults assigned to shorter programs.” The findings were published in BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care. https://www.healio.com/endocrinology/diabetes/news/online/%7B027729b7-81c3-4343-952f-5351c57f651f%7D/high-dose-weight-loss-program-optimizes-glycemic-improvements-in-prediabetes

Your Gut Bacteria May Determine How Well You Respond to Drugs

https://www.technologynetworks.com/drug-discovery/news/your-gut-bacteria-may-determine-how-well-you-respond-to-drugs-320199?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73370578&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-85ubfClewCQCWrq-Nu3CZcxO0EjquJHOCA9cOwRJfK6LeB7EMNiNEhVVFEi6xcju3C2_tQOu-oP-xnKt__sPX3PBPvUw&_hsmi=73370578 Drug metabolism studies typically do not assess the contribution of the microbiome. “However, anecdotal examples of microbiome-metabolized drugs have emerged over past decades,” Goodman said. The Microbiome and Cancer Infographic The Microbiome and Cancer READ MORE To map the connections between gut microbes and medical drugs, the researchers investigated whether and how each of 271 drugs are chemically modified by each of 76 different kinds of bacteria from the human gut. Almost two-thirds of these drugs were metabolized by at least one of the bacterial specimens tested. The researchers then constructed genetic libraries of the selected drug-metabolizing gut bacteria which allowed them to systematically identify many of the genes responsible for the chemical transformation of the drugs. They found that the number of these genes varies widely across the gut microbial communities of healthy human volunteers. In some cases, these differences explain why some individuals’ gut microbiomes metabolize drugs rapidly, while others modify the same drugs slowly or not at all. “We hope this study provides a useful first step in understanding the microbiome contribution to drug metabolism,” said Michael Zimmermann, postdoctoral fellow in the Goodman lab and co-lead author of the study. “We think these approaches could shed light on how the gut microbiome also modulates our response to non-drug compounds, such as dietary nutrients and environmental agents.”

Alzheimer’s Medication May Help Overcome Opioid Addiction

The medication, called galantamine, is thought to have a dual mechanism of action—it increases levels of a chemical messenger called acetylcholine in the brain and also binds to nicotinic receptors, which play a role in addiction to nicotine and other substances. Participants who took galantamine had fewer urine samples that were positive for opioids compared with those who took placebo, which corroborated with self-reported abstinence in those who took galantamine. Also, participants who used opioids during follow-up took longer to do so if they were in the galantamine group. https://www.technologynetworks.com/drug-discovery/news/alzheimers-medication-may-help-overcome-opioid-addiction-320226?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73370578&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-85ubfClewCQCWrq-Nu3CZcxO0EjquJHOCA9cOwRJfK6LeB7EMNiNEhVVFEi6xcju3C2_tQOu-oP-xnKt__sPX3PBPvUw&_hsmi=73370578

Novel Indicator of Influenza Immunity Identified

Investigators found that people with higher levels of HA stem antibodies at the start of the study were less likely to become infected with influenza. The findings suggest that the level of HA stem antibodies can be used as an indicator, or correlate, of protection against influenza virus infection. The study provides data to support the development of novel vaccine candidates targeting the HA stem, according to the researchers. Scientists hope such vaccine candidates will induce broader and more durable protection against influenza than current vaccines. The authors note that future studies should examine the role of HA stem antibodies for various strains of influenza virus. https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/novel-indicator-of-influenza-immunity-identified-320170?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73324746&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8_-PZ-u-FiHB5BOfx2KhPlBhUKbt8cVM_7xUjArlpI3k9V2XqiOLx8yuh7l0CZg0n7nbrzB4xj5DrnfkDBCmSujDfhew&_hsmi=73324746

Your gut microbiome could change the way you metabolize medicines, a new paper says

https://www.statnews.com/2019/06/03/microbiome-metabolize-medicine/ "It is possible that we can use genes or species of bacteria to predict the capacity of an individual's gut flora to metabolize a certain drug," study co-lead author Maria Zimmermann-Kogadeeva said in a university news release. "The work is a first step in identifying biomarkers that could help doctors prescribe the drugs that are the safest and most effective for individual patients," added Zimmermann-Kogadeeva. She's a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of senior study author Andrew Goodman, of Yale's Microbial Sciences Institute and the department of microbial pathogenesis. For the new study, the researchers investigated whether and how 271 drugs are chemically modified by 76 kinds of gut bacteria. Nearly two-thirds of the drugs were metabolized by at least one of the bacteria species, the findings showed. The researchers then identified many of the genes that enable the bacteria to metabolize the drugs. The team found wide variations in the number of these genes in healthy people. In some cases, these differences explain why some people's gut bacteria populations (microbiomes) metabolize drugs rapidly, while others act on the same drugs slowly or not at all. It was once thought that drug metabolism was carried out only by organs, such as the liver, Goodman's team noted.

Coffee Not So Bad for Your Heart After All

The study of over 8,000 people in the UK debunks previous studies that claimed drinking coffee increases arterial stiffness. Previous suggestions that drinking coffee leads to stiffer arteries are inconsistent and could be limited by lower participant numbers, according to the team behind this new research. https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/coffee-not-so-bad-for-your-heart-after-all-320124?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73279355&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_-D7AfkMU_gRpidDvjq91Ca0HRjEzyFLluUXZzVlaNu9tcW0hrnjFYs_5xHccNhqTb9r_BYE4KsCfef0DSBYaNISqktQ&_hsmi=73279355

Certain Antidepressants Could Be Effective at Treating Multiple Infectious Diseases

Research published in the April print edition of the journal Life Science Alliance, shows that antidepressant drugs called FIASMAs, including desipramine, amitriptyline, and nortriptyline, halt the growth or kill four different intracellular bacterial pathogens in tissue cell culture and animal models. "Antibiotic options for diseases caused by intracellular bacteria are limited because many of these drugs cannot penetrate our cell membranes. In essence, the bacteria are protected," said Jason Carlyon, Ph.D., leader of the study and professor in the VCU Department of Microbiology and Immunology. Tetracycline antibiotics are most commonly prescribed to treat intracellular bacterial infections because they can cross cell membranes to reach the microbes. However, tetracyclines can cause allergic reactions in some patients and physicians advise against their use by pregnant women and children due to undesirable side effects. Additionally, antibiotic resistance in some intracellular bacteria has been reported. "It would be highly beneficial to have a class of drugs to treat such diseases in patients for whom tetracyclines are contraindicated," Carlyon said. "These drugs could provide an alternative to antibiotics or even be used in conjunction with them as an augmentation approach to treat infections that typically require prolonged courses of antibiotic therapy, such as those caused by Chlamydia pneumoniae and Coxiella burnetti." The team of researchers from VCU, Indiana University Medical Center, University of Nebraska Medical Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and the University of South Florida, including Carlyon and lead author Chelsea Cockburn, an M.D.-Ph.D. candidate, are the first to investigate the mechanisms by which FIASMAs target multiple intracellular bacteria in detail. The scientists tested FIASMA susceptibility for four bacterial species that cause human granulocytic anaplasmosis, a tick-borne disease that attacks white blood cells called neutrophils and can be fatal to immune compromised individuals; Q fever, a debilitating pneumonic disease; and two chlamydia infections. FIASMAs ultimately disrupt how cholesterol, a key nutrient utilized by many intracellular pathogens, traffics inside cells to alter bacterial access to the lipid. The researchers first proved FIASMA treatment efficacy by halting anaplasmosis in both tissue culture and mice. Next, they extended their observations to demonstrate that FIASMA treatment killed the Q fever agent, Coxiella burnetii, and partially inhibited chlamydial infections in cell culture. https://www.technologynetworks.com/drug-discovery/news/certain-antidepressants-could-be-effective-at-treating-multiple-infectious-diseases-320146?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73279355&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_-D7AfkMU_gRpidDvjq91Ca0HRjEzyFLluUXZzVlaNu9tcW0hrnjFYs_5xHccNhqTb9r_BYE4KsCfef0DSBYaNISqktQ&_hsmi=73279355

Kids Who Nap Regularly Are Happier, Smarter, and Better Behaved

https://www.technologynetworks.com/neuroscience/news/kids-who-nap-regularly-are-happier-smarter-and-better-behaved-320118?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=73279355&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_-D7AfkMU_gRpidDvjq91Ca0HRjEzyFLluUXZzVlaNu9tcW0hrnjFYs_5xHccNhqTb9r_BYE4KsCfef0DSBYaNISqktQ&_hsmi=73279355