Tag Archives: cancer

Potential treatment for Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, dementia discovered

A drug currently being used to treat leukemia has been found to help halt the production of toxic proteins in the brain linked to Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and various forms of dementia. Researchers from Georgetown University successfully used small doses of the drug nilotinib, used to treat chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), to eliminate abnormal protein build-up in the brains of mice. The scientists targeted the alpha-Synuclein and tau proteins, which have been previously implicated in the development of Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington’s disease, Lewy body dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions. …

HPV-related cancers rose before vaccines hit market

The number of some cancers related to the human papillomavirus (HPV) increased throughout the U.S. before vaccines against the sexually transmitted infection were available, says to a new study. Researchers found an increase in many early-stage cancers and anal and head and neck late-stage cancers across the U.S. …

Sex supplements often contain Viagra ingredients

Herbal supplements aimed at improving men’s sexual abilities often contain the active ingredients in erectile dysfunction pills such as Viagra, according to a new study. Additionally, researchers found that some of these over-the-counter herbal remedies contained more of the ingredient than is allowed in prescription-only pharmaceuticals. “It’s pretty scary stuff,” said Neil Campbell, the lead author of the study and a researcher at Pfizer, which sells Viagra…

iPad 2 could interfere with pacemaker, study shows

A California teen discovered the magnets in iPad 2 tablets and covers are capable of interfering with cardiac rhythm devices, like pacemakers, according to the Heart Rhythm Society. The research, conducted by 14-year-old Gianna Chien of Stockton, Calif , was presented Thursday at Heart Rhythm 2013, the Society’s 34th Annual Scientific Sessions. “iPad 2s use magnets to help secure the cover to the tablet. Since people hold tablets so close to their chest, I wanted to see if these magnets could affect cardiac device performance,â€� said Chien, who initially organized the study as part of a school science fair project. …

Teen swallows grill brush wire, which ‘stabs him from the inside out’

A Mountlake Terrace, Wash., teenager accidentally swallowed a piece of grill brush wire while eating, which ultimately got stuck in his intestines – “stabbing him from the inside out,â€� The Seattle Times reported. It all happened innocently enough. …

Cancer drug prevents build-up of toxic brain protein

They say their study, published online May 10 in Human Molecular Genetics, offers a unique and exciting strategy to treat neurodegenerative diseases that feature abnormal buildup of proteins in Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), frontotemporal dementia, Huntington disease and Lewy body dementia, among others. "This drug, in very low doses, turns on the garbage disposal machinery inside neurons to clear toxic proteins from the cell. By clearing intracellular proteins, the drug prevents their accumulation in pathological inclusions called Lewy bodies and/or tangles, and also prevents amyloid secretion into the extracellular space between neurons, so proteins do not form toxic clumps or plaques in the brain," says the study’s senior investigator, neuroscientist Charbel E-H Moussa, MB, PhD. Moussa heads the laboratory of dementia and Parkinsonism at Georgetown. …

Link between tumor suppressors and starvation survival suggested

CU-Boulder Professor Min Han said the research team was interested in how a common tumor suppressor gene known as Retinoblastoma 1, or Rb, behaved under conditions of starvation. The question is important, said Han, because it may help researchers understand why many cancer cells are more susceptible to starvation or fasting than ordinary cells. Han and his team studied a popular lab organism called C. elegans, a translucent nematode smaller than an eyelash…