News by Subject Medicine & Health

In a new study, a team of researchers at McGill University has shown that, when given in a formulation that facilitates passage to the brain, lithium in doses up to 400 times lower than what is currently being prescribed for mood disorders is capable of both halting signs of advanced Alzheimer's pathology and of recovering lost cognitive abilities.

Individuals with a history of early life adversity (ELA) are disproportionately prone to opioid addiction. A new UCI-led study reveals why. Published in Molecular Psychiatry, the study titled, "On the early life origins of vulnerability to opioid addiction," examines how early adversities interact with factors such as increased access to opioids to directly influence brain development and function, causing a higher potential for opioid addiction.

The DNA molecule inside the nucleus of any human cell is more than six feet long. To fit into such a small space, it must fold into precise loops that also govern how genes are turned on or off. New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis indicates that 'jumping genes' play a surprising role in stabilizing the 3D folding patterns of the DNA molecule inside the cell's nucleus.

Approximately one-quarter of patients who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain misuse them, with five to 10 percent developing an opioid use disorder or addiction. In a new study, UC San Diego researchers found that opioid dependence produced permanent changes in the brains of rats.

As we enter a new year and a new decade, many states have enacted legislation affecting the roles of advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) in terms of practice authority, reimbursement, and prescriptive authority, according to the 32nd Annual Legislative Update in the January issue of The Nurse Practitioner, published by Wolters Kluwer.

Through experiments, UW-Madison researchers found that the force each cell applies to the surface beneath it -- in other words, traction -- is the dominant physical factor that controls cell shape and motion as cells travel as a group.

An MRI study investigating the influence of changes in the neuroanatomy of trigeminal neuralgia found that both trigeminal nerve and brain structures such as the hippocampus can predict the surgical treatment outcome. Greater trigeminal nerve and hippocampus volumes were more associated with non-responders patients.

The parasite Toxoplasma gondii need not infect a host immune cell to alter its behavior, according to a new study from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.

A new study analyzes 30 years of patient data and details the clinical course of 184 individuals with genetically diverse forms of Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD), which is among the most volatile and dangerous inherited metabolic disorders.

Registry data -- of sufficient quality -- are suitable for the extended benefit assessment of drugs. Rapid report shows how routine practice data should be collected and processed.