A newly identified gene connected to hair growth may inform future treatments for male pattern baldness, says a team of researchers from Rockefeller, Columbia and Stanford Universities. The scientists found that the gene, called APCDD1, causes a type of progressive hair loss known as hereditary hypotrichosis simplex, which miniaturizes hair follicles, replacing thick hair with […]
A recent 3 part series discussed the pros/cons of the current medical patent system (Are Patents Impeding Medical Care and Innovation? Part 1, 2, 3). In Part 1, the practice of patenting natural cellular processes were called into question and whether this meant that the patent holder (i.e., often a company) then owned parts of […]
A series of imaging studies are revealing that the brain works differently in youth with bipolar disorder (BD) than in chronically irritable children who are often diagnosed with pediatric BD. “This suggests that chronically irritable children may suffer from a syndrome distinct from BD and may require different treatments,” said Ellen Leibenluft, M.D., chief of […]
A new discovery raises hope that autism may be more easily diagnosed and that its effects may be more reversible than previously thought. In a new study appearing online in The FASEB Journal, scientists have identified a way to detect the disorder using blood and have discovered that drugs which affect the methylation state (“DNA […]
Girls at high risk for depression but without current or past clinically significant symptoms showed abnormal brain function related to anticipating and receiving either a reward or loss, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). According to the researchers, this abnormal brain function may be useful for predicting future […]
Today, the Interactive Autism Network (IAN), the nation’s largest online autism research project, announces results of the Grandparents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Survey, finding that nearly one-third of grandparents who participated were the first to raise concerns about their grandchild’s development. Since its launch in 2007, the IAN Project has helped to accelerate […]
Humans have very limited ability to regenerate heart muscle cells, which is a key reason why heart attacks that kill cells and scar heart tissue are so dangerous. But damaged heart muscles in the amazing, highly regenerative zebrafish have given Duke University Medical Center scientists a few ideas that may lead to new directions in […]
Offspring of two parents with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder appear more likely to develop the same illness or another psychiatric condition than those with only one parent with psychiatric illness, according to a report in the March issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. The offspring of two parents with psychiatric […]
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