Medicine & Health

Mothers, here’s another reason to encourage your daughters to be physically active: Girls and young women who exercise regularly between the ages of 12 and 35 have a substantially lower risk of breast cancer before menopause compared to those who are less active, new research shows.

Scientists at the School of Medicine working with diabetic mice have examined in unprecedented detail the immune cells long thought to be responsible for type 1 diabetes. Researchers were able to examine the immune cells from isolated insulin-making structures in the pancreas known as the islets of Langerhans.

Nicole Duplaix/Getty ImagesThe platypus genome explains the creature’s fascinating features, from mammals, reptiles and birds.The duck-billed platypus: part bird, part reptile, part mammal — and the genome to prove it. An international consortium of scientists, led by the School of Medicine, has decoded the genome of the platypus, showing that the animal’s peculiar mix of features is reflected in its DNA. An analysis of the genome, published today in the journal Nature, can help scientists piece together a more complete picture of the evolution of all mammals, including humans.

Tumors have a unique vulnerability that can be exploited to make them more sensitive to heat and radiation, researchers at the School of Medicine report. The University radiation oncology researchers found that tumors have a built-in mechanism that protects them from heat (hyperthermia) damage and most likely decreases the benefit of hyperthermia and radiation as a combined therapy.

In early January, two patients undergoing kidney dialysis at St. Louis Children’s Hospital had sudden life-threatening allergic reactions that caused their eyes, lips and tongues to swell, raised their heart rates and dropped their blood pressures dangerously low. After the dialysis staff treated the children with medication that relieved the symptoms, they called infectious diseases specialist Alexis Elward, who sprung into action to help determine the cause. Little did she know it would spark an international investigation into a common blood thinner and a recall of the drug from the market.

Ensuring that the elderly have access to transportation while preventing age-related driving impairments will be the focus of the eighth annual Friedman Conference on Aging, “Are We Licensed for Life? Transportation and Driving Issues in an Aging Society.”

The influence of genetics increases as young women transition from their first drink to alcohol dependence. A team of researchers at the School of Medicine found that although environment is most influential in determining when drinking begins, genes play a larger role in advancing to problem drinking and alcohol dependence.

About 40 percent of African-Americans have a genetic variant that can protect them after heart failure and prolong their lives, according to research conducted at the School of Medicine and collaborating institutions. The genetic variant has an effect that resembles that of beta blockers, drugs widely prescribed for heart failure. The new study offers a reason why beta blockers don’t appear to benefit some African-Americans.

The estimated 19 million Americans living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) face a high risk of death from cardiovascular disease, usually related to high levels of blood phosphate. Now researchers at the School of Medicine have demonstrated that high blood phosphate directly stimulates calcification of blood vessels and that phosphate-binding drugs can decrease vascular calcification.

The School of Medicine and the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) have announced a research collaboration that aims to develop new and improved ways to diagnose and treat Alzheimer’s disease. The major focus of the alliance will be biomarkers, characteristic changes in the brain and spinal fluid that physicians can use to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease and track its response to treatment.