Scientists at Melbourne's Howard Florey Institute have shown that mental and physical exercise can improve behavioural deficits in schizophrenia and repair damaged chemical transmitter pathways in the brain.
Dr Anthony Hannan, along with Dr Caitlin McOmish, Emma Burrows and colleagues, characterised a genetically altered mouse and discovered that it had schizophrenia-like behaviours, including learning and memory problems, the inability to process complex information, and abnormal responses to particular sensory stimuli.
The scientists found the mouse's condition significantly improved by simply giving them enhanced mental and physical exercise - putting running wheels in their cages, plus interesting items to smell, see and touch.
Prolonged periods of deployment among Britain's armed forces is associated with mental health problems, finds a study published on bmj.com today.
Deployment is an essential ingredient of military life. However, research shows that an increase in the pace of military operations "operational tempo" may have an effect on health and place strain on families.
The UK armed forces have recommended deployment levels called the harmony guidelines, reflecting the need to balance rest and recuperation with deployment. In times of simultaneous major operations, such as those in Iraq and Afganistan, this tool is helpful for monitoring overstretch as a measure of over-commitment.
A total of 175 people are now hospitalized in a Urals region following a pneumonia outbreak believed to have been caused by contamination in the hot water supply, local authorities said.
The infection spread in the Sverdlovsk Region after annual maintenance to hot water pipes supplying homes. Four people are confirmed to have died of pneumonia. A local Health Ministry spokesman said one of the patients is in intensive care.
Of the patients, 150 have been diagnosed with Legionnaires' disease, a severe form of pneumonia, and in 66 of these cases the diagnosis has been confirmed by laboratory tests.
The spokesman said 31 people had already been discharged from hospital and that most patients were recovering following therapy.
Claudia Parsons
ReutersFri, 03 Aug 2007 03:49 UTC
A man who gets angry at work may well be admired for it but a woman who shows anger in the workplace is liable to be seen as "out of control" and incompetent, according to a new study presented on Friday.
What's more, the finding may have implications for Hillary Clinton as she attempts to become the first female U.S. president, according to its author Victoria Brescoll, a post-doctoral scholar at Yale University.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered a unique molecular pathway that detects and selectively eliminates defective messenger RNAs from red blood cells.
The mother of a man who was left in a near-vegetative state by a serious assault spoke yesterday of her joy at the "medical miracle" that has allowed him to speak and eat again - and which could benefit tens of thousands of people in a similar condition.
British women are acting as guinea pigs for wrinkle treatments banned in America, says a report out today.
Cosmetics companies are taking advantage of lenient British regulations to market dozens of products that are injected to smooth out wrinkles, the consumer magazine Which? reports.
Britain may finally be basking in summer sunshine after the wettest July in more than 200 years, but psychiatrists have still managed to dampen the country's spirits. Hot weather increases the risk of suicide, according to research published today.
A study of more than 50,000 suicide cases in England and Wales, between 1993 and 2003, finds that once the average daily temperature exceeds 18C (64F) there is a rise in the number of people who kill themselves.
Eating more cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower is associated with a reduced risk of aggressive prostate cancer.
Several studies have demonstrated an association between eating vegetables and a reduced risk of prostate cancer, but study results have not been consistent and many have not investigated the association among patients with aggressive prostate cancer.
Chemicals in cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, watercress, cabbage and cauliflower, appear to not only stop human prostate cancer cells from growing in mice but also may cut off the formation of blood vessels that "feed" tumors, says a University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute study. The study, abstract number 4200, is being presented today at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, April 14-18, at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
"The contribution of diet and nutrition to cancer risk, prevention and treatment has been a major focus of research in recent years because certain nutrients in vegetables and dietary agents appear to protect the body against diseases such as cancer," said Shivendra Singh, Ph.D., lead investigator and professor of pharmacology and urology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "From epidemiologic data, we know that increased consumption of vegetables reduces the risk for certain types of cancer, but now we are beginning to understand the mechanisms by which certain vegetables like broccoli may help our bodies fight cancer and other diseases."
Dr. Singh's study is based on phytochemicals, called isothiocyanates (ITCs), found in several cruciferous vegetables and generated when vegetables are either cut or chewed. His laboratory has found that phenethyl-ITC, or PEITC, is highly effective in suppressing the growth of human prostate cancer cells at concentrations achievable through dietary intake.
