Thursday, May 10, 2007
Down the Hatch
So there's bad news out there today: oral sex is linked to throat cancer. HPV, the same virus famous for causing cervical cancer in women, has been linked to a dramatic increase in throat cancer risk in both men and women. The upside is that there's a vaccine, but the downside is, it's not approved for use in men. Hopefully this research will motivate a quicker turnaround to see if it does, and then either get men to take it or find something that works.
Speaking of things that go down your throat (and, ultimately, about sex), Canadian researchers have found that omega-3 fats from fish oil seem to improve muscle mass (site in French). Cattle fed a diet supplemented with marine omega-3's showed improved insulin sensitivity and better protein metabolism - twice the amount of amino acids was used by their bodies to synthesize proteins, especially in muscles. The applications for farming is clear, and applications to human problems (and vanity, lest we forget) are on the horizon, pending further study. Cool!
Speaking of things that go down your throat (and, ultimately, about sex), Canadian researchers have found that omega-3 fats from fish oil seem to improve muscle mass (site in French). Cattle fed a diet supplemented with marine omega-3's showed improved insulin sensitivity and better protein metabolism - twice the amount of amino acids was used by their bodies to synthesize proteins, especially in muscles. The applications for farming is clear, and applications to human problems (and vanity, lest we forget) are on the horizon, pending further study. Cool!
Labels: cancer, cattle, diet, fat, health, HPV, insulin, metabolism, muscle, omega-3, oral sex, proetein, sex, vaccine
Monday, April 30, 2007
The Easy Way Out
Sick of spending all that time at the gym, and eating nothing but celery and soy protein, hoping to lose weight? Fear not, science may soon have an answer! US researchers claim that they've developed a pill that makes mice burn fat and improve muscle tone, without any exercise. The drug seems to activate PPAR-delta, which 'turns on' fat metabolism.
The drug could be useful for treating metabolic syndrome and muscular wasting disorders, but in all honesty, we all just want to eat more chocolate.
And you know what goes well with chocolate? Cherries! The good news is that tart cherries appear to have positive effects on blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose tolerance. The study is in rats, and the doses rather impressively high, but still this could be encouraging data - and a good excuse for more cherry pie, just like you remember from when you were a kid.
You remember that, right? If you don't, there may be a pill for that too: MIT researchers have found that inhibiting HDACs could reverse memory loss associated with neurodegeneration. Which, if it works in humans, will be a GINORMOUS leap forward in treating Alzheimer's and related disorders.
Alas, there is still no pill to cure stupidity. Graham points us to a particularly stunning example of the modern trend of pathologizing everything, combined with a healthy dose of bloody moronic.
The drug could be useful for treating metabolic syndrome and muscular wasting disorders, but in all honesty, we all just want to eat more chocolate.
And you know what goes well with chocolate? Cherries! The good news is that tart cherries appear to have positive effects on blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose tolerance. The study is in rats, and the doses rather impressively high, but still this could be encouraging data - and a good excuse for more cherry pie, just like you remember from when you were a kid.
You remember that, right? If you don't, there may be a pill for that too: MIT researchers have found that inhibiting HDACs could reverse memory loss associated with neurodegeneration. Which, if it works in humans, will be a GINORMOUS leap forward in treating Alzheimer's and related disorders.
Alas, there is still no pill to cure stupidity. Graham points us to a particularly stunning example of the modern trend of pathologizing everything, combined with a healthy dose of bloody moronic.
Labels: Alzheimers, cherries, cholesterol, diet, drugs, exercise, fat, HDAC, hunger, hypertension, memory, metabolic syndrome, metabolism, obesity, pills, PPAR-delta, stupidity
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Fat, Lonely, and A Hero, Type II
Pennsylvania researchers have found what they call a 'master' regulatory gene for fat storage and metabolism. GCN2 eIF2alpha kinase, when activated, appears to make the body drop all of its stored fat in a really short time frame. Activated by leucine deprivation, the kinase modulates the body's starvation response, and could possibly be manipulated to treat obesity.
The media could also get a hold of this study and set off a new national fad diet involving induced leucine deficiencies. That's what I hope happens, because the results would be hilarious*.
As if being fat wasn't enough to be afraid of, it appears that loneliness may be a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's. In a fairly large cohort (823 patients over four years), Rush University scientists found that higher scores on a loneliness scale predicted lower levels of cognitive functioning. This is not a terribly surprising finding, but it emphasizes the importance of strong social networks and social participation as we age.
Speaking of people who may need more social interaction, we have gamerz. You know, that guy who spends 15 hours a day playing Grand Theft Auto only pausing to grab another bag of Cheetos and a Diet Coke? Yeah, Rochester's Daphne Bavelier wants to be his hero. Her research may or may not suggest that playing those action video games is actually good for your visual ability. The thing is, her study seems to have a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem: avid gamerz had better vision than controls, but she does not appear to have addressed whether this is what makes them good players, or if it is a result of their playing.
* By 'hilarious' I of course mean "a disaster for the health of the people duped into following such a diet, but really they probably deserve it, because stupidity should be painful.
The media could also get a hold of this study and set off a new national fad diet involving induced leucine deficiencies. That's what I hope happens, because the results would be hilarious*.
As if being fat wasn't enough to be afraid of, it appears that loneliness may be a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's. In a fairly large cohort (823 patients over four years), Rush University scientists found that higher scores on a loneliness scale predicted lower levels of cognitive functioning. This is not a terribly surprising finding, but it emphasizes the importance of strong social networks and social participation as we age.
Speaking of people who may need more social interaction, we have gamerz. You know, that guy who spends 15 hours a day playing Grand Theft Auto only pausing to grab another bag of Cheetos and a Diet Coke? Yeah, Rochester's Daphne Bavelier wants to be his hero. Her research may or may not suggest that playing those action video games is actually good for your visual ability. The thing is, her study seems to have a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem: avid gamerz had better vision than controls, but she does not appear to have addressed whether this is what makes them good players, or if it is a result of their playing.
* By 'hilarious' I of course mean "a disaster for the health of the people duped into following such a diet, but really they probably deserve it, because stupidity should be painful.
Labels: Alzheimers, fat, gamerz, gaming, loneliness, metabolism, obesity, video games, vision
