April 12, 2021
Older adults with more harmful than healthy bacteria in their gums are more likely to have evidence for amyloid beta -- a key biomarker for Alzheimer's disease -- in their cerebrospinal fluid, according to new research. However, this imbalance in oral bacteria was not associated with another Alzheimer's biomarker called tau.
Imbalance in gum bacteria linked to Alzheimer's disease biomarker
April 12, 2021
The ability of HDL particles (commonly known as 'good' cholesterol) to reduce inflammation in the cells that line blood vessels may help predict who is more likely to develop a heart attack or other serious heart-related event. Gauging the anti-inflammatory capacity of HDL cholesterol may one day improve standard heart disease risk assessment.
Another way 'good' cholesterol is good: Combatting inflammation
April 11, 2021
Romantic partners tend to amble when walking together; holding hands slows a couple's gait speed down even more. Solo walkers tend to walk more briskly than romantic couples walking together. A perk of being single: faster gait speed. Studies have identified a correlation between faster gait speed, increased longevity, and slower cognitive decline.
April 9, 2021
Psychosocial stress - typically resulting from difficulty coping with challenging environments - may work synergistically to put women at significantly higher risk of developing coronary heart disease, according to a new study.
Stress from work and social interactions put women at higher coronary heart disease risk
April 9, 2021
Researchers have discovered genetic risk factors for OCD that could help pave the way for earlier diagnosis and improved treatment for children and youth. Saliva samples from 5,000 kids were scanned and compared to responses using the Toronto Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. The team identified that those with a genetic variant in the gene PTPRD had a greater risk for obsessive-compulsive traits.
Spit samples uncover genetic risk factors for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder
April 8, 2021
Every spring, I and my colleague Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of NIH’s National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), join with leaders across the country in the Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit. Our role is to discuss NIH’s continued progress in tackling our nation’s opioid crisis. Because of the continued threat of COVID-19 pandemic, we joined in virtually for the second year in a row.
Lessons Learned About Substance Use Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 8, 2021
New insights into the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infections could bring better treatments for COVID-19 cases. An international team of researchers unexpectedly found that a biochemical pathway, known as the immune complement system, is triggered in lung cells by the virus, which might explain why the disease is so difficult to treat. The research is published this week in the journal Science Immunology.
COVID-19 causes 'unexpected' cellular response in the lungs, research finds
April 8, 2021
The millions of people who have chronic sinusitis deal not only with stuffy noses and headaches, they also commonly struggle to focus and experience depression and other symptoms that implicate the brain's involvement in their illness. New research links sinus inflammation with alterations in brain activity, specifically with the neural networks that modulate cognition, introspection and response to external stimuli.
April 8, 2021
A professor is working to address opioid misuse in an unconventional way: through physical therapy. She and her colleagues have enhanced physical therapy instruction to emphasize the profession's role in preventing and treating opioid use disorder.
'Pain is always a perception': Physical therapy can help prevent, treat opioid use disorder
April 8, 2021
Alzheimer's disease is known for its slow attack on neurons crucial to memory and cognition. But why are these particular neurons in aging brains so susceptible to the disease's ravages, while others remain resilient?
Leaking calcium in neurons an early sign of Alzheimer's pathology
