(Press-News.org) For the first time, researchers have created a model that could help unlock what causes adenomyosis, a common gynecological disease that is a major contributor to women having to undergo hysterectomies.
In a two-step process, a team led by Michigan State University's Jae-Wook Jeong first identified a protein known as beta-catenin that may play a key role in the development of the disease. When activated, beta-catenin causes changes in certain cells in a woman's uterus, leading to adenomyosis.
Then Jeong, an associate professor in the College of Human Medicine's Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, created a mouse model that may reveal useful targets for new treatments.
"Progress in the understanding what causes adenomyosis and finding potential drug treatments has been hampered by the lack of defined molecular mechanisms and animal models," Jeong said.
"These findings provide great insights into our understanding of the beta-catenin protein and will lead to the translation of animal models for the development of new therapeutic approaches."
The disease occurs when the inner lining of the uterus (endometrium) breaks through the muscle wall of the uterus (myometrium). Symptoms of the disease include menstrual bleeding, chronic pelvic pain and infertility. Most women with the disease require surgery, and 66 percent of hysterectomies are associated with it.
"This research offers hope to the millions of women who have adenomyosis and holds promise that a cure, besides hysterectomy, is on the horizon," said Richard Leach, chairperson of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology.
The research results were recently published in the Journal of Pathology. The work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society and World Class University Program at Seoul National University in South Korea.
Leach added the study highlights the groundbreaking research being done in collaboration with other internationally renowned research centers in women's health.
INFORMATION:
Researchers close in on cause of gynecological disease
Scientists create model in battle against adenomyosis
2013-10-09
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Running a marathon can be bad for the heart, especially in less prepared runners, say experts
2013-10-09
Philadelphia, PA, October 9, 2013 – Investigators who studied a group of recreational marathon runners have established that strenuous exercise such as running a marathon can damage the heart muscle. Although they found the effect is temporary and reversible, they warn that these effects are more widespread in less fit distance runners and that recreational distance runners should prepare properly before marathons. Their findings are published in the October issue of the Canadian Journal of Cardiology.
Previous reports have established that a significant percentage of ...
Does good cholesterol increase breast cancer risk?
2013-10-09
(PHILADELPHIA) High levels of high density lipoprotein (HDL), also known as the "good cholesterol," are thought to protect against heart disease. However, what's good for one disease may not be good for another. High levels of HDL have also been linked to increased breast cancer risks and to enhanced cancer aggressiveness in animal experiments. Now, a team of researchers led by Philippe Frank, Ph.D., a cancer biologist in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Thomas Jefferson University, has shown that an HDL receptor found on breast cancer cells may be ...
Mayo Clinic: Cataract surgeries on the rise as boomers age, raising access, cost issues
2013-10-09
ROCHESTER, Minn. -- As baby boomers enter their retirement years, health care costs for complex and debilitating conditions such as Alzheimer's disease are expected to soar. Not drawing as much attention is the likelihood of similarly rising expenses for common age-related medical procedures. A Mayo Clinic study looked at one of those -- cataract surgery-- and found that more people are getting the vision-improving procedure, seeking it at younger ages and having both eyes repaired within a few months, rather than only treating one eye. The demand shows no sign of leveling ...
BUSM identifies barriers to implementing complimentary medicine curricula into residency
2013-10-09
(Boston) - Investigators at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have identified that lack of time and a paucity of trained faculty are perceived as the most significant barriers to incorporating complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and integrative medicine (IM) training into family medicine residency curricula and training programs.
The study results, which are published online in Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing, were collected using data from an online survey completed by 212 national residency program directors. The study was led by Paula ...
Longer life for humans linked to further loss of endangered species
2013-10-09
As human life expectancy increases, so does the percentage of
invasive and endangered birds and mammals, according to a new study
by the University of California, Davis.
The study, published in the September issue of Ecology and Society,
examined a combination of 15 social and ecological variables -- from
tourism and per capita gross domestic product to water stress and
political stability. Then researchers analyzed their correlations
with invasive and endangered birds and mammals, which are two
indicators of what conservationist Aldo Leopold termed "land
sickness," ...
Self-healing materials could arise from finding that tension can fuse metal
2013-10-09
CAMBRIDGE, MA -- It was a result so unexpected that MIT researchers initially thought it must be a mistake: Under certain conditions, putting a cracked piece of metal under tension -- that is, exerting a force that would be expected to pull it apart -- has the reverse effect, causing the crack to close and its edges to fuse together.
The surprising finding could lead to self-healing materials that repair incipient damage before it has a chance to spread. The results were published in the journal Physical Review Letters in a paper by graduate student Guoqiang Xu and professor ...
New strategy lets cochlear implant users hear music
2013-10-09
For many, music is a universal language that unites people when words cannot. But for those who use cochlear implants -- technology that allows deaf and hard of hearing people to comprehend speech -- hearing music remains extremely challenging.
University of Washington scientists hope to change this. They have developed a new way of processing the signals in cochlear implants to help users hear music better. The technique lets users perceive differences between musical instruments, a significant improvement from what standard cochlear implants can offer, said lead researcher ...
Trauma-related psychophysiologic reactivity identified as best predictor of PTSD diagnosis
2013-10-09
(Boston) - Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and several other institutions including the National Center for PSTD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Suffolk University, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University, have determined that psychophysiologic reactivity to trauma-related, script-driven imagery procedures is a promising biological predictor of a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis. These findings appear online in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology.
Approximately seven to 12 percent of the general adult population ...
Clinical trial outcomes more complete in unpublished reports than published sources
2013-10-09
Clinical trial outcomes are more complete in unpublished reports than in publicly available information
Publicly available sources of information reporting findings from clinical trials provide much less information on patient-relevant outcomes than unpublished reports, according to a study by German researchers published in this week's PLOS Medicine. The results of the study by Beate Wieseler and colleagues from the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care in Cologne, Germany, found that the publicly available information contained less information about both ...
Expanding flu vaccination policies to include children could reduce infections and mortality
2013-10-09
The current influenza (flu) vaccination policy in England and Wales should be expanded to target 5 to 16-year-olds in order to further reduce the number of deaths from flu, according to a study by UK researchers published in this week's PLOS Medicine.
The results of the study by Marc Baguelin and colleagues from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in the UK, Public Health England, and Athens University of Economics and Business, show that the current flu vaccination policy that targets people aged 65 years and over and also those in high risk groups has ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
USC team demonstrates first optical device based on “optical thermodynamics”
Microplastics found to change gut microbiome in first human-sample study
Artificially sweetened and sugary drinks are both associated with an increased risk of liver disease, study finds
Plastic in the soil, but not as we know it: Biodegradable microplastics rewire carbon storage in farm fields
Yeast proteins reveal the secrets of drought resistance
Psychiatry, primary care, and OB/GYN subspecialties hit hardest by physician attrition
New Canadian study reveals where HIV hides in different parts of the body
Lidocaine poisonings rise despite overall drop in local anesthetic toxicity
Politics follow you on the road
Scientists blaze new path to fighting viral diseases
The mouse eye as a window to spotting systemic disease
AI and the Future of Cancer Research and Cancer Care to headline October 24 gathering of global oncology leaders at the National Press Club: NFCR Global Summit to feature top scientists, entrepreneurs
FDA clears UCLA heart tissue regeneration drug AD-NP1 for clinical trials
Exploring the therapeutic potential of cannabidiol for Alzheimer's
We need a solar sail probe to detect space tornadoes earlier, more accurately, U-M researchers say
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML): Disease risk but not remission status determines transplant outcomes – new ASAP long-term results
Sperm microRNAs: Key regulators of the paternal transmission of exercise capacity
Seeing double: Clever images open doors for brain research
Inhaler-related greenhouse gas emissions in the US
UCLA Health study finds inhalers for asthma and COPD drive significant greenhouse gas emissions
A surgical handover system for patient physiology and safety
Cardiovascular health changes in young adults and risk of later-life cardiovascular disease
Nurse workload and missed nursing care in neonatal intensive care units
How to solve the remote work stalemate – dissertation offers tools for successful hybrid work
Chip-based phonon splitter brings hybrid quantum networks closer to reality
Texas Children’s researchers create groundbreaking tool to improve accuracy of genetic testing
Milken Institute, Ann Theodore Foundation announce more than $2.5 million in new funding for sarcoidosis research and launch new call for proposals
Boston University professor to receive 2025 Eugene Braunwald Academic Mentorship Award
Pusan National University researchers reveal how forest soil properties influence arsenic mobility and toxicity in soil organisms
Korea University researchers find sweet taste cells resist nerve damage through c-Kit protein
[Press-News.org] Researchers close in on cause of gynecological diseaseScientists create model in battle against adenomyosis