PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Testosterone therapy improves memory in postmenopausal women

2011-06-07
(Press-News.org) Post-menopausal women have better memory after daily treatment with a testosterone spray for six months, a new preliminary study finds. The results will be presented Saturday at The Endocrine Society's 93rd Annual Meeting in Boston.

"Women have a higher risk of developing dementia compared to men," said Sonia Davison, MD, PhD, the study's lead investigator and a postdoctoral research fellow at Monash University, Melbourne. "These results offer a potential therapy, where none currently exists, to slow cognitive decline in women."

The researchers compared a control group of 30 women who received no treatment with a group of nine healthy women in early menopause (ages 47 to 60) who knowingly received the testosterone spray on their skin. The spray dose returned testosterone levels in the blood to those typical of young women of childbearing age, according to Davison. All of the treated women were receiving a stable dose of non-oral hormone replacement therapy.

All women underwent testing of cognitive function with a battery of computerized tests that can detect even small changes in cognitive performance, Davison said. The researchers tested subjects' memory through their ability to recall items from a grocery list read aloud to them—a test of verbal learning and memory—and through their performance on tests of visual learning and memory. Cognitive testing occurred at the beginning and end (week 26) of the study.

At the start of the study the two groups did not differ significantly in their cognitive test results. After 26 weeks the untreated controls showed no significant differences between their initial and final test results, the authors found. The testosterone-treated group, however, improved their verbal learning and memory, as found on the shopping list test, Davison reported.

"This is exciting in that the testosterone-treated women were all healthy, with no cognitive impairment, and there was a definite treatment effect of the testosterone spray," Davison said. "Testosterone may play a protective role against dementia."

She said their results need confirmation in a randomized, controlled clinical trial.

### The following organizations helped finance this study: the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, the Royal Australasian College of Physicians Research and Education Foundation (Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation fellowship) and FemPharm in Australia, which makes the testosterone spray for women.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Father's Day 2011: Children's Book Author Dad, Grandfather Regales His Children and Grandchildren with 'Wanda and the Oblahlahs' Story, Lost in Attic for 35 Years

Fathers Day 2011: Childrens Book Author Dad, Grandfather Regales His Children and Grandchildren with Wanda and the Oblahlahs Story, Lost in Attic for 35 Years
2011-06-07
This Father's Day, Joe Sutton's charming children's tale starring Wanda, a mischievous, gum-chewing yet lovable little girl, launches, giving a nod to the lost art of storytelling -- passing stories, family histories and values from one generation to the next. "Wanda and the Oblahlahs", (Bright Sky Press, September 2011), the brainchild of then Army Colonel Sutton, emerged at bedtime for his rambunctious young daughters, Gretchen and Megan. Now 35 years later, Wanda's imaginative adventure lives on for Sutton's grandchildren and, as a children's book, can share ...

Yearly zoledronic acid at lower-than-standard doses increases bone density

2011-06-07
A lower dose of zoledronic acid than currently recommended for prevention of bone fractures due to osteoporosis decreases bone resorption and increases bone density, and may be effective in reducing the risk of osteoporotic fractures, a study finds. The new research findings will be presented Monday at The Endocrine Society's 93rd Annual Meeting in Boston. "Our research suggests that one fifth or one half of the recommended dose might be sufficient to decrease fracture risk," said Andrew Grey, MD, principal investigator of the study and an associate professor of medicine ...

Yo-yo dieting appears to be healthier than lifelong obesity

2011-06-07
A new study comparing lifelong obesity with the weight fluctuations of "yo-yo dieting" suggests it is better to attempt to lose weight despite repeated failures at keeping the weight off than to not diet and remain obese. The results will be presented Monday at The Endocrine Society's 93rd Annual Meeting in Boston. "It is clear that remaining on a stable, healthy diet provides the best outcome for health and longevity," said the study's principal investigator, Edward List, PhD, a scientist at Ohio University, Athens. "However, obese individuals commonly weight cycle—they ...

High amounts of the hormone leptin are linked to decreased depression

2011-06-07
Women who have higher levels of the appetite-controlling hormone leptin have fewer symptoms of depression, and this apparent inverse relationship is not related to body mass index (BMI), a new study finds. On Monday the results will be presented at The Endocrine Society's 93rd Annual Meeting in Boston. "Animal data suggest that leptin may reduce anxiety and improve depression. Our study in women suggests that leptin may indeed have antidepressant qualities," said the study's lead author, Elizabeth Lawson, MD, of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School ...

BSSA tip sheet for June 2011

2011-06-07
Buried mangrove layer dampens seismic shaking along Caribbean coasts Engineers have long used a soft flexible layer, often made of rubber bearings, between a rigid building and the soil to reduce the impact of ground shaking on the structure. Now French scientists have determined that a buried mangrove layer along the coasts of Guadeloupe Island, close to the Caribbean subduction zone, serves a similar purpose. The mangrove swamps limit the effects of seismic waves on the uppermost sandy layer, reducing the potential of liquefaction from shaking caused by earthquakes. ...

Many of those living with HIV face a new life-threatening challenge: cancer

2011-06-07
CHICAGO – As the world marks the 30-year anniversary of the first reporting of HIV/AIDS, now comes the realization of a new challenge for people with the incurable disease. For reasons not yet clear, people with HIV face a higher rate of cancers not usually associated with HIV. This increasing rate of "non-AIDS defining cancers" includes lung, head and neck, liver, kidney, and anal cancers, among others. The alarming uptick in cancer rates highlights the critical need to understand how to treat tumors in people taking highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) for ...

New strategy to attack tumor-feeding blood vessels

New strategy to attack tumor-feeding blood vessels
2011-06-07
Scientists at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have discovered a key molecule needed to kill the blood vessels that supply tumours. The research team from the institute's Molecular Genetics of Cancer and Cancer and Haematology divisions found that for anti-cancer therapies that target tumour blood vessels to work the death- inducing molecule Bim is required. The finding could lead to improved anti-cancer treatments that are based on a two- or three-pronged attack on both the tumour and its blood supply. The research will be published online in the Journal of Experimental ...

Singapore researchers invent broadband graphene polarizer

2011-06-07
Researchers at the National University of Singapore have invented a graphene-based polarizer that can broaden the bandwidth of prevailing optical fibre-based telecommunication systems. The graphene research team, led by Professor Kian Ping Loh at the National University of Singapore, invented an ultra-slim broadband polarizer that uses graphene, a single-atomic-layer crystallized carbon, to convert light beam into polarized light. This is the first experimental demonstration of using graphene as an ultrathin waveguide to couple and modulate light. Light modulation by ...

Research creates nanoparticles perfectly formed to tackle cancer

2011-06-07
Researchers from the University of Hull have discovered a way to load up nanoparticles with large numbers of light-sensitive molecules to create a more effective form of photodynamic therapy (PDT) for treating cancer. Photodynamic therapy uses molecules which, when irradiated with light, cause irreparable damage to cells by creating toxic forms of oxygen, called reactive oxygen species. Most PDT works with individual light-sensitive molecules – but the new nanoparticles could each carry hundreds of molecules to a cancer site. A number of different light-sensitive molecules ...

Molecular movements could lead to new way to treat cancer

2011-06-07
Work by researchers at Queen Mary, University of London could point to a new way to treat aggressive types of cancer. The scientists have found that a molecule called Met is responsible for stimulating the growth and spread of cancer because it is relocating to the wrong part of the cell. Experiments in the lab suggest that moving Met molecules from the inside of the cell to the cell surface could halt the growth of cancer cells and even cause tumours to shrink. Met molecules are involved in the growth of cells in the human body but they are usually only active in ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Scientists trace origins of now extinct plant population from volcanically active Nishinoshima

AI algorithm based on routine mammogram + age can predict women’s major cardiovascular disease risk

New hurdle seen to prostate screening: primary-care docs

MSU researchers explore how virtual sports aid mental health

Working together, cells extend their senses

Cheese fungi help unlock secrets of evolution

Researchers find brain region that fuels compulsive drinking

Mental health effects of exposure to firearm violence persist long after direct exposure

Research identifies immune response that controls Oropouche infection and prevents neurological damage

University of Cincinnati, Kent State University awarded $3M by NSF to share research resources

Ancient DNA reveals deeply complex Mastodon family and repeated migrations driven by climate change

Measuring the quantum W state

Researchers find a way to use antibodies to direct T cells to kill Cytomegalovirus-infected cells

Engineers create mini microscope for real-time brain imaging

Funding for training and research in biological complexity

The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Ahead-of-Print Tip Sheet: September 12, 2025

ISSCR statement on the scientific and therapeutic value of human fetal tissue research

Novel PET tracer detects synaptic changes in spinal cord and brain after spinal cord injury

Wiley advances Knowitall Solutions with new trendfinder application for user-friendly chemometric analysis and additional enhancements to analytical workflows

Benchmark study tracks trends in dog behavior

OpenAI, DeepSeek, and Google vary widely in identifying hate speech

Research spotlight: Study identifies a surprising new treatment target for chronic limb threatening ischemia

Childhood loneliness and cognitive decline and dementia risk in middle-aged and older adults

Parental diseases of despair and suicidal events in their children

Acupuncture for chronic low back pain in older adults

Acupuncture treatment improves disabling effects of chronic low back pain in older adults

How interstellar objects similar to 3I/ATLAS could jump-start planet formation around infant stars

Rented e-bicycles more dangerous than e-scooters in cities

Ditches as waterways: Managing ‘ditch-scapes’ to strengthen communities and the environment

In-situ molecular passivation enables pure-blue perovskite LEDs via vacuum thermal evaporation

[Press-News.org] Testosterone therapy improves memory in postmenopausal women