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

Study shows heart calcium scan predictive of diabetes-related death from cardiovascular disease

2012-12-21
(Press-News.org) WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Dec. 20, 2012 – People with Type 2 diabetes have two to four times the risk of cardiovascular disease compared to people without the disease. The best way for doctors to predict which diabetes patients are at the greatest risk for heart disease is to use a coronary artery calcium (CAC) test in addition to the most commonly used assessment tool, according to researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. Current medical guidelines recommend treating all diabetes patients as high risk, but the Wake Forest Baptist study found that CAC can identify diabetes patients who are at very high risk for developing potentially fatal cardiovascular disease, as well as those who are at low risk. "Our observations challenge accepted medical knowledge that all people with diabetes have the same risk. CAC is key in predicting the specific risk level," said Donald Bowden, Ph.D., professor of biochemistry at Wake Forest Baptist and senior author of the study, which is published online in the December issue of the journal Diabetes Care. "People at very high risk are 11 times more likely to die from cardiovascular diseases as compared to those at low risk. Diagnosing a more precise risk level should help doctors provide more effective treatments and hopefully improve outcomes," he said. The community-based Diabetes Heart Study was designed to determine if CAC provided additional information about cardiovascular disease and mortality beyond the Framingham Risk Score, the most commonly used assessment tool. A total of 1,123 people with Type 2 diabetes between 34 to 86 years old were followed for an average of 7.4 years. The study participants were recruited from clinics in western North Carolina and reflect a cross section of families with diabetes-affected members in the region. CAC uses a CT scan to detect calcium build-up in the arteries of the heart. According to Bowden, the cost of the test is relatively low and the radiation exposure is about half of what someone would get in a year "by just walking around." "Based on our study, we think that CAC should be added to the Framingham tool as the standard of care for all people with diabetes," Bowden said. ### The Wake Forest Baptist team hopes to conduct additional research on how adding CAC as a diagnostic tool for diabetics could affect treatment and outcomes.

Co-authors of the study are Subhashish Agarwal, M.D., of Oakwood Hospital and Medical Center; Neal Jorgensen, M.S., of the University of Washington; Amanda Cox, Ph.D., David Herrington, M.D., Jianzhao Xu, B.S., Barry Freedman, M.D., and J. Jeffrey Carr, M.D., of Wake Forest Baptist. This study was supported in part by the General Clinical Research Center of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center; National Institutes of Health grant R01-AR48797, and National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute grants R01-HL67348 and R01-HL092301.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Scripps Florida scientists create new approach to destroy disease-associated RNAs in cells

Scripps Florida scientists create new approach to destroy disease-associated RNAs in cells
2012-12-21
JUPITER, FL, December 20, 2012 – Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have developed a new approach to alter the function of RNA in living cells by designing molecules that recognize and disable RNA targets. As a proof of principle, in the new study the team designed a molecule that disabled the RNA causing myotonic dystrophy. The study, published online ahead of print on December 20, 2012 by the journal Angewandte Chemie, reports the creation of small molecules that recognize disease-associated RNAs, targeting them for destruction. ...

WCS applauds Dept. of Interior plan balancing conservation and energy development in NPR-A

WCS applauds Dept. of Interior plan balancing conservation and energy development in NPR-A
2012-12-21
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) lauded U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazars announcement of a final management plan for the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) that balances wildlife conservation and energy development in the biggest public landscape in the country. The Integrated Activity Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final IAP/EIS) issued today by the Bureau of Land Management is the first comprehensive land management plan ever developed for the NPR-A. By protecting extensive coastal plain habitat around Teshekpuk Lake, and the ...

Black piranha, megapiranha have most powerful bites of fish living or extinct, finds GW researcher

Black piranha, megapiranha have most powerful bites of fish living or extinct, finds GW researcher
2012-12-21
WASHINGTON— The black piranha and the extinct giant piranha, or megapiranha, have the most powerful bites of carnivorous fishes, living or extinct, once body size is taken into account, finds researchers in a paper recently published in Scientific Reports. The research paper, Mega-Bites: Extreme jaw forces of living and extinct piranhas, highlights the piranhas' specialized jaw morphology, which allows them to attack and bite chunks out of much larger prey. Guillermo Ortí, the George Washington University Louis Weintraub Professor of Biology in the Columbian College of ...

Transplanted genetically-modified adipose cells offer potential therapy for liver diseases

2012-12-21
Putnam Valley, NY. (Dec. 20, 2012) – Using mesenchymal stromal cells derived from adipose (fat) tissues, genetically modified to express a bioluminescent marker, researchers in Italy have tracked cells after transplantation. The cells were followed from their injection into the spleen of mice modeling liver disease, to their characterization as "hepatic precursors," and to their subsequent migration through the spleen before engrafting at regenerating sites in the liver by bioluminescent imaging. Their study is described in a recent issue of Cell Transplantation (21:9), ...

Cell Transplantation study investigates fate and function of cells transplanted to the CNS

2012-12-21
Putnam Valley, NY. (Dec. 20, 2012) – When different types of cells are transplanted with the intent of having them aid in repairing central nervous system (CNS) trauma, what is the fate and function of those cells? A Belgian research team carried out research aimed at answering this question by determining how five varieties of cells - neural stem cells, mouse embryonic fibroblasts, dendritic cells, bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMNCs) and splenocytes - functioned and survived after transplantation in the CNS. Their study is published in a recent issue of Cell Transplantation ...

Study reports iron oxide nanoparticles effective for labeling human endothelial cells

2012-12-21
Putnam Valley, NY. (Dec. 20, 2012) – A team of researchers from three medical institutions in Guangzhou, China, have found that iron oxide nanoparticles (INOPS) are a useful contrast agent for in vivo magnetic resonance tracking of transplanted human endothelial cells. However, the impact of INOPS on the cells varies with a number of factors including the INOPS load. They found that the percentage of iron-labeled cells was significantly lower after 48 hours post-transplantation than at 24 hours post-transplantation. They also found that high INOPS concentration can affect ...

Doing the math for how songbirds learn to sing

2012-12-21
Scientists studying how songbirds stay on key have developed a statistical explanation for why some things are harder for the brain to learn than others. "We've built the first mathematical model that uses a bird's previous sensorimotor experience to predict its ability to learn," says Emory biologist Samuel Sober. "We hope it will help us understand the math of learning in other species, including humans." Sober conducted the research with physiologist Michael Brainard of the University of California, San Francisco. Their results, showing that adult birds correct ...

Young scientist helps identify cause of widespread eye disease

2012-12-21
Branch retinal vein occlusion – blockage of the blood vessels that channel blood from the retina – is a common eye disease. A type of blood clot in the eye, the disease causes reduced vision, and people with the disease also typically have an increased risk of hypertension, diabetes and other serious conditions. A young scientist from the University of Copenhagen has made a significant contribution to finding the cause of the disease. Mette Bertelsen and her colleagues photographically verified the diagnosis of branch retinal vein occlusion in 1168 people. A team of ...

NJ Association of Verismo Opera to Hold Auditions for Boys to Perform in Gianni Schicchi

2012-12-21
The NJ Association of Verismo Opera is known for developing the stars of tomorrow. Artistic Director Lucine Amara announces boys, nine to eleven years of age, with a soprano voice are invited to audition for the role Gherardino in the grand, professional opera company's production of Giacomo Puccini's Gianni Schicchi that will be performed on Sunday, April 21 at the Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC) in Englewood, New Jersey. Open auditions will be held on January 7, 2013 from 4-7 p.m. at the bergenPAC in the Cabaret Room, 30 North Van Brunt Street. The application ...

Powerstone Property Management Reports Double Digit Growth in 2012

2012-12-21
PowerStone Property Management Inc. a full service Orange County, California based property management firm, today announced that in 2012 it has added twenty-two new Home Owner Associations to its client roster representing a 25% growth jump from the previous year. Its professional staff has also increased by 12% over last year with the addition of 5 new employees. Client additions include a mix of new condominium, master planned, single family, and commercial properties. "Out of the 22 or so associations we gained this year, most came in the 3rd and 4th quarters." ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Pink skies

Monkeys are world’s best yodellers - new research

Key differences between visual- and memory-led Alzheimer’s discovered

% weight loss targets in obesity management – is this the wrong objective?

An app can change how you see yourself at work

NYC speed cameras take six months to change driver behavior, effects vary by neighborhood, new study reveals

New research shows that propaganda is on the rise in China

Even the richest Americans face shorter lifespans than their European counterparts, study finds

Novel genes linked to rare childhood diarrhea

New computer model reveals how Bronze Age Scandinavians could have crossed the sea

Novel point-of-care technology delivers accurate HIV results in minutes

Researchers reveal key brain differences to explain why Ritalin helps improve focus in some more than others

Study finds nearly five-fold increase in hospitalizations for common cause of stroke

Study reveals how alcohol abuse damages cognition

Medicinal cannabis is linked to long-term benefits in health-related quality of life

Microplastics detected in cat placentas and fetuses during early pregnancy

Ancient amphibians as big as alligators died in mass mortality event in Triassic Wyoming

Scientists uncover the first clear evidence of air sacs in the fossilized bones of alvarezsaurian dinosaurs: the "hollow bones" which help modern day birds to fly

Alcohol makes male flies sexy

TB patients globally often incur "catastrophic costs" of up to $11,329 USD, despite many countries offering free treatment, with predominant drivers of cost being hospitalization and loss of income

Study links teen girls’ screen time to sleep disruptions and depression

Scientists unveil starfish-inspired wearable tech for heart monitoring

Footprints reveal prehistoric Scottish lagoons were stomping grounds for giant Jurassic dinosaurs

AI effectively predicts dementia risk in American Indian/Alaska Native elders

First guideline on newborn screening for cystic fibrosis calls for changes in practice to improve outcomes

Existing international law can help secure peace and security in outer space, study shows

Pinning down the process of West Nile virus transmission

UTA-backed research tackles health challenges across ages

In pancreatic cancer, a race against time

Targeting FGFR2 may prevent or delay some KRAS-mutated pancreatic cancers

[Press-News.org] Study shows heart calcium scan predictive of diabetes-related death from cardiovascular disease