Novel microbiome-based diagnostic tool can identify liver fibrosis, cirrhosis

Chronic liver disease represents a major global public health problem affecting an estimated 844 million people, according to the World Health Organization. It is among the top causes of mortality in Australia, the UK and the United States.

Thu, 02 Jul 2020 02:14:00 -0400

NIH announces $75 million in funding to improve genomic risk assessments for diverse populations

The National Institutes of Health has announced the provision of $75 million in funding over five years for the Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE) Genomic Risk Assessment and Management Network, which establish protocols and methodologies for improved genomic risk assessments for diverse populations and to integrate their use in clinical care.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 21:01:57 -0400

Extended culture of human pancreatic slices as a model to study regeneration of beta cells

Scientists from the Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have developed a method allowing for the long-term culture of "pancreatic slices" to study the regeneration of the human pancreas in real time.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 20:58:57 -0400

Study finds significant variation in trust of health information by Hispanics

Hispanic adults vary widely in their reported trust of health information sources, suggesting that information tailored to specific ethnic subgroups and targeted by age group may be beneficial, according to results of a study by SUNY Downstate Assistant Professor Marlene Camacho-Rivera, MS, MPH, ScD.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 20:34:45 -0400

More than one-third of excess deaths in pandemic's early months linked to other causes

Since COVID-19's spread to the United States earlier this year, death rates in the U.S. have risen significantly. But deaths attributed to COVID-19 only account for about two-thirds of the increase in March and April, according to a study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 20:24:40 -0400

CHOP researchers receive multi-million dollar grant to study disease risk in African Americans

The National Institutes of Health announced today that researchers from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia are among the recipients of a multi-million dollar grant that focuses on the use of genomics to improve risk assessment for diverse populations and integrate the findings into clinical care.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 19:12:09 -0400

Study: East Germany has more hospitalizations for heart failure compared to West Germany

East Germany has many more hospitalisations for heart failure compared to West Germany despite a nationwide healthcare system, according to research presented today on HFA Discoveries, a scientific platform of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 10:54:08 -0400

Repeated sampling of FIB-4 score can increase the prediction of future liver cirrhosis

Repeated measurements of the biomarker FIB-4 in the blood every few years can predict the risk of developing severe liver disease, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in the Journal of Hepatology.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 10:49:30 -0400

Alzheimer’s drug could be re-purposed to reverse blood vessel damage in diabetes

Drugs that were developed to treat Alzheimer’s Disease could be re-purposed to prevent - or even reverse - the damage done to the blood vessels in people who are obese or suffer from type 2 diabetes, according to new research.

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 06:26:00 -0400