Erectile Dysfunctions Link With Heart Disease?

New Australian research has found men suffering even mild erectile dysfunction could have heart disease without knowing it. The Sax Institute’s 45 and Up Study is one of the largest on-going studies of healthy ageing in the world.

Doctors who looked at more than 95,000 men found that erectile dysfunction may be a symptom of cardiovascular disease. The study found that men with erectile dysfunction have a higher risk of being admitted to hospital with heart disease, even if they have no history of heart problems.

This is because erectile dysfunction can indicate problems with blood vessels and poor blood flow. The study notes that erectile dysfunction is common, with an estimated 40 per cent of men over 40 experiencing it ::  Read the full article »»»»

New Australian Study Finds Gout Medication Helps Decrease Heart Attack Risk

A West Australian-led study has found a person’s risk of heart attack could be dramatically reduced by taking a common medication to treat gout. More than 500 people participated in the Heart Research Institute study at Perth’s Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.

Some participants were given the Gout treatment/medication Colchicine. It’s a toxic natural product and secondary metabolite, originally extracted from plants of the genus Colchicum, Meadow Saffron, Autumn Crocus, Colchicum Autumnale.

Colchicine has been used originally to treat rheumatic complaints, especially gout, and still finds use for these purposes today despite dosing issues concerning its toxicity. It’s also prescribed for its cathartic and emetic effects.

In addition to gout, colchicine is use to treat familial Mediterranean fever, pericarditis, and Behçet’s disease. It is also being investigated for its use as an anticancer drug, it’s use as a heart attack preventative is a first :: Read the full article »»»»

NEW Scan Detects Proteins That Cause Alzheimer’s

Researchers say they have seen the earliest ever warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease among a high-risk group of 20-somethings in the ongoing quest for early detection and prevention. A major problem in the search for a cure for this debilitating form of dementia is that symptoms appear years after irreversible brain decay has already set in.

For the study, a team of scientists from the United States and Colombia tested 18- to 26-year-old members of an extended Colombian family that share a common ancestor and a genetic predisposition to develop an inherited form of Alzheimer’s. One-in-three members of the clan carry a gene mutation that will lead to a rare form of the disease which hits people in their 40s, unlike the common variant which presents much later.

A brain scan comparison found that individuals who carry the errant gene have less grey matter in certain areas of the brain than those who do not, scientists wrote in The Lancet medical journal :: Read the full article »»»»

Australia’s Garvin Institute Identifies Pancreatic Cancer Genes

Australian scientists have identified a set of mutated genes responsible for pancreatic cancer – one of the most lethal forms of cancer, with very few treatment options – a finding that could lead to early detection and better treatment of the disease.

Pancreatic cancer is highly aggressive and has the highest death rate of the major cancerous diseases, with patients normally dying within months of diagnosis. The researchers say that the genetic sequencing of the DNA of tumours and patients will go into global database known as the International Cancer Genome Consortium – ICGC –  which will assist researchers from around the globe in comparing the success and failure of drug treatments and other therapies.

Professor Andrew Biankin from the Kinghorn Cancer Centre at Sydney’s Garvin Institute and co-author of a study appearing in the scientific journal Nature, says treating pancreatic cancer is a race against time :: Read the full article »»»»

Australian Researchers Push Magnesium Sulphate as Cerebral Palsy Prevention

The risk of premature babies developing cerebral palsy is cut by a third if the mother is given magnesium sulphate immediately before birth, new research shows. So far it’s only been proven to work in babies born before 30 weeks, however, advocates of the research are saying that this new approach could prevent up to 150 babies a year from developing the chronic life-long condition.

Doctors are hailing the development as the biggest breakthrough in preventing the debilitating condition in 50 years, despite the fact it is not yet being routinely used in hospitals. The benefits of magnesium sulphate had been observed for a while, but obstetrics Professor Caroline Crowther says it was a large study in Australia and New Zealand in 2003 that gave compelling evidence. Read the full article »»»»

University of Melbourne: Stem Cell Breakthrough for Parkinson’s Disease

Australian scientists have developed a new technique using stem cells, in the hope to replace damaged cells in Parkinson’s disease. The technique could be developed for application in other degenerative conditions.

Researchers at the University of Melbourne have made a breakthrough in the use of stem cells to treat Parkinson’s disease.Stem cells can be used to allow the body to produce dopamine, which prevents Parkinson’s.Until now, treatment has been too risky because some of the stem cells can become carcinogenic. Scientists have now found a way to identify and separate the therapeutic cells from the dangerous ones.

“We have made some recent progress in that area by identifying novel molecules on the therapeutic cells that allow us to target them and essentially pull them out and purify them,”  said Dr Lachlan Thompson of the University of Melbourne. ”I think that will really potentially be an important breakthrough on the road to clinical translation. Read the rest of this entry »»»