MedWorm: Virginia Tech

Role of leptin as antioxidant in obstructive sleep apnea: an in vitro study using electron paramagnetic resonance method

Sleep and Breathing — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:11:08 +0100

Conclusion Leptin is an antioxidant agent of possible use as a marker of OS and future risk of atherosclerotic disease in OSA. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Original ArticlePages 1-6DOI 10.1007/s11325-012-0656-8Authors Madalina Macrea, Salem VA Medical Center, affiliate of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USAThomas Martin, Salem VA Medical Center, affiliate of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USALeon Zagrean, Physiology Department, “Carol Davila” School of Medicine, Bucharest, RomaniaZhenquan Jia, Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27410, USAHara Misra, Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Virginia Tech Corporate Research, Black...

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Scientific plagiarism: A growing problem in an era of shrinking research funding

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Harold Garner, creator of eTBLAST plagiarism detection software, identified numerous instances of wholesale plagiarism among citations in MEDLINE. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Group Settings Can Diminish Expressions Of Intelligence, Especially Among Women

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 09:00:00 +0100

In the classic film "12 Angry Men," Henry Fonda's character sways a jury with his quiet, persistent intelligence. But would he have succeeded if he had allowed himself to fall sway to the social dynamics of that jury? Research led by scientists at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute found that small-group dynamics - such as jury deliberations, collective bargaining sessions, and cocktail parties - can alter the expression of IQ in some susceptible people... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Group settings can diminish expressions of intelligence, especially among women

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Research led by scientists at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute found that small-group dynamics -- such as jury deliberations, collective bargaining sessions, and cocktail parties -- can alter the expression of IQ in some susceptible people. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Periodic Eyelid Opening Associated with Burst-Suppression Electroencephalography due to Hypoxic Ischemic Injury

Neurocritical Care — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 07:00:34 +0100

Conclusions Our experience and prior reports suggest that periodic eyelid opening following cardiac arrest is associated with a burst-suppression pattern on EEG. Since burst-suppression is highly (though not invariably) predictive of a poor outcome in this patient population, intensivists should be familiar with this neurological sign. Prospective studies are needed to define the neurophysiology of this phenomena and clarify its clinical significance. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Practical PearlPages 1-4DOI 10.1007/s12028-011-9665-xAuthors Joseph M. Ferrara, Division of Neurology, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and Research Institute, 2 Riverside Cir, Roanoke, VA 24016, USADavid J. Houghton, Division of Movement Disorders, University of Louisvill...

Novel Anti-Viral Immune Pathway Discovered In The Mosquito

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0100

As mosquito-borne viral diseases like West Nile fever, dengue fever, and chikungunya fever spread rapidly around the globe, scientists at Virginia Tech are working to understand the mosquito's immune system and how the viral pathogens that cause these diseases are able to overcome it to be transmitted to human and animal hosts. In nearly every part of the world, humans and animals experience high levels of morbidity and mortality after being bitten by mosquitoes infected with viruses... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Researchers discover novel anti-viral immune pathway in the mosquito

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Virginia Tech researchers have identified a novel anti-viral pathway in the immune system of culicine mosquitoes, the insect family to which mosquitoes that spread yellow fever, West Nile fever, dengue fever, and chikungunya fever belong. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Canine models of Duchenne muscular dystrophy and their use in therapeutic strategies

Mammalian Genome — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:02:40 +0100

Abstract Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an X-linked recessive disorder in which the loss of dystrophin causes progressive degeneration of skeletal and cardiac muscle. Potential therapies that carry substantial risk, such as gene- and cell-based approaches, must first be tested in animal models, notably the mdx mouse and several dystrophin-deficient breeds of dogs, including golden retriever muscular dystrophy (GRMD). Affected dogs have a more severe phenotype, in keeping with that of DMD, so may better predict disease pathogenesis and treatment efficacy. Various phenotypic tests have been developed to characterize disease progression in the GRMD model. These biomarkers range from measures of strength and joint contractures to magnetic resonance imaging. Some of these...

Clostridium difficile prevalence rates in a large healthcare system stratified according to patient population, age, gender, and specimen consistency

European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 06:57:15 +0100

Abstract We evaluated Clostridium difficile prevalence rates in 2,807 clinically indicated stool specimens stratified by inpatient (IP), nursing home patient (NH), outpatient (OP), age, gender, and specimen consistency using bacterial culture, toxin detection, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) ribotyping. Rates were determined based on the detection of toxigenic C. difficile isolates. We identified significant differences in the rates between patient populations and with age. Specimens from NH had a higher rate (46%) for toxigenic C. difficile than specimens from IP (18%) and OP (17%). There were no gender-related differences in the rates. Liquid specimens had a lower rate (15%) than partially formed and soft specimens (25%) and formed specimens (18%) for the isolation of ...

'Tis the season to be wary of elder financial abuse

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Seniors should be advised that, along with seasonal elevations of joy and good cheer, the risk of falling victim to elder financial abuse is also increasing, researchers report. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

The paradox of gift giving: More not better, says new study

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Holiday shoppers, take note. Virginia Tech and University of Michigan researchers have found that in gift giving, bundling together an expensive "big" gift and a smaller "stocking stuffer" reduces the perceived value of the overall package for the recipient. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

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New study shows evacuation plans need to incorporate family perspectives

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Women who are engaged in traditional care giving roles may be exceptionally vulnerable to events that disrupt their neighborhood. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Molecular Mechanisms and Pathological Consequences of Endotoxin Tolerance and Priming

Archivum Immunologiae et Therapiae Experimentalis — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:42:15 +0100

Abstract Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a component of Gram-negative bacteria, is a potent inflammatory stimulant, with high doses due to disseminated bacterial infection resulting in systemic inflammatory response syndrome and death. Lower doses can induce a state of tolerance to subsequent toxic doses of LPS, but extremely low doses have an opposite effect, priming the immune system for an even more violent response to subsequent challenge. A substantial body of research exists on the phenomenon of endotoxin tolerance, which appears to be a state of generalized dampening of inflammatory pathways. Comparatively little is known about the mechanisms or indeed the phenomenon of priming, particularly regarding the shift from a priming to a tolerizing response. Our aim is to review...

Influence of mental workload on muscle endurance, fatigue, and recovery during intermittent static work

European Journal of Applied Physiology — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:40:28 +0100

Abstract Most occupational tasks involve some level of mental/cognitive processing in addition to physical work; however, the etiology of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) due to these demands remains unclear. The aim of this study was to quantify the interactive effects of physical and mental workload on muscle endurance, fatigue, and recovery during intermittent work. Twelve participants, balanced by gender, performed intermittent static shoulder abductions to exhaustion at 15, 35, and 55% of individual maximal voluntary contraction (MVC), in the absence (control) and presence (concurrent) of a mental arithmetic task. Changes in muscular capacity were determined using endurance time, strength decline, electromyographic (EMG) fatigue indicators, muscle oxygen...

Virginia Tech's Rylander wins national biomedical engineering award

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Marissa Nichole Rylander, an associate professor at Virginia Tech faculty, combines nanotechnology, laser therapy, and dynamic imaging to study tumor progression and to develop novel cancer treatments. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Mild Cognitive Impairment Distresses Health Of Caregiver

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 08:00:00 +0100

When a person with mild cognitive impairment is agitated or restless, caregivers can expect to find they are more edgy as well. According to recent research conducted at Virginia Tech, the more a caregiver's day is disrupted by the unsettled behaviors of their loved one, the more they find themselves unable to meet or balance their own home and family work loads. This heightens the effect of elevated stress levels on their own bodies, placing caregivers at risk for current and future health problems... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Caregivers at risk for health problems

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) The more a caregiver's day is disrupted by the unsettled behaviors of their loved one who has mild cognitive impairment, the more they find themselves unable to meet or balance their own home and family work loads. This heightens the effect of elevated stress levels on their own bodies, placing caregivers at risk for current and future health problems. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Research Reveals How Physicians Learn Or Not

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 09:00:00 +0100

When seeking a physician, you should look for one with experience. Right? Maybe not. Research on physicians' decision-making processes has revealed that those who pay attention to failures as well as successes become more adept at selecting the correct treatment. "We found that all the physicians in the study included irrelevant criteria in their decisions," said Read Montague, Ph.D., director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, who led the study. "Notably, however, the most experienced doctors were the poorest learners... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Brain imaging, behavior research reveals physicians learn more by paying attention to failure

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Research on physicians' decision-making processes has revealed that those who pay attention to failures as well as successes become more adept at selecting the correct treatment. The researchers also found that all the physicians in the study included irrelevant criteria in their decisions. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Privacy for Medical Records Weaker in US: Study

ICMCC: The International Council on Medical and Care Compunetics — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 11:18:10 +0100

Source: Mary Silver, Epoch Times Content: “American laws and procedures are not effective at protecting patient privacy, according to experts. Janine Hiller, professor of business law in the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech, was the lead author of “Privacy and Security in the Implementation of Health Information Technology: U.S. and EU Compared,” published [...] (Source: ICMCC: The International Council on Medical and Care Compunetics)

Learning About Toxins And Everyday Impurities That Take Your Breath Away

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 08:00:00 +0100

Breathing. Anyone reading this article is doing it right now. But what chemicals are we breathing in, and out? A group of Virginia Tech College of Engineering researchers has published a paper in the journal Environmental Science & Technology that details how to learn just that, using microelectromechanical systems to focus on toxins and everyday impurities that enter the body through the air we intake. The research paper, "The Possibilities Will Take Your Breath Away: Breath Analysis for Assessing Environmental Exposure," was written by Andrea Dietrich, professor with the Charles E... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Research team explores how microbial diversity defends against disease

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Amphibians are among the most threatened creatures on earth, with some 40 percent of amphibian species threatened or endangered. One of 11 new Dimensions of Biodiversity projects funded by the National Science Foundation is looking for microbes that will provide a natural defense. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Researchers using new technology to study breath for toxins

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) New technologies - including hair-thin sorption devices found in microelectromechanical systems - can detect trace amounts of possible toxins in a person's breath on the parts per billion or the micro-particle scale, and have improved test performance in terms of identifying biomarkers, and reduced analysis time, sample volume, and consumables such as solvents and reagents. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Plant researchers locate transporter used for nicotine metabolism

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A team of Virginia Tech and Purdue University scientists have identified a distinct transporter used by tobacco plant cells for nicotine metabolism. Passage of alkaloids from one cell to another in an assembly line fashion is crucial to the biosynthesis of many medicinal plant alkaloids. However, prior to the study, it was not known exactly how the alkaloids were able to move either in or out of the cell. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Decision-Making In Action

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 08:00:00 +0100

A research team led by investigators at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute has demonstrated the first rapid measurements of dopamine release in a human brain and provided preliminary evidence that the neurotransmitter can be tracked in its movement between brain cells while a subject expresses decision-making behavior... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Dopamine release in human brain tracked at microsecond timescale reveals decision-making

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) The first rapid measurements of dopamine release in a human brain have provided preliminary evidence that the neurotransmitter can be tracked in its movement between brain cells while a subject expresses decision-making behavior. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

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Veterinary Researchers Discover First US Strains Of Hepatitis E Virus From Rabbits

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 10:00:00 +0100

Researchers in the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech have identified the first strains of hepatitis E virus from farmed rabbits in the United States. It is unknown whether the virus can spread from rabbits to humans. Caitlin Cossaboom of Salisbury, Md., a second-year student in the combined Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Ph.D... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Veterinary researchers discover first US strains of hepatitis E virus from rabbits

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Researchers in the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech have identified the first strains of hepatitis E virus from farmed rabbits in the United States. It is unknown whether the virus can spread from rabbits to humans. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Validation of Concussion Risk Curves for Collegiate Football Players Derived from HITS Data. - Funk JR, Rowson S, Daniel RW, Duma SM.

SafetyLit: All (Unduplicated) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 16:00:32 +0100

For several years, Virginia Tech and other schools have measured the frequency and severity of head impacts sustained by collegiate American football players in real time using the Head Impact Telemetry (HIT) System of helmet-mounted accelerometers. In thi... (Source: SafetyLit: All (Unduplicated))

Insecticide Resistance Mechanisms Identified In Bed Bugs

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 09:00:00 +0100

Bed bugs, largely absent in the U.S. since the 1950s, have returned with a hungry vengeance in the last decade in all 50 states. These insects have developed resistance to pyrethroids, one of the very few classes of insecticide used for their control. A research team at Virginia Tech has discovered some of the genetic mechanisms for the bed bug's resistance to two of the most popular pyrethroids -- deltamethrin and beta-cyfluthrin... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Biomedical Engineers Announce Child Football Helmet Study

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 07:00:00 +0100

Virginia Tech has released results from the first study ever to instrument child football helmets. Youth football helmets are currently designed to the same standards as adult helmets, even though little is known about how child football players impact their heads. This is the first study to investigate the head impact characteristics in youth football, and will greatly enhance the development of improved helmets specifically designed for children. The Auburn Eagles, a local, Montgomery County, Va., youth team consisting of 6 to 8 year old boys, has participated in the study since August... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Virginia Tech biomedical engineers announce child football helmet study

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Youth football helmets are currently designed to the same standards as adult helmets, even though little is known about how child football players impact their heads. This is the first study to investigate the head impact characteristics in youth football. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

US Army awards $1.5 million for sleep research

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Sleep or lack of sleep affects our physical and neurological performance. The central scientific effort of this project will be to improve our understanding of how the brainstem and thalamus regulate sleep in humans, and how these systems are affected by stress and sleep restriction. This project will focus particularly on serotonin systems in the brainstem and thalamus, because they play a key role in sleep cycling, mood, and stress responses. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Validation of Concussion Risk Curves for Collegiate Football Players Derived from HITS Data.

Annals of Biomedical Engineering — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 04:00:00 +0100

In this study, data from 37,128 head impacts collected at Virginia Tech during games from 2006 to 2010 were analyzed. Peak head acceleration exceeded 100 g in 516 impacts, and the Head Injury Criterion (HIC) exceeded 200 in 468 impacts. Four instrumented players in the dataset sustained a concussion. These data were used to develop risk curves for concussion as a function of peak head acceleration and HIC. The validity of this biomechanical approach was assessed using epidemiological data on concussion incidence from other sources. Two specific aspects of concussion incidence were addressed: the variation by player position, and the frequency of repeat concussions. The HIT System data indicated that linemen sustained the highest overall number of head impacts, while skill positions sustai...

Mastitis and its Impact on Structure and Function in the Ruminant Mammary Gland

Journal of Mammary Gland Biology and Neoplasia — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 05:56:10 +0100

Abstract It is a given in biology that structure and function go hand-in-hand. At the level of the mammary alveoli, copious milk production depends on the proliferation of mammary epithelial cells and the biochemical and structural differentiation of these cells after parturition. For example, data from quantitative structural studies demonstrate that differences in milk production between beef and dairy cows correspond with a relative failure of alveolar cell differentiation in cattle not specifically selected for milk yield. It is likely, but not proven, that production differences within or between dairy breeds are also determined by differences in the capacity of alveolar cells to differentiate or to maintain an adequate state of differentiation. These observations str...

Selection of a phylogenetically informative region of the norovirus genome for outbreak linkage

Virus Genes — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 05:54:09 +0100

Abstract The recognition of a common source norovirus outbreak is supported by finding identical norovirus sequences in patients. Norovirus sequencing has been established in many (national) public health laboratories and academic centers, but often partial and different genome sequences are used. Therefore, agreement on a target sequence of sufficient diversity to resolve links between outbreaks is crucial. Although harmonization of laboratory methods is one of the keystone activities of networks that have the aim to identify common source norovirus outbreaks, this has proven difficult to accomplish, particularly in the international context. Here, we aimed at providing a method enabling identification of the genomic region informative of a common source norovirus outbrea...

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New Anti-Malaria Drugs Target Enzymes

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 07:00:00 +0100

Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Monash University, and Virginia Tech have used a set of novel inhibitors to analyze how the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, uses enzymes to chew up human hemoglobin from host red blood cells as a food source. They have validated that two of these parasite enzymes called peptidases are potential anti-malarial drug targets. The research appeared in the Aug. 15 early online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy Sciences... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Enzymes possible targets for new anti-malaria drugs

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Researchers have validated that two enzymes used by malaria parasites to chew up human hemoglobin are potential anti-malarial drug targets. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Guide Describes Ultrasound Use In Emergencies For Brain Disorders

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 09:00:00 +0100

The discovery that low-intensity, pulsed ultrasound can be used to noninvasively stimulate intact brain circuits holds promise for engineering rapid-response medical devices. The team that made that discovery, led by William "Jamie" Tyler, an assistant professor with the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, has now produced an in-depth article detailing this approach, which may one day lead to first-line therapies in combating life-threatening epileptic seizures... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Microbes travel through the air; it would be good to know how and where

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Preliminary research on Fusarium, a group of fungi that includes devastating pathogens of plants and animals, shows how these microbes travel through the air. Virginia Tech researchers now believe that with improvements on this preliminary research, there will be a better understanding about crop security, disease spread and climate change. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Running backs take hardest hits to the head, linemen take the most

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Brown University) Researchers gathered data on the frequency, direction, and magnitude of head impacts from players who wore sensor-equipped helmets during three football seasons at Brown University, Dartmouth College, and Virginia Tech. The data amount to a measure of players' exposure to head impacts, which can ultimately help physicians and scientists understand how concussions occur. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

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Database of water, wastewater pipeline infrastructure systems to be launched Sept. 1

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A national database on technologies to assess the conditions and rehabilitation of the underground pipes will be available to utilities and the general public, starting on Thursday, Sept. 1, 2011. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

VBI, Convey Computer partner to deliver technology to biomedical, life sciences researchers

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Researchers are drowning in data. An NSF grant and academic-business partnership will apply high performance computing technology to extract meaningful information from a data-rich environment and move toward applications. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Researchers building new sensor that could stop falls by elderly, before they happen

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Researches at Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia are creating a portable fall prediction monitoring system for detection of fall risks that can provide early diagnosis and treatment before a fall occurs to reduce injuries and death from falls. The device, which could look like a piece of jewelry, will measure potentially small declining increments in gait, posture and mobility of a patient, major indicators that can help point to a future fall. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Coke Addicts Prefer Money In Hand To Snowy Future

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 07:00:00 +0100

When a research team asked cocaine addicts to choose, hypothetically, between money now or cocaine of greater value later, "preference was almost exclusively for the money now," said Warren K., Bickel, professor in the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, director of the Advanced Recovery Research Center, and professor of psychology in the College of Science at Virginia Tech. This result is significantly different from previous studies where a subject chooses between some money now or more money later... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

National Institutes of Health renews successful infectious disease research study

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) The National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) has renewed funding for a successful program that is modeling the potential path of infectious disease so leaders can make better-informed decisions about natural or intentionally caused emerging infectious diseases, and in planning for national emergencies or acts of bioterrorism. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

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Easy to visualize goal powerful motivator to finish a race or a task

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Making goal attainment visual provides motivation for reaching abstract goals just as with physical destinations. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Fading Ability To Taste Iron Raises Health Concerns For People Over Age 50

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 08:00:00 +0100

People lose the ability to detect the taste of iron in drinking water with advancing age, raising concern that older people may be at risk for an unhealthy over-exposure to iron, Virginia Tech engineers are reporting in results they term "unique." The study appears in the American Chemical Society's journal Environmental Science & Technology on Aug. 10. Andrea Dietrich, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, and her colleagues, Susan Mirlohi, of Christiansburg, Va., a Ph.D... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Coke addicts prefer money in hand to snowy future

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) When a research team asked cocaine addicts to choose, hypothetically, between money now or cocaine of greater value later, "preference was almost exclusively for the money now." (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Fading ability to taste iron raises health concerns for people over age 50

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) People lose the ability to detect the taste of iron in drinking water with advancing age, raising concern that older people may be at risk for an unhealthy over-exposure to iron, Virginia Tech engineers are reporting in results they term "unique." The study appears in the American Chemical Society's journal Environmental Science & Technology on Aug. 10. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Months After Shootings, Many Virginia Tech Students Suffered PTSD

MedlinePlus Health News — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:00:00 +0100

Study found death, injury of friends, fear for friends' safety during rampage biggest factor in trauma Source: HealthDay Related MedlinePlus Page: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Source: MedlinePlus Health News)

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New Molecule Tested As A Delivery Vehicle To Image, Kill Brain Tumors

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 08:00:00 +0100

Researchers from two universities have developed and tested a molecular platform that offers hope for treatment of aggressive brain tumors. A single compound with dual function the ability to deliver a diagnostic and therapeutic agent may one day be used to enhance the diagnosis, imaging, and treatment of brain tumors, according to findings from Virginia Commonwealth University and Virginia Tech... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Months After Shootings, Many Virginia Tech Students Suffered PTSD

MedicineNet Depression General — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 07:00:00 +0100

Title: Months After Shootings, Many Virginia Tech Students Suffered PTSDCategory: Health NewsCreated: 8/5/2011 10:05:00 AMLast Editorial Review: 8/5/2011 (Source: MedicineNet Depression General)

Virginia Tech Professors Publish Research On Posttraumatic Stress

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 09:00:00 +0100

In the months after the April 16, 2007, shootings at Virginia Tech, two professors administered a survey to assess posttraumatic stress among students. The findings have been published in the July 18, 2011 issue of the Journal of Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, published by the American Psychological Association. According to researchers Michael Hughes, professor of sociology in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, and Russell T. Jones, professor of psychology in the College of Science, 15... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Researchers Develop And Test New Molecule As A Delivery Vehicle To Image And Kill Brain Tumors

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 08:00:00 +0100

A single compound with dual function the ability to deliver a diagnostic and therapeutic agent may one day be used to enhance the diagnosis, imaging and treatment of brain tumors, according to findings from Virginia Commonwealth University and Virginia Tech. Glioblastomas are the most common and aggressive brain tumor in humans, with a high rate of relapse. These tumor cells often extend beyond the well-defined tumor margins making it extremely difficult for clinicians and radiologists to visualize with current imaging techniques... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Virginia Tech shootings: Professors publish research on post-traumatic stress

ScienceDaily Headlines — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 17:35:35 +0100

Prevalence of post-traumatic stress was significantly higher among women after the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech, according to researchers. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Virginia Tech professors publish research on post-traumatic stress

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Prevalence of post-traumatic stress was significantly higher among women after the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Researchers develop and test new molecule as a delivery vehicle to image and kill brain tumors

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Commonwealth University) A single compound with dual function -- the ability to deliver a diagnostic and therapeutic agent -- may one day be used to enhance the diagnosis, imaging and treatment of brain tumors, according to findings from Virginia Commonwealth University and Virginia Tech. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Virginia Tech leads study to improve food security in southern Appalachia

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Researchers from three universities are collaborating to develop, implement, and evaluate a food security strategy to enhance the resiliency of the Southern Appalachian region, with a special focus on local food access and affordability for low-income populations. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

NIH fellow uses computation, experimentation to study diabetes, obesity

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A Virginia Tech Ph.D. student has been awarded the prestigious Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award for Predoctoral Research through the National Institutes of Health for her study of a cellular signaling receptor that is associated with chronic inflammatory diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and inflammatory bowel disease. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

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Twins Battle Rare Form of Glaucoma: Not a Challenge for Duke Eye Center

DukeHealth.org: Duke Health Features — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 18:14:27 +0100

First grade is a bittersweet transition for kids and their parents; it’s the beginning of a new era of childhood. When Stacy and Jay Edgecomb watched their excited twin daughters scamper off to the first day of first grade, they knew the year would be significant. Little did they know they were about to embark on a voyage that would make them see the world differently. The journey started when a teacher noticed that the twins were having difficulty seeing the chalkboard, and the school nurse verified a vision problem, initially identified as myopia (near-sightedness). A quick trip to their local ophthalmologist revealed seriously elevated eye pressure, and he realized the problem was beyond his expertise. Within days, the family packed up and drove 400 miles from their home in Fort Fairf...

Much-Needed Break To Family Caregivers Provided By Adult Day Care Services

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 07:00:00 +0100

Adult day care services significantly reduce the stress levels of family caregivers of older adults with dementia, according to a team of Penn State and Virginia Tech researchers. "Family members who care for dementia patients are susceptible to experiencing high levels of stress," said Steven Zarit, professor and head, department of human development and family studies, Penn State. "One way of alleviating that stress is through the use of an adult day care center, which allows them a predictable break from caregiving responsibilities... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Adult day care services provide much-needed break to family caregivers

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Penn State) Adult day care services significantly reduce the stress levels of family caregivers of older adults with dementia, according to a team of Penn State and Virginia Tech researchers. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Positive Feelings Improve Consumer Decision-Making Abilities

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100

Consumers who are in a positive mood make quicker and more consistent judgments than unhappy people, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "There has been considerable debate about how affect (moods, emotions, feelings) influences the quality of people's decisions," write authors Paul M. Herr (Virginia Tech), Christine M. Page (Skidmore College), Bruce E. Pfeiffer (University of New Hampshire), and Derick F. Davis (Virginia Tech)... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Deranged and Dangerous: When Do the Emotionally Disturbed Resort to Violence?

Scientific American - Official RSS Feed — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 19:30:00 +0100

Earlier this year a 22-year-old college dropout, Jared Lee Loughner, shot Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords through the head near a Tucson supermarket, causing significant damage to Giffords’s brain. In the same shooting spree, Loughner killed or wounded 18 others, including a federal judge and a nine-year-old girl.Information from Loughner’s postings on YouTube and elsewhere online suggests that he is severely mentally ill. Individuals with serious mental illnesses have perpetrated other recent shoot-ings, including the massacre in 2007 at Virginia Tech in which a college senior, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people and wounded 17. These events and the accompanying media coverage have probably fed the public’s perception that most profoundly mentally ill peop...

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NSF grant supports research on origin of life

EurekAlert! - Biology — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Virginia Tech biochemist Bob White said he wrestles with an insistent question: was earth's first life system "simple" in chemical terms, or extremely complicated? (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

Using Mouse Model, Researchers Characterize Biomechanics Of Ovarian Cells According To Phenotype At Stages Of Cancer

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100

Using ovarian surface epithelial cells from mice, researchers from Virginia Tech have released findings from a study that they believe will help in cancer risk assessment, cancer diagnosis, and treatment efficiency in a technical journal: Nanomedicine. By studying the viscoelastic properties of the ovarian cells of mice, they were able to identify differences between early stages of ovarian cancer and more advanced and aggressive phenotypes. Their studies showed a mouse's ovarian cells are stiffer and more viscous when they are benign... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Researchers Characterize Biomechanics Of Ovarian Cells In Mice

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 08:00:00 +0100

Researchers characterize biomechanics of ovarian cells in mice according to their phenotype at early, intermediate, and late-aggressive stages of cancer Using ovarian surface epithelial cells from mice, researchers from Virginia Tech have released findings from a study that they believe will help in cancer risk assessment, cancer diagnosis, and treatment efficiency in a technical journal: Nanomedicine... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

The Behavioral Economics and Neuroeconomics of Reinforcer Pathologies: Implications for Etiology and Treatment of Addiction

Current Psychiatry Reports — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 06:35:44 +0100

Abstract The current paper presents a novel approach to understanding and treating addiction. Drawing from work in behavioral economics and developments in the new field of neuroeconomics, we describe addiction as pathological patterns of responding resulting from the persistently high valuation of a reinforcer and/or an excessive preference for the immediate consumption of that reinforcer. We further suggest that, as indicated by the competing neurobehavioral decision systems theory, these patterns of pathological choice and consumption result from an imbalance between two distinct neurobehavioral systems. Specifically, pathological patterns of responding result from hyperactivity in the evolutionarily older impulsive system (which values immediate and low-cost reinforcer...

Biomechanics of ovarian cells

Medicineworld.org: New Article Alert — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 02:38:53 +0100

Using ovarian surface epithelial cells from mice, scientists from Virginia Tech have released findings from a study that they believe will help in cancer risk evaluation, cancer diagnosis, and therapy efficiency in a technical journal: Nanomedicine http://www.nanomedjournal.com/article/S1549-9634%2811%2900184-5/abstract........ (Source: Medicineworld.org: New Article Alert)

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Researchers characterize biomechanics of ovarian cells according to phenotype at stages of cancer

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Using ovarian surface epithelial cells from mice, researchers from Virginia Tech have released findings from a study that they believe will help in cancer risk assessment, cancer diagnosis, and treatment efficiency. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Just Two Talks With Teens Can Reduce Marijuana Use For At Least A Year

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 07:00:00 +0100

Nearly a third of high school students in the United States report smoking marijuana. Despite the mixed messages about the safety of marijuana, smoking grass is risky behavior for teens, who are, after all, still developing. Researchers from the University of Washington and Virginia Tech have demonstrated that a brief, voluntary conversation with an adult led to up to a 20 percent decrease in marijuana use for teenagers who frequently used the drug... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Firearms and the Mentally Ill - Take 2

About.com Bipolar Disorder — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 23:00:00 +0100

In April 2007 a student named Seung-Hui Cho killed or injured more than 50 people at Virginia Tech University. In reaction, a new federal law was passed that mandated - and supposedly funded - that states report to a national database all those people with histories of severe mental illness. The law was designed, it seemed, to prevent people like Cho from obtaining firearms. Little noticed at the time was a provision for those with mental illnesses who had been denied the right to own guns could petition to have their gun rights returned. I'm not taking a public stand either on the original law or on this particular provision, but I am concerned about the way these petitions are being handled. Read Full PostFirearms and the Mentally Ill - Take 2 originally appeared on About.com Bipolar Di...

Stretching Old Material Yields New Results For Energy- And Environment-Related Devices

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 07:00:00 +0100

Researchers at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. recently found a way to improve electricity generating fuel cells, potentially making them more efficient, powerful and less expensive. Specifically, they discovered a way to speed up the flow and filtering of water or ions, which are necessary for fuel cells to operate. Simply put, the researchers stretched Nafion, a polymer electrolyte membrane, or PEM, commonly used in fuel cells and increased the speed at which it selectively filters substances from ions and water... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Roadmap Of Estrogen Signaling In Breast Cancer Published

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 +0100

The first roadmap to mathematical modeling of a powerful basic "decision circuit" in breast cancer has been developed and published in Nature Reviews Cancer. The preliminary mathematical model is the first result of a $7.5 million federal grant, awarded to scientists at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) and collaborators at Virginia Tech and Fox Chase Cancer Center, to develop a systems approach to understanding and treating one of the most common forms of breast cancer... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Roadmap published for dynamic mapping of estrogen signaling in breast cancer

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Georgetown University Medical Center) The first roadmap to mathematical modeling of a powerful basic "decision circuit" in breast cancer has been developed and published in Nature Reviews Cancer.The preliminary mathematical model is the first result of a $7.5 million federal grant, awarded to scientists at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Medical Center and collaborators at Virginia Tech and Fox Chase Cancer Center, to develop a systems approach to understanding and treating one of the most common forms of breast cancer. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Two isolates from E. coli outbreak available

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Two isolates from the e.coli outbreak that has sickened more than 2,000 people have been sequenced. Both strains, TY-2482 and LB226692, have been annotated and are now available from Virginia Bioinformatics Institute's Pathosystems Resource Integration Center patricbrc.org). (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Engineered Liver May Shed Light On Effects Of Chemicals In The Environment

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 14:00:00 +0100

The liver is the primary organ in the human body that metabolizes foreign compounds such as drugs, alcohol, cigarette smoke, and environmental chemicals. Using the liver as an alarm system, researchers are starting to better understand the different levels of toxicity from these compounds and their effects on the human body. One of these researchers is Padma Rajagopalan, director of the Virginia Tech Institute of Critical Technology and Applied Science's Center for Systems Biology of Engineered Tissues... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Engineered liver may shed light on effects of chemicals in the environment

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) The liver is the primary organ in the human body that metabolizes foreign compounds such as drugs, alcohol, cigarette smoke, and environmental chemicals. Using the liver as an alarm system, researchers are starting to better understand the different levels of toxicity from these compounds and their effects on the human body. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Expertise provides buffer against bias in making judgments

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Scientists with the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute have demonstrated through behavioral research and brain scans using functional MRI (fMRI) that monetary favors can influence people's assessments of art works, but not if the viewer is an art expert. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

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Role Of Gene Regulator In Skeletal Muscles Demonstrated

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100

Fast muscles, such as the thigh muscle in a sprinter, deliver energy quickly but fatigue quickly. Slow muscles, such as the soleus muscle in the lower calf, are less forceful but important for posture and endurance. Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Virginia Tech have discovered one gene regulator that maintains the fast muscle type and inhibits the development of a slow muscle type... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Role of gene regulator in skeletal muscles demonstrated

EurekAlert! - Biology — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Fast muscles, such as the thigh muscle in a sprinter, deliver energy quickly but fatigue quickly. Slow muscles, such as the soleus muscle in the lower calf, are less forceful but important for posture and endurance. Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Virginia Tech have discovered one gene regulator that maintains the fast muscle type and inhibits the development of a slow muscle type. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

Virginia Tech mechanical engineers win measurement science best paper award

EurekAlert! - Biology — Tue, 31 May 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A paper on how to non-intrusively measure the pressure distribution at the interior of a flow field has received the Outstanding Paper Award in fluid mechanics from the Measurement Science and Technology Journal, published by the American Institute of Physics. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

Cells do talk to one another, but the question remains how

EurekAlert! - Biology — Tue, 31 May 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Systems biology and tissue engineering experts are using liver mimic to study inter-cellular communication. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

Genome Copying-Collating Steps During Cell Division

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 24 May 2011 09:00:00 +0100

Researchers from Virginia Tech and Oxford University have proposed a novel molecular mechanism for the living cell's remarkable ability to detect the alignment of replicated chromosomes on the mitotic spindle in the final phase of the cell division cycle. This checkpoint mechanism prevents mistakes in the cell division process that could damage dividing cells and the organism they inhabit... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Football Helmet Ratings For Reducing Concussion Risk Announced By Virginia Tech

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 10 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100

Virginia Tech has released the results of a new rating system of adult football helmets that is designed to reduce the risk of concussions. One currently manufactured helmet received the top "5 star" rating, and a total of five helmets received the very good "4-star" rating. This biomechanical impact data study on football helmets represents the first time researchers have provided the public with comparative test results. The information is based on a new evaluation methodology that incorporated eight years of data and analysis, quantifying head impact exposure and risk of concussion... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Study Ranks 10 Football Helmets for Concussion Safety

TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories — Tue, 10 May 2011 10:05:00 +0100

Thanks to new research out of Virginia Tech, football players, and their parents, now know which equipment could reduce the risks of sustaining concussions (Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories)

Researchers Employ New Test to Estimate Concussion Risk for Helmets

NYT Health — Tue, 10 May 2011 04:10:14 +0100

A Virginia Tech research report reveals that two models popular with teenage football players might be allowing high rates of concussions. (Source: NYT Health)

Virginia Tech announces football helmet ratings for reducing concussion risk

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 10 May 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Virginia Tech will release on May 10 the results of a new rating system of adult football helmets that is designed to reduce the risk of concussions. One helmet received the top "5 star" rating, and five helmets received the very good "4-star" rating. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Walking And Cycling Have Increased In The United States But Remain At Low Levels: Better Infrastructure And Targeted Programs Needed

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 05 May 2011 20:00:00 +0100

A new study published in the American Journal of Public Health reports a significant increase in walking between 2001 and 2009 in the United States, but only slight growth in cycling. A team of researchers from Rutgers University, Virginia Tech and the University of Sydney assessed changes in walking and cycling in the United States between 2001 and 2009. They used the 2001 and 2009 National Household Travel Surveys to compute the frequency, duration and distance of walking and cycling per capita... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Virginia Tech Researchers Awarded Grant to Develop Systems Biology Approaches to Study Cells

NIGMS - Results — Thu, 05 May 2011 16:59:00 +0100

(Source: NIGMS - Results)

In Systems Biology, Project Aims To Fuse Top-Down, Bottom-Up Approaches

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 05 May 2011 11:00:00 +0100

The National Institutes of Health has awarded Virginia Tech researchers a $2.13 million grant to develop new systems biology approaches to study cells, one of the most basic units of life. Systems biology aims to study complex cellular systems by systematically stimulating them, monitoring cellular responses, formulating mathematical and computational models to understand the data, and proposing new experiments to refine these models. T.M... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Taking Safety Personally

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 09:00:00 +0100

A year after the BP explosion and oil spill, those trying to find someone to blame are misguided, says psychological scientist E. Scott Geller, Alumni Distinguished professor at Virginia Tech, and author of a new paper published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. Geller has spent much of his 42-year career developing interventions to keep people safe, particularly helping companies develop a culture that promotes occupational safety... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Taking safety personally

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Association for Psychological Science) A year after the BP explosion and oil spill, those trying to find someone to blame are misguided, says psychological scientist E. Scott Geller, Alumni Distinguished professor at Virginia Tech, and author of a new paper published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. Geller has spent much of his 42-year career developing interventions to keep people safe, particularly helping companies develop a culture that promotes occupational safety. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Multiple Measures of Physical Activity, Dietary Habits and Weight Status in African American and Hispanic or Latina Women

Journal of Community Health — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 16:38:45 +0100

Abstract Compared measures of physical activity and dietary habits used in the Health Is Power (HIP) study, and described the associations of physical activity and dietary habits among African American and Hispanic or Latino women, adjusted for weight status. Cross-sectional baseline data were compared for community dwelling, healthy African American (N = 262) and Hispanic or Latina women (N = 148) who participated in HIP. Physical activity was measured using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) long form, the Check And Line Questionnaire (CALQ) log and accelerometry. Dietary habits were measured using NCI 24-h recall screeners, vegetable and fruit (VF) logs and the NCI Diet History Questionnaire (DHQ). Differences in physical activity...

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Functional MRI Shows How Mindfulness Meditation Changes Decision-making Process

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 07:00:00 +0100

If a friend or relative won $100 and then offered you a few dollars, would you accept this windfall? The logical answer would seem to be, sure, why not? "But human decision making does not always appear rational," said Read Montague, professor of physics at Virginia Tech and director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute. According to research conducted over the last three decades; only about one-fourth of us would say, "Sure. Thanks." The rest would say, "But that's not fair. You have lots... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Discoveries On Medical Uses Of Ultrasound To Be Presented To London's Royal Society

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 09:00:00 +0100

Jamie Tyler, assistant professor in the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute and the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, has been invited to speak at a Royal Society of London high level workshop on May 11-12 on the security implications of advances in neuroscience. The workshop is part of a four-part policy study on neuroscience and society called 'Brain Waves'... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

The Association Between Somatic Symptoms, Anxiety Disorders and Substance Use. A Literature Review

Psychiatric Quarterly — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 06:09:40 +0100

Abstract The aim of this article is to review the association between somatic symptoms, anxiety disorders and substance use. A Pub Med based literature review was conducted using various combinations of keywords related to substance use, somatic symptoms and anxiety. In various studies somatic symptoms were found to be associated with substance use. Anxiety disorders were found to have a high co-morbidity with substance use in most studies. However, several of the reviewed studies also included depressive symptoms which might have confounded the results. None of the studies was specifically aimed to find out if somatic symptoms in substance users represent an underlying primary anxiety disorder. Somatic symptoms and anxiety disorders are commonly noticed in substance users...

Functional MRI shows how mindfulness meditation changes decision-making process

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Neuroimaging research shows that Buddhist meditators use different areas of the brain than other people when confronted with unfair choices, enabling them to make decisions rationally rather than emotionally. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

Researcher to present discoveries on medical uses of ultrasound to London's Royal Society

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) As part of the the Mind Machine Interface session, Jamie Tyler will speak on the potential medical uses and concerns regarding emerging technologies for selectively activating or inactivating populations of dysfunctional nerve cells within the brain in order to develop effective non-invasive therapies for treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders , such as ultrasound and transcranial magnetic stimulation. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

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Single- and cross-commodity discounting among cocaine addicts: the commodity and its temporal location determine discounting rate

Psychopharmacology — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 14:32:31 +0100

Conclusions These data indicate that the menu of commodities offered alter discounting rates in intertemporal choice and that the greatest rate is obtained when the drug is the later available commodity. Implications for understanding intertemporal choices and addiction are addressed. Content Type Journal ArticlePages 1-11DOI 10.1007/s00213-011-2272-xAuthors Warren K. Bickel, Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute and Department of Psychology Virginia Tech, 2 Riverside Drive, Roanoke, VA 24016, USAReid D. Landes, Department of Biostatistics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 W Markham, #781, Little Rock, AR 72205–7199, USADarren R. Christensen, Problem Gambling Research and Treatment Centre, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australi...

Early Cancer Treatment Successes Lead To CAREER Award For Virginia Tech's Rafael Davalos

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 15:00:00 +0100

In a recent article in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, co-author Rafael Davalos described the use of a method he invented to successfully treat a seven-year-old spayed female Labrador retriever with a five-year history of degenerative coxofemoral joint disease. The dog's frequent lameness led to the discovery of a mass that was consistent with a cancerous tumor. With traditional treatment, survival for such a patient is three to six months. Davalos of the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences had five collaborators on the article: Robert E... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Early Cancer Treatment Successes Lead To CAREER Award For Rafael Davalos

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 14:00:00 +0100

In a recent article in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, co-author Rafael Davalos described the use of a method he invented to successfully treat a seven-year old spayed female Labrador retriever with a five-year history of degenerative coxofemoral joint disease. The dog's frequent lameness led to the discovery of a mass that was consistent with a cancerous tumor. With traditional treatment, survival for such a patient is three to six months. Davalos of the Virginia Tech - Wake Forest School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences had five collaborators on the article: Robert E... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Early cancer treatment successes lead to CAREER Award for Rafael Davalos

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) In a recent article in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, co-author Rafael Davalos of Virginia tech's College of Engineering described the use of a method he invented to successfully treat a 7-year-old spayed female Labrador retriever with a five-year history of degenerative coxofemoral joint disease. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Virginia Tech Researchers To Study How Breast Cancer Treatments Meet Resistance In Some Patients

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:00:00 +0100

The female hormone estrogen is considered to be a quasi-fuel for developing breast cancer. Now Virginia Tech College of Engineering researchers will use a $1.56 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Cancer Institute to inhibit estrogen and fight the disease that affects approximately 192,000 newly diagnosed American women, killing an estimated 40,000 each year... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Virginia Tech Researchers To Look Anew At How Breast Cancer Treatments Meet Resistance In Some Patients

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 07:00:00 +0100

The quandary of breast cancer in women is deep: the female hormone, estrogen, is considered to be a quasi-fuel for developing breast cancer. Now Virginia Tech College of Engineering researchers will use a $1.56 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Cancer Institute to inhibit estrogen and fight the disease that affects approximately 192,000 newly diagnosed American women, killing an estimated 40,000 each year... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Virginia Tech licenses GenoThreat

CMIO.net: The News Weekly for Health IT Executives — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 09:05:33 +0100

GenoThreat, a tool designed to minimize the potential risks of synthetic biology for the nation's defense and security, is now available to the gene synthesis industry and synthetic biology community in an open-source format. (Source: CMIO.net: The News Weekly for Health IT Executives)

Virginia Tech forest researcher awarded NSF early career grant

EurekAlert! - Biology — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Although forest tree populations are well-adapted to their local environments at present, climate change is substantially altering adaptive landscapes and is expected to lead to widespread maladaptation of tree populations to their seasonal temperature regimes. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

GenoTHREAT Screens For Biosecurity Risks

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 09:00:00 +0100

A software package designed to minimize the potential risks of synthetic biology for the nation's defense and security is now available to the gene synthesis industry and synthetic biology community in an open-source format. Virginia Tech has licensed GenoTHREAT, a software tool that helps detect the use of synthetic DNA as bioterrorism agents. Developed as an open-source project by a team led by Jean Peccoud, associate professor at Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech, it is being released using the Apache License Version 2.0 to ensure broad accessibility... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Open-source software designed to minimize synthetic biology risks

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 04:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A software package designed to minimize the potential risks of synthetic biology for the nation's defense and security is now available to the gene synthesis industry and synthetic biology community in an open-source format. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

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Checking On Indoor Air Pollutants Using New Measurement Tool

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 07:00:00 +0100

A promising new approach for checking the accuracy of measurements of hazardous indoor air pollutants may soon be ready for prime time, report researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Virginia Tech.* The measurement tool, a reference sample for volatile organic compounds (VOCs), would be a boon to testers of indoor air quality and to manufacturers of paints, rugs, cleaners and other building products. The researchers put their innovation - thin squares of plastic saturated with vapors of a common solvent - through the paces at four testing laboratories... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Virginia Tech researcher seeks to use electrical stimulation to give voice to stroke patients

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Alexander Leonessa is developing a small device that could use functional electrical stimulation on the paralyzed vocal folds of stroke patients or others who have lost the ability to talk, or even swallow and breathe properly. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

March Madness: Statisticians quantify entry biases

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) By examining historical data, statisticians in the College of Science at Virginia Tech have quantified biases that play a role in granting Division I at-large basketball teams inclusion in the NCAA March Madness Tournament. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

College Basketball Roundup: In Need of Boost, Virginia Tech Gets It by Beating No. 1 Duke

NYT Health — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 08:20:05 +0100

Scoop Jardine had 17 points and 7 assists Saturday to help No. 17 Syracuse beat No. 11 Georgetown, 58-51, in the Hoyas’ first game without the injured senior point guard Chris Wright. (Source: NYT Health)

Virginia Tech shares in grant to study effects of climate change on southern pine forests

EurekAlert! - Biology — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) The National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded a consortium of land-grant institutions in the South, which includes Virginia Tech, a $20 million Coordinated Agricultural Grant to study the effects of climate change on southern pine forests. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

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New Technology Pinpoints Genetic Differences Between Cancer, Non-cancer Patients

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 11:00:00 +0100

A group of researchers led by scientists from the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech have developed a new technology that detects distinct genetic changes differentiating cancer patients from healthy individuals and could serve as a future cancer predisposition test. The multidisciplinary team, which includes researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, has created a design for a new DNA microarray that allows them to measure the two million microsatellites (short, repetitive DNA sequences) found within the human genome using 300,000 probes... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

New technology pinpoints genetic differences between cancer and non-cancer patients

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A group of researchers led by scientists from the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech have developed a new technology that detects distinct genetic changes differentiating cancer patients from healthy individuals and could serve as a future cancer predisposition test. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

American Psychological Association Award Goes To Brain Researcher Recognized For Contributions To Understanding, Treatment Of Drug Dependence

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 09:00:00 +0100

Warren K. Bickel, director of the Center for Substance Abuse at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, has been selected as the 2011 recipient of the American Psychological Association Don Hake Translational Research Award. Sponsored by the Association for Behavior Analysis International, the award recognizes individuals whose work spans basic and applied research... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Brain researcher recognized for contributions to understanding, treatment of drug dependence

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Warren K. Bickel, director of the Center for Substance Abuse at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, has been selected as the 2011 recipient of the America Psychological Association Don Hake Translational Research Award. Sponsored by the Association for Behavior Analysis International, the award recognizes individuals whose work spans basic and applied research. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

When worms stick together and swim on thin water, what happens and why does it matter?

EurekAlert! - Biology — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Nematodes, microscopic worms, are making engineers look twice at their ability to exhibit the "Cheerios effect" when they move in a collective motion. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)

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Understanding Cause of Lupus - Research Uncovers Key

Disabled World — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 02:13:54 +0100

Size Of Airborne Flu Virus Impacts Risk

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100

A parent's wise advice to never go to a hospital unless you want to get sick may be gaining support from scientific studies on a specific airborne virus. The results of a Virginia Tech study by environmental engineers and a virologist on the risk of airborne infection in public places from concentrations of influenza A viruses is appearing today in the on-line, Feb. 2 issue of the United Kingdom's Journal of the Royal Society Interface. Linsey Marr, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, and her colleagues, Wan Yang, of Blacksburg, Va... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Research At Virginia-Maryland Regional College Of Veterinary Medicine Uncovers Key To Understanding Cause Of Lupus

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 09:00:00 +0100

Potentially impacting future diagnosis and treatment of lupus, an immune illness affecting more than 5 million people worldwide, researchers at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech have likely uncovered where the breakdown in the body's lymphocyte molecular regulatory machinery is occurring. Rujuan Dai, research scientist, and her colleagues in the veterinary college's Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, have discovered a "common set of dysregulated miRNAs in murine lupus models." The research, which appears in the Dec... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Key to understanding cause of lupus

Medicineworld.org: New Article Alert — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 12:31:35 +0100

Potentially impacting future diagnosis and therapy of lupus, an immune illness affecting more than 5 million people worldwide, scientists at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech have likely uncovered where the breakdown in the body's lymphocyte molecular regulatory machinery is occurring........ (Source: Medicineworld.org: New Article Alert)

Research uncovers key to understanding cause of lupus

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Potentially impacting future diagnosis and treatment of lupus, an immune illness affecting more than five million people worldwide, researchers at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech have likely uncovered where the breakdown in the body's lymphocyte molecular regulatory machinery is occurring. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

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Size of airborne flu virus impacts risk, Virginia Tech researchers say

EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A parent's wise advice to never go to a hospital unless you want to get sick may be gaining support from scientific studies on a specific airborne virus. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)

Exploring Memory Training As A Strategy For Addiction Treatment

Health News from Medical News Today — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 08:00:00 +0100

Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute faculty member leads study resulting in new insight on rehabilitating brain function in addicts People with addictions to stimulants tend to choose instant gratification or a smaller but sooner reward over a future benefit, even if the future reward is greater. Reduced value of a future reward, called "delay discounting" by neuroscientists, is the major challenge for treatment of addiction. A new study in the February 2011 (Vol... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Memory training explored as strategy for addiction treatment

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) People with addictions to stimulants tend to choose instant gratification or a smaller but sooner reward over a future benefit, even if the future reward is greater. A study published in the February 2011 Biological Psychiatry appears to present a strategy for increasing the value of future rewards in the minds of addicts. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

The Ethics of Blogging about a Public Figure's Personality: 2. Good Intentions

Psychology Today Personality Center — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 12:55:03 +0100

Do a blogger's intentions matter when commenting on a public figure? Some people might say that a blogger ought to cultivate correct or virtuous motives before discussing the personality of a public figure. A person with good values, who blogs about others' personalities, seems more likely to create good and to inflict less harm than someone with bad values.The issue of the intentions of a group of commentators was raised shortly after the 2007 Virginia Tech shootings. In 2007, a lone gunman had killed 33 people on the Virginia Tech campus and then himself. Reporters had contacted a number of psychiatrists and asked their professional opinions of the killer, and then quoted the psychiatrists' responses in the media. Not everyone was pleased with the psychiatrists' commentaries.An editorial...

The Ethics of Blogging about Public Personalities: 2. Good Intentions

Psychology Today Personality Center — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 12:55:03 +0100

Do a blogger's intentions matter when commenting on a public figure? Some people might say that a blogger ought to cultivate correct or virtuous motives before discussing the personality of a public figure. A person with good values, who blogs about others' personalities, seems more likely to create good and to inflict less harm than someone with bad values.The issue of the intentions of a group of commentators was raised shortly after the Virginia Tech shootings in 2007. A lone gunman had killed 33 people on the Virginia Tech campus and then shot himself. Reporters contacted a number of psychiatrists, asked their professional opinions of the killer, and then quoted the psychiatrists' responses in the media. Not everyone was pleased with the psychiatrists' commentaries.An editorial i...

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Blogging about Public Personalities: Do Good Intentions Matter?

Psychology Today Personality Center — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 12:55:03 +0100

Do a blogger's intentions matter when commenting on a public figure? Some people might say that a blogger ought to cultivate correct or virtuous motives before discussing the personality of a public figure. A person with good values, who blogs about others' personalities, seems more likely to create good and less likely to inflict harm than someone with bad values (background here).The issue of the intentions of a group of commentators was raised shortly after the Virginia Tech shootings in 2007. A lone gunman had killed 33 people on the Virginia Tech campus and then shot himself. Reporters contacted a number of psychiatrists, asked for their professional opinions of the killer, and then quoted the psychiatrists' responses in the media. Not everyone was pleased with the psychiatrists...

Do Good Intentions Matter When Commenting about Public Personalities?

Psychology Today Personality Center — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 12:55:03 +0100

Do a blogger's intentions matter when commenting on a public figure? Some people might say that a commentator ought to cultivate virtuous motives before discussing the personality of a public figure. A person with good values, who blogs about others' personalities, seems more likely to create good and less likely to inflict harm than someone with bad values (background here).The intentions of certain commentators was questioned shortly after the Virginia Tech shootings in 2007. A lone gunman had killed 33 people on the Virginia Tech campus and then shot himself. At least a few psychiatrists provided their professional opinions of the killer for the media. An subsequent editorial in the Psychiatric News, the official newsletter of the American Psychiatric Association, expressed d...

Risk Factors Of A Mass Shooting: Study

Health News from Medical News Today — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 08:00:00 +0100

It's easy for American society to label young killers as simply crazy. But new research suggests that a complex array of factors - from bullying to lack of parental support to ineffective mental health services - are potentially involved when a student turns to violence. The study, co-authored by Michigan State University's Hyunkag Cho, examined the risk factors of the 2007 Virginia Tech shootings by 23-year-old student Seung-Hui Cho that left 33 people, including the gunman, dead... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Don't Let the Lunatics Win

Psychology Today Depression Center — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 20:32:25 +0100

In one act of madness, Jared Loughner reinforced the illusion that mental illness is incurable, unmanageable and dangerous to the broader community. I cringe every time I hear a story like this: the Fort Hood shootings, the Virginia Tech Massacre, the Columbine Shootings. The headlines repeat and are seared into our brains. The implication of such mental illness run amok is that we are helpless, victims to the mystery of a broken brain. Loughner has done more than kill six people and wound several others including Rep Gabrielle Gifford. He has sent thousands of people into hiding about mental illness. He has resurrected the wall of misunderstanding between those familiar and unfamiliar with the disease. The facts are that Loughner's version of mental illness is a miniscule minority and our...

U.S. Department Of Defense Supports Study Of Brain, Eye Injuries In Military Personnel

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 09:00:00 +0100

The Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University Center for Injury Biomechanics has been awarded a $2.8 million contract from the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command for phase 2 of an overall project focusing on brain and eye injuries in military personnel. Specifically, blast induced brain trauma will be investigated using experimental and computational models... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Reflections on a massacre

Psychology Today Personality Center — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:47:48 +0100

In the last 20 years there have been at least 14 mass shootings in the United States in which 134 people have been killed, an average of nearly 10 people for each shooting. In the worst of these, 32 people were killed by an apparently mentally ill student with a handgun at Virginia Tech in 2006. The other killings have been in schools, workplaces, restaurants or other public places. Somewhere around 34 people are murdered each day in this country by gun violence. There are 90 guns in private hands for every 100 Americans - man, woman, and child. What can be said about the Arizona massacre? That we live in a time when extreme and hateful political rhetoric creates an atmosphere in which the most angry and unbalanced among us are inspired to kill? That t...

US Department of Defense supports study of brain, eye injuries in military personnel

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) The Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University Center for Injury Biomechanics has been awarded a $2.8 million contract from the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command for phase 2 of an overall project focusing on brain and eye injuries in military personnel. Specifically, blast induced brain trauma will be investigated using experimental and computational models. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Loughner's Mental Illness: Six Disturbing Warning Signs

TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 09:15:00 +0100

The lessons of the Virginia Tech shooter are analogous to those of Tucson suspect Jared Loughner. But what exactly could have been done to prevent the latest tragedy? (Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories)

If You Think Someone is Mentally Ill: Loughner's 6 Warning Signs

TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 09:00:00 +0100

The lessons of the Virginia Tech shooter are almost analogous to those of the Tucson suspect. But what exactly could have been done to prevent the tragedy? (Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories)

Device Promising For Detecting Metastatic Breast Cancer Cells

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 08:00:00 +0100

Research by engineers and cancer biologists at Virginia Tech indicate that using specific silicon microdevices might provide a new way to screen breast cancer cells' ability to metastasize. An image of their work provided to Biomaterials was selected as one of the 12 best biomaterials-related images published in the journal's 2010 catalogue... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Early investigations promising for detecting metastatic breast cancer cells

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Research by engineers and cancer biologists at Virginia Tech indicate that using specific silicon microdevices might provide a new way to screen breast cancer cells' ability to metastasize. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Hassan Aref receives the G. I. Taylor Medal for research

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Virginia Tech Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics Hassan Aref has been named the recipient of the G. I. Taylor Medal by the Society of Engineering Science in recognition of outstanding research contributions in fluid mechanics. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)

The Role of Anxiety and Emotional Stress as a Risk Factor in Treatment-Resistant Hypertension

Current Atherosclerosis Reports — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 06:52:30 +0100

This article summarizes the limited amount of literature that has been published in this area and highlights what we believe to be a missing key element that will guide our own future research in this area. Content Type Journal ArticleDOI 10.1007/s11883-010-0154-zAuthors Michael Greenage, Virginia Tech School of Medicine Psychiatry Residency Program, Carilion Clinic, Roanoke, VA USABurak Kulaksizoglu, Antalya Research and Training Hospital, Antalya, TurkeyMehmet Cilingiroglu, NorthShore University Health System, Evanston, IL USARizwan Ali, Psychiatry Service, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salem VA, Virginia Tech—Carilion, Blacksburg, USA Journal Current Atherosclerosis ReportsOnline ISSN 1534-6242Print ISSN 1523-3804 (Source: Current Atherosclerosis Reports)

Mechanisms of juvenile hormone action in insects could help fine tune pesticides

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) Virginia Tech researchers have discovered an important step in the activation of juvenile hormone target genes. "Understanding the molecular details in the juvenile hormone signaling may lead to discovery of novel chemicals that target mosquitoes with more selectivity," said Jinsong Zhu, assistant professor of biochemistry. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

'Junk' DNA Reveals Key Information About Breast Cancer Risk And Development

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 08:00:00 +0100

A new genetic biomarker that indicates an increased risk for developing breast cancer can be found in an individual's "junk" (non-coding) DNA, according to a new study featuring work from researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech and their colleagues. The multidisciplinary team found that longer DNA sequences of a repetitive microsatellite were much more likely to be present in breast cancer patients than healthy volunteers... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Key information about breast cancer risk and development is found in 'junk' DNA

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) A new genetic biomarker that indicates an increased risk for developing breast cancer can be found in an individual's "junk" (non-coding) DNA, according to a new study featuring work from researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech and their colleagues. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

How Natural Drug Fights Inflammation

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:00:00 +0100

Researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech have discovered how abscisic acid, a natural plant hormone with known beneficial properties for the treatment of disease, helps fight inflammation. The results, which are published in the November 2010 Journal of Biological Chemistry, reveal important new drug targets for the development of treatments for inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Link Between Immune System Changes And Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Health News from Medical News Today — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:00:00 +0100

Scientists at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech have discovered some of the key molecular events in the immune system that contribute to inflammatory bowel disease. The results, which help researchers move one step further in their efforts to develop new drugs to treat inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases, are reported in the November 2010 edition of the journal Mucosal Immunology from the Nature Publishing Group... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Assessing the seismic hazard of the central eastern United States

EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 05:00:00 +0100

(Virginia Tech) As the US policymakers renew emphasis on the use of nuclear energy in their efforts to reduce the country's oil dependence, other factors come into play. One concern of paramount importance is the seismic hazard at the site where nuclear reactors are located. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)