Monthly Archives: July 2016
No dream: Electric brain stimulation during sleep can boost memory
“UNC School of Medicine scientists report using transcranial alternating current stimulation, or tACS, to target a specific kind of brain activity during sleep and strengthen memory in healthy people.”
Pesticides Reduce Male Honeybee Fertility
“Exposure to neonicotinoids, a type of pesticide widely used on crops, reduced the percentage of viable sperm in male honeybees (drones) and also shortened the insects’ lifespans, according to a study published today.”
Biological explanation for wheat sensitivity found
“People with non-celiac wheat sensitivity have a weakened intestinal barrier, which leads to a systemic immune response after ingesting wheat and related cereals, new research confirms.”
Plant compounds give ‘1-2’ punch to colon cancer
“The combination of phytochemicals inhibited colon cancer cells from multiplying and spreading. In addition, when the colon cancer cells were pre-exposed to curcumin and then treated with silymarin, the cells underwent a high amount of cell death,” Ezekiel said.”
Some microbes have coevolved with humans for millions of years
“Moeller found that two of three major families of gut bacteria in apes and humans trace their origins to a common ancestor more than 15 million years ago”
Cinnamon may be medicine for the brain
“Pahan a researcher at Rush University and the Jesse Brown Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Chicago, has found that cinnamon turns poor learners into good ones–among mice, that is. He hopes the same will hold true for people.”
Scientists unlock ‘green’ energy from garden grass
“A team of UK researchers, including experts from Cardiff University’s Cardiff Catalysis Institute, have shown that significant amounts of hydrogen can be unlocked from fescue grass with the help of sunlight and a cheap catalyst.”
Study shows changes in brain activity after mindfulness therapy
“The study published in the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology, looked at brain imaging in youth before and after mindfulness based therapy and saw changes in brain regions that control emotional processing.”
Medical Marijuana Reduces Prescription Drug Use, Says New Research
“Using data on all prescriptions filled by Medicare Part D enrollees from 2010 to 2013, we found that the use of prescription drugs for which marijuana could serve as a clinical alternative fell significantly, once a medical marijuana law was implemented.”
Family disease risk not all in the genes
“By not accounting for shared environmental factors, scientists may overestimate the importance of genetic variation by an average of 47 per cent, the study found.”