Discover the Science of Health
New research from the University of Oxford suggests that higher levels of omega-3 fatty acid — primarily found in certain fish such sat tuna and salmon — are associated with better sleep in children. The study is published in the Journal of Sleep Research [1].
Last month, the National Institutes of Health, 10 biopharmaceutical companies and several nonprofit organizations launched an unprecedented partnership to transform the current model for identifying and validating the most promising biological targets of disease for new diagnostics and drug development.
Fueled by new cancer therapeutics, last year the annual new molecular and biological entity approval count from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) saw its highest year since 1997. One-third of the novel products approved by the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) are used to treat cancers of the blood, breast, colon, prostate, skin and thyroid.
A number of studies have asserted that moderate drinking has a positive benefit on cardiovascular health. Now, scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center have discovered how alcohol consumption can help to prevent heart disease. The research, published in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, studied the effects of moderate amounts of alcohol in human coronary artery smooth muscle cells and in the carotid arteries of mice [1]. In both cases, regular, limited amounts of alcohol inhibited a protein called Notch 1 and prevented the buildup of smooth muscle cells in blood vessels that leads to the narrowing of the arteries and can put you at risk for a heart attack or stroke.
For over a decade, chondroitin and glucosamine have been recommended in guidelines, prescribed by general practitioners and rheumatologists, and used by patients as over-the-counter medications to modify the clinical and radiological course of arthritis. Nevertheless, a recent meta-analysis in the British Journal of Medicine (BMJ) measuring pain intensity and joint inflammation in over 3,800 patients concludes that chondroitin, glucosamine and their combination do not reduce joint pain or have an impact on narrowing of joint space [1].
Cartilage is an elastic, fibrous connective tissue found in many areas of the human body, including the joints between bones, the elbow, the knee and the ankle. Glucosamine and chondroitin are key structural components in cartilage and are frequently prescribed to reduce joint pain and slow the progression of the disease. It has been thought that oral administration of these compounds compensates for the loss of cartilage in damaged joints. Glucosamine and chondroitin are partially absorbed in the intestine and several studies suggest that at least some of what was ingested can reach the joints. Nevertheless, the recent study, not a clinical trial itself, but a study of studies (i.e. a meta-analysis), compared glucosamine hydrochloride, glucosamine sulphate, and/or chondroitin with placebos and found that none reduced pain intensity or changed the width of joint space (i.e. reduction of inflammation) [1].
