Therapy program export treats borderline personality disorder

Trade between countries usually involves products. However, one successful export from the United States to the Netherlands, Norway and several other countries is a cognitive therapy treatment program created by University of Iowa experts to help people with borderline personality disorder. The treatment program, called Systems Training for Emotional Predictability and Problem-Solving (STEPPS), augments standard treatment -- medication and individualized psychotherapy -- in order to give people with borderline personality disorder techniques to raise self-awareness and self-management. more  

Children who sleep less are three times more likely to be overweight

The less a child sleeps, the more likely he or she is to become overweight, according to researchers from Université Laval's Faculty of Medicine in an article published in the latest edition of the International Journal of Obesity. The risk of becoming overweight is 3.5 times higher in children who get less sleep than in those who sleep a lot, according to researchers Jean-Philippe Chaput, Marc Brunet, and Angelo Tremblay. more

New hope for tissue regeneration and joint repair

Inflammation, cartilage and bone erosions, joint destruction--that's the typical progression of arthritis and most rheumatic diseases. While inflammation may be controlled, and perhaps even eliminated, with early aggressive treatment, few therapeutic approaches offer hope for repairing tissue once the damage has been done. One promising strategy is the use of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). MSCs are capable of extensive self-renewal and adaptable to forming all kinds of connective tissues. While detected in several adult human tissues, MSCs have traditionally been obtained from bone marrow, an invasive, painful, and costly process. more  

New 'litmus test' could aid discovery of anti-cancer drugs

Using the unusual color properties of gold at the nanoscale, scientists at Northwestern University have developed a "litmus test" for DNA and small molecule binding that eventually could be used by pharmaceutical companies to rapidly identify promising candidates for new anti-cancer drugs. more

Fighting inflammation with targeted liposomal therapy 

Vascular endothelial cells (VECs) form the walls of blood vessels and play a critical role in inflammation. In rheumatoid arthritis (RA), VECs interact with cytokines, proteins that regulate immune response, and allow inflammation to persist, escalate, and progressively damage tissue, and joints. Recognized as potent inflammation inhibitors, corticosteroids work to control the expression of cytokines, adhesion molecules and the growth of endothelial cells. The potential of these drugs, however, has been restricted by their considerable toxicity and short half-life. more

Small study points to addictive effects of frequent tanning  

Frequent users of tanning beds may be getting more out of the experience than darker skin, according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. New evidence suggests that ultraviolet light has "feel-good" effects that may be similar to those of some addictive drugs. more

Novel newborn screening can open door to treating rare but devastating diseases

Rare metabolic diseases such as Tay-Sachs, Fabry and Gaucher syndromes are caused by enzyme deficiencies and typically have crippling, even fatal, consequences starting at very early ages. Now a team of University of Washington scientists has developed a relatively simple screening process to detect enzyme deficiencies in newborns that will allow treatment to begin before too much damage has been done. more