Health

Web hosting companies offers you different packages

2010-02-15T14:48:00.001-08:00

Web hosting companies Web hosting companies are all over the Internet that offers you different packages of the services that the have. There had been a lot of companies telling you why you should choose them as your service provider because they are simply the best. This makes your head swirling when you would finally decide who to choose but website hosting can help you choose the best. With the hosting awards and dedicated webhosting they already have chosen the best companies for you. If you are looking for reliability with affordability, then this is the place that you can check out.

Aerobatic manoeuvres at best Russian tour

2009-07-29T17:10:00.000-07:00

Perhaps you think www.bestrussiantour.com is a kind of organization that manage holiday package like a time share. Not it is not. www.bestrussiantour.com is a site that can give you a nice and unforgettable flying experience with aerobatic manoeuvres,Fly in L-39. Read about Mig-21 review so that you know how is it like. This site is all you need to make your vacation more fun arable, lovely and unforgettable. Your kids and your family could also enjoy the environment of this while you were enjoy flying with aerobatic manoeuvres,Fly in L-39. The view surrounding is also the thing where you family could enjoy while you are having the excitement with this aerobatic manoeuvres,Fly in L-39. Playing golf with your friends may be fun but perhaps when it is too regular you will not have the excitement anymore that is why you need to try something new with this aerobatic manoeuvres,Fly in L-39. you do not need to be worried if you do not know how to operate them since they also provide professional trainers that could teach you or your colleagues how to drive or how to fly. Just make sure that you would arrange your vacation properly this time so that nothing could ruin or bother your vacation anymore.

Buy Restore Cream and Eliminate Stretch Marks

2009-07-03T17:51:00.000-07:00

Our skin is one of the most important organs in our body. The skin is the outer covering of our body, and it is composed of epithelial tissues. The skin is our first and foremost line of defense against germs and disease. It also protects our muscles, bones and our internal organs.

Skin care today has become one of the most profitable industries in the world. All you have to do to confirm this fact is turn on your television sets, and surf the channels. When you do, you will unquestionably come across some type of infomercial or advertisement selling one type of skin care product or another. The vast majority of these products are for general purposes, and they don’t always fit the specific needs of every individual.

One of the issues that has perplexed medical researchers for years is how to restore skin to its original vitality after a person has developed stretch marks. Contrary to the common belief, stretch marks are not simply caused by pregnancy. You can get stretch marks from bodybuilding, going on a weight loss program, and in many other ways. In fact, you can develop stretch marks any time there is a weight gain or loss, or a redistribution of your body weight.

Stretch marks are a real concern, because they can appear anywhere on your body. Stretch marks affect both men and women, and can result from a variety of causes. The problem with stretch marks is that they leave a psychological scar along with a physical scar.

Thankfully, medical professionals have come up with a solution in the form of a skin cream that is specially designed to get rid of ugly and humiliating stretch marks. The product is called Restore Cream, and it contains the ingredients that have proven to be successful in removing stretch marks from your body. It is amazing what a daily regimen of Restore Cream can do for your stretch marks problem! A twice daily administration of Restore Cream will remove your stretch marks and stop them from recurring.

You can buy Restore Cream at low prices at Pro-Medics, your “Mecca of Pharmaceutical Supplies.” When you order Restore Cream online, you are assured that your transaction will be processed with the highest degree of privacy and confidentiality. Your product will be shipped to you discreetly, according to your express directives, and no one will ever know that you are using the product, unless you divulge that information yourself.

Do You Need Family Counseling NYC? | Stop Dreaming Start Action

2009-06-20T16:53:00.000-07:00

Most of the times family counseling NYC happens to take place in the presence of the whole family. In cases where the family faces problems due to a certain family member, often that member is not present at family counseling NYC. Stop Dreaming Start Action The therapist is the convener and mediates between each member giving them equal opportunity and time to relate family concerns and discuss best methods to overcome the same.

Family counseling NYC usually does not take a long time to start benefitting the family. More time may be required in case some Stop Dreaming Start Action members have to be individually counseled. At an approximate, it takes about 30 counseling sessions to complete the therapy.

Emotional Eating - Dare to Dream | Stop Dreaming Start Action

2009-06-20T16:50:00.000-07:00

Many people who overeat do so to fill in the empty time when they are bored, or they are using food to fill their emotional hunger. The pain of loneliness, the itch of frustration or the adrenaline-burst of anger can be suppressed by filling up with food. Stop Dreaming Start Action And it's better to do that, we reason, than turn our feelings inwards and hurt ourselves or turn the feelings outwards and hurt others. So food becomes a drug to suppress feelings and all the feelings turn to fat.

Even though we know it doesn't really work, we still do it.

At the end of the overeating binge, Stop Dreaming Start Action our feelings are still there. They may for a short while be lying sulking in the corner, temporarily subdued by the food. But because physical hunger wasn't the question, physical food is not the answer.

Overcome Infertility 10 -Endometrial Lining Causes of Infertility

2009-06-20T08:07:00.000-07:00

As we mentioned in previous articles, infertility is defined as inability of a couple to conceive after 12 months of unprotected sexual intercourse. It effects over 5 millions couple alone in the U. S. and many times more in the world. Because of unawareness of treatments, only 10% seeks help from professional specialist. In this article, we will discuss the endometrial lining causes of infertility.

I. Definition
The endometrium is the inner membrane of the mammalian uterus. It helps to support the fertilized egg. Under influence of the high levels of estrogen at the early part of the menstrual cycle the endometrial lining become thick then become soft once ovulation occurs when progesterone is produced with high amount.

II. Endometrial lining Causes of infertility
1. Adenomyosis
Adenomyosis happens most likely in the late of woman life and who has had several pregnancy. It is classified as a medical condition of endometrial cell grows within the muscular walls of the uterus causing symptoms similar to those of endometriosis. It may interfere with the embryo implantation if the uterine tissue extends through entire region of the uterine wall resulting in infertility and miscarriage.

2. Endometrial hyperplasia
Endometrial hyperplasia is defined as overgrowth or thickening of the uterus lining as resulting of high levels of estrogen and insufficient levels by of progesterone leading miss ovulation and infertility.

3. Endometriosis
Endometriosis is defined as cells of endometrium grow somewhere else other than in the endometrium. Normally, endometriosis not travel far but around the uterus region. It interferes with the ovulation and embryo implantation leading to infertility and miscarriage.

4. Endometritis
Endometritis is defined as infection or inflammation of the uterine lining caused by pelvic infection or sexual transmitting diseases leading to miscarriage for pregnant women.

Bone-repairing stem cell jab hope

2009-04-06T12:57:00.000-07:00

It may be possible to control stem cells with a magnet

Doctors may soon be able to patch up damaged bones and joints anywhere in the body with a simple shot in the arm.

A team at Keele University is testing injectible stem cells that they say they can control with a magnet.

Once injected these immature cells can be guided to precisely where their help is needed and encouraged to grow new cartilage and bone, work on mice shows.

The aim is to treat patients with injuries and arthritis the UK National Stem Cell Network conference heard.

The ultimate aim is to repair cartilage and bone

Professor Alicia El Haj
Keele University

Professor Alicia El Haj, working with Professor John Dobson, also of Keele University, says the technology, patented by Magnecell, could be tested in humans within five years.

It would provide a way to treat disease without invasive surgery or powerful drugs.

The injection would use the patient's own stem cells, harvested from their bone marrow.

These mesenchymal cells would be treated in the lab to give them a coating of minute magnetic particles.

Use in scans

These same magnetic nanoparticles are already approved in the US where they are routinely used as an agent to make MRI scans clearer to read.

Targeted magnetic fields could then move the cells around the body to the desired place and switch them into action without the need for drugs or other biochemical triggers.

Professor Al Haj said: "The ultimate aim is to repair cartilage and bone. We have been able to grow new bone in mice. Now we will look at whether we can repair damaged sites in goats.

"We should be able to move to human trials within five years."

Meanwhile, experts at the University of Southampton, led by Professor Richard Oreffo, have treated four patients with hip joint problems using stem cell therapy.

The technique combines the patients own bone marrow stem cells with donor bone cells to patch-repair damaged bones that would otherwise need treatment with metal plates and pins.

They say it is only a matter of years before their method could be used routinely to treat some of the 60,000 people who fracture a hip in the UK each year.

How infection may spark leukaemia

2009-04-01T08:23:00.000-07:00

Common infections may trigger cancer cell growth

Scientists have shown how common infections might trigger childhood leukaemia.

They have identified a molecule, TGF, produced by the body in response to infection that stimulates development of the disease.

It triggers multiplication of pre-cancerous stem cells at the expense of healthy counterparts.

The Institute of Cancer Research study appears in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
While infection is clearly only one factor in triggering progression, this study greatly increases the strength of evidence for its role Stop Dreaming Start Action in the commonest form of childhood leukaemia
Dr Shabih Syed
Leukaemia Research

Leukaemia occurs when large numbers of white blood cells take over the bone marrow, leaving the body unable to produce enough normal blood cells.

The researchers had already identified a genetic mutation - a fusion of two genes - occurring in the womb that creates pre-leukaemic cells.

These cells then grow in the bone marrow, effectively acting as a silent time bomb that can stay in the body for up to 15 years.

Evidence suggests the mutation may be present in as many as one in 100 newborn babies, but only about one in 100 of these children then go on to develop leukaemia.

This suggests that the cells will only complete the transformation to fully-fledged cancer cells if they exposed to an independent trigger.

The latest study suggests production of TGF in response to an infection could be that trigger.

Because the molecule hugely increases the rate at which the pre-leukaemic cells multiply, this significantly raises the the chance that some will become even further damaged in a way that results in the child developing leukaemia.

Preventative measures

Researcher Professor Mel Greaves said: "Identifying this step means we can determine how an unusual immune response to infection may trigger the development of the full leukaemia and eventually perhaps develop preventative measures such as a vaccine."

Dr Shabih Syed, scientific director at the charity Leukaemia Research, said: "Before this study, there had been only circumstantial evidence to implicate infections in the progression from a child carrying pre-leukaemic cells to actually having leukaemia.

"There was no evidence of the mechanism by which this might happen.

"While infection is clearly only one factor in triggering progression, this study greatly increases the strength of evidence for its role in the commonest form of childhood leukaemia."

Tinnitus cure 'is a step closer'

2009-03-25T10:26:00.000-07:00

The sounds are described as ringing, buzzing, roaring, hissing or whistling

Scientists believe they are a step closer to curing tinnitus after they have found what could be the root cause of ringing in the ears.

Studies show hearing loss can go hand-in-hand with over-excitable nerves within brain areas that process sound.

This uncontrolled nerve activity causes the noises that plague people with tinnitus and appears to be down to gene changes, Neuroscience reports.

And it raises the hope of treatment by silencing nerve activity, experts say.

We are extremely excited about the significant progress this research has made

Dr Ralph Holme of RNID

Although the studies carried out by the Australian researchers were in guinea pigs - the animal rather than the human variety - they believe their findings will ultimately help people with tinnitus.

Indeed, Belgian neurosurgeon Dirk De Ridder has tried implanting electrodes directly into the brain of sufferers to permanently normalise the overactive neurons.

He has had some successful results, although one of his patients repeatedly experienced an out-of-body as a side effect.

In the latest study, researchers at the University of Western Australia studied what was happening inside the brain and found increased activity in nerves in the auditory brainstem where sounds are processed.

And this was linked to changes in the genes involved in regulating the activity of the nerve cells.

Spontaneous firing

This meant pathways that normally keep a lid on nerve signal transmission were blocked and others were more excitable than usual.

Lead researcher Professor Don Robertson said: "Identifying genes associated with spontaneous nerve cell activity is crucial.

"It means that it may be possible to use drugs to block this activity and treat conditions such as tinnitus in the future."

Dr Ralph Holme of RNID, which funded the work, said: "Tinnitus affects seven million people in the UK, yet there are no safe or effective ways of alleviating this stressful condition.

"It has remained an enigma for scientists and clinicians alike and we are extremely excited about the significant progress this research has made into understanding its causes."

Vivienne Michael, chief executive of Deafness Research UK, said: "The new research gives us a better understanding of how and why tinnitus and hearing loss so often go hand in hand.

"Tinnitus is a blight on the lives of millions, and any new research that may offer hope for tinnitus sufferers is both exciting and warmly welcomed."

Over a third of the UK population will suffer from tinnitus at some point in their lives and about one in 100 will experience serious problems with long-term, established tinnitus.

Tinnitus is often associated with some degree of hearing loss.

Porton Down 'not death sentence'

2009-03-25T09:58:00.000-07:00

Leading Aircraftman Ronald Maddison died at the base in 1953

Porton Down veterans used as guinea-pigs to test chemical weapons face no greater risk of dying from cancer but health worries remain, experts say.

The work, commissioned by the Ministry of Defence, provides some reassurance for the 18,000 plus British soldiers experimented on between 1941 and 1989.

It is the first time that the long-term health consequences have been explored.

The British Medical Journal studies show certain tumours may be more likely and death risk is very slightly raised.

The nation owes a debt to those who took part in the trials at Porton Down

MoD spokeswoman

Hundreds of Porton Down veterans believe their subsequent ill health may have been a result of their exposure in the secret government tests.

And relatives of some who have since died believe the trials may have led to premature deaths.

But many have reported no ill effects after being exposed to chemical and biological agents, including anthrax, sarin and mustard gas.

No lasting damage

The latest work tracked servicemen and women who took part in chemical tests at the Wiltshire laboratory and military personnel who were not included in the tests for an average of over 40 years.

Over 7,000 of the Porton Down veterans had died by the end of 2004 and their overall death rates were 6% higher than non-Porton Down veterans.

These excess deaths were mainly from infectious and parasitic diseases, genitourinary causes, circulatory diseases, and non-medical causes.

And some were probably related to the longer years of service carried out by the Porton Down veterans compared with other comrades.

PORTON DOWN

Built in 1916 as an experimental base for research into chemical warfare

Initial testing focused on the effects of mustard gas

With WWII, efforts turned from chemical to biological weapons like anthrax

As the war ended, volunteers began testing the nerve-agent sarin - a practice that was to continue until 1989

There have been allegations of unethical human experimentation, such as those relating to the death of Leading Aircraftman Ronald Maddison in 1953

In 2002 a Ministry of Defence helpline is set up to enable veterans to find out more about the trials they were involved in

But cancer death rates were the same for both groups, although certain types of cancer, like lung cancer, were more common among the Porton Down veterans which may be linked to the types of chemicals tested.

Other research has shown that the veterans are more likely to experience unwanted symptoms and generally have a poorer quality of life than other soldiers.

Investigator Dr Lucy Carpenter, from the University of Oxford, said: ''What we have found is a small increase in overall death rates in the Porton Down veterans when compared with other veterans but no increase in overall cancer rates.

"Many of the Porton Down veterans have concerns about the effect that taking part in experimental tests will have had on their health.

"We hope the results of this independent study may help to answer some of their questions.''

The Ministry of Defence welcomed the findings. A spokeswoman said: "The nation owes a debt to those who took part in the trials at Porton Down.

"The studies played a key role in ensuring the protection of the UK and its Armed Forces against the very real threat of chemical or biological attack."

Cancer drug 'fuels tumour growth'

2009-03-22T22:07:00.000-07:00

Tumour blood vessels (in red), surrounded by cancer cells (in blue)

A type of drug designed to stunt tumour growth has actually been found to fuel cancer if given at too low a dose.

UK scientists were investigating a kind of drug called an anti-angiogenesis, still under development, which hampers the growth of tumour blood vessels.

Avastin and Sutent, which act in a similar way, have been proven to work and were not covered in this research.

But cancer experts say the study in Nature Medicine could help make those drugs more effective.

The researchers focused on a drug called Cilengitide which is designed to prevent blood vessel cells sticking together and moving - an important part of angiogenesis.

Previous tests on people have found that a few patients with brain tumours benefited from high doses of the drug, but that it failed to work for most.

Knowledge of this mechanism will help us develop new ways to make these drugs as effective as possible

Dr Andy Reynolds, Institute of Cancer Research

In this research, tests carried out on mice showed that low doses of Cilengitide actually stimulated the growth of cancers.

Further investigation showed it did this by switching on a molecule called VEGFR2, which triggers the angiogenesis process.

That is significant because although when a patient is initially given a drug, its level in the blood rises quickly ensuring a big dose goes to the tumour, after a while levels start to fall as the body begins to deal with the drug.

This is likely to be why trials of the drug have shown such poor results.

Caveat

Dr Kairbaan Hodivala-Dilke of the Institute of Cancer, who led the study, said it was important that the trials looking at this drug continued.

"We've got evidence now that low doses can enhance tumour growth. So there is no benefit of giving a high dose, which then drops, and then a high dose again.

"But that's not to say it can't work at all. It can, but there is this caveat."

She said it may be more effective to give the drug via an infusion pump, which would allow the dosage to remain topped up at an effective level.

Sutent and Avastin have proven effective enough for use in the NHS but there is still need to understand why they can sometime fail

Dr Lesley Walker, Cancer Research UK

Dr Andy Reynolds, from the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre at the Institute of Cancer Research, who also worked on the study, said: "Knowledge of this mechanism will help us develop new ways to make these drugs as effective as possible.

"In the future, we may be able to combine these inhibitors with other drugs to maximise their effectiveness for patients."

Dr Lesley Walker, director of cancer information at Cancer Research UK, which helped fund the research, said: "This study is important because it may help to explain the mixed results previously seen in patients and turn around disappointing results so people may still benefit from the drug without the potential harm."

Mechanisms

The research also has implications for the existing drugs Sutent, used to treat kidney cancer, and Avastin, for colorectal cancer.

They work by the same process, but on different targets.

At the moment, they can extend a patient's life by several months. Experts hope that this research could lead to a better understanding of the drugs' mechanisms and so to ways of making them more effective.

Dr Walker said: "Sutent and Avastin have proven effective enough for use in the NHS but there is still need to understand why they can sometime fail.

"It may be that there are similar mechanisms at work."

Last month, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence - the NHS's drugs appraisal body - said Sutent could be considered for people with advanced kidney cancer. However, it decided against recommending Avastin for advanced colorectal cancer.

Eczema cases rise dramatically

2009-03-22T22:04:00.000-07:00

Eczema causes red itchy patches on the skin

The incidence of eczema is increasing dramatically in England, data suggests.

There was a 42% rise in diagnosis of the condition between 2001 and 2005, by which time it was estimated to effect 5.7m adults and children.

One potential explanation for the rise is increased frequency of bathing and use of soap and detergents.

A paper in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine says eczema is thought to be a trigger for other allergic conditions.

GP records of over 9m patients were used by researchers to assess how many people have the inflammatory skin disorder.

We do know there has been a huge rise in allergic disease of all sorts and what I would like to think is we're seeing some small signs of people concentrating their minds on eczema

Margaret Cox, National Eczema Society

It showed that by 2005, one in nine of the population had, at some point, been affected by eczema.

The highest rate was in boys aged between five and nine.

Prescriptions increased by 57% over the five-year study period and in 2005, GPs issued 13.7m scripts.

Study leader Professor Aziz Sheikh, chair of the allergy and respiratory research group at the University of Edinburgh, said he expected to see a rise but it was fairly marked given the short time period.

"What's quite striking is the very high proportion of people who are getting eczema, it's an incredibly common disorder.

"Why eczema is important is increasingly we think eczema is a herald condition for individuals to go on to develop other allergic conditions, such as asthma and allergic rhinitis."

The theory is that allergens may be able to cross the skin in people with eczema to cause disease whereas in people without the condition the skin is able to act as a barrier.

Environment

He added that it is likely that a proportion of individuals have a genetic predisposition to develop eczema but that environmental factors also play a large part, and it is these which are likely to be causing the increase.

"The environmental factors are frequency of bathing and use of soaps and detergents."

It is also likely that some of the rise is due to better awareness and diagnosis.

He added that more research was needed on whether diagnosing and managing eczema properly early in life could prevent people going on to develop other conditions.

"The basic science suggests we can but the trials need to be done."

Margaret Cox, chief executive of the National Eczema Society, said the general theory was eczema had been increasing but it was thought the rise had levelled off.

"We do know there has been a huge rise in allergic disease of all sorts and what I would like to think is we're seeing some small signs of people concentrating their minds on eczema."

She agreed that modern living seemed to be having an effect.

"Water use dries up the skin and soaps and detergents degrease the skin.

"We are using quite a lot of these products from an early age."

Maggot therapy hope 'premature'

2009-03-20T01:00:00.000-07:00

There has been increasing interest in use of maggots in wound healing
Maggots may not have the miracle healing properties that have been claimed, a UK study suggests.
Researchers comparing maggots with a standard "hydrogel" in treating leg ulcers found little difference.
Recent excitement over using maggots to speed up healing and even reduce MRSA infections in leg ulcers seems to have been premature, they said.
The British Medical Journal study is the first to compare maggots with standard treatment.
Leg ulcers can be very difficult to treat and after use of high-compression bandages only about half are healed within 16 weeks.
One common treatment is to use a water-based gel to keep the wound moist and promote the natural healing process.
Maggots, or larval therapy, are another option - but it can be more tricky to place them in the wound and they have to be specially ordered which takes a few days.
The theory has been that maggots are effective because they "clean out" dead tissue - a process called debridement - stimulating healing and getting rid of bugs such as MRSA in the process.
But although larval therapy is being used more and more, it has only been tested in one randomised controlled trial of 12 patients, the team said.
Healing
In the latest study, 270 patients with leg ulcers from around the UK were treated either with maggots or hydrogel and progress followed for up to a year.
There was no significant difference in the time it took the ulcer to heal between the two treatments or in quality of life.
Maggots were not more effective than hydrogel treatment at reducing the amount of bacteria present or in getting rid of MRSA and were, on average, associated with more pain.
It comes down to the aim of treatment, if for some reason rapid debridement is important, then you would choose larval therapy
Professor Nicky Cullum, study leader
The only benefit seemed to be that the dead tissue in the wound was cleaned out more quickly
A separate study looking at cost-effectiveness estimated there was little to choose between the two therapies.
Study leader Professor Nicky Cullum, deputy head of health sciences at the University of York, said the resurgence in interest in using maggots had been "premature".
"The ulcers treated with larval therapy did get cleaner - which is not surprising as they're an active debriding agent - but that rapid cleaning did not lead to rapid healing."
She said it would be up to clinicians to decide which was the most appropriate for their patients, but in general there was no extra benefit from maggots over standard therapy.
"It comes down to the aim of treatment. If for some reason rapid debridement is important, then you would choose larval therapy - for example if someone was having a skin graft.
"This will help them make more informed decisions."

UV light 'could curb TB spread'

2009-03-17T05:18:00.000-07:00

TB is caused by infection with mycobacterium tuberculosis

Installing ultraviolet lights could reduce the spread of tuberculosis (TB) in hospital wards and waiting rooms by 70%, research suggests.

The move could potentially save many lives globally, particularly where hospital patients are crowded together.

TB infects more than nine million, and kills nearly two million people a year world-wide, and drug resistant strains are becoming more widespread.

The international study features in the journal PLoS Medicine.

Plans are already underway to install ultraviolet lights in the chest clinic at St Mary's Hospital, London - the first hospital to have them in the UK.

When people are crowded together in a hospital waiting room, it may take just one cough to infect several vulnerable patients

Dr Rod Escombe
Imperial College London

When a TB patient coughs, bacteria are sprayed into the air in tiny droplets, floating around the room and infecting other patients, visitors and healthcare staff.

But the latest study has shown that these bacteria can be killed by hanging a shielded short-wave ultraviolet-C (UVC) light from the ceiling with a fan to mix the air.

UVC light kills tuberculosis bacteria, including drug-resistant strains, by damaging their DNA so they cannot infect people, grow or divide.

It is already used at high intensity to disinfect empty ambulances and operating theatres.

Researcher Dr Rod Escombe, from Imperial College London, said: "When people are crowded together in a hospital waiting room, it may take just one cough to infect several vulnerable patients.

"Our previous research showed that opening windows in a room is a simple way to reduce the risk of tuberculosis transmission, but this is climate-dependent - you can't open the windows in the intensive care ward of a Siberian hospital for example."

Dr Escombe said TB infection rates in the UK were low, and patients could usually be treated with antibiotics.

But the disease took a much more deadly toll in developing countries, where drug resistant strains were more of a menace, and there were limited resources for isolating patients.

Introducing UVC lights could be a relatively low-cost measure, say the researchers. Currently, a typical UVC ceiling light costs around US$350 and replacement bulbs cost from US$25.

Guinea pig tests

In the current study, UVC lights were hung in a hospital ward in Lima, Peru, where 69 patients with TB and HIV were being treated.

The researchers pumped air from the ward up to a guinea pig enclosure on the roof of the hospital for 535 consecutive days.

Some animals received air exposed to the UV lights on the ward, some air treated with negative ionisers, and some untreated air straight from the ward.

By the end of the experiment, 35% of the animals exposed to untreated air were infected with TB, with 8.6% going on to develop the active form of the disease.

In comparison, just 9.5% of the animals exposed to the UV-treated air became infected with TB, and just 3.6% went on to develop active disease.

Dr Cath Noakes, from the University of Leeds, who also worked on the study, said the impact of UV lights was maximised by careful management of air flow on the wards.

She said: "The lights must be set high enough to ensure patients and health workers are not overexposed, but if the lights only treat air at that level, there will be little benefit.

"To be most effective, ventilation systems need to create a constant flow of treated air down to patient level, and potentially infected air up towards the lights."

Hormone 'to restart reproduction'

2009-03-17T05:14:00.000-07:00

The treatment may give new hope to infertile women

A team of UK scientists says a recently discovered hormone could potentially form the basis of an effective and less risky fertility treatment.

Kisspeptin could restore reproductive function in women with low sex hormone levels whose system has shut down, says the team from Imperial College London.

The hormone plays a key role in stimulating release of the hormones which control the menstrual cycle.

The study was presented at a Society for Endocrinology conference.

This is a very exciting result

Dr Waljit Dhillo
Imperial College London

Humans and animals lacking kisspeptin do not go through puberty and remain sexually immature.

In a previous study, the researchers, from Imperial College London, showed that kisspeptin treatment leads to the production of sex hormones in fertile women.

Now they have now extended their research to look at the effects of kisspeptin in women whose periods have stopped owing to a hormone imbalance.

In the latest study, a group of 10 women who were not menstruating and were infertile were injected with either kisspeptin or a saline solution.

Blood samples were then taken to measure their levels of two key hormones essential for ovulation and fertility - luteinising hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH).

Compared to the placebo treatment, kisspeptin led to a 48-fold increase in LH and 16-fold increase in FSH.

Lead researcher Dr Waljit Dhillo said kisspeptin treatment stimulated a greater increase in LH production in non-menstruating women than in fertile women in the previous study.

He said: "Infertility is a devastating condition that affects millions of couples worldwide.

"This is a very exciting result and suggests that kisspeptin treatment could restore reproductive function in women with low sex hormone levels.

Subtle effect

Our future research will focus on determining the best protocol for repeated kisspeptin administration with the hope of developing a new therapy for infertility."

Professor Richard Anderson, a fertility expert at the University of Edinburgh, said the research held the promise of a more effective and subtle way of treating women whose reproductive systems had effectively closed down.

He said most current treatments involved directly stimulating the ovaries, which carried a risk both of multiple pregnancies and side effects.

In contrast, the use of a therapy based on kisspeptin would potentially address the underlying problem, effectively re-awakening the reproductive system, while - unlike alternative treatments - ensuring the body's own protective regulatory mechanisms remained in place.

Professor Anderson said: "This is one of the most interesting new hormones that has been discovered for a very long time, and in time it may well become a mainstream part of therapy."

A step closer to reading the mind

2009-03-14T00:12:00.000-07:00

Activity in the hippocampus was monitored

Scientists say for the first time they have understood someone's thoughts by looking at what their brain is doing.

The hippocampus is widely known to be integral to memory, but researchers say they now see just how images are stored and recalled in this part of the brain.

Wellcome Trust scientists trained four participants to recognise several virtual reality environments.

Discernible patterns in brain activity then signalled where they were, they wrote in the journal Current Biology.

It would be very easy not to co-operate, and then it wouldn't work

Demis Hassabis
Researcher

Neurons in the hippocampus, also known as "place cells", activate when we move around to tell us where we are.

The team, based at University College London, then used specialised scanning equipment which measures changes in blood flow in the brain.

This allowed them to examine the activity of these cells as the participants - all young men with experience of playing videogames - moved around the virtual reality environment. The data was then passed through a computer.

"We asked whether we could see any interesting patterns in the neural activity that could tell us what the participants were thinking, or in this case where they were," said Professor Eleanor Maguire.

Are you lying?

"Surprisingly, just by looking at the brain data we could predict exactly where they were in the virtual reality environment. In other words we could 'read' their spatial memories."

"By looking at activity over tens of thousands of neurons, we can see that there must be a functional structure - a pattern - to how these memories are encoded."

But they stressed that the prospect of genuinely reading someone's most intimate thoughts - or working out if they were lying - was still a long way off.

Their participants were all willing subjects who allowed their brains to be trained and monitoring to take place.

"It would be very easy not to co-operate, and then it wouldn't work," said Demis Hassabis, who developed the computer programme to read the data. "These kind of scenarios would require a great technological leap."

Participants were asked to navigate between virtual reality rooms

It is brain diseases such as Alzheimer's which could stand to benefit from such research.

"Understanding how we learn and store memories could aid our understanding of conditions in which memory is compromised and potentially help patients in the rehabilitation process," said Professor Maguire.

Professor Clive Ballard, director of research at the Alzheimer's Society, said: "This exciting development will boost our understanding of the hippocampus, a key area affected in Alzheimer's disease and the most important part of the brain for memory.

"Learning more about how the brain works could help us work out which types of nerve cells are lost in Alzheimer's."

Rebecca Wood, of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said the research was "fascinating".

She said: "Understanding how memories are formed may help researchers discover how this process goes wrong in diseases like Alzheimer's."

Intensive care errors 'frequent'

2009-03-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

Researchers studied intensive care treatment in 27 countries

Errors in the administration of injected medication in intensive care units occur frequently, a study across 27 countries suggests.

Austrian researchers collected data on more than 1,300 patients, 200 of them in the UK, over a 24-hour period.

Of the 441 patients affected, seven suffered permanent harm and five died partly because of the error, the British Medical Journal reported.

Medical staff often cited stress and tiredness as contributing factors.

Data was collected by researchers from Rudolfstiftung Hospital from a total of 113 intensive care units, of which 17 were in the UK.

The administration of injected medication is a weak point in patient safety

Dr Andreas Valentin, lead researcher

Nearly half of the affected patients suffered more than one mistake during the period covered.

The most frequent errors were related to the wrong time of administration and missing doses altogether.

Cases of incorrect doses and wrong drugs being given were also reported.

A total of 69% of the errors occurred during routine care.

Mistakes occurred with many types of drugs, including insulin for diabetics, sedatives and blood-clotting drugs.

The doctors and nurses who took part in the study cited stress and tiredness as a contributing factor in a third of mistakes.

Recent changes in the drug's name, poor communication between staff and violation of protocols were also mentioned.

The odds of an error being made increased significantly for the most severely ill patients. Researchers said this reflected the complexity of their care.

'Worrying'

Lead researcher Dr Andreas Valentin said the problems identified applied to all the health systems involved in the study.

He said just one in five units reported no adverse events during the 24-hour period studied.

"It is a really serious problem. The administration of injected medication is a weak point in patient safety," he said.

"With the increasing complexity of care in critically ill patients, organisational factors such as error reporting systems and routine checks at shift changes can reduce the risk of such errors."

A Patients Association spokesman said: "The findings are worrying. We know staff work really hard in intensive care units, but there are no excuses for errors.

"Protocols must be followed and managers should be carrying audits to make sure they are."

'International problem'

In a statement, the Intensive Care Society said the aim must be to refine care to minimise drug errors.

It said that critically ill patients often required complex care, with the use of many different drugs, some unusual, which were often administered using specialist equipment.

"The urgency of treatment can also mean that these drugs have to be located rapidly, prepared efficiently and administered quickly to prevent further deterioration.

"Unfortunately, this pressure does mean that the combined total incident rate is almost inevitably higher than in care areas where fewer medicines are required."

The society said many units had developed training programmes to increase patient safety, including measures to highlight and learn from "near misses".

Work was also under way to standardise concentrations of some drugs often given to critically ill patients, refine the use of antibiotics and minimise the risk of adverse drug reactions.

The Department of Health said it was working closely with the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA), professional organisations and pharmacists to reduce the incidence of medication errors, which it described as "clearly an international problem".

'Fat neck' a clue to heart risk

2009-03-12T08:24:00.000-07:00

Neck measurements could help estimate risk

Measuring the thickness of a person's neck may provide as many clues to their risk of developing heart problems as measuring their waist, a study says.

Researchers from the Framingham Heart Study found even those with relatively trim waistlines appeared to be at greater risk if they had larger necks.

Risk was defined as having lower levels of "good" cholesterol for instance, or higher levels of blood glucose.

The results were presented to a meeting of the American Heart Association.

The US team looked at more than 3,300 women and men with an average age of 51.

Professor Jimmy Bell of the MRC Clinical Sciences Centre said research was starting to uncover ever more evidence that health depended not on how fat a person was, but where their fat was located.

What you don't want is fat around your liver or heart, and this can happen even if you look fine on the outside

Professor Jimmy Bell
MRC Clinical Sciences Centre

In this study, average neck circumferences were 40.5cm for men and 34.2cm for women.

As neck circumference grew, so did risk factors.

For every nearly-3cm more of neck, men had 2.2 milligrams of less good cholesterol per decilitre of blood (mg/dl) and women 2.7mg/dl.

Good cholesterol - or high-density lipoprotein (HDL) - takes cholesterol away from the cells and back to the liver, where it is broken down.

Having lower than 40mg/dl if you are a man, and 50 mg/dl if you are a woman is thought to put you at higher risk of heart disease.

Neck size made no difference to levels of bad cholesterol - or low density lipoprotein (LDL) - which can cause harm, but it did affect blood glucose levels - for every 3cm more of neck men had 3.0mg/dl more and women 2.1mg/dl.

A normal fasting blood glucose level is below 100 mg/dl - and an increased level is thought to be an accurate indicator of heart problems to come.

While risk was higher regardless of waistline, it was compounded for those who had both a fat neck and who were larger than average around the middle.

The team speculated that a fat neck may be a "crude measure" of upper body fat - which has been associated with heart risks.

Professor Bell added: "What you don't want is fat around your liver or heart, and this can happen even if you look fine on the outside. Dieting isn't what you need to shift this - it's exercise."

'Love handles' may restrict lungs

2009-03-06T10:45:00.000-08:00

A large waist is linked to several health problems

"Love handles" can limit the ability to take a deep breath, a study by French researchers suggests.

The research in 120,000 men and women found a strong link between large waist measurement and decreased lung function.

It was independent of smoking history and a person's overall body mass index, they report in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

An expert said the findings reinforced the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

The team set out to look if there was an association between lung function and metabolic syndrome - a collection of health problems including high blood pressure and cholesterol which are strongly linked to carrying excess weight around the middle.

It is widely known that obesity and a lack of exercise is detrimental to your health but this research highlights how being overweight affects your lungs

Dr Noemi Eiser, British Lung Foundation

Abdominal obesity was defined as having a waist circumference of greater than 35 inches (89 cm) for women and 40 inches (102 cm) for men.

They found a strong association between a large waist measurement and decreased lung function regardless of overall body mass index.

The association remained when they excluded those with existing cardiovascular disease or respiratory disease.

There was also a significant interaction between metabolic syndrome and smoking, with a higher risk of lung function impairment in current and former smokers than in those who never smoked.

Restriction

Abdominal obesity may affect breathing through restricting the diaphragm or chest wall, the researchers suggested.

BODY MASS INDEX

Calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared

Normal: 18.5 - 24.9

Overweight: 25 - 29.9

Obese: Above 30

Calculate your BMI

But there could be other explanations.

Fat tissue may increase inflammatory processes in the body which may in turn lead to respiratory problems.

Study leader, Dr Natalie Leone from the French National Institute for Health and Medical Research, said: "We found a positive independent relationship between lung function impairment and metabolic syndrome due mainly to abdominal obesity."

She added further studies were now needed to determine the underlying biology of poorer lung function in people with a large waist measurement.

In an accompanying editorial, Dr Paul Enright of the University of Arizona said doctors should measure waist circumference when doing respiratory tests so they can take it into account when interpreting the results.

Dr Noemi Eiser, honorary medical director of the British Lung Foundation, said: 'It is widely known that obesity and a lack of exercise is detrimental to your health but this research highlights how being overweight affects your lungs."

"A reduction in lung function was not just recorded for the morbidly obese, but women who had a waist of 35 inches had an 8% reduction in lung capacity.

"This study reinforces the need to lead a healthy lifestyle and how a relatively small accumulation of fat can have a very significant effect on your lung health."

Middle age 'key for exercising'

2009-03-06T10:44:00.000-08:00

Heavy gardening counts as good exercise

Increasing activity levels in middle age can prolong life as much as giving up smoking, a study suggests.

Swedish researchers from Uppsala University monitored more than 2,200 men from the age of 50.

They found those who increased activity levels from 50 to 60 ended up living as long as those who were already exercising regularly by middle age.

Public health experts said the findings showed it was never too late to start exercising.

The team asked the men about their activity levels at the start of the study in the early 1970s, when they were aged 50.

It shows that it is never too late to start exercising

Karl Michaelsson, lead researcher

The men were put into three groups - high levels of activity, moderate levels and sedentary.

High levels was classed as those who did at least three hours of sports or heavy gardening each week.

Moderate was said to be the equivalent of several hours of walking or cycling, while people who were classed as sedentary spent most of their free time watching TV.

Their exercise habits were then reassessed at the age of 60.

The team found that those who were doing high levels of activity at the age of 50 lived 2.3 years longer than sedentary men and 1.1 years longer than those who reported medium levels of activity - once a range of factors such as weight, alcohol intake and smoking was taken into account.

But interestingly the researchers found that those who increased their activity level to high - whether they were in the moderate or low group - from the age of 50 to 60 also lived the longest.

It was not clear what effect reducing activity levels during this period had, the British Medical Journal report said.

Allotment holder Mike Reeves explains his approach to exercise

Impact

Lead researcher Karl Michaelsson said the study showed it was essential to encourage men to become active, although he said more research would be needed to see if the effect was replicated in women.

He said the impact on lifespan was the same as for someone who gave up smoking during this period.

"Efforts for promotion of physical activity, even among middle aged and older men are important."

Professor Alan Maryon-Davis, president of the Faculty of Public Health, said: "These results are very interesting.

"It shows that it is never too late to start exercising. I think this period is very important for men and what is probably happening here is that the exercise during these years is strengthening their cardiovascular system.

"But, of course, other factors such as diet will play an important role."

Cathy Ross, cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: "The study adds support to what we already know, which is that people who are physically active are half as likely to get cardiovascular disease as those that are inactive.

"Being active at any age helps control your weight, reduce blood pressure and cholesterol and will provide long term benefits for your heart health and general health."

Virus 'triggers child diabetes'

2009-03-06T10:26:00.000-08:00

A common virus may be the trigger for the development of many cases of diabetes, particularly in children, UK researchers have reported.

Signs of enteroviruses were found in pancreatic tissue from 60% of children with type 1 diabetes, but in hardly any children without the disease.

They also found that 40% of adults with type 2 diabetes had signs of the infection in insulin-producing cells.

The study published in Diabetologia raises the possibility of a vaccine.

Although genetics is known to play a fairly substantial role in a person's risk of developing diabetes, environmental factors must also be involved and the idea of a viral cause of diabetes has been considered for decades.

Type 1 diabetes is a life- threatening condition that requires a life-time of painful finger prick blood testing and insulin injections

Karen Addington, JDRF

The latest study was made possible by a pathologist in Glasgow who for 25 years collected tissue samples from children across the UK who had died less than 12 months after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

Dr Alan Foulis believed that enteroviruses - a common family of viruses which cause symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhoea - would be present but until recently the technology was not sensitive enough to detect them.

Along with colleagues from the south west-based Peninsula Medical School and the University of Brighton, he has now been able to look for evidence of the enteroviruses in tissue samples routinely taken during autopsy in 72 children and compare that with samples from 50 children without the condition.

In those with diabetes who had signs of the virus, it was specifically found in the insulin-producing beta cells.

Immune trigger

The researchers suggest that, in children with a genetic predisposition to type 1 diabetes - an autoimmune disease in which beta cells in the pancreas are destroyed - enterovirus infection can trigger the immune reaction that kicks off the disease process.

With type 2 diabetes - the type often linked to obesity in adults - the researchers speculate that the infection affects the ability of the cells to make insulin, which in combination with the greater demand for insulin in obese people, is enough to set off the disease.

The next steps to identify the viruses and find out what they are doing to the infected beta cells will be hugely exciting and will take us a step closer to preventing type 1 diabetes

Dr Iain Frame, Diabetes UK

At the same time, a separate study, published in Science, by researchers at Cambridge University, found four rare mutations in a gene which reduce the risk of developing type 1 diabetes.

It also backs the viral theory because the gene in question is involved in the immune response to infection with enteroviruses.

There are 100 different strains of enterovirus, so although the results open the way for the development of a vaccine, researchers still have to pin down which types are involved.

The study's author, Professor Noel Morgan from the Peninsula Medical School, said the results showed the underlying infection with enteroviruses was not a "rare event".

"The next stages of research - to identify which enteroviruses are involved, how the beta-cells are changed by infection and the ultimate goal to develop an effective vaccine - will lead to findings which we hope will drastically reduce the number of people around the world who develop type 1 diabetes, and potentially type 2 diabetes as well," he added.

Dr Iain Frame, director of research at Diabetes UK, said the study was "a big step forward" in understanding the potential triggers for the disease.

"We've known for some time that type 1 diabetes cannot be explained by genetics alone and that other, environmental triggers may also play a part.

"The next steps to identify the viruses and find out what they are doing to the infected beta cells will be hugely exciting and will take us a step closer to preventing Type 1 diabetes."

Karen Addington, chief executive of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, who funded the research, said the findings were important as the incidence of type 1 diabetes is increasing every year and there is currently no way to prevent it.

"Type 1 diabetes is a life- threatening condition that requires a life-time of painful finger prick blood testing and insulin injections," she pointed out.

'Ethical' stem cell creation hope

2009-03-02T09:54:00.001-08:00

The research was done using fibroblast skin cells

The ability to create stem cell treatments without using embryos is a step closer, say researchers.

A UK and Canadian team have manipulated human skin cells to act like embryonic stem cells without using viruses - making them safer for use in humans.

The cells are reprogrammed by the insertion of four genes which are then removed once the process is complete, they report in Nature.

While a significant step it is early days, the Edinburgh-based experts say.

Much of the work on stem cells has focused on those taken from embryos as they have an unlimited capacity to become any of the 220 types of cell in the human body - a so-called pluripotent state.

But campaigners have objected to their use on the grounds that it is unethical to destroy embryos in the name of science.

It is a step towards the practical use of reprogrammed cells in medicine, perhaps even eliminating the need for human embryos as a source of stem cells

Dr Keisuke Kaji, study leader

In 2007, teams in Japan and the US managed to genetically modify skin cells to be pluripotent, opening the way for a new source of stem cells for use in research.

However, the technique used viruses to genetically modify the cells, which means there was a risk they could become cancerous and so would not be safe for medical use.

The latest study reports a way of delivering foreign genes to reprogramme the cells without using viruses in mouse and human cells.

Furthermore, the team was able to remove the genes afterwards.

Efficiency

Study leader Dr Keisuke Kaji, from the Medical Research Council Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, said nobody, including himself, had thought it was really possible.

FROM THE BBC WORLD SERVICE

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Unhappy children 'end up unwell'

2009-03-02T09:53:00.000-08:00

Researchers argue children can fall into a cycle of under-achievement

Unhappy children are more likely to grow up to become adults who are permanently sick or disabled, a UK study has suggested.

The King's College London-led research looked at over 7,100 people born between 1950 and 1955.

Researchers found those described as "miserable" or "unhappy" by teachers were five times more likely to be off work through ill-health in middle age.

They said these children were also likely to be more prone to depression.

The study, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, involved thousands of children who grew up in Aberdeen in the 1950s.

Teachers were asked about their temperament and school attendance.

Children who are unhappy and disinterested in school often come from households where parents are disinterested and there is a lot of deprivation

Alan Maryon Davis, of the UK Faculty of Public Health

Researchers recently tracked down many of the participants - now in middle age - to ask them about their employment status.

Some 392 reported they were unable to work because of permanent disability or ill-health - 5.5% of the total questioned. This could have included those retired through illness and those on incapacity benefit.

A quarter of those whose teachers had reported them as "often appearing miserable, unhappy, tearful or distressed" were permanently sick or disabled.

A quarter of those who complained of aches and pain were also off sick through ill-health.

But those who were off school because of poor physical health were no more likely to end up as adults off work sick.

Factor

Lead researcher Dr Max Henderson said: "We can't say these childhood trends cause the ill-health later in life, but they certainly seem to be a contributing factor.

"Based on previous research, we suspect these groups are more susceptible to depression and anxiety, which of course is a major cause of being off work."

Dr Alan Maryon Davis, president of the UK Faculty of Public Health, said: "I think there is a common social pattern emerging here.

"Children who are unhappy and disinterested in school often come from households where parents are disinterested and there is a lot of deprivation.

"That leads to them not doing well at school and not doing well at work and falling into this cycle."

Designer baby row over US clinic

2009-03-02T09:52:00.000-08:00

Parents can select hair and eye colour

A US clinic has sparked controversy by offering would-be parents the chance to select traits like the eye and hair colour of their offspring.

The LA Fertility Institutes run by Dr Jeff Steinberg, a pioneer of IVF in the 1970s, expects a trait-selected baby to be born next year.

His clinic also offers sex selection.

UK fertility experts are angered that the service will distract attention from how the same technology can protect against inherited disease.

The science is based on a lab technique called preimplantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD.

I would not say this is a dangerous road. It's an uncharted road

Dr Steinberg

This involves testing a cell taken from a very early embryo before it is put into the mother's womb.

Doctors then select an embryo free from rogue genes - or in this case an embryo with the desired physical traits such as blonde hair and blue eyes - to continue the pregnancy, and discard any others.

Dr Steinberg said couples might seek to use the clinic's services for both medical and cosmetic reasons.

For example, a couple might want to have a baby with a darker complexion to help guard against a skin cancer if they already had a child who had developed a melanoma. But others might just want a boy with blonde hair.

His clinic is offering this cosmetic selection to patients already having genetic screening for abnormal chromosome conditions in their embryos.

This is the inevitable slippery slope of a fertility process which results in many more embryos being created than can be implanted

Josephine Quintavalle of Comment on Reproductive Ethics

"Not all patients will qualify for these tests and we make NO guarantees as to 'perfect prediction' of things such as eye colour or hair colour," says the clinic's website.

Dr Steinberg said: "I would not say this is a dangerous road. It's an uncharted road."

He said the capability to offer such services had been around for years, but had been ignored by the medical community.

"It's time for everyone to pull their heads out of the sand."

Slippery slope

But Dr Gillian Lockwood, a UK fertility expert and member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' ethics committee, questioned whether is was morally right to be using the science in this way.

"If it gets to the point where we can decide which gene or combination of genes are responsible for blue eyes or blonde hair, what are you going to do with all those other embryos that turn out like me to be ginger with green eyes?"

She warned against "turning babies into commodities that you buy off the shelf."

Josephine Quintavalle of Comment on Reproductive Ethics said: "This is the inevitable slippery slope of a fertility process which results in many more embryos being created than can be implanted. Choices will always have to be made. Do you choose octuplets or the ones with the prettiest noses?"

In the UK, sex selection is banned and choices are currently permitted only in relationship to the baby's health.

Italian fertility law does not permit the creation of surplus embryos or selective testing. Ms Quintavalle said that was "one sure way to avoid the slippery slope".

Meanwhile, new legislation in the UK, due to come in on 6 April, will allow IVF mothers to name anyone as "father" on the birth certificate - even another woman.

The only restriction on naming a second parent will be if they are close blood relatives or if the second person does not agree.

Motor neurone disease 'gene clue'

2009-03-01T02:38:00.000-08:00

Scientist Stephen Hawking has motor neurone disease

A gene linked to a type of motor neurone disease that runs in families has been found after a 10-year search.

Along with a related gene reported last year, it opens up an unexplored area of research into the condition, investigators said.

The finding will also help doctors screen and counsel families at risk of the disease, the US and UK team wrote in Science.

Up to 10% of cases are inherited within families because of genetic mutations.

Motor neurone disease (MND) involves the progressive wasting of the muscles, while usually leaving the mind unaffected.

It affects some 5,000 people in the UK.

The first MND gene - SOD1 - was found in 1993 and it has been a major focus of research.

But then researchers found a protein called TDP-43 is deposited in the neurons of 90% of people with the condition.

The genetic pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are beginning to fit together, leading us in new and exciting directions of research

Professor Christopher Shaw, researcher

However, it was not apparent in animal models with the SOD1 mutation, suggesting that the first gene found is not linked with the major underlying biology of the disease.

For the past decade the UK and US team have been looking for a gene believed to be located on chromosome 16.

They eventually found a mutation in the FUS gene in one family with inherited MND - also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Further studies showed that 4% of all families had FUS mutations.

The FUS gene is related to TDP-43, the gene for which was found by the same researchers last year.

'Accelerating research'

Professor Christopher Shaw, from the Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College London, said the FUS gene was a very important clue as to what causes motor neurons to degenerate.

"It's very interesting, we really have wrung SOD1 out. We have looked at cells and mice endlessly, but the major pathways are not SOD pathways.

"The genetic pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are beginning to fit together, leading us in new and exciting directions of research."

He said the research would have immediate implications for genetic testing of families affected and also for reassuring those with sporadic cases that their relatives were not at risk.

Dr Belinda Cupid, research manager at the MND Association, said the fact that two genes had been discovered in 12 months reflected the "accelerating pace" of such research.

"Not only will it open up an entirely new avenue of scientific investigation, it will also allow researchers to compare the different known causes of MND and start to home in on the main biochemical events that cause motor neurones to die."