Research advances from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Intramural Research Program (IRP) often make headlines. Read the news releases that describe our most recent findings:
The act of cooking offers the chance to unwind and create something special, whether you’re planning to feed a crowd or just yourself. And while you may have noticed feeling good after whipping up that perfect pie or braise, there’s actually a lot of scientific data to suggest that cooking can have a positive impact on mental health.
One meta-analysis (a report of pre-existing research) from the National Institutes of Health looked at 11 studies and found that “cooking interventions” — encouraging people to follow certain recipes or giving people cooking classes — can improve a person’s mental well-being. It specifically found that people who participated in cooking interventions reported having better self-esteem and quality of life, as well as a more positive emotional state after the fact. Another study even discovered that baking can help raise a person’s confidence level.
NIH analysis allays concerns raised by previous study
The recommendation to delay delivery of otherwise healthy infants until at least the 39th week of pregnancy does not appear to have increased stillbirths in the United States, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions. These findings contradict an earlier study that raised the concern that waiting until 39 weeks could lead to more stillbirths.
Research has shown that foregoing delivery before 39 weeks, either by induced labor or via cesarean, when there is no medical reason to deliver early lowers the chances of newborn illness and death. Yet one study linked a policy in a large hospital group of avoiding such optional, or elective, deliveries before 39 weeks to an increase in stillbirths in its patients.
Deficit in intracellular trafficking underlies speech disorder
A defect in intracellular trafficking, the process that cells use to move proteins to their correct locations, causes an inherited form of persistent stuttering, according to a new study led by scientists at the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), part of the National Institutes of Health. The findings extend previous studies, providing new insights into the molecular underpinnings of the disorder and reinforcing the notion that persistent stuttering is a neurological (brain) disorder. The results may contribute to a foundation for the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for stuttering. The study was published November 5 in the American Journal of Human Genetics.
Stuttering is a speech disorder in which a person repeats or prolongs sounds, syllables, or words, disrupting the normal flow of speech. The disorder affects people of all ages and begins most frequently in young children between the ages of 2 and 6, as they are developing their language skills. Most children outgrow stuttering but many do not. Researchers estimate that as many as 1 percent of Americans, roughly 3 million people, live with persistent stuttering. While the exact causes of stuttering are unknown, scientists believe that it stems from problems with the circuits in the brain that control speech.
Scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, and colleagues at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and MedImmune, LLC, have developed a vaccine candidate to protect infants and young children against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) that appears to elicit a stronger protective immune response than the previous lead vaccine candidate. RSV is the most common cause of lower respiratory tract infections—including pneumonia and bronchiolitis—among young children worldwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Each year in the United States, RSV leads to an average of about 55,000 hospitalizations among children younger than 5 years, with most hospitalizations occurring among infants younger than 6 months. There is currently no approved vaccine to prevent RSV infection.
Analysis reveals reasons for use of yoga, supplements, and spinal manipulation
People who practiced yoga or took natural products (dietary supplements other than vitamins and minerals) were more likely to do so for wellness reasons than to treat a specific health condition, according to analysis of data from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Yoga users reported the most positive health benefits, compared to users of natural products and spinal manipulation. The analysis by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) was published in a National Health Statistics Report by the National Center for Health Statistics.
A National Institutes of Health study found that non-invasive brain stimulation decreased calorie consumption and increased weight loss in adults who are obese. The findings suggest a possible intervention for obesity, when combined with healthy eating and exercise. Results were published in Obesity concurrent with a presentation at the 2015 Obesity Society meeting.
In-home test kits, coupled with patient education, help parents reduce allergen levels in their homes, according to scientists from the National Institutes of Health. The researchers found that parents may become more motivated to participate in allergen reduction interventions, when they can actually see results for themselves.
The scientists specifically looked at dust mites, microscopic relatives of the spider, that live in dust on mattresses, bedding, upholstered furniture, carpets, curtains, and other soft furnishings. Dust mites contain allergens known to trigger symptoms in people who are allergic to them, and especially those with asthma.
Scientists at the Frederick National Lab have produced three crystal structures that reveal a specific part of a protein that can be targeted to fight the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), which causes an emerging viral respiratory illness.
Senior Investigator David Waugh, Ph.D., Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory, has solved the structure of an enzyme known as the 3C-like protease (3CLpro), which, if blocked, can prevent the virus from replicating. Waugh’s lab used X-ray crystallography to produce detailed three-dimensional views of the enzyme that depict the entire structure, including the site that the enzyme uses to bind to other molecules. The binding site is an attractive target for inhibitors that could disable the enzyme and, thus, stop the virus from spreading.
Variation in the BDNF gene may affect brain’s regulation of appetite, study suggests
A single variation in the gene for brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) may influence obesity in children and adults, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The study suggests that a less common version of the BDNF gene may predispose people to obesity by producing lower levels of BDNF protein, a regulator of appetite, in the brain. The authors propose that boosting BDNF protein levels may offer a therapeutic strategy for people with the genetic variation, which tends to occur more frequently in African Americans and Hispanics, than in non-Hispanic Caucasians. The study is published in the journal Cell Reports.
The National Institutes of Health is strengthening its efforts to advance research on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), a disease for which an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment have remained elusive. The actions being taken include launching a research protocol at the NIH Clinical Center to intensely study individuals with ME/CFS and re-invigorating the efforts of the long-standing Trans-NIH ME/CFS Research Working Group with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) as the lead of a multi-institute research effort.
Approximately 23 percent of U.S. adults ages 40 and older report having had a problem with their ability to smell, and about 19 percent report having had a problem with their ability to taste, according to a recently published study. Conducted by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the study examines the first collection of nationally representative, population-based survey data of middle-aged and older adults on perceived smell and taste problems, related risk factors, and treatments.
