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.
Liberia–U.S. partnership planning Phase 3 trial and study of Ebola survivors
Two experimental Ebola vaccines appear to be safe based on evaluation in more than 600 people in Liberia who participated in the first stage of the Partnership for Research on Ebola Vaccines in Liberia (PREVAIL) Phase 2/3 clinical trial, according to interim findings from an independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board review. Based on these findings, the study, which is sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, may now advance to Phase 3 testing.
NIH physicians have changed the status of the patient with Ebola virus disease being treated at the NIH Clinical Center from serious to critical condition. No additional details about the patient are being shared at this time.
NIH has no pending admissions of additional individuals with Ebola virus disease or exposed to the Ebola virus.
Valacyclovir, a drug commonly used to control the virus that causes genital herpes, appears to reduce the levels of HIV in patients who do not have genital herpes, according to a study by researchers from the National Institutes of Health, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Emory University, Atlanta and Lima, Peru.
Update: NIH physicians have evaluated the patient with Ebola virus disease and have determined that the patient’s condition is serious. No additional details about the patient are being shared at this time.
An American healthcare worker who tested positive for Ebola virus while volunteering services in an Ebola treatment unit in Sierra Leone has arrived safely at the NIH Clinical Center for care and treatment. The individual was transferred from Sierra Leone via private charter medevac in isolation and admitted to the NIH Clinical Center at 4:44 a.m. ET. The patient’s condition is still being evaluated.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) expects to admit to its hospital tomorrow an American healthcare worker who has tested positive for Ebola virus disease. The individual was volunteering services in an Ebola treatment unit in Sierra Leone and will be transported back to the United States in isolation via a chartered aircraft. The individual will be admitted and treated at the NIH Clinical Center Special Clinical Studies Unit, a high-level containment facility which is one of a small number of such facilities in the United States. No additional details about the patient are being shared at this time.
NIH study analyzes data from more than 450 men attempting to conceive.
Working in a physically demanding job, having high blood pressure, and taking multiple medications are among health risks that may undermine a man’s fertility, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and Stanford University, Stanford, California. The study is the first to examine the relationships between workplace exertion, health, and semen quality as men are trying to conceive. The results were published online in Fertility and Sterility.
Officials from the National Institutes of Health and the city of Washington, D.C., launched a clinical trial to examine whether primary care physicians and other health care providers, such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants, can use a new antiviral therapy as effectively as specialist physicians to treat people with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. The trial, which will involve 600 adult D.C. residents infected with HCV alone or co-infected with HCV and HIV, also will examine the long-term effects of the treatment.
Innovative collaboration, rapid data-sharing opens research to wider community.
A National Institutes of Health-led public-private partnership to transform and accelerate drug development achieved a significant milestone today with the launch of a new Alzheimer’s Big Data portal — including delivery of the first wave of data — for use by the research community. The new data sharing and analysis resource is part of the Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP), an unprecedented venture bringing together NIH, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, industry and academic scientists from a variety of disciplines to translate knowledge faster and more successfully into new therapies.
Initial study will evaluate experimental drug cocktail ZMapp.
In partnership with the Liberian government, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) today launched a clinical trial to obtain safety and efficacy data on the investigational drug ZMapp as a treatment for Ebola virus disease. The study, which will be conducted in Liberia and the United States, is a randomized controlled trial enrolling adults and children with known Ebola virus infection.
The release of data from a nationwide government survey on American Children’s use of natural products such as melatonin, Echinacea, probiotics, as well as on the use of mind and body approaches such as yoga, chiropractic, massage, and meditation. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) of the National Institutes of Health will hold a webinar/telephone briefing to discuss the findings of the most recent reports from the National Health Interview Survey.
