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:
BETHESDA, Md. (AP) — Sam Srisatta, a 20-year-old Florida college student, spent a month living inside a government hospital here last fall, playing video games and allowing scientists to document every morsel of food that went into his mouth.
From big bowls of salad to platters of meatballs and spaghetti sauce, Srisatta noshed his way through a nutrition study aimed at understanding the health effects of ultraprocessed foods, the controversial fare that now accounts for more than 70% of the U.S. food supply. He allowed The Associated Press to tag along for a day.
“Today my lunch was chicken nuggets, some chips, some ketchup,” said Srisatta, one of three dozen participants paid $5,000 each to devote 28 days of their lives to science. “It was pretty fulfilling.”
Examining exactly what made those nuggets so satisfying is the goal of the widely anticipated research led by National Institutes of Health nutrition researcher Kevin Hall.
“What we hope to do is figure out what those mechanisms are so that we can better understand that process,” Hall said.
NIH preclinical study suggests higher risk of death is associated with warmer brain temperature
A moderate dose of MDMA, commonly known as Ecstasy or Molly, that is typically nonfatal in cool, quiet environments can be lethal in rats exposed to conditions that mimic the hot, crowded, social settings where the drug is often used by people, a study finds. Scientists have identified the therapeutically-relevant cooling mechanism to enable effective interventions when faced with MDMA-induced hyperthermia. The study, publishing tomorrow in the Journal of Neuroscience, was conducted by researchers at the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s Intramural Research Program (NIDA IRP). NIDA is a part of the National Institutes of Health.
Finding offers insight into how sensory cells find their position
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have uncovered a molecule in an animal model that acts as a key player in establishing the organization of the auditory system. The molecule, a protein known as Bmp7, is produced during embryonic development and acts to help sensory cells find their ultimate position on the tonotopic map, which is the fundamental principle of organization in the auditory system. The tonotopic map groups sensory cells by the sound frequencies that stimulate them. The study is the first to identify one of the molecular mechanisms that determines position.
Couples with highest cholesterol took longest to achieve pregnancy
High cholesterol levels may impair fertility in couples trying to achieve a pregnancy, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health, the University at Buffalo (New York), and Emory University in Atlanta.
The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) announced the appointment of three new members to the National Advisory Council for Nursing Research (NACNR), the institute's principal advisory board. Members of the council are drawn from the scientific and lay communities, embodying a diverse perspective from the fields of nursing, public and health policy, law, and economics. NINR, a component of the National Institutes of Health, is the primary federal agency for the support of nursing research.
May is Asthma Awareness Month, and the National Institutes of Health emphasizes the scientific progress being made in asthma research, from basic science, such as how lung cells work, to clinical trials on current and future treatments for the disease. NIH-led research includes studies of environmental factors, how the body’s own defense system plays a role, and the microbiome — all the microbial organisms that live in and on the human body.
A new method for using immunotherapy to specifically attack tumor cells that have mutations unique to a patient’s cancer has been developed by scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health. The researchers demonstrated that the human immune system can mount a response against mutant proteins expressed by cancers that arise in epithelial cells which can line the internal and external surfaces (such as the skin) of the body. These cells give rise to many types of common cancers, such as those that develop in the digestive tract, lung, pancreas, bladder and other areas of the body.
NIH study indicates hormone may provide treatment for social disorders
The hormone oxytocin appears to increase social behaviors in newborn rhesus monkeys, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health, the University of Parma in Italy, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The findings indicate that oxytocin is a promising candidate for new treatments for developmental disorders affecting social skills and bonding.
John J. O'Shea, M.D., scientific director at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), has been named the 2014 recipient of the Ross Prize in Molecular Medicine, conferred by the Feinstein Institute’s peer-reviewed, open-access journal Molecular Medicine. The award will be given on June 9 at the New York Academy of Sciences in Manhattan, followed by scientific presentations by Dr. O’Shea and other prominent researchers. NIAMS is part of the National Institutes of Health.
Research continues four years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health, leading the largest health study ever conducted on the potential health effects of an oil spill, are encouraging participants to stay involved in this long-term project. All participants are being contacted for telephone interviews to update their health status. Those living within 60 miles of Mobile, Ala., and New Orleans also will be invited to take part in a second comprehensive health exam.
Increased live birth rate in subgroup of participants
A daily low dose of aspirin does not appear to prevent subsequent pregnancy loss among women with a history of one or two prior pregnancy losses, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health.
