Gene Linked To Blood Pressure is Discovered by Scientists

Twenty percent of people carry a gene variant that makes them more susceptible to high blood pressure, according to a new study from the University of Maryland.

The gene produces a protein that helps regulate how the kidneys process salt, which plays a role in determining blood pressure, according to the study's authors.

The discovery of the gene could open up more options for treating high blood pressure, these researchers say.

"This discovery has great potential for enhancing our ability to tailor treatments to the individual -- what we call personalized medicine -- and to more effectively manage patients with hypertension. We hope that it will lead to new therapies to combat this serious public health problem worldwide," the senior author, Yen-Pei Christy Chang, an assistant professor of medicine and of epidemiology and preventive medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said in a statement.

Chang said more research needs to be done, however. Causes of hypertension vary greatly, and may have to do with a person's environment and lifestyle.

"We want to determine how people with different variations of this gene respond to diuretics and other medications, or to lifestyle changes, such as reducing the amount of salt in their diet. This information might help us discover the most effective way to control an individual patient's blood pressure," Chang said.

Researchers says that Genes Linked To Deadly 1918 Flu

Scientists have discovered a gene combination that made the 1918 Spanish flu so deadly.

That outbreak infected up to 500 million people worldwide, and was blamed on the deaths of up to 30 million people.

The discovery by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers could help health officials deal with a similar outbreak in the future.

Most flu viruses attack the upper respiratory system, but the 1918 strain attacked the lungs, which caused primary pneumonia in its victims, said the report's co-author Yoshihiro Kawaoka.

The researchers said they hope the gene combination could lead to new anti-viral drugs that could be used to quickly get a handle on future influenza pandemics, Agence France Presse reported.

Asthma Inhalers Will Be More Expensive In The Coming Year

People suffering from asthma and other respiratory ailments will be forced to shell out more money to buy "green" inhalers beginning in the new year.

Since the United States signed on to the 1987 Montreal Protocol, U.S. drug companies must sell inhalers that use the propellant hydrofluoralkane, or HFA.

Environmentalists say the propellant used in traditional inhalers damages the ozone layer.

But the HFA inhalers are significantly more expensive.

Most of the new HFA inhalers cost between $30 and $60. Old inhalers cost between $5 and $25, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

The cost has some healthcare professionals concerned lower income people may cut back on their prescriptions. Inhalers are used by asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis and chronic obstructive disorder patients to deliver the drug albuterol for quick relief of symptoms associated with those diseases.

Old inhalers used chlorofluorocarbons to deliver the drug.

Some patients say the new inhalers are less effective in delivering relief.

Researchers Find Thiamine (Vitamin B1) Helps to Reverse Early Diabetic Kidney Damage

Researchers have discovered that high doses of thiamine can reverse early diabetic kidney damage.

High doses of thiamine, vitamin B1, were found to stop the loss of a key protein in the urine of people with type 2 diabetes, researchers at Warwick University found.

Although scientists say the results aren't conclusive, thiamine is a relatively inexpensive B vitamin. Since about 70 percent to 90 percent of people with type 1 or 2 diabetes are thiamine deficient, it would be beneficial overall for them to take more B1.

Vitamin B1 is found in in meat, yeast and grain.

Researchers from Warwick University worked with the University of Punjab and Sheik Zaid Hospital in Lahore, Pakistan for the study.

The study used 40 participants in Pakistan to test the efficacy of 300 vitamin B1 taken orally for three days. One third of the study participants had a return to normal for albumin excretions in the urine.

Results of the study are published online in the journal Diabetologi.

Increasing the Flow Of Blood To The Brain Could Prevent Alzheimer's

A restriction of blood flow carrying glucose to the brain may trigger a biological process that causes Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study from Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.

The study says that when the brain doesn't get enough sugar glucose because of restricted blood flow, often due to cardiovascular disease, a process is launched that ultimately produces the sticky clumps of protein in the brain that scientists think cause Alzheimer's.

The findings are significant because they suggest increasing blood flow to the brain in older people could help prevent the onset of the disease.

The study is published in the Dec. 26 issue of the Journal Neuron.

"This finding is significant because it suggests that improving blood flow to the brain might be an effective therapeutic approach to prevent or treat Alzheimer's," said Robert Vassar, a professor of cell and molecular biology at the Feinberg School, and one of the study's lead authors.

Vassar things people can do to increase blood flow to the brain include getting more exercise, reducing hypertension and lowering cholesterol.

"If people start early enough, maybe they can dodge the bullet," Vassar said.

FDA Tells CocaCola To Remove 'Plus' Claim On New Diet Soda

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning the Coca-Cola Company that its new Diet Coke Plus product is in violation of federal rules allowing certain food and beverages to make nutritious claims on their labels.

The agency sent a letter to Coca-Cola executives on Dec. 10 saying that the company has 15 days to respond to the warning and explain in detail "each step being taken to correct the current violations and prevent similar violations."

The FDA told Coke that it is in violation of certain federal rules because, "Your Diet Coke Plus product is mislabeled... .because the product makes a nutrient content claim but does not meet the criteria to make that claim."

Among the regulations the FDA says Coca-Cola is in violation of is a rule that the FDA considers it inappropriate to fortify snack foods such as carbonated beverages. The FDA specifically objects to Coke's use of the word "plus." In order for a product to legally contain the word, the product must contain at least 10 percent or more of the "Reference Daily Intake or Daily Reference Value for the nutrient per reference amount customarily consumed than an appropriate reference food," the letter states.

Dead United Kingdom Drum Maker's Home Checked For Suspected Anthrax Spores

Health authorities in London are looking for anthrax spores in the home of a musician and drum maker who died Sunday from symptoms of the killer disease.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has sealed off the flat of Fernando Gomez, 35, at the Dalston Lane building in Hackney and plans to conduct a cleanup if any anthrax sign emerge.

Gomez, who also taught neighborhood kids Spanish folk music, fell ill one week ago and was treated at the Homerton University hospital for anthrax inhalation before dying. The animal skin he was making into drums are suspected as the source of the anthrax spores and eight people believed to have been exposed to the disease have been given antibiotics as precaution.

Professor Nigel Lightfoot, the HPA chief adviser, said residents near Gomez's flat or studio were not at risk of contracting anthrax because it can only infect those making a drums and not the ones playing the instrument.