Gaming addiction being taken seriously!

More Study Needed on Gaming Addiction

from the Baltimore Sun

The American Medical Association warned the public yesterday about the
potential dangers of video-game addiction, but rejected a call from a
Maryland physicians group and other doctors to declare the condition a
formal medical disorder.

Instead, the national doctors' group urged more formal research into the
impact of video game use and called for a review of the video game
ratings
system.

We would like to find out exactly what this is, what it does, its
harms and
even its benefits," said Dr. Martin Wasserman, executive director of
MedChi, the Maryland State Medical Association. MedChi helped bring the
issue before the AMA's annual conference in Chicago this week...

To read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/health/bal-

to.hs.video28jun28,0,1618988.story

Or: http://tinyurl.com/2qydxw

Amazing report on brain research at MIT

This one blows my mind. I remember the story, it struck a deep cord
in me when I first read it at age ten.
To have anything like it (though the comparison is one that does not
stand up to strenuous scrutiny) is a bit frightening.
I hope, with all my heart, that this research turns into something
wonderful for anyone born with this problem, and for their families
as well.

Scientists Reverse Mental Retardation in Mice

from Scientific American

In a case of life imitating art, researchers at the Massachusetts
Institute
of Technology (M.I.T.) reported today that they had successfully
reversed
mental retardation in mice, just as scientists did in the classic 1966
novel Flowers for Algernon.

In the book by Daniel Keyes, scientists use experimental surgery - first
tested on a mouse named Algernon - to dramatically boost the
intelligence
of a mentally retarded janitor named Charlie Gordon.

Now M.I.T. scientists report in Proceedings of the National Academy
of the
Sciences USA that they ameliorated brain damage in mice caused by a
genetic
disorder known as fragile X syndrome by blocking an enzyme involved in
cellular development.

To read more: http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=6901F70B-

E7F2-99DF-3648F0789D1EC063&chanID=sa003

Or: http://tinyurl.com/2e6kwx

Blood Test For Colon Cancer

Blood test can reveal cancer of colon

Hopkins study finds procedure is nearly colonoscopy's equal

By Chris Emery

SUN REPORTER

Originally published June 20, 2007

Johns Hopkins researchers are developing a simple blood test that can help doctors determine who needs a colonoscopy, a screening procedure for colon cancer recommended for all adults over 50 - but one considered so unpleasant that many avoid it.

The new test, which looks for cancer-related proteins in the blood, identifies colon cancer and precancerous polyps almost as well as a colonoscopy, according to a study published in the journal Cancer Research.

The authors say their test won't replace colonoscopies but might provide a noninvasive means of identifying high-risk patients - and an incentive for them to undergo the more invasive procedure.

http://tinyurl.com/2scym9

Hope for Various Brain Diseases

Research brings hope of curing brain disease

Ian Sample, science correspondent

Monday June 18, 2007

The Guardian 

Scientists have developed a revolutionary new treatment for neurological diseases that uses an injection to tweak the way genes work in the brain.

The research raises hopes for a new era of effective treatments for some of the most debilitating - and so far incurable - brain conditions, including cancer and Alzheimer's disease.

Tests of the therapy at Harvard Medical School in Boston found that a simple injection was able to cure mice of a potentially fatal brain disease. The researchers behind the breakthrough are planning further tests and expect to conduct human trials within five years.

The team used a powerful new technique called RNA interference to silence faulty genes or viruses that cause brain diseases. The principle of gene silencing is simple: scientists build tiny strands of the genetic material called RNA which, when injected into cells, latch on to problematic genes and smother them, effectively shutting them down.

http://tinyurl.com/3cu2y2