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Sleep Apnea Linked to Increased Risk of Dementia in Elderly Women
Elderly women who suffer from sleep apnea -- characterized by disrupted breathing and sleep and a reduction in the intake of oxygen -- are about twice as likely to develop dementia in the next five years as those without the condition, according to a multi-center study led by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco.
What Steers Vampires to Blood
Scientists have known for years that when vampire bats tear through an animal’s skin with their razor-sharp teeth, their noses guide them to the best spots – where a precise bite will strike a vein and spill forth nourishing blood. But nobody knew exactly how bats knew where to bite – until now.
UCSF and Kaiser Permanente Complete Massive Genotyping Project
The completion of a massive genotyping on a large and diverse population marks an unprecedented milestone in population-based genetics research and offers a unique and powerful resource to help answer research questions about aging, health and disease.
Traumatic Brain Injury More Than Doubles Dementia Risk
Patients diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) had over twice the risk of developing dementia within seven years after diagnosis compared to those without TBI, in a study of more than 280,000 older veterans conducted by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and UCSF.
Over Half of Alzheimer's Cases May Be Preventable, Say Researchers
Over half of all Alzheimer’s disease cases could potentially be prevented through lifestyle changes and treatment or prevention of chronic medical conditions, according to a study led by Deborah Barnes, PhD, a mental health researcher at the San Francisco VA Medical Center.
Brain Research at UCSF Aims to Help Distracted Remember
<p>UCSF cognitive neuroscientist Adam Gazzaley has used functional brain imaging and EEG studies to discover that older adults fare worse than younger adults at remembering following distractions. He hopes to improve their performance with cognitive training, using a newly developed video game.</p>
NIH Director Says Timing Right to Reengineer Translational Science
<p>Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), describes the scientific goals and functions of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), a proposed new entity of the NIH that will strive to reengineer the process of developing drugs, diagnostics, and devices. </p>
NIH Director Tours QB3 at Mission Bay to View Translational Science in Action
<p>As part of his push for the National Institutes of Health to focus more on translational medicine, Director Francis Collins recently toured one of UCSF’s world-class centers of innovation, the California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3) at Mission Bay.</p>
UCSF Team Describes Genetic Basis of Rare Human Diseases
Researchers at UCSF and in Michigan, North Carolina and Spain have discovered how genetic mutations cause a number of rare human diseases, which include Meckel syndrome, Joubert syndrome and several other disorders.
Rethinking Prostate Cancer with Matthew Cooperberg, MD, MPH
<p>In the era of prostate cancer screening, mortality rates have fallen 40 percent. The price of that has been over-diagnosis and over-treatment, something the current health care system cannot sustain. One of the major goals of Cooperberg’s research is to develop better risk assessment tools and instruments that can give the patient and doctor more confidence that the patient’s cancer will not progress.</p>
Sleep and Pregnancy with Kathryn A. Lee, RN, PhD, FAAN
<p>With years of sleep research under her belt, Lee has recently focused on helping parents — especially new and expecting mothers — get enough sleep. From these studies, Lee has found worrisome correlations between sleep deprivation during pregnancy and increased instances of Cesarean operations and length of labor. By educating families about proper sleep hygiene, she hopes to promote healthier home environments for mothers and babies.</p>
Mapping the Brain with Philip Sabes, PhD
<p>By mapping neurons and neuron circuitry during movement, Sabes’ lab hopes to one day to be able to print this information back into the brain. If feasible, such therapy could offer new hope to stroke victims whose brains are unable to recover on their own.</p>