News by Subject Medicine & Health

Mathematics and science Braille textbooks are expensive and require an enormous effort to produce -- until now. A team of researchers has developed a method for easily creating textbooks in Braille, with an initial focus on math textbooks. The new process is made possible by a new authoring system which serves as a 'universal translator' for textbook formats. Based on this new method, the production of Braille textbooks will become easy, inexpensive, and widespread.

Scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute have shown that cells from children with NGLY1 deficiency--a rare disorder first described in 2012--lack sufficient water channel proteins called aquaporins. The discovery was published in Cell Reports and may help explain the disorder's wide-ranging symptoms--including the inability to produce tears, seizures and developmental delays--and opens new avenues to find therapies to treat the disorder.

In a new study, Karim Fouad and his team discovered that rats with spinal injuries experienced changes to their gut bacteria and a rise in anxiety-like behavior. When rats with spinal injuries were given fecal transplants from healthy rats, their behavior -- and gut bacteria -- remained normal. Fouad suggests 'poop pills' could one day be used to improve well-being following spinal cord injuries and diseases of the central nervous system.

HRL Laboratories, LLC, researchers have published results showing that targeted transcranial electrical stimulation during slow-wave sleep can improve metamemories of specific episodes by 20% after only one viewing of the episode, compared to controls. The same technology may offer a non-invasive treatment to mitigate bad memories that might cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Metamemory describes the sensitivity of whether memories are recalled accurately or not, such as during eyewitness testimony.

For families who use the modified ride-on cars to help young children with mobility issues develop self-guided exploration and socialization, researcher Sam Logan found that robust support is needed to ensure the cars actually get used, rather than being forgotten in a closet.

Autistic mothers are more likely to report post-natal depression compared to non-autistic mothers, according to a new study of mothers of autistic children carried out by researchers at the University of Cambridge. A better understanding of the experiences of autistic mothers during pregnancy and the post-natal period is critical to improving wellbeing.

The timing of knee replacement surgery is critical to optimize its benefit. But 90% of patients with knee osteoarthritis who would potentially benefit from knee replacement are waiting too long to have it and getting less benefit, reports a new study. In addition, about 25% of patients who don't need it are having it prematurely when the benefit is minimal, the study found. African-Americans delayed knee replacement surgery more than Caucasians.

Scientists eavesdropped on neurons and discovered a stable signal driving common movement skills like typing sneakers. They were able to preserve and reconstruct these patterns in what is a major advance for neuroprostheses for paralyzed patients.