Biomed Radio - Washington University School Of Medicine In St. Louis

Diabetes-related vision loss most often is blamed on blood vessel damage in and around the retina, but new research indicates that much of that vision loss may result from nerve cell injury and probably begins long before any blood vessels are damaged. The findings — from scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis — may lead to new approaches to treating diabetes-related vision loss, called diabetic retinopathy, since many current treatments are aimed at damaged blood vessels. MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE DIABETES ALSO EVENTUALLY SUFFER DIABETES-RELATED VISION LOSS FROM DIABETIC RETINOPATHY. IT’S ONE OF THE MOST COMMON CAUSES OF VISION LOSS IN WORKING-AGE PEOPLE AND OFTEN IS BLAMED ON BLOOD VESSEL DAMAGE IN AND AROUND THE RETINA, BUT NEW RESEARCH FROM WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS SUGGESTS THE LOSS OF VISION MAY BEGIN LONG BEFORE ANY BLOOD VESSELS ARE DAMAGED. JIM DRYDEN HAS THE STORY… THE RESEARCHERS CREATED A MOUSE MODEL OF DIABETIC RETINOPATHY, THE FIRST SUCH M

Washington University researchers studying the interplay between depression and heart disease are studying whether dietary supplements called omega-3 fatty acids can be of benefit to people suffering from both ailments. Levels of omega-3 tend to be lower in the blood cells of heart patients and depressed patients. So the researchers attempted to improve symptoms of both depression and heart disease by treating the patients with the supplement. Their initial study found that depression did not improve with omega-3, but the researchers now report that the fatty acids did help some patients. They found that when a person had high blood levels of omega-3, that individual was more likely to respond to additional supplements of omega-3. The researchers now are conducting a study with higher levels of the supplements to see whether that might improve depression in heart patients. RESEARCH STUDIES HAVE TURNED UP CONFLICTING RESULTS ABOUT WHETHER THE FATTY ACIDS FOUND IN FISH, LIKE SALMON, CAN HELP PEOPLE WITH HEART

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have received almost $12 million in grants to resume the landmark Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS), which concluded that lowering pressure in the eye prevents or delays glaucoma in some patients at high risk for the disease. Washington University researchers led the original study 20 years ago and found that patients at the highest risk for glaucoma needed treatment with pressure-lowering drops. But the scientists also concluded that many with elevated pressure but no additional symptoms probably did not need treatment. Twenty years later, the same researchers are leading a follow-up study to see how their original conclusions have held up. VISION SCIENTISTS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS HAVE RECEIVED GRANTS, TOTALING ALMOST 12 MILLION DOLLARS, TO CHECK IN WITH MORE THAN 1500 PATIENTS AND LEARN ABOUT HOW LOWERING ELEVATED PRESSURE IN THEIR EYES AFFECTED THEIR LONG-TERM RISK FOR GLAUCOMA. JIM DRYDEN HAS

Some people need to lose a lot of weight to be healthy, but for many, diets haven’t worked and bariatric surgery seems too big a step. This population is the target of a newly approved, nonsurgical therapy being performed by Washington University physicians at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital. The therapy involves placing special balloons into the stomach and inflating them to give patients the feeling of being full after eating small meals. The balloons are inserted with an endoscope that is guided into the stomach through the patient’s mouth. The strategy is a substitute for gastric bypass and other surgical procedures. ONE COMMON STRATEGY FOR ASSISTING WEIGHT LOSS IS TO FIND A WAY TO MAKE A PATIENT FEEL FULL. THAT COULD INVOLVE DRINKING LOTS OF WATER, OR IT COULD INVOLVE SURGERY TO MAKE THE STOMACH SMALLER SO THAT IT FILLS UP MORE QUICKLY. NOW WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY PHYSICIANS AT BARNES-JEWISH WEST COUNTY HOSPITAL IN ST. LOUIS HAVE BEGUN INSERTING BALLOONS INTO THE STOMACHS OF PEOPLE WITH EXCESS WEIGHT

The phenomenon scientists call “delay discounting” can tell a lot about a person’s ability to set and attain goals. Some people are more likely to prefer smaller but immediate rewards rather than larger but delayed rewards. The tendency to prefer immediate rewards, even if they are smaller, has been linked to impulsive behavior, which is connected to problems such as substance abuse and addiction. Studying twins over a number of years, Washington University researchers have found that genetic factors underlie the preference for short-term rewards. The researchers also have identified genes linked to the brain’s serotonin and opioid systems as contributors to the preference for rewards now rather than later. IF YOU’D RATHER HAVE A SMALL REWARD NOW VERSUS SOMETHING BIGGER LATER, YOU MAY BE AT RISK FOR PROBLEMS LIKE ADDICTION OR OBESITY. PEOPLE WHO TEND TO CHOOSE SMALLER, BUT IMMEDIATE, REWARDS OVER LARGER PRIZES THAT THEY HAVE TO WAIT FOR ALSO MAY BE A BIT DIFFERENT GENETICALLY, ACCORDING TO NEW RESEARCH FROM

Building on wireless technology that has the potential to interfere with pain, scientists have developed flexible, implantable devices that can activate — and, in theory, block — pain signals in the body and spinal cord before those signals reach the brain. The researchers, at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, said the implants may one day be used in different parts of the body to fight pain that doesn’t respond to other therapies. TAKING ANOTHER STEP FORWARD IN WIRELESS, OPTOGENETIC TECHNOLOGY, RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS AND ENGINEERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN HAVE DEVELOPED NEW, SOFT, STRETCHABLE AND FULLY IMPLANTABLE DEVICES THAT CAN BE USED NOT ONLY IN THE BRAIN BUT THROUGHOUT THE NERVOUS SYSTEM TO POTENTIALLY BLOCK PAIN SIGNALS USING LIGHT. JIM DRYDEN HAS THE STORY… FOR SEVERAL YEARS, SCIENTISTS HAVE BEEN USING LIGHT TO ACTIVATE NERVE CELLS IN LIVING ANIMALS. INITI

The retina’s rods and cones allow us to see. But although scientists have an idea of what makes rods perform and flourish, they’ve been in the dark somewhat about what keeps cones working and thriving. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis believe they’re closer to the answer and that their findings may one day help preserve vision in patients with age-related macular degeneration and other retinal diseases. CELLS IN OUR EYES CALLED RODS AND CONES ALLOW US TO SEE. THE RODS ARE FOR DIM LIGHT, WHILE CONES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MOST OF WHAT WE THINK OF AS VISION, LIKE THE ABILITY TO SEE IN BRIGHT LIGHT AND TO SEE COLORS. NOW, A TEAM OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS HAS FOUND THAT A FORM OF CELLULAR RECYCLING IS NECESSARY FOR MAINTAINING CONE CELLS, AND THEY BELIEVE THE RECYLCING PATHWAY COULD PROVIDE A TARGET FOR TREATING SOME BLINDING RETINAL DISEASES. JIM DRYDEN HAS THE STORY… ALTHOUGH CONE CELLS ONLY MAKE UP ONLY BETWEEN 1 AND 3 PERCENT OF OUR PHOTORECEPTORS, THEY’RE

A study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may aid efforts to tailor smoking-cessation treatments to cigarette smokers, based on their DNA. The researchers are recruiting 720 smokers from the St. Louis area who want to kick the habit. Study participants will provide DNA samples, from saliva, that will be analyzed to identify genetic variations that influence smoking behavior, lung cancer risk and the effectiveness of smoking-cessation treatments. SMOKING IS LINKED TO CANCER AND TO CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE. RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT IT SHORTENS A PERSON’S LIFESPAN BY ABOUT 12 YEARS. BUT STILL, MANY PEOPLE SMOKE, AND IT’S VERY DIFFICULT TO QUIT. SO RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS ARE AIMING TO MATCH UP TREATMENTS WITH THE DNA OF INDIVIDUAL SMOKERS. THEY’RE RECRUITING SMOKERS WHO WANT TO QUIT, AND THEY HOPE TO LEARN WHETHER IT’S POSSIBLE TO MATCH SMOKERS WITH THERAPIES, BASED ON GENETIC INFORMATION. JIM DRYDEN REPORTS… MOST SMOKERS KNOW THE

Babies born prematurely face an increased risk of neurological and psychiatric problems that may be due to weakened connections in brain networks linked to attention, communication and the processing of emotions, new research shows. In presentations at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Cynthia Rogers, MD, a child psychiatrist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, reports that her team is zeroing in on differences in the brain's networks that may underlie problems such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety and autism spectrum disorders. BABIES WHO ARE BORN PREMATURELY ARE AT HIGHER RISK FOR A NUMBER OF PROBLEMS, LIKE MOTOR DIFFICULTIES AND COGNITIVE DEFICITS, AND THOSE BABIES ALSO HAVE AN ELEVATED RISK FOR PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS. NOW, COMPARING BRAIN SCANS OF FULL-TERM BABIES TO THOSE FROM BABIES BORN AT LEAST 10 WEEKS BEFORE THEIR DUE DATE, WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS HAVE IDENTIFIED DIFFERENCES THAT MAY CONTRIBUTE TO THE RISK FOR SOME OF THOS

Methadone — long used to treat pain and addiction — can be lethal if it lingers too long in the body. People metabolize the drug differently, and researchers have not completely understood how a person’s genetic makeup influences how slowly or rapidly methadone is cleared. But new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has identified genetic subtypes in people that govern methadone clearance, findings that could help prevent some of the 5,000 methadone-related deaths that occur each year in the United States. METHADONE IS A VERY GOOD TREATMENT FOR MULTIPLE FORMS OF PAIN, BUT IT CAN BE A DIFFICULT DRUG TO USE EFFECTIVELY. RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS SAY ONE REASON IS THAT PEOPLE CLEAR METHADONE FROM THEIR SYSTEMS AT VERY DIFFERENT RATES, SO SOME PEOPLE CAN END UP WITH TOO MUCH OF THE DRUG IN THEIR SYSTEMS, WHILE OTHERS DON’T GET ENOUGH. AND THEY SAY ONE REASON FOR THAT INVOLVES GENETIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PEOPLE. JIM DRYDEN REPORTS… METHADO

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis recently reported they had discovered genetic evidence suggesting schizophrenia was not a single disease but a group of eight genetically distinct disorders, each with its own symptoms. Now, using advanced brain-imaging techniques, they’ve been able to match groups of patients to specific qualities in brain anatomy and function. The findings could represent another step toward improving diagnosis and treatment of the disorders commonly known as schizophrenia. STUDYING CLUSTERS OF GENES, RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS RECENTLY FOUND THAT RATHER THAN A SINGLE ILLNESS, SCHIZOPHRENIA APPEARS TO BE SEVERAL DISTINCT DISORDERS. NOW, AFTER CONDUCTING BRAIN-IMAGING STUDIES, THEY ARE REPORTING THAT THE CONSTELLATIONS OF SYMPTOMS THAT CHARACTERIZE THE DISORDER ARE CLOSELY LINKED TO STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL DIFFERENCES IN THE BRAIN. JIM DRYDEN HAS THE STORY… MANY PAST BRAIN-IMAGING STUDIES HAVE HAD A DIFFICULT

Building on a growing body of work that suggests dietary nitrate improves muscle performance in elite athletes, a team of researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found that concentrated beet juice, which is high in nitrates, increases muscle power in patients who have heart failure. Because many of the activities of daily living are power-based — getting out of a chair, lifting groceries, climbing stairs — improving muscle power is important to quality of life for heart-failure patients. MUSCLE WEAKNESS IS ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS THAT CAUSES DISABILITY IN HEART FAILURE PATIENTS, BUT NEW RESEARCH AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS HAS FOUND THAT BEETS MAY PLAY A ROLE IN REVERSING THAT PROBLEM AND MAKING MUSCLES MORE POWERFUL. THE RESEARCH TEAM REPORTS THAT AFTER TREATMENT WITH CONCENTRATED BEET JUICE, HEART FAILURE PATIENTS GOT STRONGER AND MORE ABLE TO CARRY ON THE TASKS OF DAILY LIFE. JIM DRYDEN REPORTS… SOME ELITE ATHLETES ARE INCREASING THE NITRATE L

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are recruiting volunteers for a study comparing the potential health and longevity benefits of the Mediterranean diet with a typical American diet. The study’s aim is to determine whether health and longevity are influenced more by healthy eating or by weight loss. People tend to lose weight when they consume a Mediterranean diet, but it’s been hard to determine whether their markers of health and longevity improve because they’re eating healthier food or whether those changes are the result of weight loss. IF YOU HOPE TO LIVE A LONGER LIFE, IS IT MORE IMPORTANT TO LOSE WEIGHT? OR TO EAT A HEALTHIER DIET? THAT’S A DIFFICULT QUESTION BECAUSE OFTEN THE TWO GO HAND-IN-HAND, BUT NUTRITION AND LONGEVITY RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS ARE STUDYING WHAT HAPPENS WHEN PEOPLE CHANGE TO A HEALTHIER DIET WITHOUT LOSING WEIGHT TO COME UP WITH SOME ANSWERS. JIM DRYDEN REPORTS… SCIENTISTS KNOW WHEN ANIMALS EAT LESS

Positive mentions on Twitter about hookah smoking may promote the assumption that it is less harmful than smoking cigarettes, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. In recent years, hookah smoking has increased in popularity, particularly among young adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hookah smoking has many of the same harmful toxins as cigarettes and carries the same health risks. Yet, the researchers found that most of the 12,000 hookah-related tweets posted per day portray hookah smoking in a positive light. IN RECENT YEARS, HOOKAH BARS AND LOUNGES HAVE BEEN OPENING ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, PARTICULARLY NEAR COLLEGE CAMPUSES. NOW A TEAM OF RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS HAS LOOKED AT TWITTER TO FIND OUT HOW THAT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM IS REACTING TO HOOKAH SMOKING, AND THEY FOUND THAT ON TWITTER, HOOKAH SMOKING AND HOOKAH BARS USUALLY ARE DEPICTED IN A POSITIVE WAY AND OFTEN ARE TWEETED ABOUT

Shedding light on possible contributors to autism, schizophrenia and other neuro-psychiatric disorders, Washington University researchers have found that a type of support cell in the brain, called an astrocyte, may play a role in the ability of neurons to communicate. The scientists found, in culture, that without astrocytes, communication between neurons is slowed. THE MOST STUDIED CELLS IN THE BRAIN ARE CALLED NEURONS, BUT THEY AREN’T THE MOST NUMEROUS. THERE ARE MORE SUPPORT CELLS, CALLED OLIGODENDROCYTES AND ASTROCYTES, THAN NEURONS IN THE BRAIN. AND A RESEARCH TEAM FROM WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS SAYS IT’S IMPORTANT THAT SCIENTISTS FOCUS ON MORE THAN ONLY NEURONS WHEN STUDYING THE BRAIN. THEY’VE FOUND THAT THE SUPPORT CELLS CALLED ASTROCYES ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT AND FUNCTION OF NEURONS. JIM DRYDEN REPORTS… SUPPORT CELLS LIKE ASTROCYTES ARE MORE THAN JUST THE “GLUE” THAT HOLDS THE BRAIN TOGETHER. THOSE CELLS PERFORM IMPORTANT FUNCTIONS THAT MAKE IT POS

Women who have gastric bypass surgery to lose weight should keep a close eye on their alcohol consumption, according to a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Researchers found that changes in how alcohol is metabolized after surgery can speed its delivery into the bloodstream, resulting in earlier and higher peaks in blood-alcohol levels. The researchers said that although this study was conducted in women, they suspect the same changes may affect men. THE MOST COMMON WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERY IN THE WORLD IS GASTRIC BYPASS SURGERY. WHEN SOMEONE’S HEALTH IS THREATENED BY OBESITY, THE SURGERY CAN HELP THAT PERSON LOSE A LOT OF WEIGHT. BUT IT’S ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH A RISK FOR ALCOHOL PROBLEMS, AND RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS HAVE FOUND THAT AFTER THE SURGERY, SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER LEVELS OF ALCOHOL GET INTO THE BLOODSTREAM, EVEN WHEN PEOPLE DON’T DRINK VERY MUCH. JIM DRYDEN HAS MORE… WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY NUTRITION AND OBESITY RESEARCHER YANINA PEP

Exercise and mindfulness often are associated with reduced stress. That can be good for a person’s heart and mood. Now Washington University researchers are leading an effort to learn whether those activities also might be good for one’s memory. The investigators are studying the effects of exercise and mindfulness training on cognitive function in adults over the age of 65. The researchers won’t be studying people with the sort of dementia associated with conditions like Alzheimer’s disease, but they hope to learn whether some combination of exercise, mindfulness training and lifestyle intervention might help prevent some of the cognitive problems thought to be a normal part of aging. MOST OF US EXPERIENCE DECLINES IN OUR COGNITIVE ABILITIES AS WE GET OLDER. AFTER THE AGE OF 65, OUR BRAINS DON’T FUNCTION QUITE AS WELL AS THEY DID WHEN WE WERE IN OUR 20s OR 30s. NOW RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS ARE STUDYING STRATEGIES THAT MAY HELP OLDER ADULTS TO SLOW, PREVENT, OR EVE

Babies born prematurely are at an increased risk for autism spectrum disorders, so researchers at Washington University School of Medicine and St. Louis Children’s Hospital have been trying to determine whether it’s possible to identify which babies may go on to develop those problems. They assessed babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, looking for early signs that a child born prematurely might be at risk, but they found that the warning signs they would have expected — such as an avoidance of eye contact — didn’t actually predict autism spectrum disorders but instead were more prominent in babies who did not develop an autism spectrum disorder. RATES OF AUTISM ARE INCREASING AND DIAGNOSIS IS OCCURING EARLIER THAN IN PREVIOUS YEARS, BUT HOW EARLY CAN THE SIGNS OF AUTISM BE DETECTED? BABIES WHO ARE BORN PREMATURELY ARE AT AN INCREASED RISK FOR AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS. AND LOOKING FOR WARNING SIGNS IN PREMATURE BABIES , RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AND ST. LOUIS CHILDREN’S

The amount of acid in a person’s urine, and small molecules related to diet, may help predict how likely it is that an individual will develop a urinary tract infection. Conventional wisdom in medicine has favored the idea that acidic urine should be better at restricting bacterial growth than less acidic urine. But Washington University School of Medicine researchers found that when a person’s urine was closer to the neutral pH value of pure water, it was better at restricting bacterial growth than more acidic samples were, meaning people with less acidic urine may be less likely to develop infections. RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS HAVE TAKEN STEPS TO IDENTIFY WHAT PUTS INDIVIDUAL PATIENTS AT THE GREATEST RISK FOR RECURRENT URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS, OR UTIs. IT TURNS OUT THAT THE ACIDITY OF URINE, ALONG WITH THE PRESENCE OF SMALL MOLECULES RELATED TO DIET MAY INFLUENCE HOW WELL BACTERIA CAN GROW IN THE URINARY TRACT. JIM DRYDEN REPORTS… URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS, OR UT

A team of Washington University vision researchers is the first to identify a specific type of cell in the eye that appears to be responsible for the ability to detect motion. Studying retinas in mice, the researchers identified a specific type of cell that transmits information when the retina detects moving objects. When something is moving in the visual field, those cells send signals to other cells that then transmit the information to the brain. Those signals can help mice avoid predators. For humans, understanding how those cells transmit signals may aid in the development of artificial retinas for people who cannot see. IT’S KIND OF AMAZING THAT THE EYE’S RETINA CAN DETECT AND DISTINGUISH MOVING OBJECTS IN OUR FIELD OF VISION BECAUSE OUR EYES, HEADS AND BODIES ALSO ARE MOVING. SO SOMEHOW, RETINAL CELLS HAVE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN OUR MOVEMENTS AND THE MOVEMENTS OF OBJECTS IN THE WORLD AROUND US. AND NOW RESEARCHERS AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN ST. LOUIS HAVE IDENTIFIED A CIRCUIT IN