A new discovery could lead to the first new drug that could cure Tuberculosis in the latent stage, according to researchers at Sydney’s Centenary Institute.
Tuberculosis is spread through the air and most infections are latent, but about one in ten infections progresses to active disease. “Unfortunately, the antibiotics we use to fight TB aren’t effective against latent TB and can only be used when the disease becomes active. This is a major problem as 1 out of 10 people who have latent TB will develop the active disease, becoming sick …

In a recent study, researchers from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore concluded that healthy people who donate a kidney are not risking premature death afterwards.
The study tracked around 80000 American who donated one of their kidneys, over a 12 year period, and compared their fate with a matched group of 9000 non-donors.  According to the researchers: “Surgical mortality did not change during the 15-year period (between 1994 and 2009), despite differences in surgical practice and donor selection”.
The death rate among kidney donors matched or was lower …

A new extract from red clover could reduce depression in postmenopausal women by almost 80 percent, claims a group of Austrian researcher in a new study.
The study was performed by researchers at General Teaching Hospital Korneuburg, led by Markus Lipovac, and involved 109 postmenopausal women over 40 years of age. The women were divided in two groups and for 90 days one group received supplements containing 80mg of red clover isoflavones and the other received a placebo pill.
At the end of the study, the depression symptoms were reduced by 78 …

Until now it was believed that calcium and vitamin D supplements lower cholesterol levels, reducing the risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, but a recent study shows that supporting evidence is thin.
The study involved 1191 post-menopausal women, half of which were given calcium and vitamin D supplements and half took identical looking placebos. Scientist from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY, found no differences between the two groups in the cholesterol levels after a five year period of supplementation.
Dr. Swapnil Rajpathak, lead author of the study, pointed out that the study …

Millions of people suffering from migraines may finally be pain-free within two hours, after scientist invented a magnetic device based on a technique called single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (sTMS) for migraine treatment.
The device is about the size of a hair-dryer and must be held against the back of the head at the first signs of a migraine. Pushing the button on it releases two bursts of electricity which short-circuits the ‘electrical storm’ in the brain that causes pain and other sensations associated with migraines.
A study was conducted to assess …