SCIENCE IN THE NEWS WEEKLY
Biomedicine: Financial Crisis Spurs Mental-Health Referrals
One kind of depression leads to another, according to health officials. The plunge in financial markets has sparked a surge in mental health problems around the United States.
Meanwhile, the first long-term study of children diagnosed with bipolar disorder found that they rarely grow out of it. Almost half of those in the study who suffered from the disorder at age 11 were having the same wide mood swings at ages 18 to 20.
In other biomedical news, researchers reported successfully converting cells from human testes into stem cells that grew into other kinds of tissue. The technique could offer another potential alternative to embryonic stem cells for medical research.
Scientists have discovered, through genetic sequencing, that malaria parasites use the equivalent of "cloaking devices" to hide from the body's immune defenses. The discovery could lead to new vaccines.
Doctors at Duke University reported development of a simple blood test for coronary artery disease. It detects genetic markers that show the presence and intensity of blockages in coronary arteries. They said the test could eventually help many patients avoid more expensive diagnostic procedures.
And a couple of bioethics cases made the news last week. The University of Minnesota concluded that falsified data were used in an article on adult stem cells published by one of its researchers. And an influential psychiatrist at Emory University was alleged to have violated federal and university rules governing outside income from pharmaceutical companies. The New York Times ran a commentary on the Emory case and others of its ilk, under the heading "Diagnosis: Greed."
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