A side of fries, after researchers in Italy revealed that study subjects who ate french fries two or more times per week were at double the risk of an early death compared with those who didn’t. “The frequent consumption of fried potatoes appears to be associated with an increased mortality risk,” the researchers concluded.
A vaccine against heart disease has worked successfully in mice, raising the possibility that scientists will develop a breakthrough technique that could save millions of lives. Researchers in Europe tested the experimental vaccine on mice that were fed an unhealthy, high-fat Western diet, leaving them with high cholesterol and atherosclerosis, fatty buildup in the arteries that increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. The vaccine effectively lowered the total blood cholesterol level of the mice by 53 percent, The Guardian (U.K.) reports. It also reduced arterial damage linked to atherosclerosis by 64 percent and led to a 28 percent drop in markers of blood vessel inflammation. The vaccine works by triggering the production of antibodies that block an enzyme called PCSK9, which prevents the body from clearing LDL, or “bad” cholesterol from the blood. The antibodies produced by the vaccine remained at high levels throughout the entire 18-week study, suggesting the shot has long-term benefits, unlike daily cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, which can cause muscle pain, confusion, digestive issues, and other side effects. The vaccine is currently being tested on 72 people, with results of the Phase I clinical trial expected by the end of the year. “If these findings translate successfully into humans,” says Gunther Staffler, one of the vaccine’s developers, “we could develop a long-lasting therapy that, after the first vaccination, just needs an annual booster.”
Nutritionists have long touted the heart-healthy benefits of olive oil, but a new study suggests this “superfood” and its powerful antioxidants may also act to protect the brain from tumors. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh homed in on a key ingredient in olive oil, known as oleic acid. The team performed tests on living cells and human cell extracts to assess the effects of this fatty acid on a brain molecule, called microRNA-7, that helps stop the growth of tumors. They found that oleic acid prevents a protein, known as MSI2, from halting the production of microRNA-7. By indirectly supporting this tumor-blocking molecule, oleic acid may ultimately help prevent the growth and spread of cancer, reports NatureWorldNews.com. “Our findings do suggest that oleic acid can support the production of tumor-suppressing molecules in cells grown in the lab,” says lead author Gracjan Michlewski. “Further studies could help determine the role that olive oil might have in brain health.”
A group of scientists has claimed that ancient humans may have settled in North America as long as 130,000 years ago—some 115,000 years earlier than previously thought. The controversial assertion, which is viewed with skepticism by most other paleontologists, is based on analysis of the fossilized remains of a mastodon, a long-extinct mammoth-like animal. Discovered beside a freeway near San Diego in 1992, the mastodon bones were scratched and broken into many pieces, surrounded by several large rocks that may have served as hammers and anvils. Researchers at the University of Michigan and elsewhere have concluded that the bones are 130,000 years old, and that they were opened when fresh by a Neanderthal or other ancient human relative using rocks to try to extract bone marrow. It’s widely accepted that Homo sapiens arrived in North America about 15,000 years ago, across a land bridge connecting Siberia and Alaska; the mastodon findings, if confirmed, would indicate that another hominin species somehow reached this continent much earlier. If that hypothesis is true, it would rewrite the story of human migration. Skeptics argue that there are more-plausible explanations for the bone fractures and markings, such as pressure from the sediment on top of it. Paleontologist Thomas A. Deméré, a co-author of the study, acknowledged that the findings seem “impossible,’’ but said, “People have to be open to the possibility that humans were here this long ago.’’
A distant human relative once thought to have lived millions of years ago may in fact have wandered the earth much more recently—and lived alongside early Homo sapiens, reports The Washington Post. Remains of Homo naledi were first discovered in South Africa’s Rising Star cave system in 2013. The species had a small brain—the size of a gorilla’s—and an ape-like torso, but walked upright like a modern human and had dexterous wrists and hands that could have made and used tools. Paleoanthropologists initially believed that this hominin emerged some 2 million years ago, based on its unusual mix of modern and primitive characteristics, putting it near the base of the Homo family tree. But tests have revealed that the species was alive between 236,000 and 335,000 years ago—not long before early examples of our own species, Homo sapiens, emerged. Fifteen Homo naledi skeletons were found deep in the cave system, leading some researchers to speculate that the species may have purposely buried its dead, an advanced behavior that so far has been confirmed only among Neanderthals and Homo sapiens. The findings suggest human evolution was a complex process, with species diverging and interbreeding—not a linear progression in which human ancestors developed bigger brains and walked more upright over time. John Hawks, a paleoanthropologist who helped lead the Rising Star expedition, says the next step is to “sort the relationship of these different species to each other and also their role in our process of becoming human.”
Bringing Western food to the developing world has a major downside: More than 2 billion people across the globe are now overweight, and it’s taking a toll on their health, new research reveals. “Excess body weight is one of the most challenging public health problems of our time, affecting nearly 1 in 3 three people,” study author Ashkan Afshin tells The Guardian (U.K.). After analyzing data compiled on 68.5 million people in 195 countries, a 2,300-member research team found that obesity rates have doubled since 1980 in 73 countries. Today, 10 percent of all people are considered obese—meaning their body mass index, a height-weight ratio, is 30 or above. That includes nearly 13 percent of children in the U.S., up from 5 percent 37 years ago. Experts contend that poor diet is fueling the global obesity epidemic as more people around the world gain access to cheap, processed foods that are devoid of nutrients but loaded with chemicals and calories. Even if people are overweight (with a BMI between 25 and 29) but not officially obese, says researcher Azeem Majeed, that’s still associated with heart disease, cancer, and other chronic health issues. “The risk of death and diseases increases as your weight increases.”
Scientists have unveiled what they believe are the oldest Homo sapiens remains ever found, a major discovery that potentially upends our understanding of when and where our species evolved. The fossils—a skull, bones, and teeth from five individuals—were unearthed in a remote area of Morocco, in what was once a cave. After using advanced dating analysis on stone tools and a tooth found at the excavation site, researchers determined that the bones are between 300,000 and 350,000 years old—100,000 years older than any other known Homo sapiens fossils. The individuals had a mixture of modern and primitive characteristics, with a face and jutting jaw nearly identical to that of a modern human, and an elongated brain case characteristic of early humans. Until now, it was widely believed Homo sapiens evolved from earlier forms of the Homo genus in a small region of East Africa about 200,000 years ago, then spread out across the continent and the world. This discovery suggests our species arose much earlier, and that the process took place over a wider area. “We did not evolve from a single ‘cradle of mankind,’” paleoanthropologist Philipp Gunz, who co-authored the research, tells The New York Times. “We evolved on the African continent.” That conclusion remains controversial. With no universally accepted set of features that distinguishes modern humans from our older ancestors, some paleontologists say the new remains are merely an example of early humans just before they evolved into Homo sapiens.
Yet more bad news for drinkers: As little as one glass of wine or beer a night may accelerate mental deterioration later in life. Researchers analyzed data from a British study that tracked 550 men and women for 30 years. The subjects were tracked for alcohol intake and monitored for brain structure and function. The researchers found that those who drank moderately, consuming about five to eight drinks each week, were three times more likely than the nondrinkers to suffer from shrinkage in the hippocampus, a brain region involved in memory and learning. Shrinkage in this region is associated with dementia, and the more people drank, the worse their mental decline. The moderate drinkers also performed worse on verbal fluency tests used to assess language and executive function. “These findings raise a question mark over the safety of current U.S. alcohol guidelines,” study author Anya Topiwala tells CBSNews.com. “These are people who are drinking at levels that many consider social drinkers.”
