Chemical from Medicinal Plants May Be Used to Fight HIV

piggy submitted, created time 1 month 3 weeks (www.sciencedaily.com)

Like other kinds of cells, immune cells lose the ability to divide as they age because a part of their chromosomes known as a telomere becomes progressively shorter with cell division. As a result, the cell changes in many ways, and its disease fighting ability is compromised.

But a new UCLA AIDS Institute study has found that a chemical from the Astragalus root, frequently used in Chinese herbal therapy, can prevent or slow this progressive telomere shortening, which could make it a key weapon in the fight against HIV

2 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: herbal medicine alternative medicine medicinal plants plants treatments astragalusimmunology atragalus root telomeres immune cells HIV Chinese herbal therapy HIV highly active antiretroviral therapy

Stanford researchers find brain pathway of depression in rats

bianjie submitted, created time 1 year 6 months (www.eurekalert.org)

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified one unifying principle that could explain how a range of causes and treatments for depression converge.

Submit comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: depression causes treatments brain mechanisms rat depression