A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Study highlights gene link in schizophrenia
HAVING EXTRA copies of a gene called VIPR2 is linked with a risk of schizophrenia, according to an international study that involved Irish scientists and patients.
The research, which was published online in the journal Nature, looked at rare “copy number variations”, where chunks of a person’s DNA are duplicated or deleted, resulting in extra or missing copies of genes.
The study, co-ordinated by Jonathan Sebat at the University of California, first looked at copy number variations in hundreds of patients with schizophrenia – along with control cases – and identified duplications of the gene VIPR2 as being something to follow up.
“VIPR2 is important for how the connections between the cells work and it’s involved in signalling within the brain,” said Prof Aiden Corvin, a co-author and head of the pyschosis research group at Trinity College Dublin. “It seems to be doing the kind of thing that we would expect a schizophrenia gene to be doing.”
The researchers then looked at a larger group of patients and controls and found that duplications of VIPR2 were linked with schizophrenia. “We found it in 29 individuals out of about 8,000 cases, and we found it in only one or two of the controls. So it does seem to be associated with the disorder but it’s not that common,” said Prof Corvin. “The reason this is meaningful is that before, where we found chromosomal deletions and duplications, they have affected several genes, and it becomes very difficult to know what the mechanism is. Whereas in this example, although it’s rare, it only knocks out a single gene, and it’s a gene we know is involved in brain function.”
Infection risks from fish pedicures under scrutiny
HEALTH EXPERTS are investigating the potential risks of people catching infections from fish pedicures.
The popular treatment involves customers putting their feet in tanks of water containing dozens of tiny Garra Rufa fish, which nibble on dead skin.
The pedicures are popular in Asia but have been banned in some US states, including Florida, Texas, New Hampshire and Washington.
The British Health Protection Agency (HPA) is looking at whether the pedicures could spread infections between people through open wounds.
It has not received any reports of infections but has been contacted by concerned health officers.
A HPA spokeswoman said: “Following a number of enquiries to the HPA from local environmental health officers over the past six months, the agency is currently investigating if there are any potential risks of infection associated with the commercial use of fish spa pedicures in the UK.
“Alongside colleagues in environmental health, Health Protection Scotland and the Health and Safety Laboratory, the HPA will examine the most up to date evidence of any possible risks associated with Garra Rufa fish pedicures and will publish guidelines that will be available throughout the UK.
“The HPA and Health Protection Scotland is currently unaware of any cases of infection associated with the use of fish spa pedicures in the UK.”
Garra Rufa, or “doctor fish” as they are called, are a type of toothless carp that nibble on dead skin.
Fish pedicures are available in several beauty salons around Ireland.
Education good for blood pressure
EDUCATION MAY benefit the heart as well as the brain, especially if you are female, new research suggests.
Scientists at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, found a correlation between years spent in education and lower lifetime blood pressure. High blood pressure is a major cause of heart disease. The trend emerged from data on 4,000 men and women taking part in a US health study spanning 30 years. Researchers said stress and social factors that mostly affected women were likely to underlie the trend.