Tart cherries linked to reduced risk of stroke

Apr. 23, 2013 ? For the millions of Americans at risk for heart disease or diabetes, a diet that includes tart cherries might actually be better than what the doctor ordered, according to new animal research from the University of Michigan Health System.

A class of drugs called PPAR agonists that help regulate fat and glucose was considered promising by doctors who prescribed them for patients with metabolic syndrome -- a collection of risk factors linked to heart disease and type 2. However, studies have shown the long-term use of these drugs can also increase stroke risk, which has prevented many from securing FDA approval.

The new research from the U-M Cardioprotection Research Laboratory suggests that tart cherries not only provide similar cardiovascular benefits as the prescribed medications, but can also reduce the risk of stroke, even when taken with these pharmaceutical options.

The results, which were seen in stroke-prone rats, were presented April 23 at the Experimental Biology 2013 meeting in Boston.

The group's previous research has shown that intake of U.S.-produced, Montmorency tart cherries activates PPAR isoforms (peroxisome proliferator activating receptors) in many of the body's tissues. Researchers believe that anthocyanins -- the pigments that give the fruit its red color -- may be responsible for PPAR activation.

PPARs regulate genes involved in fat and glucose metabolism, and when modified can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. PPAR agonists, among them medications such as Actos (pioglitazone), act in a similar way but cardiovascular side effects have limited their use.

"Our previous research has shown that Montmorency tart cherries can have a positive effect on cardiovascular health and can reduce risk factors like high cholesterol and diabetes," says E. Mitchell Seymour, Ph.D., supervisor of the Cardioprotection Research Laboratory. "While prescribed drugs improve the outlook for certain risk factors, they've also shown to have undesirable side effects. We wanted to see if a tart cherry-rich diet might provide similar cardiovascular benefits without the risk of heart attack or stroke."

The researchers compared the effect of tart cherries and the drug Actos in stroke-prone rats by measuring the animals' systolic blood pressure as well as locomotion, balance, coordination, all of which can show the aftereffects of a stroke.

By putting the rats through various physical tests, such as walking on a tapered beam and climbing a ladder, the researchers found that compared to Actos, tart cherry intake significantly improved balance and coordination, and at the same time lowered blood pressure.

While the research results indicate that rats who consumed only tart cherries had the best results, those who had the combination of tart cherries and Actos also did better than those who only took the drug. Seymour cautioned that the results can't be applied directly to humans, but they are a potentially positive sign for those taking medications.

"We weren't sure if the risk for stroke would decline in animals taking both tart cherry and the drug," Seymour says. "It turns out that the cherries did have a positive effect even when combined with the medication."

Steven Bolling, M.D., a U-M cardiac surgeon and the laboratory's director, said the study adds to the group's growing body of research linking cherries to positive heart health. The results provide the groundwork for continued investigation into the topic, he says.

"This research is the first to link to cherries to a reduction in stroke-related symptoms," Bolling says. "It gives us a good preclinical model to further explore the positive stroke-related benefits of an anthocyanin-rich diet."

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/CXXrZPSXKLY/130423102129.htm

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Whether human or hyena, there' s safety in numbers

Apr. 23, 2013 ? Humans, when alone, see threats as closer than they actually are. But mix in people from a close group, and that misperception disappears.

In other words, there's safety in numbers, according to a new study by two Michigan State University scholars. Their research provides the first evidence that people's visual biases change when surrounded by members of their own group.

"Having one's group or posse around actually changes the perceived seriousness of the threat," said Joseph Cesario, lead author on the study and assistant professor of psychology. "In that situation, they don't see the threat quite so closely because they have their people around to support them in responding to the threat.'"

Funded by the National Science Foundation, the study appears online in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science.

The study was inspired by MSU zoologist Kay Holekamp's research with wild hyenas in Kenya. Holekamp and her team played recordings of hyenas from other parts of Africa and found the hyenas listening to the voices were more likely to approach the source of the sound when they were in groups and more likely to flee when they were alone.

The research by Cesario and Carlos Navarrete, associate professor of psychology, was similar, only it dealt with humans and perceived distance of potential threats. In two separate studies of more than 300 participants, the researchers showed that people who are alone judge threats as much closer than when they are in a group.

Like most social species, hyenas and humans have developed adaptations over time to better deal with predatory threats.

"This is about evolutionarily significant threats, such as members of a different group coming to steal resources or attack you," Cesario said. "The cost of not responding soon enough to a threat like that could be death or serious injury. So seeing that threat as closer allows you to respond with enough time to spare. What our work shows is that having your group or coalition around you makes that kind of early responding less necessary."

The study dealt with racial bias and group threats. The participants, who were white, were assessed on how negative they were toward blacks and then asked to judge the distance to a black community, both when the participants were alone and as part of a group.

Cesario said the perceived threat can take many forms -- be it from other races, communities or even students from another university, as one nonrelated study showed.

"So this line of research has little to do with the makeup of the group -- whether it's members of another race or students from another college -- but more to do with the question of, 'Are you with me or not?'"

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Cutting back on sleep harms blood vessel function and breathing control

Apr. 22, 2013 ? With work and entertainment operating around the clock in our modern society, sleep is often a casualty. A bevy of research has shown a link between sleep deprivation and cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, and obesity. However, it's been unclear why sleep loss might lead to these effects. Several studies have tested the effects of total sleep deprivation, but this model isn't a good fit for the way most people lose sleep, with a few hours here and there. In a new study by Keith Pugh, Shahrad Taheri, and George Balanos, all of the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, researchers test the effects of partial sleep deprivation on blood vessels and breathing control. They find that reducing sleep length over two consecutive nights leads to less healthy vascular function and impaired breathing control.

The team will discuss the abstract of their study entitled, "The Effects of Sleep Restriction on the Respiratory and Vascular Control," at the Experimental Biology 2013 meeting, being held April 20-24, 2013 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, Boston, Mass. The poster presentation is sponsored by the American Physiological Society (APS), a co-sponsor of the event. As the findings are being presented at a scientific conference, they should be considered preliminary, as they have not undergone the peer review process that is conducted prior to the data being published in a scientific journal.

Cutting Sleep in Half The researchers have worked with eight healthy adult volunteers between the ages of 20 to 35 to date. For the first two nights of the study, the researchers had these volunteers sleep a normal night of eight hours. Then, rather than restrict their sleep completely, the researchers instead had them sleep only four hours during each of three consecutive nights.

Each of these volunteers underwent tests to see how well their blood vessels accommodate an increase in blood flow, a test of healthy blood vessel, or vascular, function. Following the first two nights of restricted sleep, the researchers found a significant reduction in vascular function compared to following the nights of normal sleep. However, after the third night of sleep restriction, vascular function returned to baseline, possibly an adaptive response to acute sleep loss, study leader Pugh explains.

In other tests, the researchers exposed subjects to moderately high levels of carbon dioxide, which normally increases the depth and rate of breathing. However, breathing control was substantially reduced after the volunteers lost sleep.

The researchers later had these volunteers sleep 10 hours a night for five nights. After completing the same tests, results showed that vascular function and breathing control had improved.

A Mechanism for Cardiovascular Harm Pugh notes that the results could suggest a mechanism behind the connection between sleep loss and cardiovascular disease. "If acute sleep loss occurs repetitively over a long period of time, then vascular health could be compromised further and eventually mediate the development of cardiovascular disease," he explains.

Similarly, the loss of breathing control that the researchers observed could play a role in the development of sleep apnea, which has also been linked with cardiovascular disease. Pugh adds that some populations who tend to report sleeping shorter periods, such as the elderly, could be at an even higher risk of these adverse health effects.

He and his colleagues plan to continue studying these effects in more subjects to strengthen their results. Eventually, Pugh says, they hope to discover a mechanism to explain why restricting sleep harms vascular function and breathing control.

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Survey shows China manufacturing weakening

BEIJING (AP) ? China's manufacturing growth decelerated this month, a survey showed Monday, adding to questions about the strength of the recovery in the world's second largest economy.

HSBC Corp. said Tuesday the preliminary version of its monthly purchasing managers index declined to 50.5 from March's 51.6 on a 100-point scale on which numbers above 50 represent an expansion.

China reported an unexpected decline in economic growth to 7.7 percent in the first three months of the year from the previous quarter's 7.9 percent. Private sector economists and the World Bank have reduced their outlook for annual growth, though to a still-robust level of about 8 percent.

This month, the HSBC survey showed output growth slowed while new export orders and employment contracted.

"Beijing is expected to respond strongly to sustain the economic recovery by increasing efforts to boost domestic investment and consumption in the coming month," said HSBC economist Hongbin Qu in a statement.

The bank's preliminary PMI is based on responses from 85 to 90 percent of the 420 manufacturers surveyed. The full survey is due to be released on May 1.

Analysts have warned China's recovery still is being supported by government-led investment and lending, while consumer spending is sluggish. Some have said the rebound could be vulnerable if exports or investment slow.

A slowdown in Chinese growth and demand for goods ranging from iron ore and other raw materials to factory technology and consumer products could send out ripples in the global economy.

Last week, the government promised steps to boost domestic consumption as an economic driver. It promised changes in medical, pension and other social programs to free up more of household budgets for consumer spending but gave no details.

Also Monday, Capital Economics said its China Activity Proxy, a measure that combines cargo, power consumption and other indicators, showed first quarter growth might have fallen more sharply than official figures indicated, possibly tumbling to 6.5 percent.

"Growth appears to have picked up slightly at the end of the quarter," said economists Mark Williams and Qinwei Wang in a report. However, they said, "our figures suggest actual growth was once again slower than the GDP data reveal."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-04-22-China-Manufacturing/id-ba64505f67f3405892631463addc1da3

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