Materialistic people ‘more likely to be depressed’

Materialistic individuals want the best of the best, but even when their demands are met, these types of characters may not be happy. And now, new research suggests that materialistic individuals are more likely to be depressed and unsatisfied with life. According to the research team, materialistic people find it more difficult to be grateful for what they have, which causes them to become miserable. Lead study author Jo-Ann Tsang, explains that gratitude is a positive mood that is about other people rather than ourselves. However, the team says that people who are materialistic tend to be “me-centered.” They are more likely to focus on what they do not have and are unable to be grateful for what they do have. Scientists identify protein that spurs spread of colon cancer PLAC8, a protein that until now has been poorly understood, appears to play a key role in the spread - or metastasis - of colorectal or colon cancer, researchers reveal that the protein triggers normal cells lining the colon to change into a state that helps colon cancer to spread. Coauthor Prof Lilianna Solnica-Krezel, says: “We knew levels of this protein are elevated in colon cancer. Now we’ve shown what PLAC8 could be doing - causing the cells to transition to a state that allows them to spread.” The research started at a lab in Vanderbilt where senior author Robert Coffey and his group have been developing ways of growing colon cancer cells in three dimensions instead of the more conventional two-dimensional flat dish culture. ‘Insomnia may increase the risk of stroke,’ researchers say New research suggests that insomniacs are at much higher risk of stroke than those without the sleep disorder. To reach their findings, the investigators analyzed randomly selected medical records of more than 21,000 people with insomnia in Taiwan, alongside the health records of 64,000 individuals without the disorder. All participants were followed-up for 4 years. At the end of the follow-up period, individuals with insomnia were divided into different groups: Chronic or persistent insomnia (lasting 1 to 6 months); Relapse insomnia (return of insomnia after being free of the condition for more than 6 months at any evaluation point in the study); and Remission insomnia (a change from a diagnosis of insomnia to non-insomnia at any point during the study period). Researchers found that insomniacs, particularly those aged between 18 and 35 years at diagnosis, have a much higher stroke risk than those without the sleep disorder.