What the scientists are saying…
A drug to “silence” cholesterol A new “gene-silencing” drug has been found to reduce cholesterol levels by more than 50% in a clinical trial. Based on a technique known as RNA interference, the drug effectively “switches off” the gene responsible for elevating cholesterol levels. Delivered as an injection, the treatment, inclisiran, could be given twice yearly, with or without statins, depending on the patient’s need, to reduce their risk of heart attack or stroke. For the phase 2 trial, at Imperial College London, researchers gave 497 patients with high cholesterol either inclisiran, at varying doses, or a placebo. Most of the patients were already taking statins. A month after receiving a single treatment of inclisiran, patients’ levels of the harmful low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were down by up to 51%. After six months, they were down by up to 42%. By contrast, patients in the control group were showing slightly elevated cholesterol levels. The results were even better for those who had two doses over three months: their LDL levels fell by as much as 53% after six months. Along with its effectiveness, the minimal dosing required sets the treatment apart: rather than having to take a pill daily, patients could visit their doctor twice a year for an injection. However, much more research is needed before it can come on the market.
Noses adapt to their climate People of African descent tend to have shorter noses and wider nostrils than people with northern European ancestry – but why is that the case? Many of the differences between populations are simply down to “genetic drift”: particular features emerge not for any adaptive reasons, but by chance; some individuals might leave more descendants than others, and so their variants become predominant. But now scientists have measured noses across the world, and concluded that the differences are too great to be accounted for only by chance. They think they could also be down to climate – a theory first put forward by the 19th century anthropologist Arthur Thomson. He believed that in cooler, drier climes, people needed longer, tighter noses to humidify and heat the air they breathe – and he was onto something, says the author of the new study, Arslan Zaidi, of Penn State University: a long, thin nose would have conferred an evolutionary advantage as humans moved north from the equator. “An important function of the nose is to warm and humidify incoming air,” he explains: the lungs find it harder to absorb oxygen when hit by cold air, and the mucus in a warm, moist nose is better at trapping particles and pathogens. How to reverse diabetes Type 2 diabetes is generally considered to be a lifelong condition that can only be managed, rather than cured. But a small trial has suggested that it can be reversed for significant periods – if patients follow an intensive treatment regime. Researchers at Mcmasters University in Canada recruited 83 patients with diabetes. Of these patients, 55 were put on a diet plan that cut their energy intake by 500 to 750 calories a day, and were given dietary advice, a personalised exercise programme, and medicines and insulin to control their blood sugar levels. They then maintained this programme for either eight or 16 weeks. The other patients were given the standard lifestyle advice and blood sugar management. Three months after completing their programme, 11 of 27 people in the 16-week group were in remission, as were six of the 28 in the eight-week group. In the control group, by contrast, only four out of 28 people were. After a year, however, the difference was negligible – perhaps because the patients had not committed to the lifestyle changes.
Fish oil won’t boost baby’s IQ Taking fish oil pills during pregnancy is promoted as an easy way to get a smarter child – but it doesn’t work, according to a new study. Australian researchers recruited 2,500 pregnant women, and gave half of them fish oil supplements to take daily: the rest were given placebo pills. Seven years later, the team tested the IQ levels of the children born to these women – and found no evidence that taking the supplements (an 800mg dose of docosahexaenoic acid) had any impact on the offspring’s intelligence: all the study did find is that it might possibly lead to slightly longer pregnancies.