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More Americans were evacuated from the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in China late Thursday, as the number of cases worldwide surpassed 31,000. Two chartered planes carrying about 300 Americans have left Wuhan, the U.S. State Department said Thursday night. Both flights will stop at Travis Air Force base in northern California, the Associated Press reported. Anyone showing symptoms of illness will be quarantined there, while the planes continue on to military bases in San Antonio, Texas, and Omaha, Neb., the wire service said. But U.S. health officials said it is unlikely there will be any ill passengers on board either plane, the AP reported. These are the fourth and fifth flights to evacuate Americans from China in the past week. About 540 Americans are already quarantined at two military bases in California, NBC News reported. On Wednesday, two planes carrying 350 Americans landed at Travis Air Force base. Some of those passengers were then flown to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar near San Diego. Both groups were put under a 14-day quarantine, U.S. health officials said. The first group of evacuees, who were flown out of Wuhan, China, a week ago, were moved off Travis Air Force Base in anticipation of the new arrivals, the AP reported. That first group was told on Wednesday that they have all tested negative for coronavirus, health officials… read on >

A breakthrough study has identified a class of natural gene variants that may protect against Alzheimer’s disease. For the study, researchers at University College London analyzed DNA from more than 10,000 people — half with Alzheimer’s and half without. The investigators found that these gene variants reduce the functioning of proteins called tyrosine phosphatases. These proteins impair the activity of a cell signaling pathway important for cell survival, explained the authors of the study published online Feb. 5 in the Annals of Human Genetics. The pathway could be a key target for drugs to treat Alzheimer’s, and the study authors said that the findings provide more evidence that other genes may be linked to one’s risk for the memory disorder. “These results are quite encouraging. It looks as though when naturally occurring genetic variants reduce the activity of tyrosine phosphatases, then this makes Alzheimer’s disease less likely to develop, suggesting that drugs which have the same effect might also be protective,” lead author David Curtis said in a college news release. He’s a professor of genetics, evolution and environment. Previous research in mice and rats suggested that inhibiting the function of these proteins might help protect against Alzheimer’s, but this study is the first to find such an effect in people. There are already drugs that target tyrosine phosphatases, but they haven’t been tested in… read on >

People afflicted with cluster headaches miss work twice as often as colleagues without the debilitating headaches, a new study finds. Cluster headaches are extremely painful headaches that last from 15 minutes to three hours, for many days, or even weeks, in a row. They’re more common in men. For the study, Swedish researchers compared more than 3,200 working-age people who get cluster headaches with 16,200 people who don’t have them. In 2010, headache sufferers averaged 16 sick days, compared to just under seven days for the headache-free group, the findings showed. When disability days were added in, people with cluster headaches averaged 63 missed workdays a year. Those without headaches averaged 34. And those with less education missed more work than those with more schooling: 86 days for those who completed only elementary school; 65 for those who finished high school; and 41 days for those who went to college, according to the report. The researchers also found that women with cluster headaches took twice as many sick days (24) as men (12), and had an average of 84 sick and disability days, compared with 53 for men. The study was published online Feb. 5 in the journal Neurology. Author Dr. Christina Sjostrand said the findings show that “cluster headaches dramatically interfere” with people’s capacity to work. She’s a researcher in the department of clinical… read on >

More Americans are expected to be evacuated from the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in China, as U.S. health officials reported a 12th domestic case of coronavirus late Wednesday. Earlier Wednesday, two planes carrying 350 Americans landed at an Air Force base in California. Some of those passengers were then flown to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar near San Diego. Both groups were put under a 14-day quarantine, U.S. health officials said. At least one more plane is expected to fly more American evacuees to military bases in Nebraska and Texas this week, The New York Times reported. In total, more than 500 Americans have already been evacuated. The first group of evacuees, who were flown out of Wuhan, China, a week ago, were moved off Travis Air Force Base in anticipation of the new arrivals, the Associated Press reported. That first group was told on Wednesday that they have all tested negative for coronavirus, health officials said. But they were to remain in quarantine for about another week, the Times reported. On the more recent evacuation flights, five people — three adults and two children — showed signs of cough or fever and were taken to hospitals for evaluation, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Times reported. “CDC staff are there meeting the planes and assessing the health of… read on >

A new discovery could lead to better treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS) and other autoimmune diseases, such as psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis, researchers report. MS occurs when immune cells get into the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), causing nerve damage that results in neurological problems. However, the cause is unclear. Studies in a mouse model of MS — called experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) — have shown that immune T-cells, which secrete an immune molecule called IL-17, damage the myelin sheath surrounding nerves in the central nervous system (CNS). Drugs that block IL-17 have shown promise in early clinical trials for treatment of relapsing-remitting MS. The drugs have already been licensed for treating psoriasis. In this new study, researchers at Trinity College Dublin, in Ireland, identified another role that IL-17 plays in EAE, and possibly in MS. However, research in animals doesn’t always pan out in humans. “A key role of IL-17 is to mobilize and activate an army of disease-causing immune cells in the lymph nodes that then migrate to the CNS to cause the nerve damage,” study co-leader Kingston Mills said in a college news release. He’s a professor of experimental immunology. Study co-leader Aoife McGinley said the findings suggest that drugs that block IL-17 may not need to cross the blood-brain barrier to effectively treat MS. She’s a postdoctoral fellow… read on >

Burns on the face, arms and hands that require skin grafts. Acne boils and ugly rashes. Black hairy tongue and other oral lesions. These are some of the ways that vaping can do serious damage to someone’s skin, a new evidence review shows. For example, an estimated 2,035 people with electronic cigarette burn injuries were treated in U.S. emergency rooms between 2015 and 2017, more than 40 times the number of vaping burns reported between 2009 and 2015, researchers found. Faulty or malfunctioning e-cigarettes can overheat and either explode or burn to the touch, said senior study author Dr. Kurt Ashack, a dermatology resident with the University of Illinois at Chicago. “It could cause a pretty significant burn, where you lose at least the top layer of skin, if not more,” he said. Device explosions also have caused people to lose teeth, the findings showed. The chemicals contained in vaping devices have also been shown to cause skin problems in some users, Ashack added. Some people are allergic to the propylene glycol that is used as the base for most e-liquids, Ashack said. Those folks could develop a rash from exposure. The nickel contained in the device’s heating element also can cause a rash, the researchers said. Cases include a woman with nickel allergy who developed a rash on her dominant hand and swelling of… read on >

Smokers who recently quit tobacco cigarettes are much more likely to use e-cigarettes than those who quit more than a decade ago, a new study says. The findings suggest that smokers who want to quit are now using e-cigarettes to help them, according to the authors. In the past, quitters had to rely on other smoking cessation aids. “Duration of smoking cessation was a major determinant in understanding the complex interaction between smoking and e-cigarette use, and this parameter may be important in examining the impact of e-cigarettes in future population studies,” said the study authors led by Dr. Konstantinos Farsalinos, a cardiologist at Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center in Kallithea, Greece. The researchers analyzed data on more than 6,900 current smokers and more than 6,100 former smokers in 28 European countries. Current daily e-cigarette use was reported by 2% of current and 3% of former smokers. Former daily use of e-cigarettes was reported by nearly 6% and 2%, respectively. More than half of all former smokers had quit more than 10 years ago. Of those, only 0.2% reported daily e-cigarette use, compared with 9% of those who had quit between three and five years ago, and about 13% of those who had quit in the last two years. Compared with former smokers who had never used e-cigarettes, current e-cigarette users were nearly five times more… read on >

It’s no yolk: Americans for decades have gotten dietary whiplash from the back-and-forth science on whether eggs are good for them. But a major new study will have many egg-lovers relieved: You can enjoy an egg a day without having to worry about your heart. “Moderate egg intake, which is about one egg per day in most people, does not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease or mortality even if people have a history of cardiovascular disease or diabetes,” said study lead author Mahshid Dehghan. She’s an investigator at the Population Health Research Institute (PHRI) of McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada. The study, which analyzed data on more than 177,000 people, was funded by various provincial government health agencies in Ontario, and nonprofit groups focused on heart health. It received no funding from the egg industry. Dehghan’s group pored over data from three large, long-term international studies, all conducted at the PHRI. The three studies involved people with various income levels living in 50 countries on six continents, so the results are widely applicable, the researchers said. Most of the people in the studies had one or fewer eggs a day, suggesting that this level of consumption is safe, Dehghan said. “Also, no association was found between egg intake and blood cholesterol, its components or other risk factors,” she said in a McMaster news release.… read on >

Almost everyone gets stuck shoveling snow at some point during the winter. To prevent back pain and strain, one spinal expert has some advice. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Srinivasu Kusuma, from the University of Chicago Medicine Medical Group, noted it’s all in the precautions you take before you tackle your snow-covered driveway. Decide if it’s safe to shovel. If you already have back issues and don’t exercise often, or if you are prone to lightheadedness or shortness of breath, maybe you shouldn’t be shoveling. Instead, consider using a snowblower. For those with heart problems or chest pains during exercise, Kusuma urges they check with their doctor about shoveling. Warm up your muscles. “Make sure to warm up before you shovel, just as you would before a workout,” Kusuma said in a university news release. Stretching and strolling can warm up your muscles. If you’re going to shovel bright and early, make sure your muscles are loose before shoveling. Don’t have time to stretch out in the a.m.? You might want to shovel in the evening then. Appropriate winter gear is important. A coat, pants, hat and gloves will keep you warm in frigid weather. Wearing waterproof boots can also give you traction and prevent slips and falls, Kusuma said. Use a lightweight shovel with an adjustable handle. Use proper technique. Push the snow to the side… read on >

The Affordable Care Act might have done more than provide more Americans with health insurance: New research suggests accompanying expansions in Medicaid may be linked to higher numbers of low-income people having jobs or going to school. That’s what happened after Michigan expanded its Medicaid under new rules from the Affordable Care Act. Researchers surveyed more than 3,000 low-income people with Healthy Michigan Plan coverage in 2016 and again about a year later. During that time, there was an overall 6-point increase in the percentage of study participants who had jobs or were in school, which was higher than employment gains in the general population over the same period. Even larger increases in employment and school enrollment were seen among study participants who were black (nearly 11 points), men (6.7 points), people aged 35 to 50 (8 points) and those with the lowest incomes (9 points), according to the University of Michigan study. “While on a statewide level, both in the general population and the low-income population, employment levels didn’t change much between 2016 and 2017, we saw a clear increase in employment or student status among those in the Healthy Michigan Plan, even among those with health conditions who we might think would need more time to achieve this,” said study author Dr. Renuka Tipirneni, an assistant professor of internal medicine at Michigan. While… read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

More Americans Evacuated From China as Coronavirus Cases Top 31,000 Worldwide

Gene Variation May Protect Against Alzheimer’s: Study

Workers With Cluster Headaches Take Twice as Many Sick Days

More Americans to Be Evacuated From China; 12th Coronavirus Case Reported

Lab Discovery Offers Promise for Treating Multiple Sclerosis

Is Vaping a Scourge on Your Skin?

E-Cigarettes Popular Among Recent Quitters: Study

One Egg Per Day Is Heart-Healthy, After All

Shovel That Snow, but Spare Your Back

Obamacare May Have Boosted Jobs, Education for Poor