WEIRD STUFF

Losing loved ones speeds ageing

The pain of losing a family member speeds up ageing.

Data from nearly 4,000 people in the United States, who had been followed since they were teenagers in the mid-1990s, showed that people who had experienced two or more bereavements had older biological ages than those who had not.

It was also found that the impact of a family member's death was more severe during childhood and early adulthood.

Dr Allison Aiello, lead author of the study at Columbia University, said: "Our study shows strong links between losing loved ones across the life course from childhood to adulthood and faster biological ageing in the US."

The experts have been able to show the connection between grief and ageing, but are uncertain about what causes the trauma of losing a loved one to harm a person's own health.

Dr Aiello added: "The connection between losing loved ones and health problems throughout life is well established.

"But some stages of life might be more vulnerable to the health risks associated with loss, and the accumulation of loss appears to be a significant factor."

Cat poop might cure Alzheimer's

A parasite found in cat poo could treat both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.

Experts have discovered that Toxoplasma gondii -- which is commonly present in feline excretion -- is capable of being successfully engineered to deliver proteins to the brains of mice.

Neurological healthcare had previously been restricted by the difficulty of delivering targeted treatment to the right location inside neurons across the blood-brain barrier.

Scientists think that parasites could play a role in the delivery of therapeutic proteins to the brain, once further research has been conducted.

Professor Lilach Sheiner, one of the study's leading authors at the University of Glasgow, said: "This is a blue-sky project where our collaborative team was thinking out of the box to try to tackle the long-standing medical challenge of finding a way to successfully deliver treatment to the brain for cognitive disorders.

"The concept is not without challenges, considering the dangers involved with Toxoplasma infection.

"For our work to become a treatment reality, it will require many more years of careful research and development to enhance efficiency and improve safety."