Washington, Apr 14 : People who smoke both tobacco and marijuana increase their risk of respiratory symptoms and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a new study has found.

Smoking only marijuana, however, was not associated with increased risks, the CMAJ study claimed.

The study, which surveyed 878 people aged 40 years or more in Vancouver, Canada, was part of the Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) Initiative that sought to determine the prevalence of COPD in adults over 40 years in the general population.

Washington, April 14 : Researchers at University College London (UCL) have identified a protein, known as serum amyloid P component (SAP), which may be a possible therapeutic target in Alzheimer’s disease.

Lead researchers Professor Mark Pepys FRS has even developed a new small molecule drug, CPHPC, which specifically targets SAP and removes it from the blood.

Washington, Apr 14 : Heart patients who become depressed are at greater risk for heart failure (HF), a condition in which the heart can''t pump enough blood throughout the body, says a new study.

The study published in the April 21, 2009, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, is the first to investigate the influence of depression after heart disease on the likelihood of developing HF.

The research also found that taking antidepressant medications to ease depressive symptoms did not appear to mitigate this risk.

Washington, Apr 14 : Former prison inmates are more likely to have high blood pressure than those who have never been incarcerated, says a new study.

What's more, young adults who have been incarcerated appear more likely to have left ventricular hypertrophy, an enlarging of the heart muscle that is a common consequence of hypertension, according to a report in the April 13 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Washington, Apr 14 : Aspirin and other medications that prevent blood clotting by inhibiting the accumulation of platelets could increase the likelihood of asymptomatic cerebral microbleeds among older adults, says a new study.

Cerebral microbleeds-small deposits of the iron-storing protein hemosiderin in the brain-can be a sign of cerebral small-vessel disease.

Washington, Apr 14 : Erectile dysfunction (ED) drugs like Viagra and sildenafil pose no threat to vision, say researchers.

According to a report in the April issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, two medications used to treat the disorder in men do not appear to have visual side effects when taken daily for six months, despite concerns about eye-related complications.