Washington, Oct 2 : A new research has shown that leptin, a hormone largely responsible for regulating appetite control and energy metabolism, plays a key role in islet cell growth and insulin secretion.

The finding, unraveled by researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center, brings in new avenues for studying leptin and its role in islet cell biology, which may lead to new treatments for diabetes.

Washington, Oct 2 : A new study has found that children have more problems initiating sleep than maintaining it.

The study, authored by Leonie Fricke-Oerkermann, PhD, of the University of Cologne in Germany has also revealed that parents underestimated their kids’ sleep problems, highlighting the necessity of having treatment options available to help a child overcome a sleep disorder.

Washington, Oct 1 : Adolescents who feel relaxed when first exposed to nicotine from cigarettes are the ones likely to get hooked, a new study has revealed.

The University of Massachusetts Medical School conducted the study to find why some adolescents who try smoking get hooked to it while others do not.

Melbourne, Oct 1 : A new study has revealed that mums with allergies, who regularly breastfeed their infants, are likely to increase their babies’ chances of developing asthma or eczema later in life.

Though studies have shown that breast-feeding protects babies form allergies at later stage, the new study found it offered no protection from skin reactions among children without a family history of allergies.

London, October 1 : Singapore-based scientists have devised a new technique to spot bird flu in humans with the help of a magnet.

Jurgen Pipper of the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology claims that their test is nearly five times faster and up to 50 times cheaper than the existing tests.

The researcher says that one of the hindrances that scientists often face, while testing the virus in human sputum, is that the sputum sample has to be concentrated before its RNA can be amplified and compared with known H5N1 sequences, reports the New Scientist.