Scientists scratch heads over why we itch
November 17, 2008 By Robert S. BoydScientists are baffled by one of humankind's most annoying problems - itching - an almost universal misery for which there is, as yet, no adequate explanation or treatment.
Content from McClatchy-Tribune Information Services expires 90 days after original publication date. For more information about McClatchy-Tribune Information Services, please visit www.mctdirect.com .
Similar stories from PHYSorg:
-
Discovering Autism: Homing in on the right label
Dec 19, 2011 |
not rated yet |
0
-
'Little purple pill' is under microscope
Oct 11, 2010 |
4.4 / 5 (7) |
2
-
Experts 'baffled' by growing ranks of allergy sufferers
Feb 24, 2010 |
5 / 5 (1) |
1
-
Canadian police agencies suppressing data on race, says criminology study
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.5 / 5 (2) |
1
-
New study: Cholera in Haiti tracked more rapidly by social media than traditional methods
Jan 09, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Researchers block morphine's itchy side effect
Oct 13, 2011 |
5 / 5 (2) |
3
-
Researchers identify itch-specific neurons in mice, hope for better treatments
Aug 06, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Scratch no more: Gene for itch sensation discovered
Jul 25, 2007 |
4.4 / 5 (16) |
0
-
Study questions proton therapy for prostate cancer
Feb 01, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
-
Newer radiation technology improves head and neck cancer patients' long-term quality of life
Jan 26, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (30) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (3) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
-
Is Everyday Technology Killing Us?
Feb 08, 2012
-
Exercise and weight loss
Feb 08, 2012
-
Why do we have head aches? Our brains can't feel anything.
Feb 07, 2012
-
"The end of diseases" by David Agus, interview from Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Feb 04, 2012
-
Oncolytic adenovirus
Feb 04, 2012
-
Nutrition label stuffs and diets
Feb 02, 2012
- More from Physics Forums - Medical Sciences
More news stories
FDA-approved drug rapidly clears amyloid from the brain, reverses Alzheimer's symptoms in mice
Neuroscientists at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have made a dramatic breakthrough in their efforts to find a cure for Alzheimer's disease. The researchers' findings, published in the journal Science, show t ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
14 hours ago |
4.9 / 5 (34) |
14
|
Anyone can learn to be more inventive, cognitive researcher says
There will always be a wild and unpredictable quality to creativity and invention, says Anthony McCaffrey, a cognitive psychology researcher at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, because an "Aha moment" is rare and ...
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
10 hours ago |
4.7 / 5 (7) |
1
|
Researchers weigh in on ethics of H5N1 research
(Medical Xpress) -- In a commentary on the biosecurity controversy surrounding publication of bird flu research details, a bioethicist and a vaccine expert at Johns Hopkins reaffirm that "all scientists have an affirmativ ...
12 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
|
To perform with less effort, practice beyond perfection
Whether you are an athlete, a musician or a stroke patient learning to walk again, practice can make perfect, but more practice may make you more efficient, according to a surprising new University of Colorado Boulder study.
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
13 hours ago |
4.6 / 5 (9) |
3
|
Cell biologists describes mechanism by which some people may be more susceptible to colon cancer
An international research team led by cell biologists at the University of California, Riverside has uncovered a new insight into colon cancer, the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United ...
10 hours ago |
5 / 5 (3) |
0
|
'Dark plasmons' transmit energy
Microscopic channels of gold nanoparticles have the ability to transmit electromagnetic energy that starts as light and propagates via "dark plasmons," according to researchers at Rice University.
Hydrogen from acidic water: Researchers develop potential low cost alternative to platinum for splitting water
A technique for creating a new molecule that structurally and chemically replicates the active part of the widely used industrial catalyst molybdenite has been developed by researchers with the Lawrence Berkeley ...
Ultraviolet protection molecule in plants yields its secrets
Lying around in the sun all day is hazardous not just for humans but also for plants, which have no means of escape. Ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun can damage proteins and DNA inside cells, leading ...
Soraa LED light may dim 50-watt halogen rivals
(PhysOrg.com) -- Soraa, a Fremont, California company founded in 2008, this week launched its first product, a light that uses LEDS (light emitting diodes). The "Soraa LED MR16 lamp" is the "perfect" replacement ...
Engineers find inspiration for new materials in Piranha-proof armor
(PhysOrg.com) -- Its a matchup worthy of a late-night cable movie: put a school of starving piranha and a 300-pound fish together, and who comes out the winner?
Flexible paper robots
(PhysOrg.com) -- These inexpensive robots can stretch, bend and twist under control, and lift objects up to 120 times their own weight. Being soft, they can apply gentle and even pressure, and adapt to varied ...
Nov 18, 2008
Rank: 5 / 5 (3)
Nov 18, 2008
Rank: not rated yet
Either that or I smoked something interesting.
Nov 18, 2008
Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
And as far as the sensation of itching, that'd be nothing more than an evolved signal to the brain that it's time to scratch.
Now, why is the Itchy and Scratchy theme song running through my head?