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Source - EurekAlert – Biology:
Public Release: 29-Jul-2009
Experimental treatment halts hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in newborns
Inhibiting an enzyme in the brains of newborns suffering from oxygen and blood flow deprivation stops brain damage that is a leading cause of cerebral palsy, mental retardation and death, according to researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Reporting their results in the Journal of Neuroscience, the scientists show blocking the brain enzyme, tissue-type plasminogen activator, in newborn rats prevented progressive brain damage triggered by the lack of oxygen and blood supply.
Contact: Nick Miller
nicholas.miller@cchmc.org
513-803-6035
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Public Release: 29-Jul-2009
Little-known protein found to be key player
Italian and US scientists have found that a little-understood protein previously implicated in a rare genetic disorder also plays critical role in building and maintaining healthy cells. Even more surprising, the research published online this week in Nature shows that the protein builds structures by fusing intracellular membranes in a fundamentally new way. The research was conducted at Eugenio Medea Scientific Institute in Conegliano, Italy, and Rice University in Houston.
Contact: Jade Boyd
jadeboyd@rice.edu
713-348-6778
Rice University
Public Release: 28-Jul-2009
First genetically-engineered malaria vaccine to enter human trials
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute scientists have created a weakened strain of the malaria parasite that will be used as a live vaccine against the disease. The vaccine, developed in collaboration with researchers from the US, Japan and Canada, will be trialled in humans from early next year.
Contact: Ms Penny Fannin
fannin@wehi.edu.au
61-393-452-345
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute
Public Release: 28-Jul-2009
Nanotech particles affect brain development in mice
Maternal exposure to nanoparticles of titanium dioxide (TiO2) affects the expression of genes related to the central nervous system in developing mice. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Particle and Fibre Toxicology found that mice whose mothers were injected with the nanoparticles while pregnant showed alteration in gene expression related to neurological dysfunction.
Contact: Graeme Baldwin
graeme.baldwin@biomedcentral.com
44-020-319-22165
BioMed Central
Public Release: 28-Jul-2009
Mathematical modeling predicts response to Herceptin
Cancer researchers are turning to mathematical models to help answer important clinical questions, and a new paper in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, illustrates how the technique may answer questions about Herceptin resistance.
Contact: Jeremy Moore
jeremy.moore@aacr.org
267-646-0557
American Association for Cancer Research
Public Release: 27-Jul-2009
All-in-1 nanoparticle: A Swiss Army knife for nanomedicine
For the first time, researchers combine nanoparticles used for medical imaging and therapy in one tiny package.
Contact: Hannah Hickey
hickeyh@uw.edu
206-543-2580
University of Washington
Public Release: 27-Jul-2009
Nanodiamonds deliver insulin for wound healing
Using tiny nanodiamonds, researchers at Northwestern University have demonstrated an innovative method for delivering and releasing insulin at a specific location over a period of time. The nanodiamond-insulin clusters hold promise for wound-healing applications and could be integrated into gels, ointments, bandages or suture materials.
Contact: Kyle Delaney
k-delaney@northwestern.edu
847-467-4010
Northwestern University
Source - Science Daily:
Please note: Due to the format restrictions of Science Daily articles, you must click on the URL (web address) below the article summary, rather than the article title.
Scientists Track Impact Of DNA Damage In The Developing Brain
July 29, 2009 — Switching off a key DNA repair system in the developing nervous system is linked to smaller brain size as well as problems in brain structures vital to movement, memory and emotion, according to new ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727113056.htm
Cancer Vaccines Led To Long-term Survival For Patients With Metastatic Melanoma
July 29, 2009 — Medical researchers have released promising data from a clinical study showing patient-specific cancer vaccines derived from patients' own cancer cells and immune cells were well tolerated and ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728123049.htm
How Immune Cells May Help Predict Alzheimer's Risk
July 29, 2009 — UCLA scientists have discovered a way to measure the amount of amyloid beta that is being absorbed by immune cells in the blood. Amyloid beta forms the plaques considered the hallmark of Alzheimer's ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090713124714.htm
Endoscopic Surgery As Effective Open Surgery For Nasal Cancer
July 29, 2009 — Researchers have shown that endoscopic surgery is a valid treatment option for treating esthesioneuroblastoma (cancer of the nasal cavity), in addition to traditional open surgery and nonsurgical ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090707131832.htm
In Vitro Antibody Production Enables HIV Infection Detection In Window Period -- Key To Safer Blood
July 29, 2009 — Researchers have shown that the contribution of variable degrees of immune suppression, either due to existing chronic infections such as parasitemias and/or nutrition, in different populations may ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090724102917.htm
Researchers Warn: 'Antivirals Might Be Wasted On The Elderly'
July 28, 2009 — A model of influenza transmission and treatment suggests that, if the current swine flu pandemic behaves like the 1918 flu, antiviral treatment should be reserved for the young. Researchers found ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727191726.htm
Key Event In Prostate Cancer Progression Discovered
July 28, 2009 — Researchers have discovered how hormone-dependent prostate cancer advances to the incurable hormone-independent disease state. The study shows that in androgen-independent prostate cancer, androgen ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090723141806.htm
Surgery Remains An Option For Advanced Lung Cancer
July 28, 2009 — Oncologists have debated whether patients with a certain type of advanced lung cancer would benefit from surgery. Now a major study has found that surgery can significantly prolong survival without ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727080557.htm
Fast Release Of Data Leads To Rapid Changes In Clinical Practice For Drug-eluting Stents
July 28, 2009 — Use of drug-eluting stents dropped from 90 percent of all stents to less than 60 percent after negative data were released and publicized. Medical information distributed by e-mail, smart phones and ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728170954.htm
New Drug For Children With High-risk Leukemia
July 28, 2009 — New research has indicated a drug already in clinical trials for a blood disease common in adults may be relevant for acute childhood ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728123052.htm
Artificial Intelligence Used To Diagnose Metastatic Cancer
July 28, 2009 — When doctors are managing care for women with breast cancer, the information available to them profoundly influences the type of care they recommend. Knowing whether a woman's cancer has ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728083249.htm
Stem Cells Not The Only Way To Fix A Broken Heart
July 27, 2009 — Researchers appear to have a new way to fix a broken heart. They have devised a method to coax heart muscle cells into reentering the cell cycle, allowing the differentiated adult cells to divide and ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090723141817.htm
Drug Rescues Memory Lost To Alzheimer's Disease
July 27, 2009 — A drug similar to one used in clinical trials for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis has been found to rescue memory in mice exhibiting Alzheimer's ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090714125000.htm
Human Cells Secrete Cancer-killing Protein
July 27, 2009 — The tumor-suppressor protein Par-4 is secreted by human and rodent cells and activates a novel extrinsic pathway involving cell surface GRP78 receptor for induction of apoptosis, researchers have ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090723150826.htm
Natural Born Killers: How The Body's Frontline Immune Cells Decide Which Cells To Destroy
July 27, 2009 — The mechanism used by "natural killer" immune cells in the human body to distinguish between diseased cells, which they are meant to destroy, and normal cells, which they are meant to leave alone, ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727203741.htm
Could Therapeutic Vaccines Treat Hard To Beat Breast Cancers?
July 27, 2009 — A comprehensive analysis of nearly 1,600 tumor samples has found that CT-X genes are expressed in nearly half the breast cancers that lack the estrogen receptor. CT-X gene products are the targets of ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727191245.htm
Best Heart Disease And Stroke Treatments For Patients With Diabetes Found With New Tool
July 26, 2009 — Researchers have developed a computer model that medical doctors can use to determine the best time to begin using statin therapy in diabetes patients to help prevent heart disease and ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629112633.htm
Injection Reverses Heart-attack Damage
July 25, 2009 — Injured heart tissue normally can't regrow, but researchers now offer a groundwork for regenerating heart tissue after a heart attack, in patients with heart failure, or in children with congenital ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090723142039.htm
Source - Health Day:
Health Highlights: July 29, 2009
- FDA Warns About Body Building Products
- Recession Will Affect Kids' Well-Being: Report
- Texting Greatly Increases Crash Risk
- Fast-Track Program Doesn't Speed Approval Of New Cancer Drugs
As CDC recommendations loom, new study confirms this group at great risk.
Tanning Beds Get Highest Carcinogen Rating
Melanoma risk rises 75 percent when device use begins before age 30, international panel says.
Scientists Test New Way to Get Drugs to Cancer Cells
Method might someday provide less toxic alternative to chemo, expert says
Stent Studies Tied to Rapid Changes in Use
Fast dissemination of data may become main stimulus for change, experts say
Heart Surgeon Shortage Predicted
Trend toward stenting rather than bypass could be a cause, expert says
Clinical Trials Update: July 29, 2009
- Healthy Volunteers (Ages 18-65)
- Overactive Bladder
- Congestive Heart Failure
- Type 2 Diabetes
- Gout
- High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)
- Overweight Volunteers
- Migraine
- Restless Legs Syndrome
Source - Yahoo Biotech News:
GenVec Receives Grant for Malaria Vaccine Program
GenVec, Inc. announced today that it has received a Small Business Innovation and Research grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health to support the company's malaria vaccine program.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Begins Tender Offer to Acquire Medarex, Inc.
NEW YORK----Bristol-Myers Squibb Company is commencing today, through its wholly owned subsidiary Puma Acquisition Corporation, a cash tender offer to purchase all outstanding shares of common stock of Medarex, Inc. .
Source - Google Health News:
Overuse of Vaccines, Anti-Flu Drugs May Result in Human Calamity
Lew Rockwell
But suddenly a contaminated vaccine which combined the deadly H5N1 with more transmissible seasonal flu strains was found by Biotest, a vaccine distributor ...
Europe fast-tracking swine flu vaccine
The Associated Press
The agency let companies submit data for a "mock-up" vaccine, using H5N1 bird flu. The idea was to do most of the testing before the global epidemic hit so ...
'Dangers' of the fast-track swine flu vaccine
Daily Mail
To speed up the process, the EMA will approve the first doses of the swine flu vaccine based on data from a previous 'mock up' vaccine of H5N1 bird flu, ...
In 2 years, 2 billion will get swine flu: WHO
Times of India - India
Almost 800 people have died from it in the past four months — more than what the H5N1 bird flu strain has killed in six years. India is now worried and says ...
Boosting compounds called adjuvants complicate licensing of ...
The Canadian Press
That work, using an H5N1 vaccine as a surrogate, has given the regulatory agency access to data on the safety and effectiveness of GSK's adjuvant, AS03. ...
Medical organizations disagree about product exclusivity bill
Minnesota Daily - Minneapolis,MN,USA
Biosimilars are generic versions of medical products, including vaccines and gene therapy, made through biological processes. ...
Nerve cells have natural resistance to HIV
New Scientist - UK
The finding raises the possibility of new treatments to thwart HIV by using gene therapy or drugs to activate production of the same protein in cells other ...
We need 'big ideas'
Kansas City Star - MO,USA
Gene therapy and stem-cell research are the cornerstones of this big idea, but it will require government funding, political support and a willingness to ...
Swine flu: intensive care beds will be swamped experts warn
Telegraph.co.uk - United Kingdom
The UK Government has ordered up to 132 million doses of the vaccine from both GSK and Baxter. Around 60 million doses – enough for half the population at ...
Can gene therapy cure cancer?
Examiner.com - USA
What is gene therapy? Gene therapy involves the addition of a “good” gene to replace a nonfunctioning or defective gene in a cell. ...
Source - Medical News Today:
Doctor And Nurse Shortages Plague U.S.
The nation's struggles with physician and nurse shortages are evident as health care reform takes shape. NPR
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159150.php
11th Tysabri Patient Develops PML
An 11th patient taking Biogen Idec's multiple sclerosis (MS) drug Tysabri
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159129.php
Surveyed Oncologists Expect To Prescribe Provenge To About Half Of Their Prostate Cancer Patients If The Vaccine Is Approved
Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, if Dendreon's Provenge receives regulatory approval, surveyed oncologists expect to prescribe Provenge to 54 percent of patients with asymptomatic hormone refractory metastatic prostate cancer. Due to the side effects associated with currently available chemotherapy, most oncologists recommend that men who have stopped responding to hormone therapy wait for the development of symptoms before starting chemotherapy. The new Physician & Payer Forum report entitled Clinician and Payer Attitudes Toward Emerging Cancer Vaccines for Prostate Cancer, Lung Cancer, and Glioma finds that clinicians are willing to prescribe Provenge to patients in the absence of symptoms. The report also finds that three-quarters of surveyed oncologists and urologists consider Provenge a major breakthrough in the treatment of prostate cancer. Additionally, 89 percent of surveyed urologists expect to prescribe Provenge for prostate cancer.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159097.php
$13 Million Grant To Develop Vaccines For Emerging Infectious Diseases, Simulation Tools Used To Train Next Generation Of Scientific Researchers
University of Rhode Island Professor Annie De Groot has been awarded a $13 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to pioneer the development and application of an integrated gene-to-vaccine program targeting emerging infectious diseases. It is the second multi-million dollar NIH grant awarded to URI researchers in recent months, coming on the heels of an $18 million award to a pharmacy professor in May. De Groot, who joined the faculty of the URI College of the Environment and Life Sciences just six months ago and who directs the University's Institute for Immunology and Informatics, said the new Translational Immunology Research and Accelerated Vaccine Development (TRIAD) program will integrate vaccine design studies in silico (via computer simulation) with in vitro and in vivo research.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159058.php
Obesity Healthcare Costs US 147 Billion Dollars A Year, New Study
The annual healthcare cost of obesity
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/158948.php
Teasing Apart T Helper Cells
The cytokine IL-9 promotes a multiple sclerosis-like disease in mice, according to a new study by Nowak et al. published online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. In a related Commentary, Richard Locksley discusses the molecular and genetic regulation of cytokine production by CD4+ T helper (Th) cells and the plasticity among different Th subsets. The Commentary was published online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine on Monday, July 27th. Since the late 1980s, when the concept of Th1 and -2 were first introduced, several new subsets have arisen, including Th17 cells and regulatory T (T reg) cells. Recent attention has focused on a putative new Th cell subset with the propensity to secrete IL-9. But whether these "Th9" cells are truly a unique subset or whether many Th cell subsets can produce IL-9 under the right circumstances has been a matter of debate.
World's First Cardiac Adult Stem Cell Patient Receives Infusion
Michael (Mike) Jones has become the world's first recipient of adult cardiac stem cells
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/158787.php
Source - MIT's Technology Review:
Radiation Therapy for Moving Targets
http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/23078/
Device Tracks How You're Sleeping
http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/23077/
Pig Cells Treat Diabetes Patients
http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/23072/
A Vaccine for Colon Cancer
http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/23067/
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