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NIH awards $6.5M for pharmacogenomics study of key mood-stabilizing drug for bipolar disorder

An international team, led by University of California, San Diego School of Medicine researchers, has been awarded a $6.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study the pharmacogenomics of a key mood-stabilizing drug used to treat bipolar disorder.

9 Sep 2010

UC San Diego researchers receive grant to study pharmacogenomics for bipolar disorder

8 Sep 2010

23rd ECNP Press conference on impact of circadian rhythms on human brain

All humans are synchronised to the rhythmic light-dark changes that occur on a daily basis. Rhythms in physiological and biochemical processes and behavioural patterns persist in the absence of all external 24-hour signals from the physical environment, with a period that is close to 24 hours

30 Aug 2010

Study finds lithium drugs not effective for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis treatment

A new study has found that the drug lithium is not effective in treating people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. The research is published in the August 11, 2010, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

12 Aug 2010

Water Pik sets up online community to support portfolio of oral health, shower head and sinus health products

In an effort to educate and inform consumers, Water Pik, Inc., a global leader in personal healthcare products, today announced the launch of its new online community on Waterpik.com. Powered by Lithium Technologies, the online destination supports Water Pik's entire portfolio of oral health, shower head and sinus health products and brings the company's experts, consumers and industry experts together in one digital space.

10 Aug 2010

Ketamine reduces depression in treatment-resistant bipolar disorder: Study

A single intravenous dose of the anesthetic agent ketamine appears to reduce symptoms of depression within 40 minutes among those with bipolar disorder who have not responded to other treatments, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

3 Aug 2010

Penn researchers reverse cognitive decline in fruit flies with Alzheimer's gene mutation

Investigators have found that fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) males -- in which the activity of an Alzheimer's disease protein is reduced by 50 percent -- show impairments in learning and memory as they age. What's more, the researchers were able to prevent the age-related deficits by treating the flies with drugs such as lithium, or by genetic manipulations that reduced nerve-cell signaling.

16 Jul 2010

Possible mechanism identified for how lithium treats bipolar disorder

Lithium has been established for more than 50 years as one of the most effective treatments for manic depression, clinically termed bipolar disorder. However, scientists have never been entirely sure exactly why it is beneficial.

18 Jun 2010

AMA recommends classification of e-cigarettes as drug delivery devices

New policy adopted today by the American Medical Association (AMA) recommends that electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) be classified as drug delivery devices, subject to the same FDA regulations as all other drug delivery devices. Additional policy adopted supports prohibiting the sale of e-cigarettes that are not FDA approved.

15 Jun 2010

Hypertension linked to severity of bipolar disorders

Nearly half of patients hospitalized with bipolar disorder may suffer from hypertension, and the younger a person is diagnosed with the psychiatric condition the more likely they are to develop high blood pressure, according to a recent Michigan State University study.

11 Jun 2010

Lithium reduces brain inflammation by adjusting metabolism of DHA: Researchers

Though it has been prescribed for over 50 years to treat bipolar disorder, there are still many questions regarding exactly how lithium works. However, in a study appearing in this month's Journal of Lipid Research, researchers have provided solid evidence that lithium reduces brain inflammation by adjusting the metabolism of the health-protective omega-3-fatty acid called DHA.

24 May 2010

Boston-Power announces lithium-ion battery technology for medical device and equipment market

Boston-Power®, Inc., the rapidly growing provider of next-generation lithium-ion batteries, is responding to strong customer and partner demand by bringing its industry-leading lithium-ion battery technology to the multi-billion dollar global medical device and equipment market. Boston-Power's lithium-ion battery cells deliver unmatched levels of long life, fast charge and safety to a market that demands the most stringent standards of battery reliability to ensure that patients receive the highest quality of care.

28 Apr 2010

Breathe California names CODA Automotive as winner of Clean Air Award

CODA Automotive, a California-based electric car and battery company, was named a Clean Air Award winner in the technology development category by Breathe California. The award, presented today in San Francisco, highlights standout efforts to combat climate change and air pollution in the business, government, education and non-profit sectors.

17 Apr 2010

Antidepressants and mood stabilizers may benefit stroke victims

A study in rodents shows the growth of new neurons, also known as neurogenesis, lessens the severity of stroke and dramatically improves function following a stroke. The research, undertaken at the Buck Institute for Age Research, suggests that drugs shown to promote neurogenesis in rodents could have benefits for human stroke victims and that those drugs-which include antidepressants and mood stabilizers such as lithium-may be suitable for study in human clinical trials.

13 Apr 2010

Mood altering effects of Phenytoin

Phenytoin is a well known antiepileptic agent widely used throughout the world. Recent clinical studies in patients with bipolar disorder have suggested that, as for other anticonvulsant drugs commonly used in the treatment of bipolar patients including valproate and carbamazepine, phenytoin may have mood-stabilizing effects in addition to its well-known anticonvulsant properties.

30 Mar 2010

FDA grants SynCardia Systems conditional approval to conduct IDE study of Freedom driver system

SynCardia Systems, Inc., manufacturer of the SynCardia temporary CardioWest™ Total Artificial Heart, today announced it has received conditional approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study of the Freedom™ driver system, the first-ever U.S. portable driver designed to power SynCardia's Total Artificial Heart.

29 Mar 2010

SynCardia Systems' Freedom driver system for powering 'Total Artificial Heart' receives European CE Mark

On March 4, SynCardia Systems, Inc., manufacturer of the SynCardia temporary CardioWest™ Total Artificial Heart, announced that its new Freedom™ driver system has received the CE Mark to power the Total Artificial Heart in Europe.

4 Mar 2010

Vidacare's OnControl Bone Marrow System now available for bone marrow procedures

For many cancer patients, a bone marrow biopsy and/or aspiration is one of the most dreaded aspects of their diagnosis and treatment plan. The traditional method for gaining bone marrow involves grinding a needle by hand and sheer force through a patient’s skin and bone, and the procedure is often described as “brutal,” “excruciating” and even “barbaric.”

3 Mar 2010

Silver nanoparticles in higher-power, longer-life batteries for ICDs

Diamonds and gold may make some hearts flutter on Valentine's Day, but in a University at Buffalo laboratory, silver nanoparticles are being designed to do just the opposite.

11 Feb 2010

Chinese researchers become the world's fifth most prolific contributors to regenerative medicine

Chinese researchers have become the world's fifth most prolific contributors to peer-reviewed scientific literature on clock-reversing regenerative medicine even as a skeptical international research community condemns the practice of Chinese clinics administering unproven stem cell therapies to domestic and foreign patients.

8 Jan 2010