Atherosclerosis News and Research

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Atherosclerosis is the progressive buildup of plaque - the fatty deposits and other cells - in the inner walls of the arteries. The condition is a consequence of elevated cholesterol and for many it's a silent disease, with no visible signs or symptoms. The disease can begin in early adulthood and continues to progress for the rest of a person's life. Despite the serious nature of atherosclerosis, many people do not understand how it develops and progresses.

microRNA miR-33 may help control blood cholesterol level

Thanks to a discovery by a Saint Louis University researcher, scientists have identified an important microRNA that may allow us to better control cholesterol levels in blood.

6 Oct 2010

Researchers investigate whole-genome data to uncover new mutations for CAD risk

The Coronary ARtery DIsease Genome-wide Replication And Meta-Analysis (CARDIoGRAM) published in Circulation Cardiovascular Genetics, an American Heart Association journal consists of data from every published whole-genome study on genetic mutations in heart attack or CAD risk. Researchers are also pooling data from several unpublished genome-wide association studies to see if any new mutations can be uncovered.

6 Oct 2010

NIH awards contract to develop nanotechnology tools for atherosclerosis treatment

Georgia Tech and Emory University have received a five-year $14.6 million contract from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to continue the development of nanotechnology and biomolecular engineering tools and methodologies for detecting and treating atherosclerosis.

5 Oct 2010

Mandatory ECG screening for athletes

Should athletes have to undergo mandatory electrocardiographic screening (also known as ECG or heart trace) before competing? Doctors debate the issue in this week's BMJ.

4 Oct 2010

UCLA receives contract to study proteins involved in cardiovascular disease development

UCLA has received a five-year, $12.5 million contract award from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute to spearhead an international consortium of medical experts that will study proteins that may be involved in the development of cardiovascular disease.

4 Oct 2010

NIH funds $1.5M for research into prediction of stroke risk in pediatric patients with sickle cell disease

A researcher from the biomedical engineering department operated by Georgia Tech and Emory University has received a $1.5 million NIH Director's New Innovator Award to support a project aimed at reducing the incidence of stroke in children with sickle cell disease. Manu Platt, an assistant professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, will use the National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding to develop models for identifying which children with the disease are at risk for stroke.

1 Oct 2010

School vending machines can influence students' dietary choices

With over 23 million children and adolescents in the US overweight or obese, the risks for many chronic diseases continue to increase. An article in the October issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association examines the diets of American youth and finds some disturbing results.

1 Oct 2010

Mount Sinai receives contract to develop nanotechnology tools for diagnosing diseases

Mount Sinai School of Medicine received a contract for almost $16.5 million from The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Heart and Lung Institute (NHLBI) through the Program of Excellence in Nanotechnology (PEN). The contract is one of four issued nationally to develop multidisciplinary research Centers with the goal of developing nanotechnology tools for diagnosing and treating heart, lung and blood diseases.

30 Sep 2010

Washington University receives award to develop diagnostic tools for heart, lung diseases using nanotechnology

An $18 million research program headed by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis will research therapies and diagnostic tools for heart and lung diseases that use nanotechnology.

30 Sep 2010

Study shows blueberries may help fight atherosclerosis

Blueberries may help fight atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries, according to results of a preliminary U.S. Department of Agriculture funded study with laboratory mice. The research provides the first direct evidence that blueberries can help prevent harmful plaques or lesions, symptomatic of atherosclerosis, from increasing in size in arteries.

30 Sep 2010

XOMA completes patient enrollment in XOMA 052 Phase 2a trial

XOMA Ltd., a leader in the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies, announced that patient enrollment was recently completed for the company's Phase 2a trial of XOMA 052 in patients with Type 2 diabetes.

29 Sep 2010

Celera receives patent on KIF6 gene variant

Celera Corporation today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued United States Patent 7,799,530 relating to methods of determining heart attack risk by detecting the KIF6 gene variant and reduction of such increased risk by statin therapy.

21 Sep 2010

Abbott to commercialize Celera's CE-marked KIF6 genotyping assay outside U.S.

Celera Corporation and Abbott today announced that they have signed an exclusive distribution agreement to market Celera's CE-marked KIF6 diagnostic test for use on Abbott's CE-marked m2000™ instrument system. The KIF6 genotyping assay detects a genetic marker that may be used in conjunction with clinical evaluation and patient assessment for the identification of individuals at risk for coronary heart disease (CHD), and in patients for whom statin treatment is being considered.

20 Sep 2010

Gene network behind hardening of arteries, coronary heart disease identified

A gene network behind hardening of the arteries and coronary heart disease has been identified by a team of scientists from Australia, Europe and the United Kingdom. Their findings expose potential targets for the treatment of heart disease.

16 Sep 2010

Micrus stockholders approve merger agreement with Johnson & Johnson

Micrus Endovascular Corporation announced today that its stockholders approved a proposal to adopt the merger agreement which provides that Micrus is to become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, among other business, at its 2010 annual meeting of stockholders.

15 Sep 2010

VBL Therapeutics' VB-201 candidate delays onset of EAE, shows potential for MS, CNS treatment

VBL Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company committed to the development of novel treatments for immune-inflammatory diseases and cancer, today announced the publication of preclinical data in the Journal of Neuroimmunology finding that its lead development candidate VB-201 significantly delayed the onset and severity of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in mice, the commonly used Multiple sclerosis.

14 Sep 2010

Resverlogix announces key changes to Phase 2 ASSURE trial

Resverlogix Corp. announces that the Company's Phase 2 clinical trial, called ASSURE (ApoA-1 Synthesis Stimulation in Acute Coronary Syndrome patients), has made important modifications to the design of the trial which have the potential to demonstrate a more powerful endpoint for the planning of future clinical trials for RVX-208.

10 Sep 2010

Researchers discover first compound to activate enzyme telomerase in human body

Sierra Sciences, in collaboration with TA Sciences, Geron Corporation, PhysioAge, and the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO), has announced the first compound ever discovered that activates the enzyme telomerase in the human body - a critical prerequisite for technology that could arrest or reverse the aging process in humans.

9 Sep 2010

Study suggests high cortisol levels may increase cardiovascular mortality risk

High levels of the stress hormone cortisol strongly predict cardiovascular death among both persons with and without pre-existing cardiovascular disease according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

9 Sep 2010

Progerin may contribute to risk of atherosclerosis: Study

Progeria, also known as Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS), is a rare, fatal genetic disease characterized by an appearance of accelerated aging in children. All children with Progeria die of the same heart disease that affects millions of normal aging adults (atherosclerosis), but instead of occurring at 60 or 70 years of age, these children may suffer heart attacks and strokes even before age 10, and the average age of death is 13 years.

8 Sep 2010