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Special issue reviews current state of science in fetal therapy

Repairing birth defects in the womb. Inserting a tiny laser into the mother's uterus to seal off an abnormal blood flow and save fetal twins. Advancing the science that may allow doctors to deliver cells or DNA to treat sickle cell anemia and other genetic diseases before birth.

17 Feb 2010

Amid stalled health reform efforts, advocates emerge for the state-by-state approach

Proponents of state-based health reform are saying that the federal stall over a health overhaul is giving states a perfect opportunity to showcase what they can do to solve the health care cost and coverage crisis, The Washington Post reports.

17 Feb 2010

Diagenode launches SX-8G IP-Star system for epigenetics

Diagenode, an innovative leader providing products and technologies for epigenetics, genomics and diagnostics, and the only provider of complete epigenetics solutions, announced today the launch of its innovative platform for automated epigenetics assays, the SX-8G IP-Star™ system ("IP-Star™).

16 Feb 2010

American Heart Association announces strategic goal to reduce stroke and cardiovascular diseases

Racial gaps exist in women's heart-health awareness, women's knowledge of heart attack warning signs requires attention and nearly half of women report they would not call 9-1-1 if they were having heart attack symptoms, according to new research published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, a journal of the American Heart Association.

16 Feb 2010

Health reform pressure points: Excise tax, individual mandate, antitrust legislation

"An agreement to tax high-cost, employer-sponsored health insurance plans, announced with fanfare by the White House and labor unions last month, is losing support from labor leaders, who say the proposal is too high a price to pay for the limited health care package they expect to emerge from Congress," The New York Times reports.

16 Feb 2010

Chemists adopt new approach to optimise enzyme for practical applications

Engineers are unlikely to tinker with the cooling system if they want to increase the size of an engine. Yet chemists at the Max Planck Institute for Coal Research have adopted an approach similar to this in their efforts to optimise an enzyme for practical applications. They

16 Feb 2010

Cancer Research UK, immatics Biotechnologies sign collaboration agreement to trial IMA950 vaccine for GMB

CANCER RESEARCH UK and Cancer Research Technology - the charity's development and commercialisation arm - have reached a collaboration agreement with immatics Biotechnologies to trial their new treatment vaccine, IMA950, for glioblastoma multiforme (GMB), one of the most common forms of brain cancer.

16 Feb 2010

Obama administration announces $1 billion in new health IT grants

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis Friday announced the release of $1 billion in stimulus funds to expand the use of electronic records and to train health care workers.

16 Feb 2010

Researchers use model organism to test new therapies for retinal degeneration

Research by Johns Hopkins sensory biologists studying fruit flies, has revealed a critical step in fly vision. Humans with problems in this same step suffer retinal dystrophies, which manifest as visual defects ranging from mild visual impairments to complete blindness.

16 Feb 2010

Budget cuts hit health care services in Minnesota, Oklahoma and California

Gov. Tim Pawlenty's proposal to cut a net of $347 million from programs for sick, aged, disabled and jobless people is akin to the advice an ailing George Washington got from his doctors 210 years ago, one critic said Monday: Bleed him, in hope of a cure. Pawlenty would eliminate the General Assistance program in which about 20,000 disabled and very-low-income people receive an average of $175 a month.

16 Feb 2010

Biota Holdings reports total revenue of $61.7M for half-year of 2009

Biota Holdings Limited today announced a half year net profit after tax of $33.5 million, (1H F09: $7.2m). Profit before tax was $41.4 million (1H F09: $10.1m) benefiting significantly from an increase in Relenza royalties.

16 Feb 2010

Eat 'heart-healthy' oats to prevent atherosclerosis

Nutritionist Mohsen Meydani, director of the Vascular Biology Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, Mass., led the research on the oat compounds, called avenanthramides. Meydani previously has shown that phenolic antioxidants in oats obstruct the ability of blood cells to stick to artery walls.

16 Feb 2010

IRS helping thousands pay for health insurance

The IRS is helping more than 40,000 residents of Michigan buy health insurance "after they lost their jobs to foreign competition or had their pension plans terminated," The Detroit News reports.

16 Feb 2010

Positive topline data from Alkermes' phase 1 clinical study of ALKS 37 announced

Alkermes, Inc. today announced positive topline data from a phase 1 clinical study of ALKS 37, an orally active, peripherally-restricted opioid antagonist with potential to block the effects of opioid agonists on gastrointestinal motility, commonly referred to as opioid-induced constipation (OIC).

16 Feb 2010

Will health care savings be used to reduce the deficit?

Kaiser Health News staff writer Mary Agnes Carey writes: "In their effort to overhaul the health system, President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats pressed hospitals, drug makers and other providers to accept billions of dollars in government payment cuts and new fees to help finance the legislation.

16 Feb 2010

AB SCIEX acquires liquid chromatography business of Eksigent Technologies

AB SCIEX, a global leader in life science analytical technologies, today announced that it has acquired the liquid chromatography business of Eksigent Technologies. This acquisition significantly strengthens AB SCIEX’s position in liquid chromatography, which is a key technology used frequently in a broad range of life science applications such as protein biomarker research, drug discovery and basic research.

16 Feb 2010

Advice on decoding and correcting medical bills

The Los Angeles Times offers advice to consumers on how to understand and correct medical bills.

16 Feb 2010

Fourth-quarter and full-year 2009 results announced by Vanda Pharmaceuticals

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of clinical-stage products for central nervous system disorders, today announced financial and operational results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2009.

16 Feb 2010

Palatin Technologies announces net income of $4.5M for second-quarter fiscal 2010

Palatin Technologies, Inc. today announced results for its second quarter ended December 31, 2009. Palatin reported net income of $4.5 million, or $0.04 per basic and diluted share, for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, compared to a net loss of $0.4 million, or $0.00 per basic and diluted share, for the same period in 2008. Total revenues in the quarter ended December 31, 2009 were $7.3 million, compared to $1.2 million for the same period in 2008.

16 Feb 2010

Merck announces global sales of $27.4 billion for full-year 2009

Merck & Co., Inc. today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and the full year of 2009 which include the results of legacy Schering-Plough operations from the close of the merger on Nov. 3, 2009 through Dec. 31, 2009.

16 Feb 2010