Chronic News and Research

RSS

Adolescents may lose hepatitis B virus protection despite vaccination as infants

New research reveals that a significant number of adolescents lose their protection from hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, despite having received a complete vaccination series as infants. Results in the January 2013 issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, suggest teens with high-risk mothers (those positive for HBeAg) and teens whose immune system fails to remember a previous viral exposure (immunological memory) are behind HBV reinfection.

8 Jan 2013

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals reveals positive RenaZorb Phase 1 clinical trial results

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology company with fully integrated commercial and drug development operations with a primary focus in hematology and oncology, today announced positive, statistically significant data from the Company's Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the safety and tolerability of RenaZorb (also referred to as SPI-014) in healthy volunteers.

8 Jan 2013

Seven scientists named 2013 recipients of Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation announced that seven scientists with novel approaches to fighting cancer have been named 2013 recipients of the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award.

8 Jan 2013

Shoulder complaint linked to diabetes diagnosis

Study findings confirm suspicions that patients with diabetes have an increased risk for adhesive capsulitis of the shoulder.

7 Jan 2013

Periodontal disease may predispose men to impotence

Men in their thirties with chronic gum disease are at significantly increased risk for erectile dysfunction, suggests a study by Turkish researchers.

7 Jan 2013

Vaccine gives HIV patients a long-term boost

A functional cure for HIV-1 seems feasible after research shows that an immunotherapeutic vaccine demonstrated long-term efficacy at reducing viral load when administered to patients in the early stages of disease.

7 Jan 2013

Complications of suppurative otitis media characterized

Researchers emphasize the importance of an early and accurate diagnosis of chronic suppurative otitis media followed by surgical therapy to prevent complications.

7 Jan 2013

Merck’s resubmission of the NDA for suggammadex sodium injection accepted for review by the FDA

Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced that the resubmission of the New Drug Application (NDA) for sugammadex sodium injection has been accepted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Merck expects the FDA’s review to be completed in the first half of 2013.

7 Jan 2013

Study investigates prolonged pathological outcomes of traumatic brain injury

Researchers from the University of South Florida and colleagues at the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital studying the long-term consequences of traumatic brain injury using rat models, have found that, overtime, TBI results in progressive brain deterioration characterized by elevated inflammation and suppressed cell regeneration.

7 Jan 2013

UCSB scientists publish groundbreaking study results of Type 2 diabetes

While legions of medical researchers have been looking to understand the genetic basis of disease and how mutations may affect human health, a group of biomedical researchers at UC Santa Barbara is studying the metabolism of cells and their surrounding tissue, to ferret out ways in which certain diseases begin.

7 Jan 2013

Researchers discover new pathway to reduce paradoxical pain

For individuals with agonizing pain, it is a cruel blow when the gold-standard medication actually causes more pain. Adults and children whose pain gets worse when treated with morphine may be closer to a solution, based on research published in the January 6 on-line edition of Nature Neuroscience.

7 Jan 2013

PharmaIN receives FDA orphan-drug designation for terlipressin to treat ascites

PharmaIN Corporation and LAT Pharma LLC today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted their request for orphan-drug designation for terlipressin for the treatment of ascites due to all etiologies except for cancer.

7 Jan 2013

Link between Parkinson's and benomyl

For several years, neurologists at UCLA have been building a case that a link exists between pesticides and Parkinson's disease. To date, paraquat, maneb and ziram - common chemicals sprayed in California's Central Valley and elsewhere - have been tied to increases in the disease, not only among farmworkers but in individuals who simply lived or worked near fields and likely inhaled drifting particles.

6 Jan 2013

Research roundup: Gearing children's hospitals for future patients; Inappropriate care decreases, but not 'enough'; What patients think about testing

Researchers in this study examined the use of children's hospitals by relatively healthy children and those "with chronic conditions of varying medical complexity" from 2004 to 2009.

6 Jan 2013

Toxin-induced insulin resistance combated in mice

French researchers have found that a protein-bound uremic toxin, p-cresyl sulfate, contributes to the development of insulin resistance in mice, providing a new potential therapeutic target for treating chronic kidney disease, they say.

4 Jan 2013

Paper provides comprehensive assessment of motor performance after cervical spinal cord injury

More than half of traumatic spinal cord injuries (SCI) in humans are cervical lesions, resulting in chronic loss of limb function. A better understanding of the link between the neurologic damage caused by SCI, spontaneous motor function recovery, and long-term motor deficits would lead to better therapeutic approaches, as discussed in an article in Journal of Neurotrauma, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The

4 Jan 2013

Report shows how P. gingivalis manipulates body's immune system to disable normal processes

A new research report published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology shows how the bacteria known for causing gum disease--Porphyromonas gingivalis--manipulates the body's immune system to disable normal processes that would otherwise destroy it. Specifically, the report shows that this pathogen prompts the production of the anti-inflammatory molecule Interleukin-10 (IL-10).

4 Jan 2013

Celtaxsys commences CTX-4430 Phase 1 study to treat pulmonary inflammation

Celtaxsys, Inc., a private biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of drugs to treat chronic inflammatory disorders, today announced the initiation of a first-in-human Phase 1 clinical study of CTX-4430, which blocks the pro-inflammatory enzyme Leukotriene A4 Hydrolase (LTA4H).

3 Jan 2013

Treatment relieves oxidative stress in periodontitis

Nonsurgical periodontal therapy significantly reduces oxidative stress in individuals with chronic periodontitis, research shows.

3 Jan 2013

Itch-specific nerve cells in skin discovered by John Hopkins scientists

Johns Hopkins researchers have uncovered strong evidence that mice have a specific set of nerve cells that signal itch but not pain, a finding that may settle a decades-long debate about these sensations, and, if confirmed in humans, help in developing treatments for chronic itch, including itch caused by life-saving medications.

3 Jan 2013