Food News and Research

RSS

China SFDA approves Taibang's clinical trials for human fibrinogen

China Biologic Products, Inc., one of the leading plasma-based biopharmaceutical companies in the People's Republic of China, today announced that its indirectly owned subsidiary, Shandong Taibang Biological Products Co., Ltd., recently received approval from the China State Food and Drug Administration to begin clinical trials for its human fibrinogen to be used to treat congenital fibrinogen deficiency and acquired fibrinogen deficiency.

23 Mar 2012

Health policies continue to play role in GOP presidential primary

An analysis by The Associated Press points out that the GOP may be gelling around presidential hopeful Mitt Romney despite his role while governor in advancing the Massachusetts health law. Meanwhile, the AP also reports that rival candidate Rick Santorum offered his support for the budget plan announced this week by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., but said he would be more aggressive in achieving savings. Medicaid would be one of his targets.

23 Mar 2012

Ensuring clean water for food, health requires 'collective action'

"As we mark World Water Day, the alarming statistics underlying water scarcity are worth repeating. Worldwide 2.7 billion people are currently affected by water shortages," Manish Bapna, acting president of the World Resources Institute (WRI), and Betsy Otto, director of WRI's Aqueduct Project, write in a Forbes opinion piece, noting that population growth, increasing food demand, and climate change threaten access to water.

23 Mar 2012

Ryan budget floor vote foreshadows fiscal showdown

The House Budget Committee approved the measure in a late vote Wednesday. Meanwhile, because it "fractures" the spending agreement reached last summer between the White House and congressional Republicans, both sides may be fixing for a fight as the election gets closer.

23 Mar 2012

Longer looks: Health literacy's effect on costs

In many families, women are the health care decision makers. When children go for their checkups, we are often the ones who make the appointment and sit in the room holding their hand. When elderly parents see a new specialist, we are the ones carrying the folder with all their health information. ... In the past, this also meant that many women would take care of their own health last. By the time they got around to it, women found a system stacked against them. But thanks to the health care law, that's changed.

23 Mar 2012

TAS2R38 and CD36 gene may play a role in fat perception

While high-fat foods are thought to be of universal appeal, there is actually a lot of variation in the extent to which people like and consume fat. A new study in the March issue of the Journal of Food Science, published by the Institute of Food Technologists, reported that two specific genes, may play a role in some people's ability to taste and enjoy dietary fat.

23 Mar 2012

Endo acquires oxymorphone hydrochloride patent from Johnson Matthey

Endo announced today that it has acquired U.S. patent 7,851,482 B2 for oxymorphone hydrochloride, the key API in all formulations of OPANA, from Johnson Matthey plc.

23 Mar 2012

Study demonstrates molecular mechanisms of cadmium-induced prostate cancer

A recent study conducted at Marshall University may eventually help scientists develop new treatments for prostate cancer, the most common malignancy in American men.

22 Mar 2012

Antidepressants can play a key role in relieving pain associated with OA

Antidepressants can play a key role in alleviating painful conditions like osteoarthritis and may result in fewer side effects than traditionally prescribed drug regimes, such as anti-inflammatories and opioids, according to a perspective paper published online ahead of print publication by the International Journal of Clinical Practice.

22 Mar 2012

GUCY2C gene mutation leads to familial diarrhea syndrome

When the intestines are not able to properly process our diet, a variety of disorders can develop, with chronic diarrhea as a common symptom. Chronic diarrhea can also be inherited, most commonly through conditions with genetic components such as irritable bowel syndrome. Researchers in Norway, India, and at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology have identified one heritable DNA mutation that leads to chronic diarrhea and bowel inflammation.

22 Mar 2012

Two Brandeis researchers receive Canada Gairdner Award

Two distinguished Brandeis researchers, whose long-standing collaboration led to pioneering discoveries about the workings of the biological clock and its role in circadian rhythms, today were awarded the prestigious Canada Gairdner Award, that nation's foremost international scientific honor.

22 Mar 2012

Some praise Rep. Ryan's budget plan as a bold approach; Others worry about 'dangerous' cuts to Medicare, the poor

A look at the initial editorials and opinions on the budget proposal released Tuesday by the House Budget Committee chairman.

22 Mar 2012

Nurses too pushed for basic elderly care: Report finds

A new report found that three out of four nurses say they have no time to talk to older hospital patients and many are so rushed they can’t help them to eat. A lack of qualified nurses is jeopardizing safe care for the elderly on wards which are still dominated by age discrimination, according to the Royal College of Nursing.

21 Mar 2012

Simple and accurate test for peanut allergy

The Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and University of Melbourne researchers discovered a two-pronged blood test will confirm peanut allergies instead of putting children through risky oral food challenge tests.

21 Mar 2012

Study finds higher death rate in calorie-restricted models of IBD

In a surprising result, Michigan State University researchers looking at the effects of diet on bowel disease found that mice on a calorie-restricted diet were more likely to die after being infected with an inflammation-causing bacterial pathogen in the colon.

21 Mar 2012

Reducing children's sugary beverage intake may help manage obesity

Sugary drinks are the single biggest contributor to the obesity epidemic in the United States, and according to the Centers for Disease Control, two-thirds of adults and one-third of the children in the U.S. are overweight or obese. Registered dietician Leah Holbrook, Coordinator of the Long Island Center for Pediatric Obesity Prevention in the Department of Family Medicine at Stony Brook School of Medicine, says that these sobering statistics and the fact that beverages account for nearly half of the added sugars in our diet are a wakeup call for Americans to reduce their sugary drink intake.

21 Mar 2012

Free public lecture to discuss impact of human populations on environment

Most of our serious problems in the world today can be traced back to the impact of human populations on the environment. With each person requiring energy, space and resources to survive, the stress on the planet of the world population, currently estimated to be seven billion, is enormous.

21 Mar 2012

IRIN examines malnutrition in Chad

IRIN examines malnutrition in Chad, writing, "Hovering at around 20 percent in some places, Kanem Region in western Chad is well-known for having some of the world's highest continual severe acute malnutrition rates," and, "unless something is done to improve the country's 'dysfunctional' health system (as described by half a dozen interviewees), these malnutrition rates are unlikely to change significantly."

21 Mar 2012

Excluded from WHO targets, children at risk of being forgotten in global NCD agenda

Guardian health editor Sarah Boseley examines why children have been excluded from WHO targets on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in this post in her "Global Health Blog," writing, "Children die from cancer, heart disease and other NCDs but they are in danger of being forgotten as global targets for action are drawn up, say health groups."

21 Mar 2012

TACT believes that Halo's HT-100 may effectively treat DMD

Halo Therapeutics, LLC, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for rare fibrotic diseases, announced today that the TREAT-NMD Advisory Committee on Therapeutics (TACT) has reviewed HT-100, Halo's drug candidate for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), and believes the compound has potential based on the proposed mechanism.

21 Mar 2012