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BioDiem presents positive findings of their eye disease drug at international conference

Australian infectious disease therapy and vaccine development company BioDiem Ltd (ASX: BDM) today announced positive results from formal studies of its BDM-E eye disease drug, presented over 21 – 22 July at the International Society for Eye Research (ISER) meeting in Berlin, Germany. The ISER convenes leading researchers and clinicians in the area of eye disease.

22 Jul 2012

2-D models may often give researchers misleading results

Imagine millions of cancer cells organized in thousands of small divots. Hit these cells with drugs and when some cells die, you have a candidate for a cancer drug. But a review published this week in the journal Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery argues that these 2D models in fact offer very little information about a potential drug's effects in the body and may often give researchers misleading results.

21 Jul 2012

FDA clears pSivida's IND for injectable sustained-release micro-insert to treat posterior uveitis

pSivida Corp., a leader in developing sustained release, drug delivery products for treatment of back-of-the-eye diseases, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared its Investigational New Drug (IND) application to treat posterior uveitis with pSivida's injectable sustained-release micro-insert.

20 Jul 2012

BioDiem signs agreement with RMIT to create new non-influenza vaccines

Australian infectious disease therapy and vaccine development company BioDiem Ltd (ASX: BDM) today announced that BioDiem has signed an agreement with The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) regarding a research program that will investigate the use of BioDiem’s live attenuated influenza virus (LAIV) to create new non-influenza vaccines. Developing the potential of the LAIV technology for new indications is an important part of BioDiem’s strategy, and this research is part of the work towards that goal.

19 Jul 2012

Iron deficiency in women ‘may be under-recognized’

Iron deficiency may be an under-recognized cause of fatigue in women, say investigators who report that iron supplementation reduced symptoms of fatigue in women who were not anemic but had low ferritin levels.

19 Jul 2012

New CD141hi DC subset plays a critical role in activating immune response against pathogens

Scientists at A*STAR's Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), in collaboration with Newcastle University, UK, the Singapore Institute of Clinical Sciences and clinicians from multiple hospitals in Singapore, have identified a new subset of dendritic cells (DCs) in human peripheral tissue which have a critical role in activating our immune response against harmful pathogens.

17 Jul 2012

Cleveland Clinic receives NHLBI grant to identify new pathways linked with cardiovascular diseases

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has awarded a $4.78 million grant to researchers at Cleveland Clinic's Lerner Research Institute to use metabolomics - a new approach that focuses on the small-molecule byproducts of metabolism - for discovery of novel pathways linked to the development of cardiovascular diseases.

14 Jul 2012

Five recent Science and Nature papers shed light on elusive 'GPCRs'

Readers of the top-ranked scientific journals Science and Nature might have noticed a recent wave of articles, most recently in the July 13, 2012 issue of Science, with deep importance for biology and medicine.

14 Jul 2012

PCR assay ‘superior’ to culture for neonatal sepsis, meningitis

In neonates with probable sepsis or meningitis, a realtime polymerase chain reaction assay specific for a virulence gene in Streptococcus agalactiae is superior to standard bacterial culture identification, results of a pathology study show.

11 Jul 2012

Neutronic Ear announces newly re-designed knowledge-sharing website

Neutronic Ear, the leader in Personal Sound Amplification Products (PSAP) today announced a newly re-designed knowledge-sharing website www.neutronicear.com. The site was designed with the latest interactive features in animation and video to guide and educate visitors looking for more information on hearing health.

11 Jul 2012

Multi-well microplates ensure high filtered sample integrity

The need for reliable methods to purify samples and improve assays has led Porvair Sciences to develop a range of proprietary multi-well filtration microplates optimised for applications including cell harvesting, DNA separations, binding studies, plasmid isolation, general filtration and sample clean-up.

From Porvair Sciences Limited 10 Jul 2012

Viewpoints: Daschle says health law still has 4 hurdles; Commentators from states such as Calif., Texas and Florida wrestle with options

The GOP-controlled U.S. House plans to hold what can only be called symbolic votes on repealing the sweeping reforms they deride as "Obamacare." Meanwhile, at least 15 governors are said to be leaning toward refusing to expand state Medicaid programs -- a key part of the reform's strategy to provide some form of health insurance to the 32 million people now going without coverage.

10 Jul 2012

Novel gene therapy approach may treat dysferlinopathies

The challenge of treating patients with genetic disorders in which a single mutated gene is simply too large to be replaced using traditional gene therapy techniques may soon be a thing of the past. A Nationwide Children's Hospital study describes a new gene therapy approach capable of delivering full-length versions of large genes and improving skeletal muscle function. The strategy may hold new hope for treating dysferlinopathies and other muscular dystrophies.

9 Jul 2012

Researchers describe inflammatory mechanism of sunburn

The biological mechanism of sunburn - the reddish, painful, protective immune response from ultraviolet (UV) radiation - is a consequence of RNA damage to skin cells, report researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and elsewhere in the July 8, 2012 Advance Online Publication of Nature Medicine.

9 Jul 2012

Folic acid ‘may benefit diabetics’

Folic acid supplementation can significantly reduce homocysteine levels and may therefore offer an approach for lowering cardiovascular risk among patients with Type 2 diabetes, report researchers.

2 Jul 2012

Study illustrates novel mechanical transduction properties of hematopoietic stem cells

A recent study led by Andrew Puca, Ph.D. under the supervision and direction of Antonio Giordano, M.D., Ph.D. set out to illustrate novel mechanical transduction properties of Hematopoietic Stem Cells in relation to defining the expression of humoral factors by facilitating paracrine/autocrine signalling via microgravity.

2 Jul 2012

Passive smoking risks children’s distance vision

Passive smoke exposure could lead to long-sightedness in children, show Egyptian study results.

29 Jun 2012

New type of micromachine can penetrate tissue and overcome cellular barriers

Microscopically small submarines that can swim through our blood to clear out clogged arteries or destroy malignant tumors. This concept may sound utopian, but it isn’t. Various micro- and nanomachines have in fact already been developed.

27 Jun 2012

Glaukos receives FDA approval for iStent Trabecular Micro-Bypass Stent System

Today, the iStent Trabecular Micro-Bypass Stent System, Model GTS100R/L, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This is the first device approved for use in combination with cataract surgery to reduce pressure inside the eye (intraocular pressure) in adult patients with mild or moderate open-angle glaucoma and a cataract who are currently being treated with medication to reduce intraocular pressure.

26 Jun 2012

Standard aspirin dose may not protect diabetics against blood clots

Many patients with type 2 diabetes may be aspirin resistant. That means the standard aspirin dose may not protect them against blood clots that cause heart attacks and strokes among diabetics, a new clinical study finds. The results will be presented Sunday at The Endocrine Society's 94th Annual Meeting in Houston.

25 Jun 2012