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Clinical testing service for safer dosing of warfarin

Machaon Diagnostics, California's only independent laboratory for testing bleeding and clotting disorders has launched a clinical testing service for patients that have been prescribed warfarin. Warfarin, also known as Coumadin, Jantoven or warfarin sodium, is a potent 'blood thinner' or anticoagulant.

8 Apr 2010

Secretary of Health announces five health research grants to improve health of Pennsylvanians

Secretary of Health Everette James today announced five health research grants totaling approximately $20 million will be awarded from Pennsylvania's share of the national tobacco settlement for 2009-2010.

8 Apr 2010

Intermittent exotropia will lead to nearsightedness in most children

Intermittent exotropia, a condition in which the eyes turn outward while looking at an object, occurs in about 1% of American children and is less common than esotropia, where the eyes turn inward. In an article published in the March 2010 issue of the American Journal of Ophthalmology, researchers from the Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation, Rochester, MN, followed 135 patients with intermittent exotropia over a 20-year period and found that slightly more than 90% of these children became nearsighted by the time they reached their 20s.

8 Apr 2010

Star Scientific completes Research and Royalty Agreement with SRQ Bio

Star Scientific announced today that it has completed a "Research and Royalty Agreement" with the Roskamp Institute's affiliate, SRQ Bio, LLC, under which the Institute will conduct research on a compound developed by the company's Rock Creek Pharmaceutical subsidiary that medical researchers at the Institute believe may have an application in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

8 Apr 2010

Nutritional supplement can increase blood circulation of hematopoietic stem cells

A nutritional supplement could stimulate the production of stem cells integral for repairing the body. Research published in BioMed Central's open access Journal of Translational Medicine suggests that a commercially-available supplement can increase the blood circulation of hematopoietic stem cells, which can give rise to all blood cells, and endothelial progenitor cells, which repair damage to blood vessels.

8 Apr 2010

Prague hosts 12th European Congress of Endocrinology

The 12th European Congress of Endocrinology is taking place in Prague from 24-28 April 2010.

8 Apr 2010

Researchers discover two genetic regions that influence birth weight

New research uncovers two genetic regions that influence birth weight. One of the regions is also associated with type 2 diabetes, which helps to explain why small babies have higher rates of diabetes in later life.

8 Apr 2010

Is grandmother’s age significant to autism?

A report just published in the online journal, PLoS ONE, indicates that the mothers of children with an autistic spectrum disorder were themselves more likely to have been born to older mothers. These findings could open up new avenues in autism research.

8 Apr 2010

Cepheid to launch GeneXpert Infinity-48 in Europe at 20th ECCMID

Cepheid will initiate European launch of its newest addition to the GeneXpert® family of molecular diagnostic testing systems, the GeneXpert Infinity-48, at the 20th annual European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) in Vienna, Austria. The GeneXpert Infinity-48 System is the world's first and only fully-automated, random-access system designed for management of the entire molecular testing workflow — from sample data, cartridge loading and unloading, to final reporting of test results and disposal of cartridges.

7 Apr 2010

DNA barcoding-sequencing of gene in sand flies identifies two species carrying Leishmania naiffi

In the first survey of sand flies in Panama to use genetic barcoding, scientists at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and Gorgas Memorial Laboratories identified 20 sand fly species from Barro Colorado Island. Two species carried Leishmania naiffi, a parasite that causes cutaneous leishmaniasis: persistent, itchy skin lesions. Three species carried Wolbachia, a bacterial parasite of insects that could contribute to a strategy to control the flies and limit disease transmission.

7 Apr 2010

Study demonstrates potential ability of Chronix serum DNA assays in diagnosis of breast cancer

Chronix Biomedical today announced publication of a study that supports the utility of its serum DNA blood tests to predict clinical status and monitor disease activity and response to treatment in multiple sclerosis (MS). Chronix Biomedical uses proprietary technology to identify disease-specific genetic fingerprints based on the circulating DNA that is released into the bloodstream by damaged and dying cells.

7 Apr 2010

Folate increases risk of breast cancer in women with certain genetic make-up

In most women folate, a type of B vitamin, reduces the risk of breast cancer. However, in women with a certain genetic make-up it has shown to be the opposite: folate raises the risk of breast cancer.

7 Apr 2010

Illumina launches VeraCode ADME Core Panel

Illumina, Inc. today announced the launch of its VeraCode ADME Core Panel designed to help researchers study genetic predispositions for differential drug response and adverse events. The VeraCode ADME Core Panel offers the most complete representation of the key biomarkers associated with drug absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) as standardized by pharmaceutical industry experts in the PharmADME Core List.

From Illumina, Inc. 7 Apr 2010

CAV1 gene variation contributes to kidney transplant failure: JAMA

Among kidney transplant donors, variation of a gene that is an inhibitor of the development of fibrous connective tissue is significantly associated with an increased risk of graft failure, according to a study in the April 7 issue of JAMA.

7 Apr 2010

Measure of blood flow in lungs could help identify smokers at risk of emphysema

Using CT scans to measure blood flow in the lungs of people who smoke may offer a way to identify which smokers are most at risk of emphysema before the disease damages and eventually destroys areas of the lungs, according to a University of Iowa study.

7 Apr 2010

MDA, FFSHR award $200,000 grant for developing FSH dystrophy therapy

The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), headquartered in Tucson, Ariz., and Friends of FSH Research (FFSHR), based in Kirkland, Wash., has jointly awarded a two-year, $200,000 grant to Dr. Joel Chamberlain, a research assistant professor of medical genetics at the University of Washington. The grant, equally funded by the two organizations, will enable the laboratory led by Dr. Chamberlain to study RNA interference as an investigative and therapeutic tool for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy.

7 Apr 2010

Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior awarded $14.9M to establish IPCN facility

The Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA has been awarded $14.9 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to establish a center dedicated to interdisciplinary research on the role of genetic and environmental factors in neuropsychiatric and behavioral disorders.

7 Apr 2010

SRU Biosystems extends product line with the introduction of BIND SCANNER

SRU Biosystems today announced the extension of its product line of label-free instrumentation and biosensors with the introduction of its BIND® SCANNER for primary and stem cell applications. The BIND SCANNER is a first-of-its-kind, plate-based, label-free instrument capable of monitoring cellular responses at an individual cell resolution.

7 Apr 2010

LCA: Few possess genetic mutation necessary for positive outcome from gene therapy

Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is a congenital retinal dystrophy present in approximately 1 of 80,000 births. It is estimated that about 3,000 people in the United States are living with LCA and will likely become blind in their lifetimes. Recently, there has been progress in gene therapy for this condition.

7 Apr 2010

Avastin approval to drive ovarian cancer drug market to $1.5 billion in 2018

Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that the ovarian cancer drug market -- driven by the approval and rapid uptake of Roche/Genentech/Chugai's Avastin -- will more than triple from $449 million in 2008 to just under $1.5 billion in 2018 in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Japan.

7 Apr 2010