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Roundup: Minn. seeks its own independent Medicaid audit; Feds renew Wis. Family Care program

The Minnesota Department of Human Services is commissioning an independent audit to respond to lingering questions about the state Medicaid program's past practices in paying private HMOs. The Medicaid rate-setting process also is the subject of several federal investigations. Questions have swirled at the state Capitol this year about whether Minnesota officials have been manipulating the rate certification process in Medicaid to wrongly gain excess federal funds.

25 Jul 2012

Bill Gates stresses importance of investment in both HIV treatment and research for vaccines, microbicides

In a symposium session on Monday at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C., politicians and public health experts joined Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Co-Chair Bill Gates for a discussion about improving effectiveness and efficiency in the HIV/AIDS response, the Washington Post reports.

25 Jul 2012

RhoC gene promotes breast cancer stem cell progression

Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center have found that a cancer gene linked to aggressive spread of the disease promotes breast cancer stem cells. The finding implies a new way to target the behavior of these lethal cells.

25 Jul 2012

Vanderbilt researchers receives new $2.1M grant to develop microbrain bioreactor

Take a millionth of a human brain and squeeze it into a special chamber the size of a mustard seed. Link it to a second chamber filled with cerebral spinal fluid and thread both of them with artificial blood vessels in order to create a microenvironment that makes the neurons and other brain cells behave as if they were in a living brain. Then surround the chambers with a battery of sensors that monitor how the cells respond when exposed to minute quantities of dietary toxins, disease organisms or new drugs under development.

25 Jul 2012

LSDF announces $570,000 in awards to support commercialization of new health-related products

The Life Sciences Discovery Fund (LSDF) today announced nearly $570,000 in awards in its inaugural corporate grant program to support commercialization of new health and health-care products by four early-stage Washington-based companies.

25 Jul 2012

New algorithm can help scientists predict gene and drug interactions

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have developed a new computational method that will make it easier for scientists to identify and prioritize genes, drug targets, and strategies for repositioning drugs that are already on the market. By mining large datasets more simply and efficiently, researchers will be able to better understand gene-gene, protein-protein, and drug/side-effect interactions. The new algorithm will also help scientists identify fellow researchers with whom they can collaborate.

25 Jul 2012

Hypoxic lung environment increases HIF-2a tumor growth signaling

In addition to the well-known risk factor of smoking, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) increases lung cancer risk.

25 Jul 2012

Scientists discover structure and operating procedures of anti-bacterial killing machine

Scientists have discovered the structure and operating procedures of a powerful anti-bacterial killing machine that could become an alternative to antibiotics.

25 Jul 2012

Aeterna Zentaris files request with FDA for Fast Track designation for AEZS-130

Aeterna Zentaris Inc. today announced that it has filed a request with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Fast Track designation for its oral ghrelin agonist, AEZS-130, as a diagnostic test for adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD).

25 Jul 2012

New large animal model for human cancer studies

A naturally occurring line of immunodeficient pigs can support the growth of human tumors injected under their skin, offering a promising new large animal model for studying human cancers and testing new drugs and treatment strategies.

24 Jul 2012

Findings cast doubt on sepsis drug withdrawal

A meta-analysis of clinical trial and real-world data suggests that drotrecogin alfa may in fact reduce mortality in patients with severe sepsis.

24 Jul 2012

Microneedles can deliver drug formulations into the eye

Thanks to tiny microneedles, eye doctors may soon have a better way to treat diseases such as macular degeneration that affect tissues in the back of the eye. That could be important as the population ages and develops more eye-related illnesses - and as pharmaceutical companies develop new drugs that otherwise could only be administered by injecting into the eye with a hypodermic needle.

24 Jul 2012

FDA approves 152 antiretroviral drugs in association with PEPFAR to treat HIV/AIDS

Today, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg announced the agency has approved or tentatively approved a total of 152 antiretroviral drugs in association with the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to treat those infected with HIV/AIDS in countries that lack the tools needed to fight the AIDS epidemic.

24 Jul 2012

Mephedrone does have potential for abuse and addiction

The use of the synthetic stimulants collectively known as "bath salts" have gained popularity among recreational drug users over the last five years, largely because they were readily available and unrestricted via the Internet and at convenience stores, and were virtually unregulated.

24 Jul 2012

Novel combination drug regimen could be more effective than existing treatments for TB

A novel approach to discover the first new tuberculosis (TB) combination drug regimen cleared a major hurdle when Phase II clinical trial results found it could kill more than 99 percent of patients' TB bacteria within two weeks and could be more effective than existing treatments, according to a study published today in the Lancet.

24 Jul 2012

Watching YouTube videos may help treat benign paroxysmal positional vertigo

Watching videos on YouTube may be a new way to show the treatment for a common cause of vertigo, which often goes untreated by physicians, according to a study published in the July 24, 2012, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 Jul 2012

New FDA guidelines on HIV And TB drug doses may not apply to African and Asian patients

In January, 2012, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new guidelines on dosing of an HIV medication used to treat people infected with both HIV and tuberculosis (TB) because of a potential interaction between two of the main drugs used to treat each disease.

24 Jul 2012

First Edition: July 24, 2012

Today's headlines include news from the campaign season as well as reports from the international AIDS conference currently taking place in Washington, D.C.

24 Jul 2012

Associated Press examines HIV/AIDS in Uganda, effects of PEPFAR funding

The Associated Press on Saturday examined the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Uganda, where "[a] new government report says the prevalence of HIV in this East African nation increased from 6.4 percent in 2004 to 7.3 percent in 2011, a shocking statistic for a country once praised for its global leadership in controlling AIDS."

24 Jul 2012

Cost of HIV drugs cost less than previous thought, Clinton Foundation study says

"Lack of money can no longer be considered a reason -- or an excuse -- for failing to treat all those with HIV who need drugs to stay alive, following game-changing work about to be published by the Clinton Foundation that shows the real cost is four times less than previously thought," the Guardian reports.

24 Jul 2012

Drugs News and Research

Roundup: Minn. seeks its own independent Medicaid audit; Feds renew Wis. Family Care program

Bill Gates stresses importance of investment in both HIV treatment and research for vaccines, microbicides

RhoC gene promotes breast cancer stem cell progression

Vanderbilt researchers receives new $2.1M grant to develop microbrain bioreactor

LSDF announces $570,000 in awards to support commercialization of new health-related products

New algorithm can help scientists predict gene and drug interactions

Hypoxic lung environment increases HIF-2a tumor growth signaling

Scientists discover structure and operating procedures of anti-bacterial killing machine

Aeterna Zentaris files request with FDA for Fast Track designation for AEZS-130

New large animal model for human cancer studies

Findings cast doubt on sepsis drug withdrawal

Microneedles can deliver drug formulations into the eye

FDA approves 152 antiretroviral drugs in association with PEPFAR to treat HIV/AIDS

Mephedrone does have potential for abuse and addiction

Novel combination drug regimen could be more effective than existing treatments for TB

Watching YouTube videos may help treat benign paroxysmal positional vertigo

New FDA guidelines on HIV And TB drug doses may not apply to African and Asian patients

First Edition: July 24, 2012

Associated Press examines HIV/AIDS in Uganda, effects of PEPFAR funding

Cost of HIV drugs cost less than previous thought, Clinton Foundation study says

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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