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RUMC conducts early phase trial of MSDC-0160 for dementia

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center are conducting an early phase clinical trial of a novel drug therapy for patients with dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. The drug is a new compound called MSDC-0160, which is an insulin sensitizer that modulates mitochondrial metabolism.

16 Feb 2012

WSU's novel gene-therapy for blindness receives $250,000 FFB grant

Technology to restore vision through the use of a component of green algae - developed by a Wayne State University professor and scientific director of the Ligon Research Center of Vision at the Kresge Eye Institute - has attracted additional funding for therapy development.

16 Feb 2012

TFF3 protein plays a more sinister role in breast cancer metastasis

The trefoil factor 3 (TFF3) protein protects and maintains the integrity of the epithelial surface in the normal breast. New research has found that while TFF3 protein expression is higher in well-differentiated low grade tumors and therefore associated with features of a good prognosis, it has a more sinister role in breast cancer invasion and metastasis.

16 Feb 2012

Walking With Anthony's campaign to raise money for The CST Regeneration Project

In hopes to find a cure for better and faster healing and to raise awareness of spinal cord injuries, Walking With Anthony is starting an intensive campaign to raise money for The CST Regeneration Project.

16 Feb 2012

Combination of therapeutic cancer vaccines and chemotherapy shows promise

Therapeutic cancer vaccines, which stimulate the body's immune system to target and destroy cancer cells, are being used in combination with conventional chemotherapy with growing success, as described in several illuminating articles in Cancer Biotherapy and Radiopharmaceuticals, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

16 Feb 2012

U.S. FDA accepts Pfizer's tafamidis NDA for treatment of TTR-FAP

Pfizer Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the New Drug Application (NDA) for tafamidis meglumine, the company's investigational, novel, oral therapy for the treatment of Transthyretin Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy.

16 Feb 2012

Study: Diabetes may begin in the gut

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have made a surprising discovery about the origin of diabetes. Their research suggests that problems controlling blood sugar - the hallmark of diabetes - may begin in the intestines.

15 Feb 2012

Valeant receives FDA approval for secondary supplier of Methoxsalen

The FDA has approved the addition of a secondary supplier of Methoxsalen USP, an integral component of a treatment for the relief of moderate to severe psoriasis prescribed under the brand name Oxsoralen-Ultra (methoxsalen) Capsules, USP, 10mg.

15 Feb 2012

St. Jude Medical to examine cost-effectiveness of FFR-guided therapy in Australia, Asia

St. Jude Medical, Inc., a global medical device company, announced today it will evaluate the incremental cost-effectiveness of Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR)-guided treatment for patients with multivessel coronary artery disease in Japan, China, India, Korea, and Australia.

15 Feb 2012

Heart attack scars mended using stem cells

Researchers from United States have successfully healed the scars caused by a heart attack using stem cells gathered from the patient's own heart. The amount of scar tissue was halved in the small safety trial reported in the Lancet medical journal. The authors said there was also an “unprecedented” increase in new heart muscle.

15 Feb 2012

Scott & White earns Joint Commission's certification for VAD Program

The Scott & White Heart & Vascular Institute in Temple has earned The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval- as a hospital performing Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) as a destination therapy.

15 Feb 2012

Paricalcitol does not improve clinical outcomes for patients with CKD

Patients with chronic kidney disease who received the vitamin D compound paricalcitol for up to 48 weeks did not show improvement on measures of cardiac structure, function, or left ventricular mass, compared to patients who received placebo, according to a study in the February 15 issue of JAMA.

15 Feb 2012

People with rich fantasy lives may be susceptible to dissociative identity disorder

Scientific research has shed new light on dissociative symptoms and dissociative identity disorder, formerly known as multiple personality disorder. This condition seems to arise most often when a vulnerable person meets a therapist with a suggestive line of questioning or encounters sensationalized media portrayals of dissociation. Research shows that people with rich fantasy lives may be especially susceptible to such influences.

15 Feb 2012

Tetrahydrobiopterin plays a key role in arterial health of women

Researchers studying why arteries stiffen in postmenopausal women have found a specific chemical cofactor that dramatically improves vascular function.

15 Feb 2012

Steady increase in Low Molecular Weight Heparin use for blood clots: Study

The use of an injectable, clot-preventing drug known as Low Molecular Weight Heparin to treat patients with advanced cancer complicated by blood clots increased steadily between 2000 and 2007, according to a new study published in The Oncologist, funded by the National Cancer Institute and led by Kaiser Permanente Colorado.

15 Feb 2012

Diffusion-weighted MRI may effectively indicate response to ovarian cancer treatment

Cancer Research UK-funded scientists have determined that a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique, which measures the movement of water molecules within the tumour, may be the best way to monitor how women with late-stage ovarian cancer are responding to treatment. The study is published in the journal Radiology today.

14 Feb 2012

Postoperative radiotherapy does not really help elderly lung cancer patients

A controversial radiation treatment for patients who've had lung cancer surgery may not help elderly people live longer, U.S. researchers have found. Postoperative radiotherapy, or PORT, is thought to cut the chances that a tumor will return. But it can damage the heart and lungs, which might cancel out any potential benefits -- particularly in the elderly.

14 Feb 2012

Gene sequencing could identify genetic variants of lung cancer and colorectal cancer

Foundation Medicine Inc., a molecular information company that brings comprehensive cancer gene analysis to routine clinical care, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have come up with the results from their collaborative next-generation sequencing (NGS) study to assay cancer-relevant genes in 24 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 40 colorectal cancer (CRC) cases.

14 Feb 2012

Epigenetic mechanisms maintain tolerance in T cells specific for self antigens

At the most basic level, the immune system must distinguish self from non-self, that is, it must discriminate between the molecular signatures of invading pathogens (non-self antigens) and cellular constituents that usually pose no risk to health (self-antigens).

14 Feb 2012

Kowa announces data of LIVALO vs. Crestor on pharmacodynamics of warfarin

Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. today announced data assessing the effect of LIVALO (pitavastatin) compared with Crestor (rosuvastatin) on steady-state pharmacodynamics (PD) of warfarin by measuring international normalized ratio (INR) in healthy adult subjects.

14 Feb 2012