Drugs News and Research

RSS

Biochemiresistor can quickly detect small traces of contaminants in liquids

A whole new class of biosensor that can detect exceptionally small traces of contaminants in liquids in just 40 minutes has been developed by a UNSW-led team of researchers.

1 Jun 2012

Researchers devise strategy to directly activate natural ‘death’ protein

Researchers at Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center have devised a strategy to directly activate a natural "death" protein, triggering the self-destruction of cells. They say the development could represent a new paradigm for designing cancer drugs.

1 Jun 2012

Einstein receives NIH grant to create new vaccine against TB

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University a five-year, $5.9 million grant to develop a new vaccine against tuberculosis (TB), including the toughest-to-treat forms of the disease known as multi drug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant. The grant will build on a new approach to TB vaccine design that is based on genetically altered Mycobacterium smegmatis, which is closely related to the bacterial species (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) that causes TB in humans.

1 Jun 2012

Aspirin controls two key processes to kill bowel cancer cells

Aspirin kills cancer cells by controlling two key processes that influence energy use in cells and could explain how aspirin can prevent bowel cancer. The research is published in this month's Gastroenterology.

1 Jun 2012

State roundup: Federal judge rejects Calif. request to end oversight of prison health care; States push prescription drug databases; Medicare drug benefit at issue in Utah Senate race

A federal judge rejected a request by California prison officials Wednesday to regain control of inmate health care, which has been under court-supervised receivership for six years, and said the state must first show it can provide adequate medical treatment. ... The current receiver, Clark Kelso, has reported improvements in the prisons' medical staff and facilities, and said a "turnaround plan" he proposed for the system in 2008 is about 80 percent complete.

1 Jun 2012

Common pain killers linked to decreased skin cancer risk

Use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs is associated with a decreased risk for skin cancer, particularly squamous cell carcinoma and malignant melanoma, study findings indicate.

31 May 2012

Smoker's genetic makeup can help predict response to drug therapy

The same gene variations that make it difficult to stop smoking also increase the likelihood that heavy smokers will respond to nicotine-replacement therapy and drugs that thwart cravings, a new study shows.

31 May 2012

Counseling sessions with community pharmacist lead to better medication adherence

A new Walgreens study has found that patients starting high cholesterol (statin) medication for the first time who participated in enhanced face-to-face counseling sessions with a community pharmacist demonstrated better medication adherence than those that did not participate in the sessions.

31 May 2012

First Edition: May 31, 2012

Today's headlines include reports about various health-related measures currently on the move in Congress.

31 May 2012

New method can solve 3-D structures of integral membrane proteins

A new method for rapidly solving the three-dimensional structures of a special group of proteins, known as integral membrane proteins, may speed drug discovery by providing scientists with precise targets for new therapies, according to a paper published May 20 in Nature Methods.

31 May 2012

Juvenile Arthritis patients may have difficulties achieving educational success

As children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) grow into adulthood, disability due to disease may adversely affect their ability to achieve educational success. Findings published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), suggest that functional disability impacts educational attainment, which is key to successful employment in adulthood.

31 May 2012

Risk of gout flare-ups greatly increased by purine rich foods

Foods rich in purines, particularly those found in meat and seafood, quintuple the immediate risk of a gout flare-up, finds research published online in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

31 May 2012

UCLA research projects aim to improve lives of children with serious illnesses

New hope for deadly pediatric brain tumors; opening the door to improved diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy in children; and advanced genetic testing to better understand the causes of autism and cancer in kids. These research projects are currently underway at Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA under the umbrella of the UCLA Children's Discovery and Innovation Institute (CDI), and aim to dramatically improve the lives of children with serious illnesses.

31 May 2012

U.S. House poised for a series of health-related votes

Included on the list is a bill to repeal the health law's medical device tax and another to repeal the OTC ban. The device-tax issue has already emerged as a hot topic in many congressional races.

31 May 2012

Simple soft-drink cooler could help patients battle antibiotic-resistant TB

Tuberculosis, now largely controlled in the industrialized world, remains a stubbornly persistent killer in most of Africa, as well as parts of Asia and South America. The spread of multidrug-resistant strains of TB has slowed progress against the devastating disease, which is estimated to strike more than 10 million people annually. Now a modified soft-drink cooler, developed by researchers at MIT's D-Lab, could make a dent in the disease's impact.

31 May 2012

Nepstar first quarter revenue increases 1.3% to RMB625.8M

China Nepstar Chain Drugstore Ltd., the largest retail drugstore chain in China based on the number of directly operated stores, today announced its unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

31 May 2012

Despite progress, more effort 'urgently' needed to prevent maternal mortality in Africa

Citing a U.N. report released in May, titled "Trends in Maternal Mortality: 1990 to 2010," which shows "the number of women worldwide dying of pregnancy and childbirth-related complications has almost halved in the last 20 years," Agnes Odhiambo, a researcher for women in Africa at Human Rights Watch, writes in this Inter Press Service opinion piece.

31 May 2012

Data from Response Genetics' tests against cancer to be presented at ASCO 2012

Response Genetics, Inc., a company focused on the development and sale of molecular diagnostic tests for cancer, announced today four presentations to be held during the 2012 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL from June 1 to June 5, 2012. Study results are based on the company's proprietary technology and approach.

31 May 2012

UCSB creates synthetic platelets for various biomedical applications

Synthetic platelets have been developed by UC Santa Barbara researchers, in collaboration with researchers at Scripps Research Institute and Sanford-Burnham Institute in La Jolla, Calif. Their findings are published in the journal Advanced Materials in a paper titled "Platelet Mimetic Particles for Targeting Thrombi in Flowing Blood."

31 May 2012

New guidelines for management of childhood aggression

Mayo Clinic researchers, in collaboration with other research institutions and youth mental health experts, are publishing new guidelines for primary care providers and mental health specialists to manage the common but often complex problem of childhood aggression. The goals include improving diagnosis and care and avoiding inappropriate use of medication.

31 May 2012