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Merck receives FDA approval for JANUMET XR to treat type 2 diabetes

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved JANUMET XR (sitagliptin and metformin hydrochloride extended-release) tablets, a new treatment for type 2 diabetes that combines sitagliptin, which is the active component of JANUVIA (sitagliptin), with extended-release metformin.

3 Feb 2012

New England Journal of Medicine publishes Diamyd Medical's antigen-based diabetes therapy study

An article with the results of Diamyd Medical's European Phase III study of the antigen-based diabetes therapy Diamyd® has been published in the scientific journal the New England Journal of Medicine. The now published results were previously presented at the American Diabetes Association's 71st Scientific Sessions in San Diego, California, USA, on June 28, 2011.

3 Feb 2012

Skin cells converted to brain cells without intermediate stem cell stage

Researchers from California have successfully converted mouse skin cells into cells which develop into the main components of the brain. The experiment, reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is notable because it skipped the middle “stem cell” stage in the process.

2 Feb 2012

Blood cell therapy works for nasopharyngeal cancer: Study

Scientists from the Queensland Institute of Medical Research have made a breakthrough in the treatment of throat cancer. The researchers have developed a therapy that uses a patient's blood to grow special white blood cells that recognize and fight infected cancer cells. The results of this study have been published in the journal Cancer Research.

2 Feb 2012

Researchers identify mechanism that leads to ischemia-reperfusion damage

For patients with incurable pulmonary conditions, a lung transplantation is the only available treatment option. However, suitable donor organs are scarce, and even getting them to prospective recipients is not easy. As Professor Alexander Dietrich of the Walther Straub Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology at LMU explains, "An isolated lung which is no longer perfused with blood can become so severely damaged that it is no longer functional. This so-called ischemia-reperfusion injury is one of the major problems in the field of lung transplantation."

2 Feb 2012

Scientists establish HCV infection in liver-like cells derived from iPSCs

Hepatitis C, an infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, has different effects on different people. But no one is sure why some people are very susceptible to the infection, while others are resistant. Scientists believe that if they could study liver cells from different people in the lab, they could determine how genetic differences produce these varying responses. However, liver cells are difficult to obtain and notoriously difficult to grow in a lab dish because they tend to lose their normal structure and function when removed from the body.

2 Feb 2012

Medtronic initiates enrollment in IMPROVE HF Bridge Study

Medtronic, Inc. today announced the initiation and first patient enrollment in a clinical study that will evaluate gaps in the implementation of evidence-based treatment guidelines among chronic heart failure patients post-hospital discharge.

From Medtronic 2 Feb 2012

Intra-arterial technique of stem cell transplantation may enhance functional recovery from TBI

Experiments in brain-injured rats show that stem cells injected via the carotid artery travel directly to the brain, where they greatly enhance functional recovery, reports a study in the February issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

2 Feb 2012

Abnormal tau protein propagates along linked brain circuits

For decades, researchers have debated whether Alzheimer's disease starts independently in vulnerable brain regions at different times, or if it begins in one region and then spreads to neuroanatomically connected areas. A new study by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers strongly supports the latter, demonstrating that abnormal tau protein, a key feature of the neurofibrillary tangles seen in the brains of those with Alzheimer's, propagates along linked brain circuits, "jumping" from neuron to neuron.

2 Feb 2012

Cancer Genomics now available online

Genome Research publishes online and in print today a special issue entitled, "Cancer Genomics," highlighting insights gained form cutting-edge genomic and epigenomic analyses of cancer.

2 Feb 2012

USF receives DOD grant for battlefield-related TBI research

The University of South Florida (USF) has received a $1.57 million U.S. Department of Defense grant to conduct translational research on traumatic brain injury and other battlefield related injuries and diseases.

2 Feb 2012

FDA extends Novartis' Gleevec label to three-year treatment in patients with KIT+ GIST after surgery

Novartis announced today that following a priority review, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved an update to the Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) tablets label to recommend 36 months of treatment after surgery for adult patients with KIT (CD117)-positive gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) who met the risk of recurrence inclusion criteria of the pivotal trial.

1 Feb 2012

Brief 10-minute massage helps reduce inflammation in muscle

Researchers at McMaster University have discovered a brief 10-minute massage helps reduce inflammation in muscle.

1 Feb 2012

Clazosentan reduces risk of blood vessel spasm in patients with brain aneurysm

An experimental drug, clazosentan, reduced the risk of blood vessel spasm in patients with a brain aneurysm, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012.

1 Feb 2012

Cystic fibrosis drug gets FDA approval

A drug – the first of its kind - that treats the root cause of cystic fibrosis won approval Tuesday. This could be a ray of hope for patients with the deadly illness and broader hope for thousands more patients with the inherited disease.

1 Feb 2012

New York hospital offers at-home method for tissue expansion for breast reconstruction surgery

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center is the first hospital in the New York metro area to offer breast cancer survivors an at-home method for tissue expansion in preparation for breast reconstruction surgery. Patients use a remote control to gradually create a space within their chest wall for a breast implant.

1 Feb 2012

Leading medical groups collaborate to ensure consistent, responsible uptake of TAVR

With the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent approval of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) for patients with aortic valvular stenosis, the American College of Cardiology Foundation (ACCF), along with the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS), the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), today released an expert consensus document to provide important guidance on its use.

1 Feb 2012

New ultrasound can overcome challenges linked with kidney stone treatment

Just the mention of kidney stones can cause a person to cringe. They are often painful and sometimes difficult to remove, and 10 percent of the population will suffer from them. In space, the risk of developing kidney stones is exacerbated due to environmental conditions. The health risk is compounded by the fact that resource limitations and distance from Earth could restrict treatment options.

1 Feb 2012

Nearly one in four women have another surgery following partial mastectomy

Nearly one in four women who undergo a partial mastectomy for treatment of breast cancer have another surgery to remove additional tissue (reexcision), and there is substantial surgeon and institutional variation in the rate of reexcisions that cannot be explained by patients' clinical characteristics, according to a study in the February 1 issue of JAMA.

1 Feb 2012

TGen, UA receive NFCR grant to study targeted pancreatic cancer therapies

The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and the University of Arizona (UA) have received a three-year, $600,000 grant to study targeted cancer therapies from the National Foundation for Cancer Research.

1 Feb 2012