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FDA approves Azilect for the treatment of Parkinson's

The Food and Drug Administration today approved Azilect (rasagiline), a new molecular entity, for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

17 May 2006

Panel calls for expanded oversight of vitamin and mineral supplements

An independent panel convened this week by the NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research and the Office of Dietary Supplements assessed the available evidence on the safety and effectiveness of multivitamin/minerals (MVMs).

17 May 2006

Valganciclovir may be the drug for chronic fatigue syndrome

A drug used to treat herpes has produced dramatic results in people with chronic fatigue syndrome, reported the Daily Mail (16 May 2006).

17 May 2006

Oxygen free radicals associated with Parkinson's Disease

Research by neuroscientists at the University of Virginia Health System shows that oxygen free radicals are damaging proteins in mitochondria, the tiny cellular 'batteries' of brain cells.

17 May 2006

Using probiotics is a safe and effective way to prevent asthma in children

In the first effort of its kind in the United States, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco have launched a study to determine whether giving active probiotic supplements to infants can delay or prevent asthma in children.

17 May 2006

Maternal psychological distress during pregnancy in relation to child development

Many cultures hold that stress during pregnancy affects a woman's unborn child. However, there has been surprisingly little research on the topic.

17 May 2006

Diabetes troubles Australia

The Australia-wide study was conducted by the International Diabetes Institute over the last 15 months and is the first to have measured how many new cases of these diseases occur in Australia annually.

16 May 2006

15% of Asians living in New York City are chronically infected with hepatitis B virus

Chronic hepatitis B infection usually will lead to liver inflammation and can progress to cirrhosis and liver cancer. The reported infection rate is 35 times higher than the rate in the general U.S. population.

12 May 2006

Cancer treatment interferes with bone development

According to researchers in the U.S. the cancer drug Gleevec (imatinib), which has dramatically improved survival prospects for some cancer patients, can interfere with bone development.

11 May 2006

Chantix new quit smoking drug approved

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given approval for the sale of the first smoking cessation drug in almost ten years.

11 May 2006

Europe-wide study into the role of genetics and the environment in the development asthma

Previous investigations have fallen short of proving cause-effect due to the complexity of human genetics and varying lifestyles. But the EU-funded GABRIEL study has pooled the very best in the field from all over Europe and can draw on the latest genomic and environmental data and approaches.

11 May 2006

Hidden thousands devastated by myalgic encephalomyelitis

New research published by the UK's leading Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.) charity, Action for M.E., suggests that a hidden 55,000 people in Britain are so severely affected by the illness that they're either bed-bound or house-bound.

11 May 2006

Neuren granted US patent for NNZ-2566

Neuren Pharmaceuticals has announced that its patent application entitled "GPE Analogs and Peptidomimetics" (PCT/US02/16361) has been issued in the United States (US Patent No: 7,041,314) on 9 May 2006.

10 May 2006

Inhaled corticosteroids can reduce breathing problems in children at high risk for asthma

Studies in older children and adults show that the most effective long-term control medicine for persistent asthma (symptoms more than two days a week or more than twice a month at night) is inhaled corticosteroids, which reduce airway swelling and help prevent asthma symptoms (e.g., asthma attacks).

10 May 2006