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Biologic treatments to treat the physical symptoms of psoriasis

More than 4.5 million adults in the United States have been diagnosed with psoriasis and 21 percent of those have moderate to severe psoriasis. This chronic condition, characterized by thick, red, scaly plaques that itch and bleed, not only makes the activities of daily life difficult, but also can affect a person's emotional well being.

21 Jul 2005

New program will help fill a drug-discovery void as pharmaceutical companies have largely abandoned natural products research

The natural world has been medicine's most effective arsenal, providing life-saving antibiotics and our most potent anti-cancer drugs.

20 Jul 2005

Protein found in fat cells is a newly discovered cause of insulin resistance

A study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has shown that a protein found in fat cells is a newly discovered cause of insulin resistance, establishing a previously unidentified molecular link between obesity and type 2 diabetes and offering a potential new target for the development of drugs to treat diabetes.

20 Jul 2005

Fertility drugs may be ineffective for women who lack a gene called the estrogen receptor beta

"What we found is that the beta estrogen receptor plays a role in moving the egg outside the ovary so it can be fertilized," said Kenneth Korach, Ph.D., Laboratory Chief at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) where the research was conducted. "We never knew before what function this receptor played in reproduction."

20 Jul 2005

Alendronate combined with calcium and vitamin D almost completely prevented further bone loss in the first 4 months afte liver transplant

A new study found that the drug used to treat osteoporosis, when used in combination with calcium and vitamin D, can prevent the additional bone loss that commonly occurs after liver transplants. The treatment also helped stabilize bone loss in patients who already had osteoporosis, and helped improve their bone mineral density (BMD).

20 Jul 2005

SIRT1 gene suppresses longevity

Researchers have determined that a gene present in mouse cells limits the number of times that a cell can divide. The gene is involved in a process, called senescence, which is thought to ensure that aging cells do not pass on harmful mutations.

20 Jul 2005

Metformin should be in the first line of defense against type 2 diabetes

A new review of studies confirms that the drug metformin should be in the first line of defense against type 2 diabetes. Using metformin alone can improve control of blood glucose, while also reducing risk factors for heart disease such as excess body weight, cholesterol levels and hypertension, the review found.

20 Jul 2005

America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being 2005

The adolescent birth rate has reached another record low, the death rate for children between ages 1 and 4 is the lowest ever, young children are more likely to receive their recommended immunizations, and fourth graders are scoring better in math, according to a yearly compendium of statistics from federal agencies concerned with children.

20 Jul 2005

Reliable research about the benefits and harms of treatments for malaria in pregnant women is scarce

Few studies compare the effects of different drug regimes in pregnant women, and many of the best studies were conducted in Southeast Asia, where malaria transmission rates are low, says researcher Lois Orton of the University of York in England.

20 Jul 2005

Single dose of antibiotics may be just as effective as multiple doses in preventing infections after an appendectomy

The review found that antibiotic injections do work no matter how diseased the appendix was or whether it was diseased at all. This is significant, because some surgeons contend that antibiotics should be used only when the appendix is at a more advanced stage of disease.

20 Jul 2005

Older-style antidepressants, as well as anticonvulsant drugs, can help ease the disabling pain caused by nerve tissue damage

For many years antidepressants, which are believed to work by dampening pain signals, have been the first-line drugs for neuropathic pain. "It is usual to start with an antidepressant like amitriptyline, and if this fails then try an anticonvulsant," says Phil Wiffen, a researcher at Churchill Hospital in Oxford, England. "The results of these meta-analyses suggest this is probably still the best approach to take."

19 Jul 2005

Study warns against global use of old asthma medicines for kids' coughs

An asthma medicine widely used around the world to stop children's coughs has no provable benefit for that purpose and may cause harm, a new review of existing studies reports.

19 Jul 2005

$New protective drugs called bisphosphonates reduce pain and fractures in metastatic breast cancer$

New protective drugs called bisphosphonates reduce pain and fractures in metastatic breast cancer

When breast cancer spreads to bones, relatively new protective drugs called bisphosphonates can reduce skeletal damage, says a new systematic review of previous studies. While the new treatment approach does not improve survival rates, it can minimize disabling fractures, spinal cord compression and pain.

19 Jul 2005

Combination of ribavirin and interferon is more effective in treating hepatitis C than using interferon alone

The researchers reviewed 72 randomized trials and 9,991 patients who had chronic hepatitis C for more than six months and were previously untreated, who had relapsed after treatment or who had not responded to other treatment.

19 Jul 2005

Potential use of NH neurotransmitters as novel source for psychiatric drugs

Physiologists and medical researchers have long recognized the important endocrine roles played by the pituitary hormones oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP) on peripheral systems in lactation, uterine contraction and urine concentration.

19 Jul 2005

Variant of a common protein plays a primary role in Type 2 diabetes and obesity

Scientists in France and the United States report that a variant of a common protein plays a primary role in Type 2 diabetes and obesity, key features of the "insulin resistance syndrome" that affects more than 50 million people in this country and a similar number in Europe.

19 Jul 2005

U.S. stockpile of anti-flu drugs is "totally inadequate"

The United States does not have nearly enough antiviral drugs on hand to fight a coming influenza pandemic, according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA).

19 Jul 2005

Discount injectables bought offshore not worth the price

The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) has announced that patients need to be wary of “bargain” injectables or other treatments that are not approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Unregulated injectables or treatments can compromise patient health and put patient lives at risk.

19 Jul 2005

FDA fast tracks HIV protease inhibitor from Vertex and GSK

Vertex Pharmaceuticals has announced that its collaborator, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has received fast track designation for the HIV protease inhibitor (PI) 640385 (VX-385) from the United States Food and Drug Administration.

19 Jul 2005

Better tracking system needed to check the safety of new medical devices

A recently released report by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) says that a better system is needed by U.S. health officials for tracking the safety of medical devices after they are approved for sale, especially ones used to treat children.

19 Jul 2005

Drugs News and Research

Biologic treatments to treat the physical symptoms of psoriasis

New program will help fill a drug-discovery void as pharmaceutical companies have largely abandoned natural products research

Protein found in fat cells is a newly discovered cause of insulin resistance

Fertility drugs may be ineffective for women who lack a gene called the estrogen receptor beta

Alendronate combined with calcium and vitamin D almost completely prevented further bone loss in the first 4 months afte liver transplant

SIRT1 gene suppresses longevity

Metformin should be in the first line of defense against type 2 diabetes

America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being 2005

Reliable research about the benefits and harms of treatments for malaria in pregnant women is scarce

Single dose of antibiotics may be just as effective as multiple doses in preventing infections after an appendectomy

Older-style antidepressants, as well as anticonvulsant drugs, can help ease the disabling pain caused by nerve tissue damage

Study warns against global use of old asthma medicines for kids' coughs

New protective drugs called bisphosphonates reduce pain and fractures in metastatic breast cancer

Combination of ribavirin and interferon is more effective in treating hepatitis C than using interferon alone

Potential use of NH neurotransmitters as novel source for psychiatric drugs

Variant of a common protein plays a primary role in Type 2 diabetes and obesity

U.S. stockpile of anti-flu drugs is "totally inadequate"

Discount injectables bought offshore not worth the price

FDA fast tracks HIV protease inhibitor from Vertex and GSK

Better tracking system needed to check the safety of new medical devices

Drug Discovery - Second Edition eBook

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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