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Prolonged use of cell phone increases nickel allergy

Chatting endlessly on your cell phone can lead to an allergic reaction to the nickel in your phone, according to allergists at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in Phoenix, Nov. 11-16. From cosmetics to jewelry, body piercings to tattoos, allergies can lurk in unlikely places, allergists say.

15 Nov 2010

PPH uses Xenex PX-UV disinfection system to destroy microorganisms causing HAIs

Palomar Pomerado Health (PPH) today announced it is the first health system in California to use the Xenex PX-UV disinfection system in its patient and operating rooms. The Xenex system is the fastest, safest and most cost-effective method for the advanced cleaning of hospital rooms in the world today, scientifically proven to destroy all major classes of microorganisms that cause hospital acquired infections (HAIs), such as MRSA and Clostridium difficile (C. diff).

11 Nov 2010

Amyris, Firmenich enter joint development agreement

Amyris, Inc. announced today that it has entered into a collaboration and joint development agreement with Firmenich, the largest privately-owned fragrance and flavor company, based in Geneva, Switzerland. This is the first agreement for Amyris in the fragrance and flavor industry and provides an opportunity to add higher-value ingredients to our expanding product portfolio.

11 Nov 2010

Study finds no association between working in wafer fabrication cleanrooms, cancer mortality

An exhaustive, five-year epidemiological study conducted by researchers from Vanderbilt University covering more than 100,000 semiconductor industry workers found no association between overall cancer mortality and working in wafer fabrication cleanrooms, the Semiconductor Industry Association reported today.

10 Nov 2010

Article shows link between maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy, SIDS

The link between maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome may relate to the negative effects of nicotine on the development of brain centers that regulate breathing, according to an article in the recent issue of Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

10 Nov 2010

Popular antimicrobial chemicals may not be safe for human health and environment

Killing microorganisms has become a national obsession. A pair of antimicrobial compounds known as triclosan and triclocarban are lately the weapons of choice in our war of attrition against the microbial world. Both chemicals are found in an array of personal care products like antimicrobial soaps, and triclosan also is formulated into everyday items ranging from plastics and toys to articles of clothing.

10 Nov 2010

Home smoking restrictions needed to reduce tobacco-related carcinogens in children's urine

Ninety percent of children who lived in a house where an adult smoked had evidence of tobacco-related carcinogens in their urine, according to research presented at the Ninth AACR Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference, held here from Nov 7-10, 2010.

10 Nov 2010

Covidien fourth quarter net sales increase 3% to $2.67 billion

Covidien plc today reported results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010 (July - September 2010). Fourth-quarter net sales of $2.67 billion increased 3% from the $2.59 billion reported a year ago, with foreign exchange rate movement reducing the quarterly sales growth rate by approximately one percentage point.

9 Nov 2010

Chemicals lining food wrappers migrating to humans

University of Toronto scientists have found that chemicals used to line junk food wrappers and microwave popcorn bags are migrating into food and being ingested by people where they are contributing to chemical contamination observed in blood.

9 Nov 2010

DHA protects brain tissue and promotes recovery in acute ischemic stroke

Research led by Dr. Nicolas Bazan, Boyd Professor, Villere Chair, and Director of the Neuroscience Center of Excellence at LSU Health Sciences Center, has shown that Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a component of fish oil, is a powerful therapeutic agent that can protect brain tissue and promote recovery in an experimental model of acute ischemic stroke, even when treatment is delayed by up to five hours.

9 Nov 2010

Blood 'metabolomics' study uncovers liver, heart, and kidney toxicity in healthy smokers

Examining the blood "metabolomics" profile of smokers immediately after they had a cigarette revealed activation of pathways involved in cell death, inflammation, and other forms of systemic damage, say researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Georgetown University Medical Center.

9 Nov 2010

Solutia sells Perkalink business

Solutia Inc. announced today that it has sold its Perkalink® business and entered into a definitive agreement to sell select Primary Accelerators assets to LANXESS, a Germany-based specialty chemicals company.

8 Nov 2010

Skin to blood transformation in the lab

In a new study scientists have successfully transformed human skin cells into blood without first being sent through a primordial, stem-cell-like state. The findings were published online in the journal Nature. Earlier work has shown that fibroblast cells from mouse skin, treated with the right cocktail of chemicals, can be transformed into neurons and heart muscle. This is a first with human cells.

7 Nov 2010

New antibody with SGN-35 drug produces remission in Hodgkin lymphoma

An antibody loaded with an anti-cancer agent produced complete or partial remissions in 38 percent of patients with relapsed or therapy-resistant Hodgkin lymphoma enrolled in a phase I clinical trial, investigators report in the Nov. 4 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

4 Nov 2010

Curemark awarded QTDP grant to advance development of CM-AT for autism

Curemark LLC, a drug research and development company focused on the treatment of neurological diseases, announced today that it has been awarded a grant by the United States government under the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project (QTDP) Program to advance the development of its lead product CM-AT for autism. CM-AT is presently in Phase III clinical trials at 18 sites around the US.

3 Nov 2010

South Dakota passes strong smoke-free law

The people of South Dakota delivered a historic victory for health and the right to breathe clean air by overwhelmingly approving Referred Question 12 that makes almost all workplaces, including restaurants, bars and gaming facilities, smoke-free. With bipartisan support, South Dakota is the 29th state to pass a strong smoke-free law that includes all restaurants and bars.

3 Nov 2010

Study demonstrates widespread internal exposure of humans to cosmetic UV filters

An investigation conducted in the context of the Swiss National Research Programme (NRP50), Endocrine Disrupters: Relevance to Humans, Animals and Ecosystems, demonstrates for the first time that internal exposure of humans to cosmetic UV filters is widespread.

3 Nov 2010

Effective treatment for brain cancer in daffodils

When looking for new ways to treat aggressive brain cancers, an international team of scientists turned a new leaf and "discovered" the lowly daffodil. A new research study published in the November 2010 print issue of The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) offers hope that a natural compound found in daffodil bulbs, called narciclasine, may be a powerful therapeutic against biologically aggressive forms of human brain cancers.

2 Nov 2010

Vacuum cleaner with UV technology effective at reducing carpet's surface microbes

New research suggests that the addition of ultraviolet light to the brushing and suction of a vacuum cleaner can almost double the removal of potentially infectious microorganisms from a carpet's surface when compared to vacuuming alone.

2 Nov 2010

Non-dividing cells can also start cancer

Cancer Research UK scientists have found that non-dividing cells are able to kick-start some cancers, challenging a long held belief that only dividing cells, like stem cells, cause the disease, according to research published online in PNAS today (Monday).

2 Nov 2010