Blood News and Research

RSS

Researchers discover how c-MYC facilitates tumor growth

Cancer cells are essentially immortal. The acquisition of an unlimited capacity to divide - the process of immortalization - is a central event in the genesis of tumors. Normally, cells are subject to stringent mechanisms which control their proliferation. Together these ensure that pre-malignant cells are induced to enter a senescent, non-dividing state or to undergo apoptosis, i.e. commit suicide.

22 Dec 2011

Study hopes to explain premature births and failed inductions of labour

New research hopes to explain premature births and failed inductions of labour. The study by academics at the University of Bristol suggests a new mechanism by which the level of myosin phosphorylation is regulated in the pregnant uterus.

22 Dec 2011

Researchers evaluate Clade C HIV envelope protein in Phase I trial

In the first clinical trial of an injectable vaccine containing trimeric HIV envelope protein (gp140) relevant to the predominant strain of HIV in Africa, researchers from four UK academic centers (St George's University London, Imperial College, Hull York Medical School (HYMS; University of York) and the Medical Research Council Clinical Trial Unit) and from the Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) have come together to evaluate whether the vaccine is safe for use in human volunteers.

22 Dec 2011

Study measures brain activity in infants to better understand their pain response

Recently, the accuracy of current methods of pain assessment in babies have been called into question. New research from London-area hospitals and the University of Oxford measures brain activity in infants to better understand their pain response.

22 Dec 2011

Truths and myths about pregnancy, obesity

Ironically, despite excessive caloric intake, many obese women are deficient in vitamins vital to a healthy pregnancy. This and other startling statistics abound when obesity and pregnancy collide. Together, they present a unique set of challenges that women and their doctors must tackle in order to achieve the best possible outcome for mom and baby.

22 Dec 2011

FDA approves Infrascanner to detect life-threatening brain bleeding

Battlefield corpsmen and medical professionals across the country gained a valuable tool last week, as the Food and Drug Administration approved the first hand-held device to detect life-threatening bleeding in the brain.

22 Dec 2011

FDA approves Merck's Isentress to treat HIV-1 infection in children, adolescents

Isentress (raltegravir) was approved today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use with other antiretroviral drugs for the treatment of HIV-1 infection for children and adolescents ages 2-18.

22 Dec 2011

Reva Medical commences its first clincial trial

Reva Medical, a medical device company, has today commenced the very first clinical trial of its ReZolve™ bioresorbable coronary stent. A patient in Brazil was implanted with the device overnight, which flags an exciting chapter for Reva Medical.

21 Dec 2011

Malaria vaccine shows early success

An experimental vaccine for malaria has been developed by British scientists. It has shown early potential to neutralize many, perhaps all, strains of the deadliest malaria parasite.

21 Dec 2011

Chlorthalidone may reduce risk of death in patients with systolic hypertension

Patients with systolic hypertension who were treated with the diuretic chlorthalidone for 4.5 years as part of a clinical trial had a significantly lower rate of death and a gain in life expectancy free from cardiovascular death about 20 years later compared to patients who received placebo, according to a study in the December 21 issue of JAMA.

21 Dec 2011

Antihypertensive drug therapy associated with longer life expectancy

More than 68 percent of Americans 65 and older - 80 percent age 75 and over - have hypertension (high blood pressure), according to a 2010 report by the Centers for Disease Control. Left untreated, this chronic condition can lead to stroke, heart attack, heart failure or premature death. Researchers at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School have shown in a follow-up to the landmark clinical trial, Systolic Hypertension in the Elderly Program (SHEP), that the use of antihypertensive drug therapy is associated with longer life expectancy.

21 Dec 2011

CLND may help reduce papillary thyroid cancer recurrence rates

Papillary thyroid cancer accounts for the majority of all thyroid malignancies, which primarily impact women. A new study indicates that routinely removing lymph nodes in the neck in these cancer patients may help prevent the disease from coming back.

21 Dec 2011

Vacc-4x nasal vaccine can effectively treat HIV

Thirty years after AIDS was first described, there is still no effective vaccine against the HIV virus. Worldwide, roughly 33 million people are HIV-positive. Researchers are working to find out whether a HIV vaccine developed by a Norwegian biotech company can be administered nasally.

21 Dec 2011

Mother's milk for healthy growth

A PhD project from LIFE - the Faculty of Life Sciences at the University of Copenhagen has shown that breastfed children follow a different growth pattern than non-breastfed children. Breastfeeding lowers the levels of the growth hormones IGF-I and insulin in the blood, which means that growth is slightly slower. This is believed to reduce the risk of overweight and diabetes later in life.

21 Dec 2011

Heart-related deaths, other emergencies peak in holiday season

Steven Polevoi, MD, has seen it all. During his 23-year career, the medical director of the UCSF Emergency Department has done everything from treat traumatic injuries to deliver babies. While medical emergencies occur throughout the year, Polevoi sees the winter season and its related overindulgence as a pivotal time for preventing emergencies by listening to our bodies.

21 Dec 2011

University of Oxford scientists develop new candidate malaria vaccine

A new candidate malaria vaccine with the potential to neutralise all strains of the most deadly species of malaria parasite has been developed by a team led by scientists at the University of Oxford.

21 Dec 2011

Handheld near-infrared imaging device enables quick detection of hematomas

When accidents that involve traumatic brain injuries occur, a speedy diagnosis followed by the proper treatment can mean the difference between life and death. A research team, led by Jason D. Riley in the Section on Analytical and Functional Biophotonics at the U.S. National Institutes of Health, has created a handheld device capable of quickly detecting brain injuries such as hematomas, which occur when blood vessels become damaged and blood seeps out into surrounding tissues where it can cause significant and dangerous swelling.

21 Dec 2011

BU professor to study incidence of hypertension, diabetes and asthma in African American women

Patricia F. Coogan, ScD, an associate professor of epidemiology at Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center (SEC), recently was awarded funding for two grants from the National Institutes of Health.

21 Dec 2011

Takeda receives FDA approval for EDARBYCLOR to treat hypertension

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America, Inc., announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved EDARBYCLOR (azilsartan medoxomil and chlorthalidone) for the treatment of hypertension to lower blood pressure in adults.

21 Dec 2011

PRI now offers latest surgical robotics for patients with kidney tumors

The Porter Robotics Institute (PRI) now offers the latest in advanced surgical robotics available to patients with kidney tumors, allowing surgeons the ability to remove just a portion of the kidney.

21 Dec 2011