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Study finds high glucose level blocks infectious bacteria detection, affects immunity

Research led by the Warwick Medical School at the University of Warwick has found that unhealthy glucose levels in patients with diabetes can cause significantly more problems for the body than just the well-known symptoms of the disease such as kidney damage and circulation problems.

24 Aug 2010

FDA OOPD awards Soligenix $1.2M for orBec Phase 3 study in acute gastrointestinal Graft-versus-Host-Disease

Soligenix, Inc., a late-stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today that it has been awarded a three year $1.2 million clinical research grant by the Office of Orphan Products Development (OOPD) of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) pursuant to its Orphan Products Development (OPD) Program.

24 Aug 2010

Research on fruit fly provides inroads into understanding cancer development

Changes to proteins in a cell underlay many cancers. Rui Martinho at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ci-ncia (IGC), in Portugal, in collaboration with researchers in Ghent (Belgium) and Bergen (Norway) will use the fruit fly to understand exactly how changes to proteins, identified in the test-tube, impact on the way cells divide in a living organism

24 Aug 2010

SEB opens new state-of-the-art laboratory operation, R&D facility

Cryo-Cell International, Inc., one of the largest and most established leaders in stem cell innovation today announced that S-Evans Biosciences, the Company's exclusive Célle menstrual stem cell technology license partner in China has opened a new state-of-the-art laboratory operation and research & development facility located in a Hi-Tech park designated to become an epicenter for stem cell and genomics R&D; cellular therapies and stem cell cryopreservation services.

23 Aug 2010

APC dysfunction prevents synapse function required for learning, memory: Study

A clue to the causes of autism and mental retardation lies in the synapse, the tiny intercellular junction that rapidly transfers information from one neuron to the next. According to neuroscientists at Tufts University School of Medicine, with students from the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts, a protein called APC plays a key role in synapse maturation, and APC dysfunction prevents the synapse function required for typical learning and memory.

23 Aug 2010

Early palliative care treatment for lung cancer can help patients live longer: Research

Introducing palliative care at an early stage of treatment for advanced lung cancer could help patients to live for longer, as well as improving their mood and quality of life.

23 Aug 2010

TAP installs CompacT SelecT culture system at US biodefence campus to produce high quality cell lines

The Automation Partnership (TAP), a world leader in the design and development of innovative automation for life science applications, today announced CompacT SelecT™ automated cell culture system is being installed at a prestigious, new US defence facility, to produce high quality cell lines in containment conditions.

23 Aug 2010

Researchers discover unusual property of meiosis may lead to Down syndrome

In a study of egg cells using time-lapse microscopy, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have discovered an unusual property of meiosis - cell division that produces reproductive cells in sexually reproducing organisms.

23 Aug 2010

Scientists develop new synthetic material to grow stem cells

Human pluripotent stem cells, which can become any other kind of body cell, hold great potential to treat a wide range of ailments, including Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injuries. However, scientists who work with such cells have had trouble growing large enough quantities to perform experiments - in particular, to be used in human studies. Furthermore, most materials now used to grow human stem cells include cells or proteins that come from mice embryos, which help stimulate stem-cell growth but would likely cause an immune reaction if injected into a human patient.

23 Aug 2010

Researchers find new way to study oncogene's role in DNA repair

A key step in understanding the origins of familial breast cancer has been made by two teams of scientists at the University of California, Davis. The researchers have purified, for the first time, the protein produced by the breast cancer susceptibility gene BRCA2 and used it to study the oncogene's role in DNA repair.

23 Aug 2010

GM-CSF protein reduces AD pathology, reverses memory loss: Study

A signaling protein released during rheumatoid arthritis dramatically reduced Alzheimer's disease pathology and reversed the memory impairment of mice bred to develop symptoms of the neurodegenerative disease, a new study by the University of South Florida reports. Researchers found that the protein, GM-CSF, likely stimulates the body's natural scavenger cells to attack and remove Alzheimer's amyloid deposits in the brain.

23 Aug 2010

Elsevier Health Sciences and India's medical library consortium Helinet announce agreement

Elsevier Health Sciences and Helinet, India's premier medical library consortium for e-resources, have announced an agreement that will provide all medical students at Helinet's medical colleges with access to leading international and local medical content through Elsevier's electronic platforms: ScienceDirect(R) and MD Consult(R).

21 Aug 2010

Melanoma Research Alliance announces grant to support six research programs

The Melanoma Research Alliance today announced $5.2 million in grants to support six multidisciplinary teams pursuing innovative, translational research approaches designed to benefit melanoma patients.

21 Aug 2010

Scientists identify compound to treat Chagas' disease

A new compound may offer an effective drug candidate against the deadly tropical infection, Chagas' disease say researchers from Brazil. They report their findings in the August 2010 issue of the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.

21 Aug 2010

Wellcome Trust supports research on role of 'rotten eggs' as an anti-inflammatory agent

A research project at the Peninsula Medical School in Exeter, which will study the effect of hydrogen sulfide (H2S - the 'rotten eggs' gas) as an effective anti-inflammatory agent, has won a research grant of -140,000 over three years from the Wellcome Trust.

21 Aug 2010

New squeeze test for screening potential drugs for Alzheimer's

Brain cells exposed to a form of the amyloid beta protein, the molecule linked to Alzheimer's disease, become stiffer and bend less under pressure, researchers at UC Davis have found. The results reveal one mechanism by which the amyloid protein damages the brain, a finding that could lead to new ways to screen drugs for Alzheimer's and similar diseases.

21 Aug 2010

Combination of 2 FDA approved drugs eliminate HIV infection

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center have identified two drugs that, when combined, may serve as an effective treatment for HIV.

21 Aug 2010

USPTO to allow patent for Advaxis’s new vaccine technology

Advaxis, Inc., the live, attenuated Listeria monocytogenes (Listeria) immunotherapy company, has been notified that the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will allow a patent issuance of its application No. 11/785,249 entitled "Antibiotic Resistance Free Vaccines and Methods for Constructing and Using Same."

21 Aug 2010

Research on ocean-dwelling bacterium unveils food poisoning mechanism in human

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered a key weapon in the molecular arsenal the infectious bacterium Vibrio parahaemolyticus (V. para) uses to kill cells and cause food poisoning in its human host.

20 Aug 2010

Tasigna receives approval for chronic myeloid leukemia in Canada

Tasigna (nilotinib) capsules have been approved with conditions in Canada as a new therapy for patients with CML, in the chronic phase (first phase) of the disease. Patients must be resistant to or intolerant of at least one prior therapy, including (Pr)Gleevec (imatinib mesylate), an established standard of care.

20 Aug 2010