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Steroidal hormones for contraception in women with sickle cell disease

Hormonal contraceptives are unlikely to predispose women to type 2 diabetes and appear to be safe for those with sickle cell anemia.

4 May 2007

Nanoparticles for 'on-the-spot' virus detector

Chemical engineers from the University at Buffalo have collaborated with scientists from other institutions to solve a critical bottleneck in the transport and capture of virus nanoparticles, making possible a device that could rapidly sample and detect infectious biological agents, such as viruses.

4 May 2007

Treating ticks with antibiotics inhibits their reproduction

Bacteria that may provide ticks with essential nutrients they can't get from their meals of blood could be a key to controlling ticks and the diseases they carry, a new study published in the PLoS ONE shows.

4 May 2007

Tight diabetes control does not impact cognitive ability in type 1 diabetes

A study led by researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center provides good news for patients with type 1 diabetes who want to maintain tight blood glucose control and thus significantly reduce their risk of developing the devastating complications of the disease, heart disease, kidney failure, eye disease and blindness and nerve damage.

4 May 2007

People with a sibling who have had a stroke are almost twice as likely to suffer a stroke themselves

People with a brother or sister who have had a stroke are almost twice as likely as the average American to suffer a stroke themselves, according to research presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 59th Annual Meeting in Boston.

4 May 2007

Simple spit test designed to detect pre-eclampsia in the early stages

The test, which is designed to be used at home, will allow mums-to-be to check for themselves whether they are at risk of the condition, which can be symptomless in the early stages but kills 1000 babies in the UK every year.

4 May 2007

New prostate cancer treatment wins award for Sloan-Kettering

The unique application of operations research to the treatment of prostate cancer allowed Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to better Fortune 500 companies last night and win an international competition for best project by an organization.

4 May 2007

FDA issues "Critical Path Opportunities for Generic Drugs"

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today issued the "Critical Path Opportunities for Generic Drugs" report identifying many of the unanswered scientific questions that impede the development of generic versions of commonly used drugs.

4 May 2007

Machine preservation may promote more organ sharing

Preserving the kidneys of deceased older donors on a pump, as opposed to the conventional method of storing and transporting organs in a cooler, may lower hospital costs, improve initial organ function, and promote greater use and more sharing of organs, according to new research by Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

4 May 2007

Backup brain region compensates for stroke

Researchers have pinpointed in humans how a "backup" brain region springs into action to compensate for disruption of a primary functional area, as happens during stroke.

4 May 2007

FDA approves new indication for FRAGMIN for the extended treatment of symptomatic venous thromboembolism

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new indication for FRAGMIN (dalteparin sodium injection), for the extended treatment of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) to reduce the recurrence of VTE in patients with cancer.

4 May 2007

Nutritional benefits of egg consumption

Nine studies presented at the Experimental Biology 2007 meeting support the growing body of research on the nutritional benefits of egg consumption, including its promotion of weight loss and its role in providing choline, an essential nutrient often lacking in the diet that promotes brain and memory development and function.

4 May 2007

New study on cat allergens and babies

The study published by Chih-Mei Chen et al. in the May edition of the distinguished Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology did not approve earlier papers, according to which contact with cat allergens during the first few months of a child's life has a protective effect.

4 May 2007

Cause of gender differences in high blood pressure and related kidney disease

While men and women both get high blood pressure and related kidney disease, the path to get there is shorter, steeper and just different for men, researchers say.

4 May 2007

BioMarin starts phase 2a study of 6R-BH4 in sickle cell disease

BioMarin Pharmaceutical has announced that the first patient has initiated treatment in the Phase 2a clinical study of 6R-BH4 (sapropterin dihydrochloride) for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD).

4 May 2007

To live longer - eat less!

Scientists have known for a long time that animals fed diets which border on starvation live longer, but they are now saying that a particular gene is linked to calorie restriction.

3 May 2007

Use of antithrombotics means more intracerebral haemorrhagic stroke deaths in over 75s

A study suggests that the number of pensioners over 75 dying from intracerebral haemorrhagic stroke has increased in the last 25 years due to use of antithrombotic drugs.

2 May 2007

Serious illness among children with sickle cell disease reduced with pneumococcal conjugate vaccine

A vaccine introduced in 2000 has reduced by more than 90 percent the rate of a serious bacterial illness among young children with sickle cell disease (SCD), who are particularly susceptible to it, according to a new study that appears in the June 1 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases and currently is available online.

2 May 2007

Recommended doses of ginseng, ginko biloba do not interfere with drug absorption

Recent findings that the widely-used herbal supplement Saint John's wort could dramatically affect the absorption and metabolism of many prescription and non-prescription drugs raised concerns that other popular herbal supplements might cause similar changes, thus significantly altering drugs, therapeutic or toxic effects.

2 May 2007