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Immune cells found to promote formation of new blood vessels - potential for endometriosis treatments

A discovery in mice of immune cells that promote the formation of new blood vessels could lead to new treatments for endometriosis, a painful condition associated with infertility that affects up to 15 percent of women of reproductive age.

19 Oct 2007

Genetic ancestry testing could spawn unwelcome societal consequences

For many Americans, the potential to track one's DNA to a specific country, region or tribe with a take-home kit is highly alluring.

19 Oct 2007

Early intervention dramatically improves outcomes for new dialysis patients

A program of education, close medical follow-up, and self-empowerment for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) newly starting dialysis, reduces complications and improves outcomes - including significant reductions in mortality and hospitalization rates, reports a study in the November Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

19 Oct 2007

Day care attendance early in life protects infants and young children from later developing asthma

The study, "Influence of early day care exposure on total IgE levels through age 3 years" can be found in the Articles in Press section of the JACI Web site, http://www.jacionline.org. The JACI is the peer-reviewed journal of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).

19 Oct 2007

Avastin and chemo combo may offer hope for glioblastoma multiforme patients

Brain cancer patients with the poorest prognosis -- those with a type of deadly tumor known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) -- may survive longer with a drug that chokes off a tumor's blood supply.

19 Oct 2007

Early intervention benefits women with acute coronary syndromes

Research will be reported at TCT 2007, the annual scientific symposium of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF), that demonstrates that early intervention saves lives in women who have a heart attack or unstable chest pain.

19 Oct 2007

Heart attacks and suicide higher in those who have surgery for obesity

New research has revealed that deaths due to suicide and coronary heart disease are higher among people who have undergone bariatric surgery for obesity.

19 Oct 2007

Medsafe warns of "natural health" hazards

The New Zealand Ministry of Health's medicines and medical devices regulator Medsafe is warning New Zealanders to be aware of what they're buying when shopping for herbal remedies, following charges brought against a Chinese herbalist in Auckland.

19 Oct 2007

Children who are obese or who are at risk for obesity show early signs of heart disease

Childhood obesity in the United States is an epidemic -- nationwide, 19 percent of children ages 6 to 11 and 17 percent of those 12 to 19 are overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Those who are overweight during childhood also have an increased risk of obesity in adulthood and are at greater risk for complications such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, because obesity increases total blood volume, which leads to extra stress on the heart.

18 Oct 2007

Pine bark extract boosts nitric oxide production

A study to be published in the October edition of Hypertension Research reveals Pycnogenol, (pic-noj-en-all), an antioxidant plant extract from the bark of the French maritime pine tree, helps individuals by enhancing healthy nitric oxide (NO) production which leads to an increase in blood flow and oxygen supply to muscles.

18 Oct 2007

Intra-arterial combination chemotherapy induces long-term survival for hepatocellular carcinoma

Portal venous tumor thrombus (PVTT) is a crucial factor that can worsen the prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

18 Oct 2007

Insulin levels affect the brain's dopamine systems

Insulin, long known as an important regulator of blood glucose levels, now has a newly appreciated role in the brain.

18 Oct 2007

Elderly Medicare, Medicaid patients not receiving quality care

If the care received by vulnerable older people concurrently enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid was evaluated on a grading scale, it would squeak by with a barely passing mark, a new UCLA study has found.

18 Oct 2007

Phase II map of human genetic variation

The International HapMap Consortium today published analyses of its second-generation map of human genetic variation, which contains three times more markers than the initial version unveiled in 2005.

18 Oct 2007

Benefit of exenatide has not yet been proven

Since May 2007, a new drug has been available for the treatment of patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 in Germany: exenatide (trade name: Byetta), which is marketed by the manufacturer Eli Lilly.

18 Oct 2007

Aspirin may really be a man's drug

First it was an apple, now it is an aspirin a day that may keep the doctor away.

18 Oct 2007

Scientists discover how HIV evolves

University of Florida scientists have discovered how HIV evolves over the course of a person's lifetime into a more deadly form that heralds the onset of full-blown AIDS.

17 Oct 2007

New therapy for chronic spasticity and rigidity

Research led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine has identified a target with potential as an effective new therapy for chronic spasticity and rigidity, a painful condition that often results from spinal cord injury.

17 Oct 2007

The genetics of MLL leukemogenesis

In the November 1st issue of G&D, Dr. Michael Cleary (Stanford University School of Medicine) and colleagues identify the gene Meis1 as a critical player in the establishment of leukemia stem cells, and the development of MLL leukemia.

17 Oct 2007

Taxol-type drugs give slight boost to survival rates in early breast cancer

The breast cancer drugs called taxanes, which include Taxol (paclitaxel) and Taxotere (docetaxel), increase survival rates when used as part of chemotherapy following surgery for cancers that have not spread, according to a new review of the research.

17 Oct 2007