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Study examines constitutionality of pharmaceutical gift laws

We've all seen them in the waiting room of the doctor's office-pens, notepads, magnets, and clipboards adorned with the logos of brand-name drugs. These freebies may seem inconsequential, but a large and compelling body of evidence shows that even these small gifts may influence which drug a doctor prescribes.

14 Jun 2012

Antibody that blocks programmed cell death benefits cancer patients

A national research collaboration of senior researchers, including a researcher from Moffitt Cancer Center, has found that 20 to 25 percent of "heavily pre-treated" patients with a variety of cancers who enrolled in a clinical trial had "objective and durable" responses to a treatment with BMS-936558, an antibody that specifically blocks programmed cell death 1 (PD-1).

14 Jun 2012

Tooth scaling reduces CV disease risk

Taiwanese study results show that undergoing tooth scaling significantly reduces the risk for future myocardial infarction, stroke, and total cardiovascular events.

14 Jun 2012

IBMT linked with positive structural changes in brain connectivity

A Texas Tech University scientist studying the Chinese mindfulness meditation known as integrative body-mind training (IBMT) said he and other researchers have confirmed and expanded on changes in structural efficiency of white matter in the brain that can be related to positive behavioral changes in subjects practicing the technique for a month and a minimum of 11 hours total.

14 Jun 2012

Scientists discover one of the most important cellular mechanisms behind meningioma

Johns Hopkins researchers say they have discovered one of the most important cellular mechanisms driving the growth and progression of meningioma, the most common form of brain and spinal cord tumor. A report on the discovery, published in the journal Molecular Cancer Research, could lead the way to the discovery of better drugs to attack these crippling tumors, the scientists say.

14 Jun 2012

Researchers identify primary player of the biochemical bugle call

Researchers have identified the primary player of the biochemical bugle call that musters the body's defenders against viral infection.

14 Jun 2012

Western-style diets may increase risk of inflammatory bowel disease

Certain saturated fats that are common in the modern Western diet can initiate a chain of events leading to complex immune disorders such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in people with a genetic predisposition, according to a study to be published early online in the journal Nature.

14 Jun 2012

Alpha-myosin triggers development of autoimmunity after heart attack

After people with type 1 diabetes have a heart attack, their long-term chance of suffering even more heart damage skyrockets. But the reason has long puzzled scientists. Now researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center have identified the misstep that sparks this runaway chronic damage and a promising way to block it.

14 Jun 2012

Study finds increase in inpatient medical procedures after Mass. health reform implementation

Researchers from Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health (BUSM, BUSPH), along with the VA Boston Healthcare System and Harvard Medical School, have found inpatient medical procedures increased more among non-elderly, lower- and medium- income populations, Hispanics and whites, after health care reform went into effect in Massachusetts.

14 Jun 2012

Clinical trials can benefit under-represented populations in developing countries

While conducting more clinical trials in developing countries can help under-represented populations benefit from new medical developments, trials in low-income settings face challenges such as complicated regulations, Trudie Lang of the Centre for Tropical Medicine at the University of Oxford and Sisira Siribaddana of the University of Rajarata and the Institute of Research & Development in Sri Lanka write in an essay published Tuesday in PLoS Medicine.

14 Jun 2012

Call for medical bodies to stop opposing assisted dying supported by BMJ

The BMJ today supports a call for leading UK medical bodies to stop opposing assisted dying for terminally ill, mentally competent adults.

14 Jun 2012

Sabin initiates novel human hookworm vaccine Phase 1 clinical trial

Today, the Sabin Vaccine Institute, in partnership with the George Washington University and the Children's National Medical Center, began vaccinating participants for a Phase 1 clinical trial of a novel human hookworm vaccine.

14 Jun 2012

Exome sequencing may also improve diagnoses and guide individual patient care

In the June 13 issue of Science Translational Medicine, an international team led by researchers from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine reports that the new technology of exome sequencing is not only a promising method for identifying disease-causing genes, but may also improve diagnoses and guide individual patient care.

14 Jun 2012

Hysterectomy may increase risk of cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women

Estrogen-deficient, postmenopausal women who have had their uterus removed appear to have stiffer arteries compared to similar women who have not had a hysterectomy, according to new research from the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

14 Jun 2012

NEJM hails vismodegib as ‘the greatest advance in therapy yet seen’ for advanced BCC

Vismodegib, a new skin cancer drug for patients with advanced basal cell carcinoma tested by TGen, Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center at Scottsdale Healthcare and Mayo Clinic, is hailed as "the greatest advance in therapy yet seen" for advanced basal cell carcinoma in an editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine.

14 Jun 2012

Ten young researchers named Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences

Ten young researchers were named Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences today by The Pew Charitable Trusts. For these scientists, who have dedicated their careers to finding solutions for some of the world's most troubling health problems, this fellowship will provide support that will further their research, enable them to work with colleagues in the United States, and increase scientific knowledge throughout their home region.

14 Jun 2012

Roseola virus accounts for one third of febrile status epilepticus cases

New research shows that human herpesviruses (HHV)-6B and HHV-7, commonly know as roseola virus), account for one third of febrile status epilepticus (FSE) cases. Results of the FEBSTAT prospective study now available in Epilepsia, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), suggest that HHV-6B may be involved in the development of epilepsy and further research is urgently needed.

14 Jun 2012

Interactive website improves parental compliance with asthma controller medication use

Asthma is the most common chronic illness in adolescents and children, affecting an estimated seven million children up to the age of 17 in the United States. The burden of asthma on children is substantial: kids with asthma have a three-fold greater risk of school absence than children without asthma, and asthma is the third leading cause of hospitalization among children under the age of 15.

14 Jun 2012

New method enhances adhesion of injected CECs for successful corneal transplantation

Regenerative medicine, or the use of specially grown tissues and cells to treat injuries and diseases, has been successful in treating disorders of a number of organs, including heart, pancreas, and cartilage. However, efforts to treat disorders of the corneal endothelium, a single cell layer on the inner surface of the cornea, with regenerative techniques have been less effective. Now, a group of scientists has developed a method that enhances the adhesion of injected corneal endothelial cells (CECs), allowing for successful corneal transplantation to repair pathological dysfunctions.

14 Jun 2012

MDA5 molecule plays a critical role in fighting viral infections

Researchers have identified the primary player of the biochemical bugle call that musters the body's defenders against viral infection.

14 Jun 2012

Medicine News and Research

Study examines constitutionality of pharmaceutical gift laws

Antibody that blocks programmed cell death benefits cancer patients

Tooth scaling reduces CV disease risk

IBMT linked with positive structural changes in brain connectivity

Scientists discover one of the most important cellular mechanisms behind meningioma

Researchers identify primary player of the biochemical bugle call

Western-style diets may increase risk of inflammatory bowel disease

Alpha-myosin triggers development of autoimmunity after heart attack

Study finds increase in inpatient medical procedures after Mass. health reform implementation

Clinical trials can benefit under-represented populations in developing countries

Call for medical bodies to stop opposing assisted dying supported by BMJ

Sabin initiates novel human hookworm vaccine Phase 1 clinical trial

Exome sequencing may also improve diagnoses and guide individual patient care

Hysterectomy may increase risk of cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women

NEJM hails vismodegib as ‘the greatest advance in therapy yet seen’ for advanced BCC

Ten young researchers named Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences

Roseola virus accounts for one third of febrile status epilepticus cases

Interactive website improves parental compliance with asthma controller medication use

New method enhances adhesion of injected CECs for successful corneal transplantation

MDA5 molecule plays a critical role in fighting viral infections

Everything there is to know about biosimilars eBook

Improving healthcare sustainability through carbon data

A New Approach to Preventing Bladder Cancer Recurrence

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

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