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Sharp rise recorded in cases of new strain of whooping cough: New genotype may be evading vaccine’s protective effects

Australia’s prolonged whooping cough epidemic has entered a disturbing new phase, with a study showing a new strain or genotype may be responsible for the sharp rise in the number of cases.

20 Mar 2012

Acelrx fourth quarter net loss increases to $6.4 million

AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for the treatment of acute and breakthrough pain, today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011.

20 Mar 2012

Groundbreaking cystic fibrosis clinical trial to proceed after renewed funding

The team of scientists based in Edinburgh, Oxford and London were developing a treatment which involves putting genes into the lungs of patients suffering the fatal, inherited wasting disease, passed early clinical trials in 2010. But the recession badly affected the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, the charity that had funded the programme, and work had to stop last year just as the consortium was closing in on its goal.

19 Mar 2012

Researchers show how errant form of LYP can disrupt the immune system

Autoimmune diseases, such as Type I diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, are caused by an immune system gone haywire, where the body's defense system assaults and destroys healthy tissues. A mutant form of a protein called LYP has been implicated in multiple autoimmune diseases, but the precise molecular pathway involved has been unknown.

19 Mar 2012

SBMT announces 2012 recipients of Pioneers in Medicine, Technology and Healthcare Policy Awards

Today, the Society for Brain Mapping & Therapeutics announced the 2012 recipients of the organization's prestigious Pioneers in Medicine, Technology, and Healthcare Policy Awards.

17 Mar 2012

Epigenetic designer baby may prove to be a non-starter

Epigenetics is the new hip science. Time Magazine's front cover and article, 'Why your DNA isn't your Destiny' from January 2010 explains why. Its more explicit subtitle provided the hook - 'The new science of epigenetics reveals how the choices you make can change your genes - and those of your kids'. Who wouldn't be interested in this?

16 Mar 2012

Are HIPAA rules impeding medical research?

Health records have been sealed since 1996, when the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was signed into law to protect the privacy of personal health records. That protection applies not only to the charts of the living or recently deceased, but also to records dating to the 1700s and 1800s.

16 Mar 2012

Merck announces collaboration to create Calibr for early-stage translational research

Merck, known outside the United States and Canada as MSD, today announced a collaboration to create the California Institute for Biomedical Research (Calibr), an independent, not-for-profit organization (501c3) established to accelerate the translation of basic biomedical research into innovative, new medicines to treat disease.

16 Mar 2012

Scale to measure potential harm caused by invasive placebos in local anaesthesia research

A scale developed to measure the potential harm caused by invasive placebos in local anaesthesia research has been successfully tested by a group of 43 independent clinicians, according to research published in the April issue of Anaesthesia.

15 Mar 2012

GenVec 2011 net loss decreases to $7.4 million

Today GenVec, Inc. announced financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011. For the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company reported a net loss of $7.4 million, or $0.58 per share, compared with a net loss of $12.3 million, or $0.97 per share, for the year ended December 31, 2010.

15 Mar 2012

Study identifies 190 proteins crucial to the functions of key immune sensors

In a healthy immune system, invading pathogens trigger a cascade of alerts and responses to fight off the infection. Sensors called toll-like receptors, or TLRs, act as one of the first lines of defense. Two of these sensors, known as TLR7 and TLR9, specifically recognize and respond to microbial RNA and DNA, respectively. But what determines how these TLRs get where they need to be and sound the alarm for pathogen infection?

15 Mar 2012

Planned elective repeat cesarean lowers risk of serious complications

A major study led by the University of Adelaide has found that women who have had one prior cesarean can lower the risk of death and serious complications for their next baby - and themselves - by electing to have another cesarean.

14 Mar 2012

Antibody-based therapies successfully protect monkeys from deadly Ebola and Marburg viruses

Army scientists have demonstrated, for the first time, that antibody-based therapies can successfully protect monkeys from the deadly Ebola and Marburg viruses. In addition, the animals were fully protected even when treatment was administered two days post-infection, an accomplishment unmatched by any experimental therapy for these viruses to date.

14 Mar 2012

Homeopathy could soon be declared “baseless and unethical” in Australia

Homeopathy is a branch of alternative medicine based on the principles of “like-cures-like” and “ultra-dilutions”. The first principle says substances that can cause symptoms can be used in diluted form to treat the same symptom in an illness, and the second says the more dilute a substance is, the more potent it is.

14 Mar 2012

Root cause of dental phobia

Women in their forties are more likely to have dental anxiety than any other age group according to a University of Sydney study into dental anxiety and phobia.

11 Mar 2012

Gene that causes aggression in men under stress discovered

Scientists have found that “macho” gene that makes men behave more aggressively than women under stress. They say this one gene could explain why men have a 'fight or flight' response while women are more likely to try and defuse the situation. The study has been published in the journal BioEssays.

11 Mar 2012

Tumors can be more complex than imagined earlier: Study

Researchers speculate that cancers may be more complex that they knew. And that's why a single tissue sample taken from a single tumor may not be the best way to figure out a course of treatment they claim.

11 Mar 2012

Patients with advanced Alzheimer’s benefit from drugs: Study finds

According to new developments patients with advanced Alzheimer’s disease could benefit from drug treatment to slow its progression. Scientists have shown for the first time that drugs used to slow the disease in its early stages also work when the condition is advanced, greatly extending the population who could be treated.

8 Mar 2012

First ever analysis of genetic variation between different regions of same tumour

Taking a sample from just one part of a tumour may not give a full picture of its 'genetic landscape', according to a landmark study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

8 Mar 2012

Heroes of Military Medicine award recipients to be honored on May 2, 2012

The Center for Public-Private Partnerships at The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2012 Heroes of Military Medicine awards.

7 Mar 2012