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UCSD scientist honored for Down syndrome research

William C. Mobley, MD, PhD, chair of the Department of Neurosciences at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Chairman of the U.S. Scientific Advisory Committee of the J-r-me Lejeune Foundation, was recognized by U.S. Congressman Pete Sessions from the floor of the House of Representatives in December. Sessions said of Mobley - who received the International Sisley-J-r-me Lejeune Prize in a ceremony at the Museum of Medical History in Paris on December 8.

5 Jan 2012

First study to elucidate how statins reduce activation of abnormal blood clotting

People with high cholesterol are at risk of heart attack and stroke because atherosclerotic plaques within their arteries can rupture triggering the formation of a blood clot called an occlusive thrombus that cuts off the blood supply to their heart or brain.

5 Jan 2012

Investigational HSV vaccine shows promise against two genital herpes diseases

An investigational vaccine protected some women against infection from one of the two types of herpes simplex viruses that cause genital herpes, according to findings in the New England Journal of Medicine.

5 Jan 2012

IHoP may play a critical role in type 1 diabetes

Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center's Institute for Regenerative Medicine and colleagues have discovered a new protein that may play a critical role in how the human body regulates blood sugar levels.

5 Jan 2012

Positive preliminary results from Alnylam's Phase I ALN-PCS trial on severe hypercholesterolemia

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today the achievement of positive preliminary results from its ongoing clinical trial of ALN-PCS, an RNAi therapeutic targeting PCSK9 for the treatment of severe hypercholesterolemia.

5 Jan 2012

Rilonacept appears safe and well-tolerated in patients with gout

A phase II clinical trial found that rilonacept, an inhibitor of the protein interleukin-1 (IL-1), significantly reduced acute gout flares that occur when initiating uric acid-lowering therapy. Results of the trial—the first placebo-controlled study investigating IL-1 targeted therapy in prevention of gout flares—show rilonacept to be generally well tolerated with no serious infections or treatment-related serious adverse events reported.

5 Jan 2012

Weight loss surgery can improve blood sugar control in diabetes patients

Weight loss surgery is not a cure for type 2 diabetes, but it can improve blood sugar control, according to a new study published in the British Journal of Surgery. Whereas some previous studies have claimed that up to 80 per cent of diabetes patients have been cured following gastric bypass surgery, researchers at Imperial College London found that only 41 per cent of patients achieve remission using more stringent criteria.

5 Jan 2012

Arrowhead receives FDA IND approval for Adipotide obesity drug

Arrowhead Research Corporation, a nanomedicine company with development programs in oncology and obesity, today announced that the Investigational New Drug Application (IND) for its first obesity drug candidate, Adipotide, was accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allowing the initiation of a clinical trial to test the safety of the compound.

5 Jan 2012

Viewpoints: Sebelius on 'essential benefits'; WSJ columnist on Democrats' 'Mediscare' argument - is it a lie?

Insurance needs and health systems vary state to state, and experience tells us that the best way forward is not to mandate a one-size-fits-all answer. Instead, our approach gives states the flexibility to take their own paths, while ensuring they all end up in the best place possible: with an Affordable Insurance Exchange that offers access to comprehensive, quality, affordable health insurance to small business owners and individuals who currently have few good choices in an expensive and broken market.

5 Jan 2012

AAIPharma announces acquisition of Celsis Analytical Services

AAIPharma Services Corp., a leading provider of pharmaceutical product development services, announced today it has acquired Celsis Analytical Services, a division of Celsis International Ltd. that performs material testing services for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and manufacturing sectors.

4 Jan 2012

Veloxis commences LCP-Tacro Phase IIIb study in kidney transplant patients

Veloxis Pharmaceuticals A/S today announced dosing of the first patient in the STRATO (Switching kidney TRAnsplant patients with Tremor to LCP-tacrO) Phase IIIb study of LCP-Tacro in kidney transplant recipients experiencing drug-induced tremors.

4 Jan 2012

NovaSterilis awarded soft tissue processing patent

NovaSterilis Inc., specializing in developing applications for supercritical carbon dioxide, has been granted US Patent 8,034,288 B2. The patent, dated October 11, 2011 entitled “Method and Apparatus for Cleaning of Viable Donor Soft Tissue”, covers a new method for cleaning soft allograft tissue including tendon, fascia, and skin with a supercritical fluid, thus avoiding other harmful chemical solvents that may leave residual chemicals.

4 Jan 2012

Exercise leads to better school performance: Review

A review of earlier studies has shown that academic excellence in children could be linked to how physically active they are. Writing in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, researchers said they found strong evidence of a link between exercise and academic performance. The review looked at 14 studies involving more than 12,000 children.

4 Jan 2012

Stem cell like progenitor cells could be key to aging slowly: Study

In new research on mice, scientists have found that stem cells could help slow the aging process. This new research was conducted on mice that had been bred to have progeria, a disorder that causes premature aging. Mice with the condition typically live only 21 to 28 days instead of the usual two years.

4 Jan 2012

Extra calories from proteins may lead to weight gain but more muscle than fat: Study

A new study shows that people who eat extra calories will gain the same amount of fat regardless of how much of their daily diet comes from protein. The study is one of the most extensive where researchers look at differences among food types on weight gain.

4 Jan 2012

FDA grants orphan designation for AMT's hemophilia gene therapy program

Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics, a leader in the field of human gene therapy, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted orphan drug designation to its gene therapy program for the treatment of hemophilia B.

4 Jan 2012

Cardiovascular leaders to review data for Riata and Riata ST ICD leads

Cardiovascular leaders will gather in Minneapolis for a one-day summit on Jan. 20, to review data for Riata and Riata ST implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) leads, which recently underwent a Class I FDA recall. Physicians from the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation and Mayo Clinic have organized the summit to develop a consensus regarding the management of patients who have these leads.

4 Jan 2012

Task force identifies key themes and challenges in critical care research

To reduce mortality and improve patient care in the nation's ICUs, a task force formed by the Critical Care Societies Collaborative (CCSC), in conjunction with the US Critical Illness and Injury Trials Group (USCIITG) has recommended that research in the field become less fragmented and better account for patient heterogeneity and the complexity of critical illness.

4 Jan 2012

Yale study questions accuracy of relying on patient death rates to compare hospital quality

Hospitals, health insurers and patients often rely on patient death rates in hospitals to compare hospital quality. Now a new study by researchers at Yale School of Medicine questions the accuracy of that widely used approach and supports measuring patient deaths over a period of 30 days from admission even after they have left the hospital.

4 Jan 2012

One-third of NIH-funded trials remain unpublished 51 months after completion

In a study that investigates the challenges of disseminating clinical research findings in peer-reviewed biomedical journals, Yale School of Medicine researchers have found that fewer than half of a sample of trials primarily or partially funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) were published within 30 months of completing the clinical trial.

4 Jan 2012