Blood Vessels News and Research

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Genomes of Trypanosoma brucei and Trypanosoma cruzi sequenced

Oxford scientists have contributed to the genome sequencing of two parasites which cause major health problems in the developing world.

15 Aug 2005

Fluorescence spectroscopy able to detect the presence of inflammatory cells that are associated with critical atherosclerotic plaques

Because atherosclerotic plaque typically builds up without symptoms and leads to more than 1 million deaths in America each year, the search is on to develop early detection devices that will enable physicians to offer treatment before the disease progresses to advanced stages.

13 Aug 2005

Pre-mRNA that codes for inflammatory protein identified

In a discovery that upends a longstanding tenet of human biology, University of Utah School of Medicine researchers have shown that a key process in gene regulation can occur in human platelets, unique cells that are unusual because they don't have a nucleus (anucleate).

11 Aug 2005

Expert warns of spread of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

An expert on infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, is warning that humans can inadvertently help spread infectious organisms beyond traditional state boundaries.

11 Aug 2005

Over-supply of blood sugar could be a major cause of erectile dysfunction in diabetic men

Researchers have found that one particular simple sugar, present in increased levels in diabetics, interferes with the chain of events needed to achieve and maintain erection and can lead to permanent penile impairment over time.

9 Aug 2005

Arf gene prevents excessive growth of blood vessels in the developing eye

A gene better known for its role in preventing cancer also plays a key role in the developing embryo, where the gene prevents excessive growth of blood vessels, according to investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

2 Aug 2005

Researchers characterize the proteome of the human cornea

In doing so, they have identified 141 distinct proteins, 99 of which had not been previously recognized in mammalian corneas. The details of their findings appear in the August/September issue of Molecular and Cellular Proteomics, an American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology journal.

1 Aug 2005

Researchers unravel control of growing blood vessels

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered a basic mechanism by which smooth muscle cells that line the blood vessels can grow - sometimes abnormally - suggesting methods of treatment for various coronary diseases.

1 Aug 2005

Amazing 'smart bomb' drug zaps cancer cells in mice without damaging healthy cells

Scientists say they have developed an anti-cancer 'bomb' which has a similar behavior to a Trojan horse.

28 Jul 2005

Stress delays wound healing

Wound healing is slow when an animal is stressed, but extra oxygen almost completely reverses the effect, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

28 Jul 2005

New way to prevent macular degeneration

Two studies from an unusual research partnership at the University of Chicago appear to have resolved a long-standing dispute about the role of melanin in the eye. The studies, one published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) and one early online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS), also suggest a new way to prevent a common cause of blindness.

28 Jul 2005

Carbon monoxide could turn out to be a life-saver for patients recovering from organ transplants

Carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas that kills thousands of Americans every year, could turn out to be a life-saver for patients recovering from organ transplants, strokes or heart attacks, according to new research from the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center.

28 Jul 2005

Bone marrow may be source of new egg-cell generation

Last year a group of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers announced surprising findings that female mice - contrary to longstanding theories of mammalian reproductive physiology - retained the ability to make new egg cells or oocytes into adulthood.

27 Jul 2005

New breakthrough on the origins of Alzheimer's disease

Scientists from the Flanders Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) associated with the University of Antwerp have achieved a new breakthrough in their research on the origins of Alzheimer's disease.

27 Jul 2005

Cancer biology, pharmacology and engineering combine to create cancer smart bomb

Imagine a cancer drug that can burrow into a tumor, seal the exits and detonate a lethal dose of anti-cancer toxins, all while leaving healthy cells unscathed.

27 Jul 2005

At last the news we really wanted to hear - chocolate is good for us!

Following new research that has discovered that flavanols, a plant chemical that occurs in cocoa beans, were good for human health, confectionary maker Mars, a privately owned company, yesterday unveiled new research showing that cocoa, the central ingredient in most of its products, has properties that can be used to treat diabetes, strokes and vascular disease.

27 Jul 2005

Rush to offer new treatment for arterio-venous malformations

Rush University Medical Center will be the first in Chicago and among the first hospitals in the nation to offer a promising new treatment for arterio-venous malformations (AVMs) following its approval by the FDA on July 21.

26 Jul 2005

Role of IL-24 in regulating the immune system

Researchers at Introgen Therapeutics and their collaborators at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have published new findings on the role of IL-24 in regulating the immune system in the current online issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology.

21 Jul 2005

ev3 announces FDA approval of treatment for brain vascular disorder

ev3 today announced that its majority-owned subsidiary Micro Therapeutics has received pre-market application (PMA) approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to commercialize its Onyx Liquid Embolic System (Onyx) for the treatment of arterio-venous malformations (AVMs), a vascular disorder in the brain.

21 Jul 2005

Stress test has less effect on blood vessels when hormone cortisol is blocked

Negative effects of the hormone cortisol on the inner lining of blood vessels, the endothelium, may explain how stressful events trigger heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems, according to a new study in the July 19, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

21 Jul 2005