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Diabetes risk linked to increased dosage, duration and timing of steroids

Glucocorticoid (or steroid) therapy, prescribed to around half of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, is a known risk factor for developing diabetes. A study from The University of Manchester has found how the risk of diabetes increases in relation to the dosage, duration and timing of steroids.

4 May 2016

Real risk of rebound syndrome following fingolimod cessation for MS

Rebound syndrome following cessation of fingolimod for multiple sclerosis occurs at a clinically relevant rate, shows research, prompting the need for further study on how best to sequence and discontinue such drugs.

4 May 2016

Changes in the brain make people prone to alcoholism

The brain tissue of persons with alcohol dependence shows a variety of changes compared to non-alcoholic control persons. All alcoholics' brains share some characteristics, but some are exclusive to the brain tissue of anxiety-prone type 1 alcoholics or impulsive type 2 alcoholics, according to a recent study from the University of Eastern Finland.

29 Apr 2016

Probiotic supplements may help treat post-menopausal osteoporosis

Probiotic supplements protected female mice from the loss of bone density that occurs after having their ovaries removed, researchers at Emory University School of Medicine and Georgia State University have shown.

28 Apr 2016

Derivatives of female sex hormones can influence natural melanin production, study suggests

When skin cells responsible for pigmentation are exposed to estrogen or progesterone, the cells respond by adjusting their melanin production, resulting in either skin darkening or lightening. Although pregnant women often experience alterations in skin pigmentation, the reason for the changes has long puzzled physicians.

27 Apr 2016

High doses of commonly-used chemotherapy drug may increase survival rate of ALL patients

With a cure rate approaching 90 percent, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) - the most common type of childhood cancer - is often hailed as one of the "success stories" of modern cancer treatment. But up to 20 percent of patients with a high risk of relapse are not cured. That could change with the results from a clinical trial co-led by investigators from NYU Langone Medical Center, which shows giving high doses of a commonly-used chemotherapy drug increases the survival rate for these patients.

26 Apr 2016

Hydrocortisone drug can also prevent lung damage in premature babies

Research from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago conducted in mice shows the drug hydrocortisone -- a steroid commonly used to treat a variety of inflammatory and allergic conditions -- can also prevent lung damage that often develops in premature babies treated with oxygen.

26 Apr 2016

SI-2 molecule can inhibit tumor growth in breast cancer mouse model

Cancer cells communicate with their environment through cell molecules that pass on signals to the inside of the cell. The signals help cancer cells multiply and migrate, spreading the disease.

21 Apr 2016

Investigators find tacrolimus to be very effective in reducing ocular symptoms of GVHD

Researchers from Massachusetts Eye and Ear/Harvard Medical School have conducted a clinical trial comparing the safety and efficacy of topical tacrolimus, an immunosuppressive therapy, and topical methylprednisolone, a steroid medication, in patients with ocular graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) -- a complication associated with allogeneic bone marrow transplants in which the transplanted immune system's cells attack certain parts of the recipient's body, including the cornea and ocular surface.

16 Apr 2016

UC Berkeley biologists discover potential target for unisex contraceptives

UC Berkeley biologists have discovered the switch that triggers the power kick sperm use to penetrate and fertilize a human egg, uncovering a possible source of male infertility but also a potential target for contraceptives that work in both men and women.

26 Mar 2016

Mutated gene GT198 has strong potential in early diagnosis of breast cancer

When mutated, a gene known for its ability to repair DNA, appears to instead cause breast cancer, scientists report.

21 Mar 2016

Southampton researchers explore ADAM33 gene's association with asthma, airway 'twitchiness'

Researchers at the University of Southampton are to study why some people are more likely to develop asthma.

11 Mar 2016

Scientists explore new treatment avenues to protect obese individuals from cardiovascular disease

Fatness is clearly linked to cardiovascular disease, but scientists want to find why the unhealthy pair tend to go hand-in-hand and how to break up their relationship.

10 Mar 2016

CWRU researcher to customize tobacco mosaic virus to treat human cancers

A Case Western Reserve University researcher has been awarded more than $3 million in federal and foundation grants to turn common plant viruses into cancer sleuths and search-and-destroy emissaries.

10 Mar 2016

Nociceptin could help to reduce effects of asthma attacks

An international team of researchers from the Universities of Leicester and Naples has examined the role of a receptor in the body that could help to prevent or reduce the effects of asthma attacks.

9 Mar 2016

Xencor begins XmAb5871 Phase 2 trials in patients with IgG4-RD and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Xencor, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing engineered monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, asthma and allergic diseases and cancer, today announced dosing the first patient in a Phase 2 trial of XmAb5871 in patients with IgG4-Related Disease (IgG4-RD).

8 Mar 2016

Steroid use in late preterm delivery can reduce rate of neonatal respiratory complications

Current recommendations are for all women who go into labor prior to 34 weeks gestation to be given antenatal corticosteroids (betamethasone) to help mature the baby's lungs. However, many babies born in the late preterm period - between 34 and 36 weeks gestation - require respiratory support at birth.

4 Mar 2016

Omalizumab drug can be better targeted to treat people with severe asthma

Around five million people in the UK are currently being treated for asthma. Of these, a quarter of a million are unable to get good control of their condition, resulting in frequent, severe, or even life-threatening attacks. A new study brings hope to these patients by investigating whether the drug Omalizumab can be better targeted.

2 Mar 2016

New Botox-like treatment can help runners, cyclists with knee pain

A painful knee condition that affects more than one in eight active people has been treated effectively with a botulinum toxin injection and physiotherapy.

24 Feb 2016

Studies explore causative factor of hypertension in younger, obese men and women

There's no doubt estrogen plays a big role in the differences between males and females, and now researchers want to know if it also helps explain emerging sex differences in what makes younger, obese men and women hypertensive.

17 Feb 2016