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Harmless shard from childhood virus shell may halt biological process

A harmless shard from the shell of a common childhood virus may halt a biological process that kills a significant percentage of battlefield casualties, heart attack victims and oxygen-deprived newborns, according to research presented Sunday, September 6, 2009, at the 12th European meeting on complement in human disease in Budapest, Hungary.

7 Sep 2009

£560,000 grant awarded to set up UK International Health Links Centre

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and Liverpool Associates in Tropical Health (LATH) have received a £560,000 grant from the UK's Department for International Development (DFID) to set up and deliver a UK International Health Links Centre (IHLC).

7 Sep 2009

Scientists identify new genetic variations that are associated with type 2 diabetes

Scientists have identified a genetic variation in people with type 2 diabetes that affects how the body's muscle cells respond to the hormone insulin, in a new study published today in Nature Genetics.

7 Sep 2009

Gawande on "rationing": Provokes fear, but won't happen in U.S. health care

Atul Gawande, the New Yorker staff writer and cancer surgeon, spoke with NPR's Morning Edition about the how the word "rationing" has been used - and misused - in the health care debate.

5 Sep 2009

Dr. Harold Hank Gardner in Healthspottr's top 50 healthcare leaders

Healthspottr.com names Dr. Harold "Hank Gardner in their top 50 healthcare leaders: leading minds, leading change, leading healthcare."

5 Sep 2009

PPA bus tour raises awareness of patient assistance programs

The "Help is Here Express" bus tour will be stopping in Kentucky throughout the week of September 8 - 11 at various cities in order to help uninsured and financially-struggling Kentuckians access information on programs that provide prescription medicines for free or nearly free.

5 Sep 2009

SoftScan clinical results from a breast cancer treatment monitoring study to be presented at IEEE International Conference

ART Advanced Research Technologies Inc. (ART) (TSX:ARA), a Canadian medical device company and a leader in optical molecular imaging products for the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries, is pleased to announce that Dr. Gregory Czarnota, MD, PhD, Radiation Oncologist at Odette Cancer Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, will be presenting SoftScan® clinical results from a breast cancer treatment monitoring study, at the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society 31st Annual International Conference in Minneapolis, Minn.

5 Sep 2009

Alzheimer’s disease researcher joins UBC's European Scientific Advisory Board

United BioSource Corporation (UBC) announced this summer at ICAD 2009 that Bengt Winblad, MD, PhD has joined its European Scientific Advisory Board for CNS Clinical Trials. Professor Winblad is one of the world’s leading Alzheimer’s disease researchers and currently serves as Professor of Geriatric Medicine and Chief Physician at the Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.

5 Sep 2009

Sponsor-A-Scientist program launched

The Sbarro Health Research Organization, a nonprofit center for cancer, cardiovascular and diabetes research located at Temple University in Philadelphia and the University of Siena, Italy, has launched Sponsor-A-Scientist program.

5 Sep 2009

Recent releases: PEPFAR in Zimbabwe; dengue in Thailand; blogs on improving U.S. foreign aid; examining allocations of health aid

The U.S. plans to support efforts to develop a sustainable health system in Zimbabwe and increase its capacity to treat people, Eric Goosby, U.S. global AIDS Coordinator for PEPFAR, said on Wednesday after a visit to the country with USAID and CDC officials, according to a press release from the U.S. Embassy in Harare, Zimbabwe. Goosby said he is "optimistic" that the Zimbabwe PEPFAR team's experience will be used "to develop a response that fits the existing health infrastructure, supports it and reinforces it in a way that creates a durable and lasting response" (9/2).

5 Sep 2009

Angiotensin II receptors not detectable in pregnant or preeclamptic women

A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine reveals a key component in the development of preeclampsia in pregnant women, a condition that can result in miscarriage and maternal death.

5 Sep 2009

MRF announces winners of six 2009 research grants

The Migraine Research Foundation (MRF), the only nonprofit organization devoted solely to funding migraine research, today announced the winners of the 2009 research grants. This year's grantees will explore such important areas as pediatric migraine, the genetic association between migraine and cardiovascular events, and why opioids enhance migraine pain.

5 Sep 2009

Brain protein srGAP2 capable of forming filopodia

When the process goes awry, neurodevelopmental disorders such as mental retardation, dyslexia or autism may result. Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have now discovered that establishing the neural wiring necessary to function normally depends on the ability of neurons to make finger-like projections of their membrane called filopodia.

5 Sep 2009

Researchers study tumor diversity to improve breast cancer treatment

One person's breast cancer is not the same as another person's, because the gene mutations differ in each tumor. That makes it difficult to match the best therapy with the individual patient.

5 Sep 2009

Nurses urge CDC to follow the recommendations for swine flu protection from the Institute of Medicine

The California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC) today applauds the Institute of Medicine for recommending strong patient safety protections for patients and caregivers to avoid airborne transmission during the ongoing H1N1/swine flu pandemic--and calls on the Centers for Disease Control to meet the same, stringent standards.

5 Sep 2009

New role discovered for sphingosine-1-phosphate

Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine researchers have discovered a new role for the bioactive lipid messenger, sphingosine-1-phosphate, or S1P, that is abundant in our blood - a finding that could lead to a new generation of drugs to fight cancer and inflammatory disease.

5 Sep 2009

Google searches for 'death panels' trigger new ad war

Weeks after Sarah Palin coined the term, "death panels" to refer to a proposal in the House health reform bill, the term is among those helping to generate the most active internet advertising spree ever linked to a public policy issue, the Los Angeles Times reports.

5 Sep 2009

Insomnia increases blood pressure

Can't sleep at night? A new study published in the journal Sleep has found that people who suffer from insomnia have heightened nighttime blood pressure, which can lead to cardiac problems. The investigation, which measured the 24-hour blood pressure of insomniacs compared to sound sleepers, was conducted by researchers from the Universit- de Montr-al, its affiliated H-pital du Sacr--C-ur de Montr-al Sleep Disorders Centre and the Universit- Laval.

5 Sep 2009

Alcohol is harmful for unborn babies

Learning disabilities, mental health issues and behavior problems are just some of the issues that afflict babies exposed to alcohol in the womb, yet some doctors still tell their patients it is safe to have a drink now and then while pregnant.

5 Sep 2009

Spectrum's ZEVALIN expanded label receives FDA approval for treating non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (NasdaqGM:SPPI), a commercial-stage biotechnology company with a focus in oncology, today announced ZEVALIN® (ibritumomab tiuxetan), a CD20-directed radiotherapeutic antibody, received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for an expanded label for the treatment of patients with previously untreated follicular non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL), who achieve a partial or complete response to first-line chemotherapy.

5 Sep 2009