Liver News and Research

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Protein found in the saliva of deer ticks prevents the HIV-1 virus from attaching to the surface of T cells

The HIV-1 virus cripples the human immune system by targeting white blood cells called T cells that form the body's first line of defense in fighting infections.

17 Feb 2008

How a red blood cell loses its nucleus

Unlike the rest of the cells in your body, your red blood cells lack nuclei.

17 Feb 2008

Potential new strategy for treating lupus

Immune cells that would normally die in healthy people accumulate in bodies of patients who have lupus and contribute to the disease, according to new Saint Louis University research published in the Feb. 15 issue of Immunity.

17 Feb 2008

Exercise may reduce gallstones

A new University of Illinois study shows that exercise-trained mice get far fewer gallstones than sedentary mice and identifies potential mechanisms to explain why this occurs.

14 Feb 2008

New Jefferson trial to test radiation-emitting beads against advanced liver cancer

Liver cancer specialists at Jefferson's Kimmel Cancer Center in Philadelphia are beginning an 18-month study of a new treatment for liver cancer.

13 Feb 2008

How red blood cells nuke their nuclei

Unlike the rest of the cells in your body, your red blood cells lack nuclei.

12 Feb 2008

Evolving complexity out of junk DNA

The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, claims to have solved this scientific riddle by analysing the genomics of primitive living fishes such as sharks and lampreys and their spineless relatives, such as the sea squirts.

12 Feb 2008

Beginnings of complex life traced to microRNA

Dartmouth College researchers and colleagues from the University of Bristol in the U.K. have traced the beginnings of complex life, i.e. vertebrates, to microRNA.

12 Feb 2008

New islet transplantation for patients with Type 1 diabetes

A team led by Dr Richard Smith, Consultant Senior Lecturer in Renal Medicine at North Bristol NHS Trust and the University of Bristol, will offer a pioneering new treatment for some patients with Type 1 diabetes, the Department of Health announced today.

11 Feb 2008

New computerized image analysis will aid diagnosis and treatment of cancer

With the aid of computerized image analysis, it may be possible in the future for radiologists to feel images with the help of a three-dimensional mouse.

11 Feb 2008

Cell transplant treatment for diabetics gets the green light in the UK

Sufferers in the UK with Type 1 diabetes have been given new hope of a cure with a nationwide cell transplant programme.

11 Feb 2008

Endurance training improves metabolism in mice

Researchers from the Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have demonstrated that in mice, the use of barbells may be as important to losing weight and improving health as the use of running shoes.

7 Feb 2008

Mayo Clinic Proceedings contributors discuss impact of donor organ allocation system

Liver transplant is a life saving treatment option for people with end-stage liver disease.

7 Feb 2008

Europe's most common genetic disease is a liver disorder

Much less widely known than the dangerous consequences of iron deficiencies is the fact that too much iron can also cause problems.

7 Feb 2008

Vitamin D for cancer

It sounds too good to be true … a little inexpensive pill that could block the development of some cancers, strengthen bones, prevent multiple sclerosis and alleviate winter depression.

7 Feb 2008

Both Alpha-Hydroxy and Beta-Hydroxy acid peels promise relief for acne sufferers

Chemical peels using either alpha-hydroxy acid or beta-hydroxy acid are both highly effective in treating mild to moderately severe facial acne, researchers at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine have found - the first study to compare the two different types of acid peels as therapies for the skin disorder.

6 Feb 2008

Two new studies examine non-invasive ways to determine liver fibrosis and cirrhosis

An enhanced version of the Original European Liver Fibrosis panel was found to have good diagnostic accuracy for fibrosis in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Conversely, transient elastography was unreliable for detecting cirrhosis in patients with acute liver damage. The studies are published in the February issue of Hepatology, a journal by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). The articles are also available online at Wiley Interscience.

5 Feb 2008

New vaccine for malaria under trial

Trials are underway, funded by the Wellcome Trust, for a new vaccine to combat the most deadly form of malaria.

5 Feb 2008

Less waste in the synthesis of anti-inflammatory drugs

Dr Francesca Paradisi of the Centre for Synthesis and Chemical Biology (CSCB) at University College Dublin, and Professor Daria Giacomini and co-workers at the University of Bologna, Italy, have developed a highly efficient enzyme-driven process which could be applied to the synthesis of drugs such as Ibuprofen, avoiding the 50% waste of the undesired byproduct generated by current processes.

4 Feb 2008

A new anatomical teaching aid

Medical students will be helped to understand what it is like to go under the knife thanks to a world-first project that brings together art and science.

4 Feb 2008