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Research shows why some heart failure treatments fail

Do the biological underpinnings of heart failure share more in common with cancerous tumors than other cardiovascular diseases?

12 Nov 2008

Isoflurane induces Alzheimer's-associated changes in mouse brains

For the first time researchers have shown that a commonly used anesthetic can produce changes associated with Alzheimer's disease in the brains of living mammals, confirming previous laboratory studies.

12 Nov 2008

Without enzyme, biological reaction essential to life takes 2.3 billion years

All biological reactions within human cells depend on enzymes. Their power as catalysts enables biological reactions to occur usually in milliseconds. But how slowly would these reactions proceed spontaneously, in the absence of enzymes - minutes, hours, days? And why even pose the question?

12 Nov 2008

Hydrogen sulfide could be used to treat humans with heart failure

At low concentrations, the toxic gas hydrogen sulfide protects the hearts of mice from heart failure, scientists at Emory University School of Medicine have found.

12 Nov 2008

Scientists map steps to block enzyme phosphodiesterase 5's action in heart failure

Taking a cue from the way drugs like Viagra put the biological brakes on a key enzyme involved in heart failure, scientists at Johns Hopkins have mapped out a key chemical step involved in blocking the enzyme.

12 Nov 2008

Diuretic reduces risk for type of heart failure that affects women more often than

New research by The University of Texas School of Public Health shows that a medication for high blood pressure called a diuretic or water pill is particularly effective at reducing the risk for a type of heart failure that affects women more often than men.

11 Nov 2008

Raptor Pharmaceuticals announces positive results for Convivia program

Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. has announced positive results in its Phase IIa study of oral 4-methylpyrazole ("4-MP") in subjects with ALDH2 deficiency, or ethanol intolerance, as the initial development stage of its Convivia program.

11 Nov 2008

Astragalus root plant chemical used to fight HIV

Like other kinds of cells, immune cells lose the ability to divide as they age because a part of their chromosomes known as a telomere becomes progressively shorter with cell division.

11 Nov 2008

Researchers describe how cells recycle protein waste

Garbage collectors are important for removing trash; without them waste accumulates and can quickly become a health hazard.

11 Nov 2008

Researchers aim to over-stress already taxed mantle cell lymphoma cells

Cancer cells are already stressed by the fast pace they require to grow and spread and scientists believe a little more stress just may kill them.

11 Nov 2008

Trial of investigational drug for treatment of advanced heart failure

UC San Diego Medical Center is currently enrolling patients in a Phase 2 clinical trial of an investigational drug for the treatment of advanced heart failure.

10 Nov 2008

Rheumatoid arthritis drugs too slow to stop damage

A study by New Zealand researchers has questioned the current treatment approaches for rheumatoid arthritis and say they may be too slow in controlling the start of the joint damage the disease causes.

10 Nov 2008

Gene therapy for advanced heart failure shows promising results

Phase I results of the first clinical trial of gene therapy for patients with advanced heart failure show the approach to be promising, with improvements in several measures of the condition's severity.

10 Nov 2008

VIA Pharmaceuticals announces results of phase 2 trials of VIA-2291 in cardiovascular disease

VIA Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced the results of two Phase 2 studies of its lead drug, VIA-2291.

10 Nov 2008

Crestor (rosuvastatin calcium) shown to significantly reduce major cardiovascular events

New data from the JUPITER study demonstrated that Crestor (rosuvastatin calcium) 20 mg significantly reduced major cardiovascular (CV) events (defined in this study as the combined risk of myocardial infarction, stroke, arterial revascularization, hospitalization for unstable angina, or death from CV causes) by a dramatic 44% compared to placebo (p<0.001) among men and women with elevated hsCRP but low to normal cholesterol levels.

10 Nov 2008

Researchers discover metabolic deficiency in pancreatic cancer

UC Davis Cancer Center researchers have discovered a metabolic deficiency in pancreatic cancer cells that can be used to slow the progress of the deadliest of all cancers.

7 Nov 2008

Researchers find new path to antibiotics in dirt

A teaspoon of dirt contains an estimated 10,000 species of bacteria, but it's only one percent of these microbial bugs - the ones that can be grown easily in a lab - that have brought us antibiotics, anticancer agents and other useful drugs.

7 Nov 2008

Anti-herpes drug acyclovir inhibits HIV replication, but with a price

The anti-herpes drug acyclovir can also directly slow down HIV infection by targeting the reverse transcriptase (RT) enzyme, researchers report in this week's JBC.

7 Nov 2008

Accelr8 announces study results with BACcel diagnostic system for broad resistance in gram-negative pathogens

Accelr8 Technology Corporation announced study results today that were presented at the joint sessions of the 48 th Annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC, www.icaac.org) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA, www.idsociety.org), October 25-29 in Washington, DC.

7 Nov 2008

Scientists confirm a molecular clipping mechanism behind stem cell development

Stem cells don't just become a part of the liver or the brain in a flash; it takes a complex molecular choreography and requires that specific genes be switched on and off at specific times.

6 Nov 2008