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Research highlights importance of starch in human beginnings

To think that world domination could have begun in the cheeks. That's one interpretation of a discovery, published online September 9 in Nature Genetics, which indicates that humans carry extra copies of the salivary amylase gene.

10 Sep 2007

New method to create natural drug products

Until now, only the intricate machinery inside cells could take a mix of enzyme ingredients, blend them together and deliver a natural product with an elaborate chemical structure such as penicillin.

5 Sep 2007

Nanotechnology helps identify molecular signature common to Lou Gehrig's disease

A nanotechnology developed by a University at Buffalo professor has enabled researchers to identify a molecular signature common to both familial and sporadic cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease.

5 Sep 2007

New way to burn off calories

A new study in the September issue of Cell Metabolism, a publication of Cell Press, points to a new method for burning off all those irresistible extra calories—by turning on an energy-draining, but otherwise futile, cycle of protein synthesis and breakdown.

5 Sep 2007

N-acetylcysteine may not be as safe as once thought

Certain preparations taken to enhance athletic performance or stave off disease contain an anti-oxidant that could cause harm.

5 Sep 2007

Muscadine grape skin extract shows promise for prostate cancer

Laboratory experiments show that an extract of the skin of muscadine grapes can inhibit growth of prostate cancer cells in the laboratory.

4 Sep 2007

The burden of diabetes in heart disease in Europe

Diabetes is becoming one of the major health problems in the European and US populations. It is frequently associated with overweight, hypertension and high serum cholesterol levels, representing a dangerous combination of risk factors for the development of heart and vascular diseases.

2 Sep 2007

Blood pressure drugs cut death rate in diabetes

The largest-ever study of treatments for diabetes has shown that a fixed combination of two blood pressure lowering drugs reduces the risk of death, as well as the risks of heart and kidney disease. Results from the ADVANCE (Action in Diabetes and Vascular Disease) Study were presented today at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2007 in Vienna.

2 Sep 2007

The first clinically available oral direct renin inhibitor shows promise in heart failure

Drugs that block a hormonal cascade, known as the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS), help patients with heart failure. Direct renin inhibitors (DRIs) block the RAAS at its first and rate-limiting step.

2 Sep 2007

Does physical activity provide a molecular key to longevity?

Fitness and physical exercise are among the most neglected means to improve prognosis. They are the healthiest cardiovascular intervention. Even cardiologists focus on pharmacological treatment and evaluate classical risk factors without asking about daily exercise or objective measures of physical capacity. It is surprising considering the strong data that underscores the survival benefit of regular exercise training.

2 Sep 2007

Small animal imaging facility is big boon to research

When powerful magnets line up the body's protons before radiofrequency waves can grab their attention away, it's called spin physics.

30 Aug 2007

Inhaling nitric oxide helps transplant success

Administering inhaled nitric oxide (NO) during surgery helps protect liver transplant patients from organ failure, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

30 Aug 2007

Genetics of imatinib resistance in acute lymphoblastic leukemia

In the September 15th issue of Genes & Development, Drs. Richard T. Williams, Willem den Besten, and Charles J. Sherr at Howard Hughes Medical Institute, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis TN, lend new insights into how an aggressive form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) develops, and how sensitivity to the targeted chemotherapeutic drug, imatinib, can be diminished through interactions between tumor cells and the host microenvironment.

30 Aug 2007

St. Jude discovers factors that accelerate resistance to Gleevec targeted therapy in lymphoblastic leukemia

Results of a study by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital provide strong evidence for why the drug imatinib (Gleevec), which has revolutionized the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), is often unable to prevent relapse of a particularly aggressive form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

29 Aug 2007

Discovery may lead to fast and cheap method of making vaccines

Researchers may be able to tinker with a single amino acid of an enzyme that helps viruses multiply to render them harmless, according to molecular biologists who say the discovery could pave the way for a fast and cheap method of making vaccines.

29 Aug 2007

Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb finalize agreement on metabolic disorders program

Pfizer Inc. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company have announced that they have finalized a definitive agreement for the worldwide collaboration to research, develop and commercialize DGAT-1 inhibitors, a collaboration first announced on April 26, 2007.

28 Aug 2007

Vioxx side-effects explained

Vioxx and related pain medications were taken off the market in 2004 because they caused dangerous heart problems in some people.

28 Aug 2007

Sildenafil increases release of key reproductive hormone oxytocin

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison report this month that sildenafil increases the amount of oxytocin released by stimulation of the posterior pituitary gland, a small structure directly underneath the brain that regulates hormone levels in response to neural signals.

24 Aug 2007

Binding up iron in the brain to combat Parkinson's and Alzheimer's

Duke University chemists are developing ways to bind up iron in the brain to combat the neurological devastation of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.

24 Aug 2007

Light may play a much more important role in bacterial life than has previously thought

The bacteria that cause brucellosis can sense light and use the information to regulate their virulence, according to a study in the August 24 issue of the journal Science.

24 Aug 2007