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Study shows substantial benefit of combination therapy for advanced Marburg infections

A new study conducted at the Galveston National Laboratory at the The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston has shown substantial benefit to combining monoclonal antibodies and the antiviral remdesivir against advanced Marburg virus.

25 Mar 2021

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Getting down to work at HHS

As questions swirl about the Covid vaccine made by AstraZeneca, public health experts are worried the confusion could create more doubts among people already hesitant to get a vaccine.

25 Mar 2021

Three commonly used antiviral drugs potentially effective at preventing replication of SARS-CoV-2

An international team of researchers has found that three commonly used antiviral and antimalarial drugs are effective in vitro at preventing replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

24 Mar 2021

Democrats eye Medicare negotiations to lower drug prices

Democrats, newly in control of Congress and the White House, are united behind an idea that Republican lawmakers and major drugmakers fiercely oppose: empowering the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate the prices of brand-name drugs covered by Medicare.

23 Mar 2021

Underrepresentation in genomic databases may affect therapy selection for minority patients

Low representation of minority groups in public genomic databases may affect therapy selection for Black patients with cancer, according to new Mayo Clinic research published in npj Precision Oncology.

19 Mar 2021

The case for donating US Covid vaccines overseas

A Senate committee grilled federal officials about the shortage of vaccines to protect Americans against a pandemic virus. Two months later, the U.S. public had lost interest in the virus, and millions of vaccines were sitting in warehouses — although poor countries still needed them.

19 Mar 2021

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: ACA packs more benefits — and more confusion

The Covid relief bill signed by President Joe Biden a week ago includes billions of dollars in new health benefits for consumers. But those benefits may be hard for people to take advantage of because of the interaction with the income tax system and the lack of experts to help them navigate the system.

18 Mar 2021

Doctors debate use of blood thinners to prevent clots in women after C-sections

Nearly all women who deliver babies through cesarean section at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City receive injections of the blood thinner heparin for weeks after the procedure, to prevent potentially life-threatening blood clots.

17 Mar 2021

Using iodine as catalyst to advance the sustainability of pharmaceutical syntheses

Synthesizing pharmaceuticals for cancer, viral diseases, and other medical conditions is slow work. A particularly challenging chemical transformation is to start with what's known as an unactivated alkene--a common molecular building block--and end up with a vicinal diamine; i.e., installation of two nitrogen units into carbon--carbon double bonds.

16 Mar 2021

New cancer immunotherapy uses engineered T cells to target a common genetic alteration

Researchers developed a prototype for a new cancer immunotherapy that uses engineered T cells to target a genetic alteration common among all cancers.

15 Mar 2021

Cancer cells may dodge chemotherapy by going into 'active hibernation'

Cancer cells can dodge chemotherapy by entering a state that bears similarity to certain kinds of senescence, a type of "active hibernation" that enables them to weather the stress induced by aggressive treatments aimed at destroying them, according to a new study by scientists at Weill Cornell Medicine.

13 Mar 2021

University of Missouri settles lawsuits over knee surgeries involving veterinarian

The University of Missouri has settled a collection of personal injury and false advertising claims over knee surgeries for $16.2 million, in what appears to be one of its largest public payouts in recent years.

12 Mar 2021

Public schools can adopt lower physical distancing policies with masking mandates

As COVID-19 infection rates continue to fall, Massachusetts officials are signaling it's almost time to end remote learning and send all school-aged children back to the classroom.

12 Mar 2021

High obesity rates in Southern states magnify Covid threat

In January, as Mississippi health officials planned for their incoming shipments of covid-19 vaccine, they assessed the state's most vulnerable: health care workers, of course, and elderly people in nursing homes.

11 Mar 2021

Promega launches XpressAmp™ Direct Amplification Reagents

Promega Corporation has released XpressAmp™ Direct Amplification Reagents that facilitate RNA extraction-free sample preparation that is automation-friendly.

From Promega Corporation 11 Mar 2021

Pfizer’s newest vaccine plant has persistent mold issues, history of recalls

Pfizer's management knew last year there was "a mold issue" at the Kansas facility now slated to produce the drugmaker's urgently needed covid-19 vaccine, according to a Food and Drug Administration inspection report.

10 Mar 2021

Weedy grass may be effective against several human diseases

Native to the southeastern United States, a weedy grass has spread northward to Canada and also made its way to Australia and Japan. Andropogon virginicus grows densely packed and up to seven feet tall, disrupting growth patterns of other plants and competing for resources.

8 Mar 2021

Biden’s criticism of Trump team’s vaccine contracts is a stretch

During a March 2 news conference on the covid-19 pandemic, President Joe Biden claimed that former President Donald Trump's administration did not ensure there would be enough vaccines for the American public.

8 Mar 2021

FDA-approved drug has limited treatment efficacy for hypoactive sexual desire disorder

An independent analysis of the medical trials which formed the final basis of approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) strongly suggests the drug bremelanotide has very limited effectiveness as a treatment for hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in women, and that trial participants preferred a placebo.

8 Mar 2021

New mobile app can help people diagnosed with glaucoma

Researchers from City, University London, supported by Allergan Pharmaceuticals and Glaucoma UK, have today released the latest edition of an app to help people newly diagnosed with glaucoma.

8 Mar 2021