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Suicide gene therapy kills bowel cancer cells

An innovative type of gene therapy has for the first time succeeded in making bowel cancer cells commit suicide, according to a report in Cancer Research.

20 May 2007

Smokeless cannabis-vaporizing device may help those with HIV-related neuropathy

A smokeless cannabis-vaporizing device delivers the same level of active therapeutic chemical and produces the same biological effect as smoking cannabis, but without the harmful toxins, according to UCSF researchers.

16 May 2007

FDA approves Dey, L.P.'s NDA for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease inhalation solution

Dey, L.P. has announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its New Drug Application (NDA) for Perforomist (formoterol fumarate) Inhalation Solution for long-term, twice-daily maintenance treatment of bronchoconstriction for emphysema and chronic bronchitis, also known as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

15 May 2007

Toxoplasmosis infection trick revealed by scientists

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease, primarily carried by cats.

11 May 2007

Researchers equip E. coli with a "riboswitch" chemo-navigational system

Using an innovative method to control the movement of Escherichia coli in a chemical environment, Emory University scientists have opened the door to powerful new opportunities in drug delivery, environmental cleanup and synthetic biology.

11 May 2007

Oncolytic viruses deliver a knockout punch to cancers

New scientific evidence is helping to build a compelling case for oncolytic viruses as a first-line and adjunctive treatment for many cancers.

11 May 2007

Current approach to drug discovery for Lou Gehrig's disease be re-examined

Most research on Lou Gehrig's disease therapeutics has been based on the assumption that its two forms (sporadic and hereditary) are similar in their underlying cause.

8 May 2007

New prostate cancer treatment wins award for Sloan-Kettering

The unique application of operations research to the treatment of prostate cancer allowed Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to better Fortune 500 companies last night and win an international competition for best project by an organization.

4 May 2007

Chiropractic spinal manipulation beneficial for neck pain

A new literature review finds evidence that patients with chronic neck pain enrolled in clinical trials reported significant improvement following chiropractic spinal manipulation, according to a March/April 2007 report in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT).

4 May 2007

Lab-on-a-chip speeds proteomics research

In recent years, the science of biology has been dominated by genomics, the study of genes and their functions.

4 May 2007

Recommended doses of ginseng, ginko biloba do not interfere with drug absorption

Recent findings that the widely-used herbal supplement Saint John's wort could dramatically affect the absorption and metabolism of many prescription and non-prescription drugs raised concerns that other popular herbal supplements might cause similar changes, thus significantly altering drugs, therapeutic or toxic effects.

2 May 2007

Biomarker discovery bodes well for better cancer diagnostics

While new findings from Ohio State University scientists suggest a genetic marker that could help distinguish between chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer and gauge who will do well with cancer treatment, a pharmacologist at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson in Philadelphia sees the discovery as much more.

2 May 2007

Green tea shows potential for HIV-associated dementia prevention

A compound derived from green tea greatly diminished the neurotoxicity of proteins secreted by the human immunodeficiency virus, suggesting a new approach to the prevention and treatment of HIV-associated dementia, also known as AIDS dementia complex.

2 May 2007

Sirion Therapeutics starts phase III clinical trials of pipeline compounds

Sirion Therapeutics has announced that it has initiated new phase III clinical programs for two of its pipeline compounds, ST-601 (difluprednate) and ST-603 (cyclosporine).

2 May 2007

Wrapping version of Gleevec fights drug-resistant cancer

A new study highlighted on the cover of this week's issue of Cancer Research finds that the anti-cancer drug Gleevec? is far more effective against a drug-resistant strain of cancer when the drug wraps the target with a molecular bandage that seals out water from a critical area.

2 May 2007

Simvastatin may help sufferers with Alzheimer's

Treatment with Simvastatin, one of the statin drugs widely used for lowering cholesterol in humans, significantly improved spatial memory - how to navigate a water maze - in mice genetically bred to have an Alzheimer's like disease.

1 May 2007

Nanoparticles found near plaque-filled arteries

Scientific evidence increasingly links arterial calcification to the presence of nanosized particles so small that some scientists question whether a nanoparticle can live and, if so, play a viable role in causing disease.

1 May 2007

New hope for diabetic retinopathy sufferers

Research increasingly shows promise to both slow and relieve the effects diabetic retinopathy, the most common complication of diabetes.

26 Apr 2007

High workloads for pharmacists increase the potential for medication errors

The risk of dispensing potentially harmful combinations of medications that could result in a drug interaction increased by 3 percent for each additional prescription filled per hour.

25 Apr 2007

Muscle restoration in an animal model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Using a new type of drug that targets a specific genetic defect, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, along with colleagues at PTC Therapeutics Inc. and the University of Massachusetts Medical School, have for the first time demonstrated restoration of muscle function in a mouse model of Duchenne's muscular dystrophy (DMD).

24 Apr 2007