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Reuters examines challenges related to estimating number of undernourished people worldwide

"Calculating the number of hungry people around the world at any given moment, let alone predicting how that number is likely to change in the future, is no easy task," Reuters reports in an article examining the numerous challenges of estimating the number of undernourished people worldwide and noting the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is expected to release new data and methodology in October "as part of its annual report on food insecurity."

4 May 2012

Regular jogging increases life expectancy

Undertaking regular jogging increases the life expectancy of men by 6.2 years and women by 5.6 years, reveals the latest data from the Copenhagen City Heart study presented at the EuroPRevent2012 meeting.

4 May 2012

WFP, UNHCR concerned about food, water insecurity in border areas between Sudan, South Sudan

The U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) "has warned clashes along the border between Sudan and South Sudan threaten to plunge the region into widespread hunger" and "said it is scaling up its humanitarian operation in South Sudan to assist a growing number of refugees and displaced people," VOA News reports.

4 May 2012

GOS prompts body's natural killer cells to ward off colon cancer

Researchers at Michigan State University have shown a prebiotic may help the body's own natural killer cells fight bacterial infection and reduce inflammation, greatly decreasing the risk of colon cancer.

4 May 2012

Viewpoints: Doctor-led frugality; George will on his son's life with Down syndrome; Facebook spurs organ donors

In case you missed it, a recommendation came out last month that physicians cut back on using 45 common tests and treatments. ... Most doctors will agree with the recommendations on the list. But the problem of overuse is less one of bad doctors although there are a few; the problem is more one of good doctors working in a bad system. ... But we have to start somewhere - and this list is a good start. Now it needs to be extended.

4 May 2012

Affymetrix total revenue decreases to $65.2 million

Affymetrix, Inc., today reported its operating results for the first quarter of 2012. Total revenue for the quarter was $65.2 million, as compared to total revenue of $73.7 million for the same period of 2011.

4 May 2012

Current research does not support use of smell tests for Alzheimer's dementia

Current research does not support the use of smell tests for predicting Alzheimer's dementia, according to a comprehensive review by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars at the University of Michigan and the VA Center for Clinical Management Research.

4 May 2012

Abbott to purchase AP214 hormone analogue from Action Pharma

Abbott and Action Pharma A/S, a privately owned company, today announced that they have entered into an agreement in which Abbott will acquire AP214 from Action Pharma.

4 May 2012

Health care quality varies widely despite high spending in the U.S.

The United States spends more on health care than 12 other industrialized countries yet does not provide "notably superior" care, according to a new study from The Commonwealth Fund.

4 May 2012

Clinical trial to investigate statins in patients with acute severe respiratory failure

Queen's University and NUI Galway and are leading a clinical trial to investigate the possibility that statins, a drug commonly used to combat cholesterol, might help patients with acute severe respiratory failure.

4 May 2012

New genetic pathway influences spread of cancer cells

In a new study from Lawson Health Research Institute, Dr. Joseph Torchia has identified a new genetic pathway influencing the spread of cancer cells. The discovery of this mechanism could lead to new avenues for treatment.

4 May 2012

UCLA creates crowd-sourced online gaming system to detect malaria

Online crowd-sourcing - in which a task is presented to the public, who respond, for free, with various solutions and suggestions - has been used to evaluate potential consumer products, develop software algorithms and solve vexing research-and-development challenges. But diagnosing infectious diseases?

4 May 2012

Varenicline reduces alcohol intake among heavy-drinking smokers

The smoking cessation drug varenicline significantly reduced alcohol consumption in a group of heavy-drinking smokers, in a study carried out by researchers at the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center at the University of California, San Francisco.

4 May 2012

NHPCO to develop and launch ‘Reaffirming Hospice Campaign’

The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization has contracted with Hill + Knowlton Strategies to develop and launch a "Reaffirming Hospice Campaign." This national campaign will reinforce the vital importance and quality of hospice to policy makers, healthcare professionals, and baby boomers.

4 May 2012

GenVec receives NIAID’s Phase I SBIR grant to support RSV vaccine program

GenVec, Inc. announced today that it has received a Phase I Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the Company's Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine program.

4 May 2012

Comorbidities common among patients with COPD

Comorbidities are common among patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and a number of these comorbidities are independently associated with an increased mortality risk, according to a new study.

4 May 2012

Researchers identify switches that can turn on or off genes associated with colorectal cancer

Two researchers at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth have helped to identify switches that can turn on or off genes associated with colorectal cancer. The finding offers clues about the development of colorectal cancer and could-potentially-provide targets for new therapies.

4 May 2012

NCIC CTG, Oncolytics to conduct REOLYSIN Phase II study in colorectal cancer

Oncolytics Biotech Inc. announced today that it has entered into an agreement whereby the NCIC Clinical Trials Group (CTG) at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, will sponsor and conduct a randomized Phase II study of REOLYSIN in patients with advanced or metastatic colorectal cancer.

4 May 2012

Scientists discover new type of dynamic change in human stem cells

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute and the University of California (UC) San Diego has discovered a new type of dynamic change in human stem cells.

4 May 2012

JAM-A protein a far more powerful clot inhibitor: Study

Cut your toe, and platelets -- those disc-shaped cells circulating in your blood -- rush to the scene, clumping together to plug the leak. But when an unwanted clot forms in an artery, and an overaccumulation of platelets blocks blood flow, a heart attack or stroke occurs, too often with fatal results.

4 May 2012