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Scientists create mice that don't gain weight, even when fed fat-laden, high calorie diets

By altering the expression of a single -- albeit different – gene, Drs. Roger Davis (UMASS Medical School, USA) and Ying-Hue Lee (Academia Sinica, Taiwan) have succeeded in creating two different strains of transgenic mice that don't gain weight, even when fed fat-laden, high calorie diets.

2 Aug 2004

Study shows blood transfusions during heart surgery appear to increase death risk

Patients who received blood platelet transfusions during coronary bypass surgery were more likely to have prolonged hospital stays, longer surgeries, more bleeding and higher risk of infection, stroke and death, according to an international study led by the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center.

29 Jul 2004

Important step in understanding the genetic mechanisms of aging

Scientists have rendered the first gene and protein networks of human aging, an important step in understanding the genetic mechanisms of aging. The work led by Joao Pedro de Magalhaes from Harvard Medical School is detailed in the July 30 issue of FEBS Letters.

29 Jul 2004

Leptin's fat-burning role in humans

For nearly a decade, scientists have known that leptin plays an important fat-burning role in humans. But the map of leptin's path through the body – the key to understanding how and why the hormone works – is still incomplete.

27 Jul 2004

European scientists expect to begin human trials using pharmaceuticals grown in GM plants

The European Union has awarded €12 million to a network of scientists in 11 European countries and South Africa and the aim is to use plants to produce vaccines and treatments against major diseases including AIDS, rabies, diabetes and TB.

23 Jul 2004

Bladder-sparing treatment shows promise against cancer

For patients with invasive bladder cancer, treatment has typically meant an operation to remove the bladder and nearby organs. This requires up to a week in the hospital and leaves patients with a reconstructed bladder or urostomy bag.

21 Jul 2004

Will the insured sacrifice to help cover the uninsured? New study suggests the answer may be yes

One of the biggest questions facing Americans as the 2004 elections approach involves a tradeoff: Will those who currently have health insurance be willing to sacrifice in order to insure the 44 million people who don't?

21 Jul 2004

European funding to study how yeasts such as Candida cause infections among hospital patients

Dr Fritz Mühlschlegel, Reader in Medical Microbiology in the Biosciences Department at Kent and Consultant Medical Microbiologist in the East Kent NHS Trust, and Dr Daniel Poullain from Lille’s Medical School have been awarded 315,106 euros under the EU’s Interreg Programme to study the mechanisms by which fungal pathogens cause disease.

21 Jul 2004

Chemotherapy aimed at both cancer cells and their genetically normal cellular 'microenvironment' might improve the success of breast cancer treatment

In the first comprehensive survey of gene activity in each cell type composing normal and malignant breast tissue, scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified genes in non-cancerous supporting cells that can spur the growth of breast cancer cells.

20 Jul 2004

Mustard greens, cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprouts help to preserve cognitive abilities in ageing women

Harvard Medical School researchers have found that women who eat lots of mustard greens, cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower or brussels sprouts in middle age preserved more of their cognitive abilities as they entered their 70s.

20 Jul 2004

Tinned tuna lowers the risk of an irregular hearbeat

A new study out today suggests that tuna or broiled/baked fish lowers the risk of an irregular hearbeat among elderly people.

19 Jul 2004

Children and adolescents who consistently watch television for 2 hours or more a day are at an increased risk of being overweight

Children and adolescents who consistently watch television for 2 hours or more a day are at an increased risk of being overweight, to smoke, and to have high cholesterol concentrations in early adulthood—substantial risk factors for long-term health problems in later life—conclude authors of a study from New Zealand in this week’s issue of THE LANCET.

15 Jul 2004

Research team developing new defenses against plague and smallpox

Using a federal biodefense grant, a Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center team will try to develop new approaches to immunizing people against the plague and smallpox, two of the most feared potential agents of bio-terrorism.

15 Jul 2004

Immunotherapeutic strategy allowing patients to use their own immune system to fight their cancer

Scientists affiliated with the Harvard University Medical School have devised ways of bolstering patients' immune response against kidney and breast cancer.

15 Jul 2004

Women with a condition called vulvodynia process pain differently

The researchers tested 17 women with vulvodynia and 23 similar women without pain at 23 sites throughout the vulva and at the deltoid muscle, the shin and the thumbnail to assess pain tolerance. They found the women with vulvodynia had lower tolerance at all sites than the women without vulvodynia.

13 Jul 2004

Increasing levels of growth hormone may be an effective treatment for HIV lipodystrophy

Increasing the body's production of growth hormone may be an effective treatment for HIV lipodystrophy, a syndrome involving the redistribution of fat and other metabolic changes in those receiving combination drug therapy for HIV infection.

11 Jul 2004

Dexrazoxane reduces heart damage caused by childhood leukemia treatment with doxorubicin (Adriamycin)

A potent chemotherapy that is highly effective in treating the most common form of childhood leukemia can significantly harm the heart, but findings from a multi-center study

9 Jul 2004

Becoming a proficient doctor has always demanded hard work; it is unacceptable to leave out large parts of the curriculum

The current fashion in teaching doctors, which allows medical students to decide what they want to learn and how to go about it, is strongly criticised in a paper published in the British Medical Journal this week (10th July 2004).

8 Jul 2004

New guidelines for treating heart attacks

If your chest pain worsens and lasts more than five minutes, especially if you’re short of breath, feel weak, nauseated or lightheaded, call 9-1-1—you could be having a heart attack.

8 Jul 2004

Researchers found that a significant number of men get the hepatitis B virus behind bars

In the first study to gauge the risks of contracting HIV and hepatitis in Rhode Island prisons, Brown University researchers found that a significant number of men get the hepatitis B virus behind bars – a finding that led the team to call for prison-wide vaccinations. Results are published in the current edition of the American Journal of Public Health.

7 Jul 2004

Medical School News and Research

Scientists create mice that don't gain weight, even when fed fat-laden, high calorie diets

Study shows blood transfusions during heart surgery appear to increase death risk

Important step in understanding the genetic mechanisms of aging

Leptin's fat-burning role in humans

European scientists expect to begin human trials using pharmaceuticals grown in GM plants

Bladder-sparing treatment shows promise against cancer

Will the insured sacrifice to help cover the uninsured? New study suggests the answer may be yes

European funding to study how yeasts such as Candida cause infections among hospital patients

Chemotherapy aimed at both cancer cells and their genetically normal cellular 'microenvironment' might improve the success of breast cancer treatment

Mustard greens, cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprouts help to preserve cognitive abilities in ageing women

Tinned tuna lowers the risk of an irregular hearbeat

Children and adolescents who consistently watch television for 2 hours or more a day are at an increased risk of being overweight

Research team developing new defenses against plague and smallpox

Immunotherapeutic strategy allowing patients to use their own immune system to fight their cancer

Women with a condition called vulvodynia process pain differently

Increasing levels of growth hormone may be an effective treatment for HIV lipodystrophy

Dexrazoxane reduces heart damage caused by childhood leukemia treatment with doxorubicin (Adriamycin)

Becoming a proficient doctor has always demanded hard work; it is unacceptable to leave out large parts of the curriculum

New guidelines for treating heart attacks

Researchers found that a significant number of men get the hepatitis B virus behind bars

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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