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Key signal in mice that tells stem cells to commit to becoming fat cells

The Hopkins team discovered that adding a single protein, dubbed BMP4, induced mouse stem cells to become fat cells. A very similar signal is likely to be involved in humans, too, say the scientists.

21 Jun 2004

Drug for multiple sclerosis prevented disease development when tested on animal models

Scientists from the Neurological Sciences Institute at Oregon Health & Science University have shown that an investigative drug for multiple sclerosis and related diseases prevented disease development when tested on animal models.

20 Jun 2004

Postnatal exposure to a mercury preservative commonly used in a number of childhood vaccines can lead to the development of autism-like damage

A new study published online June 8 in the Nature publication, Molecular Psychiatry, indicates that postnatal exposure to thimerosal, a mercury preservative commonly used in a number of childhood vaccines, can lead to the development of autism-like damage in autoimmune disease susceptible mice

11 Jun 2004

Drug commonly used for diabetes might be effective in treating multiple sclerosis

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago are launching a clinical trial to determine whether a drug commonly used for diabetes might be effective in treating multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease that affects 350,000 Americans.

10 Jun 2004

Research may help treat muscular dystrophies and other muscle diseases caused by glycosylation defects

Expressing high levels of a sugar-adding protein known as LARGE in mice that lack the protein can prevent muscular dystrophy in these animals, according to studies by researchers at the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine.

7 Jun 2004

Vitamin C can increase the severity of spontaneous knee osteoarthritis

High doses of vitamin C increase the severity of spontaneous knee osteoarthritis in an animal model of the disease, according to a new study by Duke University Medical Center researchers.

5 Jun 2004

Adrenaline packs a powerful punch in the use of antidepressants

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine found that norepinephrine (adrenaline) plays an important role in animals in determining behavioral effects in some of the most commonly prescribed antidepressants, regardless of which biochemical pathway the drug uses to alleviate symptoms of depression.

3 Jun 2004

Stent methodologies for treating occluded arteries

Branch points in the arteries are a common area of atherosclerotic disease, resulting in the occlusion of both branches. These branch points can generally be defined as a main branch and a side branch, and, in treating the disease, the question of what is the optimal course of action, opening the main branch, the side branch, or both, remains uncertain.

2 Jun 2004

A new guideline evaluates the treatment of infantile spasms

A new guideline developed by the American Academy of Neurology and the Child Neurology Society evaluates the treatment of infantile spasms. The guideline is published in the May 25 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 May 2004

Combination therapy may be useful in humans with spinal cord injury

A combination therapy using transplanted cells plus two experimental drugs significantly improves function in paralyzed rats, a new study shows. The results suggest that a similar therapy may be useful in humans with spinal cord injury.

23 May 2004

New study of tumor genetics may help to treat patients with head and neck cancer

Head and neck tumors account for more than 40,000 new cancers annually in the United States. The most common of these is squamous cell carcinoma. Prognosis is based largely on location and size of the tumor, and if the cancer has spread, or metastasized, to lymph nodes and distant sites in the body.

19 May 2004

Genetically engineered viruses may create new class of cancer therapies

A genetically engineered virus can selectively kill cancerous cells in the lung and colon while leaving healthy cells intact, according to new research published today in Cancer Research by William Wold and colleagues at Saint Louis University School of Medicine.

15 May 2004

Embryonic stem cells may hold the key to regenerating damaged heart muscle

Embryonic stem cells may hold the key to regenerating damaged heart muscle, when transplanted within a 3-dimensional scaffold into the infracted heart, according to a new study coming out in June in the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation.

14 May 2004

Time bomb in heart leads to heart failure in some congenital heart disease patients

However, surgical correction of certain forms of congenital heart disease may not fix the underlying molecular trigger that drives progressive heart failure and sudden death later in life, according to new research from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine.

29 Apr 2004

Sprouts and broccoli may reduce risk of high blood pressure

Glucoraphanin, also known as sulforaphane glucosinolate (SGS(TM)), a naturally-occurring compound found in broccoli sprouts and broccoli, may reduce risk of high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and stroke, according to new research published in the May 4 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.

28 Apr 2004

An experimental vaccine based on a critical piece of the SARS virus

An experimental vaccine based on a critical piece of the SARS virus protects mice from SARS infection, researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, have found.

19 Apr 2004

Researchers find drug that may suppress genetic mutation using a novel screening approach

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have developed a way of identifying promising new drugs that may get around a major challenge in drug discovery.

18 Apr 2004

21st century is shaping up to be the "century of vaccines"

The 21st century is shaping up to be the "century of vaccines," as vaccine developers make striking progress against both emerging and longstanding diseases, according to Vaccines: Preventing Diseases and Protecting Health, from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

14 Apr 2004

Zebrafish show effects of ionizing and UV radiation differ during embryo development

Adam Dicker, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of radiation oncology at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson’s Kimmel Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Mary Frances McAleer, M.D., Ph.D., a resident in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Jefferson Medical College and their co-workers compared the effects on zebrafish embryos of two types of radiation – ionizing radiation, which is the kind given to patients for cancer treatment, and ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which comes naturally from the sun.

30 Mar 2004

Scientists identify genetic changes during infection by tuberculosis

Researchers at the Center for Biomedical Inventions at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have identified the genetic changes that Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes tuberculosis, undergoes during infection of a living host.

22 Mar 2004