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High levels of secretin hormone may play vital role in management of chronic liver diseases

High levels of a digestive hormone called secretin may play an important role in the management of certain chronic liver diseases, according to new research published in the journal Hepatology. These findings could result in new ways to treat cholestatic liver diseases, a condition that impairs the movement of bile, the fluid produced by the liver to digest fats.

18 May 2016

Newborn screen for Niemann-Pick disease type C ready for piloting

Researchers have developed a bile acid-based test that they believe could help screen for Niemann-Pick disease type C in newborns.

6 May 2016

Simple test for measuring bile acids in biological fluids can help diagnose severe fat storage disorder

Researchers have developed a quick and simple method for measuring bile acids in biological fluids that can be used to rapidly diagnosis a severe fat storage disorder that can lead to liver disease in infancy and neurological dysfunction starting in childhood or early adult life.

5 May 2016

Exposure to fine particulate matter in air can increase risk of cancer-specific mortality

In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) published a series of monographs on the evaluation of various carcinogenic risks. In a monograph on air pollution, the organization pointed out the difficulty of assessing the effects of pollution on multiple types of cancers, given their different etiologies, risk factors and variability in the composition of air pollutants in space and time. However, the IARC identified certain key components of air pollution, including particulates.

30 Apr 2016

Regular aspirin use may help reduce risk of bile duct cancer

Regular use of aspirin was linked with a significantly reduced risk of developing bile duct cancer, also called cholangiocarcinoma, in a recent study. The findings, which are published in the journal Hepatology, indicate that additional research on the potential of aspirin for preventing bile duct cancer is warranted.

27 Apr 2016

Post-mortem toxicology screening has many phases

Prince's autopsy was conducted by A. Quinn Strobl, MD, FCAP, a member of the College of American Pathologists. The results are expected to take at least two weeks, perhaps as many as six full weeks. This tragedy has people asking again "Why do toxicology results take so long?"

26 Apr 2016

Researchers reveal how bile component taurine attracts Vibrio cholera

A group of researchers from Osaka University, Hosei University, and Nagoya University have revealed the molecular mechanism that Vibrio cholerae, the etiological agent of cholera, is attracted by bile. This group has also successfully detected the ligand binding to the bacteria chemoreceptor in vivo for the first time. These results may significantly advance research on mechanism and control of V. cholerae.

26 Apr 2016

Aspirin use linked with reduced risk of developing bile duct cancer

A team of current and former Mayo Clinic researchers has discovered that aspirin use is associated with a significantly reduced risk of developing bile duct cancer, also called cholangiocarcinoma. The results are published in Hepatology.

20 Apr 2016

New therapy strategy for liver disease shows initial measureable success with norUrso

The new therapy strategy for primary sclerosing cholangitis, a liver disease that at present still cannot be cured with medication, shows initial measureable success with the nor-ursodeoxycholic acid (norUrso).

19 Apr 2016

Newly developed implantable device can deliver chemotherapy drugs directly to pancreatic tumors

Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, in part because it is very difficult for chemotherapy drugs to reach the pancreas, which is located deep within the abdomen.

16 Apr 2016

Study finds how tumour cells grow through scavenging bad cholesterol

Several studies have recognized a link between obesity and cancer. Richard Lehner, professor of Pediatrics and investigator at the University of Alberta's Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, has taken his research further to understand how tumour cells grow through scavenging very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) and low-density lipoproteins (LDL), commonly known as the "bad cholesterol", and what mechanisms can be used to reduce the malignant cells' growth.

11 Apr 2016

Gallbladder removal surgeries now becomes safer with new imaging procedure

UCLA researchers have discovered an optimal way to image the bile ducts during gallbladder removal surgeries using a tested and safe dye and a real-time near-infrared florescence laparoscopic camera, a finding that will make the procedure much safer for the hundreds of thousands of people who undergo the procedure each year.

11 Mar 2016

Merck introduces new products for separation and analysis at Pittcon 2016

Merck, a leading science and technology company is launching a range of new products for separation and analysis at the Pittcon Conference and Expo 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia, March 6 - 10, the world's largest conference for laboratory science.

8 Mar 2016

PCSK9-inhibitor drugs: A game-changer for individuals with extremely high cholesterol levels

A 59-year-old heart patient with dangerously high levels of cholesterol that could not be adequately reduced by statin drugs now has near-normal cholesterol levels, thanks to a new class of drugs that grew out of work done by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers.

27 Feb 2016

Scientists reveal underlying mechanism for formation and growth of epithelial tubes

A team of scientists from Singapore and France has revealed the underlying mechanism for the formation and growth of a fundamental type of tissue - epithelial tubes. Defects in the architecture of epithelial tubes lead to diseases such as cholestasis, atherosclerosis and polycystic kidney disease.

25 Feb 2016

Bile acid enables foetus to produce blood stem cells

A research group at Lund University in Sweden has been able to show that bile acid is transferred from the mother to the foetus via the placenta to enable the foetus to produce blood stem cells.

31 Jan 2016

CCF approved for Eugene Washington Engagement Award by PCORI to support upcoming conference

The Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation has been approved for a Eugene Washington Engagement Award by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to support its 2016 Annual Conference on February 3-6 in Salt Lake City.

26 Jan 2016

Common antibiotics can promote C. diff infections by killing off bile acid-altering microbes

New research from North Carolina State University and the University of Michigan finds that bile acids which are altered by bacteria normally living in the large intestine inhibit the growth of Clostridium difficile, or C. diff. C. diff is a harmful bacterium that can cause painful and sometimes fatal infections.

7 Jan 2016

Bile acid may help treat fatty liver disease and obesity

A bile acid that can turn off a receptor in the gut has prevented and reversed fatty liver disease in mice, according to an international team of researchers. The compound may help treat certain metabolic disorders, such as Type 2 diabetes and obesity, as well.

16 Dec 2015

Gallstones, statins increase risk of acute pancreatitis, shows study

Idiopathic pancreatitis is often caused by small gallstones that are difficult to observe prior to surgery, shows a study from the University of Eastern Finland. Small gallstones were found in surgery from two out of three idiopathic pancreatitis patients.

8 Dec 2015