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Growth factor enhances heart regeneration, improves heart function without need for cardiac stem cells

Injured heart tissue normally can't regrow, but researchers at Children's Hospital Boston have now laid the groundwork for regenerating heart tissue after a heart attack, in patients with heart failure, or in children with congenital heart defects.

24 Jul 2009

Swine flu pandemic could overwhelm critical care beds in England, especially children’s units

Experts in intensive care and anaesthesia have predicted that the current swine flu pandemic could overwhelm critical care beds and ventilators in England, with hospitals on the South East Coast, and in the South West, East of England and East Midlands, being worst hit.

24 Jul 2009

Johns Hopkins-designed animal tuberculosis "tracker" to speed drug and vaccine studies

Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a novel way to monitor in real time the behavior of the TB bacterium in mouse lungs noninvasively pinpointing the exact location of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The new monitoring system is expected to speed up what is currently a slow and cumbersome process to test the safety and efficacy of various TB drug regimens and vaccines in animals. Plans are already under way for developing a similar system to monitor TB disease in humans.

23 Jul 2009

Active children sleep better

Experts from Australia and New Zealand say exercise plays an important role in the sleeping habits of children and children who do no exercise take longer to fall asleep.

22 Jul 2009

Brits get direct access to a pandemic flu service

Brits will soon have direct access to a pandemic flu service which will make drugs for swine flu available without needing to consult a doctor.

22 Jul 2009

16 percent of Americans without health insurance

According to a Gallup-Healthways Well-Being poll released today, 16 percent of Americans - one of six adults - are uninsured, according to Gallup.

22 Jul 2009

H1N1 death toll doubles over last month; first vaccine trial begins

The worldwide death toll from the H1N1 (swine flu) virus has doubled in the past month, reaching over 700, the WHO announced Tuesday, the AP/Google.com reports.

22 Jul 2009

Swine flu vaccine trials begin in Australia as death toll tops 700

As Australian scientists embark on the first trials of a swine flu vaccine the World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced that the H1N1 virus (swine flu) has now killed more than 700 people around the world since the outbreak began four months ago.

22 Jul 2009

NIAID to launch 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine trials

Scientists in a network of medical research institutions across the United States are set to begin a series of clinical trials to gather critical data about influenza vaccines, including two candidate H1N1 flu vaccines. The research will be under the direction of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

22 Jul 2009

Migrant neuron: New imaging studies reveal mechanics of neuron migration

The development of the brain proceeds a little like the European settlement of North America. The earliest pioneers settled on the east coast with subsequent waves of settlers forming communities further and further westward. In cortical regions of the developing brain, generations of young neurons undergo a staged migration as well, with the earliest-born cells staying relatively close to their birthplace and subsequent generations traveling further, ultimately stratifying into six neuronal layers in the mature brain. Now, for the first time, imaging studies have identified the "motors" that propel a unique form of cell migration that creates these layers that

22 Jul 2009

Close caregiver relationship may slow Alzheimer's decline

A study led by Johns Hopkins and Utah State University researchers suggests that a particularly close relationship with caregivers may give people with Alzheimer's disease a marked edge over those without one in retaining mind and brain function over time. The beneficial effect of emotional intimacy that the researchers saw among participants was on par with some drugs used to treat the disease.

22 Jul 2009

Using anti-epileptic drug sodium valproate when pregnant can lower IQ of offspring

Interim results of a study being conducted by scientists at the University of Liverpool suggest that children aged three years and younger, who are born to women taking the anti-epileptic drug sodium valproate whilst pregnant, are likely to have an IQ of six to nine points lower than average.

21 Jul 2009

Miglustat shows promise for cystic fibrosis

Miglustat is a drug currently under phase 2 clinical trials on patients suffering from cystic fibrosis (1). Its potential for treating the disease was discovered in 2006 thanks to the work of Frédéric Becq's team at the Institute of Cell Physiology and Biology (CNRS/Université de Poitiers), funded by the associations Vaincre la Mucoviscidose, MucoVie66, La Pierre Le Bigaut and ABCF2.

21 Jul 2009

Rates of secondhand smoke exposure high among college students

Secondhand smoke (SHS) is not only a nuisance, but a potential health concern for many college students, and administrators should be taking steps to reduce students' exposure, according to a new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

21 Jul 2009

New hope for the global iron deficiency problem

According to the World Health Organization, approximately two billion people suffer from iron deficiency. They tire easily, experience problems in metabolizing harmful substances in their bodies and eventually suffer from anemia.

21 Jul 2009

Potassium citrate wards off kidney stones in epilepsy patients on ketogenic diet

Children on the high-fat ketogenic diet to control epileptic seizures can prevent the excruciatingly painful kidney stones that the diet can sometimes cause if they take a daily supplement of potassium citrate the day they start the diet, according to research from Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

21 Jul 2009

Child’s IQ can be affected by mother’s exposure to urban air pollutants

A mother's exposure to urban air pollutants known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can adversely affect a child's intelligence quotient or IQ, a study reports. PAHs are chemicals released into the air from the burning of coal, diesel, oil and gas, or other organic substances such as tobacco. In urban areas motor vehicles are a major source of PAHs.

21 Jul 2009

Obama continues pressing health reform, but softens on the deadline

President Barack Obama in remarks on Monday called out critics of his push for health reform and softened his timeline talk, The Associated Press reports.

20 Jul 2009

Obama readies stronger hand on health reform, plans meetings with players

The next two weeks of a health reform fight may prove pivotal for President Barack Obama's image and his ability to use his popularity to get things done, The Washington Post reports.

20 Jul 2009

Governors question Medicaid expansion while some states do more with CHIP

The New York Times reports that "The nation's governors, Democrats as well as Republicans, voiced deep concern Sunday about the shape of the health care plan emerging from Congress, fearing that Washington was about to hand them expensive new Medicaid obligations without money to pay for them.

20 Jul 2009