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Should hyperthyroidism patients consider combining Chinese and Western medicine?

It might not be a bad idea for people with overactive thyroids to supplement their standard treatment with Chinese herbal medicine, a new review suggests.

4 May 2007

Renewal of Echinacea and St John's Wort research

A five-year-old research center dedicated to understanding and improving Echinacea and Hypericum perforatum (St. John's wort) has received $4.4 million in continuation funding from the National Institutes of Health. The renewal is for three years.

4 May 2007

Study of damaged gene gives insight into causes of mental illness

Scientists have pinpointed how different types of damage in types of damage to the same gene can cause some people to suffer from schizophrenia while others have major depression.

4 May 2007

Single gene is responsible for most cool temperature sensation

The discovery, reported in the May 3 issue of the journal Neuron, might one day lead to the development of drugs that induce cold sensation as an analgesic, or block it to prevent certain forms of chronic pain associated with cold sensation.

4 May 2007

Prenatal toxicity linked to immune dysfunctions in later life

A Cornell researcher and his wife have conducted the first comprehensive review of later-life diseases that develop in people who were exposed to environmental toxins or drugs either in the womb or as infants.

4 May 2007

$Treatment with zoledronic acid effective in reducing fractures in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis$

Treatment with zoledronic acid effective in reducing fractures in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis

A treatment for osteoporosis delivered once a year is as effective as current monthly or weekly osteoporosis regimens at reducing the incidence of bone fractures, according to a new study led by a UCSF research team.

4 May 2007

FDA issues "Critical Path Opportunities for Generic Drugs"

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today issued the "Critical Path Opportunities for Generic Drugs" report identifying many of the unanswered scientific questions that impede the development of generic versions of commonly used drugs.

4 May 2007

New hope for patients with premature aging condition progeria

There is renewed hope for treatment of a rare genetic condition that causes rapidly accelerated aging and leads to an average life expectancy of 13 years.

4 May 2007

Scientists discover molecular mechanism that keeps HSV-1 activation restricted to a single gene for months or even years

By adulthood, most people have suffered at least one bout of painful cold sores brought on by the Herpes simplex virus 1, also known as HSV-1.

4 May 2007

Gene malfunctions cause schizophrenia, depression symptoms in mice

Researchers have demonstrated for the first time that malfunction of a gene that had been associated with schizophrenia and depression does indeed cause symptoms of those disorders.

4 May 2007

Newer flu vaccines may have been less effective than vaccines used in previous years

A new Harris Poll suggests that the flu vaccine used before last winter may have been less effective than the vaccines used in some previous years.

4 May 2007

FDA wants new warnings on antidepressant medications

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed that makers of all antidepressant medications update the existing black box warning on their products' labeling to include warnings about increased risks of suicidal thinking and behavior, known as suicidality, in young adults ages 18 to 24 during initial treatment (generally the first one to two months).

4 May 2007

FDA approves new indication for FRAGMIN for the extended treatment of symptomatic venous thromboembolism

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new indication for FRAGMIN (dalteparin sodium injection), for the extended treatment of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) to reduce the recurrence of VTE in patients with cancer.

4 May 2007

Statins reduce risk of stroke and heart attack

People whose cholesterol improved after one month on cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins reduced their risk of stroke and heart attack, according to research that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 59th Annual Meeting in Boston, April 28 , May 5, 2007.

4 May 2007

Cause of gender differences in high blood pressure and related kidney disease

While men and women both get high blood pressure and related kidney disease, the path to get there is shorter, steeper and just different for men, researchers say.

4 May 2007

AIDS Healthcare Foundation praises Thailand for drug stance

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has lauded the Government of Thailand for its vow to continue with plans to issue compulsory licenses for the manufacturing and importing of generic versions of lifesaving drugs, including AIDS drugs, despite the fact that the office of United States Trade Representative (USTR), elevated Thailand to its 'Priority Watch' List.

4 May 2007