Endocrine News and Research

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Harmful BPA found in canned foods

According to a new study canned foods may contain harmful chemical Bisphenol A or BPA. BPA is a common chemical used in plastic products and in the lining of cans. BPA keeps them from corroding, but it may also be creeping into the food.

24 Nov 2011

Study raises concerns about Bisphenol A in canned foods

A recent study published in JAMA raises concerns about Bisphenol A (BPA) in canned foods.

24 Nov 2011

Metformin prevents growth of breast cancer cells in human cultures

An inexpensive drug that treats Type-2 diabetes has been shown to prevent a number of natural and man-made chemicals from stimulating the growth of breast cancer cells, according to a newly published study by a Michigan State University researcher.

24 Nov 2011

BUSM professor receives 2011 ACN Communication Media Award

Michael F. Holick, PhD, MD, director of the General Clinical Research Unit and professor of medicine, physiology and biophysics at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) was selected by the American College of Nutrition (ACN) Awards Committee as the 2011 recipient of the ACN Communication Media Award.

23 Nov 2011

FDA approves Medtronic's iPro2 Professional continuous glucose monitoring system

Medtronic, Inc. today announced the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of iPro2, a next generation Professional continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system and the latest in a series of recent diabetes technology approvals and innovations from the company.

From Medtronic 22 Nov 2011

MIT, Pfizer announce new location for CVMED and Neuroscience research units

Pfizer Inc. and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) today held the official groundbreaking of the new location of Pfizer's Cardiovascular, Metabolic and Endocrine Diseases (CVMED) and Neuroscience research units at 610 Main Street, Cambridge, MA.

22 Nov 2011

CUMC presents 2011 Naomi Berrie Award to UMDNJ researcher

Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) presented the 2011 Naomi Berrie Award to Barry E. Levin, MD, a University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey researcher whose work focuses on the mechanisms by which specialized metabolic-sensing neurons regulate glucose and energy homeostasis. Junior investigator Kazuhisa Watanabe, at Columbia University Medical Center, received a Berrie Fellow award.

22 Nov 2011

PCBs affect growth and bone density in turtles, an 'indicator species'

Manufactured until 1977, and banned by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1979, pentachlorobiphenyls (PCBs) are chemicals still commonly found in the environment because they break down slowly.

17 Nov 2011

Cultured ES cells can self-organize into three-dimensional tissue-like structures

The possibility that functional, three-dimensional tissues and organs may be derived from pluripotent cells, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), represents one of the grand challenges of stem cell research, but is also one of the fundamental goals of the emerging field of regenerative medicine.

14 Nov 2011

Obese premenopausal women may benefit from dairy food consumption

A recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) found that consumption of dairy foods and higher protein resulted in improvements in markers of bone formation and reductions in markers of bone degradation in overweight and obese young women over 16 weeks of diet- and exercise-induced weight loss.

10 Nov 2011

Older women do not benefit from improvements in breast cancer treatments

The survival rates for older women with breast cancer lag behind younger women diagnosed with the disease, indicating that the elder population may be missing out on improvements in treatment and detection, according to new research from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

8 Nov 2011

Positive top-line results from NPSP558 Phase 3 study on hypoparathyroidism

NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company developing orphan therapeutics for rare gastrointestinal and endocrine disorders, today announced positive top-line results from REPLACE, a Phase 3 registration study of NPSP558, the company's bioengineered replica of human parathyroid hormone (rhPTH 1-84), in adult hypoparathyroidism patients.

7 Nov 2011

Prescription drug shortages: Endocrine Society calls for mandatory reporting by manufacturers

The Executive Order President Obama issued Monday directing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to take action to reduce prescription drug shortages is a commendable first step, but the White House could strengthen its directive and address the full scope of the problem by ordering mandatory reporting by manufacturers, which The Endocrine Society calls for in its Position Statement on drug shortages.

2 Nov 2011

BUSM professor delivers Van Meter Award Lecture at 81st ATA meeting

The American Thyroid Association (ATA) is proud to announce that Dr. Elizabeth Pearce, Associate Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine, today delivered the Van Meter Award Lecture at its 81st Annual Meeting, held October 26-30, Indian Wells, California.

1 Nov 2011

NPS announces new data from GATTEX Phase 3 study on short bowel syndrome

NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company developing innovative therapeutics for rare gastrointestinal and endocrine disorders, today announced new data from STEPS 2, a long-term open-label study, showing that GATTEX (teduglutide) was associated with achieving and maintaining clinically meaningful reductions in parenteral nutrition (PN) and intravenous (IV) fluid volume in adult subjects with short bowel syndrome.

1 Nov 2011

Thyroidectomy reduces snoring associated with obstructive sleep apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea, caused by narrowing or blockage of the airways when a person is asleep affects about 20% of the population. Typically a person with OSA will begin snoring loudly on falling asleep. If not treated, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can increase a person's risk of death. It is not clear whether an enlarged thyroid gland, known as a goiter, can worsen cause or worsen symptoms of OSA by compressing the airway.

29 Oct 2011

Dietary intervention in adolescence benefits glycemic control and blood pressure long-term

A recent study has found that a childhood behavioral intervention to lower dietary intake of total fat and saturated fat and increase consumption of foods that are good sources of dietary fiber resulted in significantly lower fasting plasma glucose levels and lower systolic blood pressure when study participants were re-evaluated in young adulthood.

28 Oct 2011

Higher testosterone levels may reduce loss of lean muscle mass in older men

A recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) found that higher levels of testosterone were associated with reduced loss of lean muscle mass in older men, especially in those who were losing weight. In these men, higher testosterone levels were also associated with less loss of lower body strength.

28 Oct 2011

ATA to honor 2011 recipient of Lewis E. Braverman Lectureship Award on Oct. 29

The American Thyroid Association's (ATA) Lewis E. Braverman Lectureship Award recognizes a member of the ATA who has demonstrated excellence and passion for mentoring fellows, students, and junior faculty and has a long history of productive thyroid research.

28 Oct 2011

BPA exposure in mothers may affect unborn daughters’ behavior: Study

A new federal study revealed Monday in the journal Pediatrics shows that bisphenol A (BPA) - a chemical used widely in plastic bottles, metal cans and other consumer products could be linked to behavioral and emotional problems in toddler girls.

25 Oct 2011