Gastrointestinal Tract News and Research

RSS

VNI cures both acute and chronic forms of Chagas disease

Chagas disease, a deadly tropical infection caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi and transmitted by biting insects called "kissing bugs," has begun to spread around the world, including the U.S. Yet current treatment is toxic and limited to the acute stage.

15 Feb 2013

Oleuropein aglycone reduces inflammation associated with intestinal ischemia and reperfusion

Here's another reason why you should include olive oil in your diet: A new research report published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that at least one compound in olive oil significantly reduces intestinal ischemia (restricted blood supply) and the resulting reperfusion injury (tissue damage caused when blood supply returns).

6 Feb 2013

IL-13 protein could be the key to development of fibrosis in Crohn's disease

New research has shown that a protein, known as IL-13, could be the key to the development of fibrosis in Crohn's disease. This breakthrough could help to advance new medicines to treat people suffering with the disease.

30 Jan 2013

H. pylori may protect against stroke and some cancers

A new study by NYU School of Medicine researchers reveals that an especially virulent strain of the gut bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) isn't implicated in the overall death rate of the U.S. population, and may even protect against stroke and some cancers.

10 Jan 2013

Link between IRGM gene and composition of human gastrointestinal bacteria

New research led by the Karolinska Institutet, Sweden and the University of Glasgow, Scotland, has identified a link between a human gene and the composition of human gastrointestinal bacteria.

9 Jan 2013

Clinical approach to swallowing of foreign bodies

It is a well known fact that children often swallow things. Children aged 6 months to 6 years are most often affected, but even adults sometimes end up with a foreign body stuck in their throats-and not only there.

29 Dec 2012

GI bacteria exert some control over their hosts' appetites: Review

Over the last half decade, it has become increasingly clear that the normal gastrointestinal (GI) bacteria play a variety of very important roles in the biology of human and animals. Now Vic Norris of the University of Rouen, France, and coauthors propose yet another role for GI bacteria: that they exert some control over their hosts' appetites.

20 Dec 2012

Changes in cholesterol metabolism induced by diet can alter the gut flora

For more than half a century, researchers have known that the bacteria that colonize the gastrointestinal tract of mammals influence their host's cholesterol metabolism. Now, Jens Walter and colleagues of the University of Nebraska show that changes in cholesterol metabolism induced by diet can alter the gut flora.

19 Dec 2012

Lexicon receives FDA Fast Track status for development of LX1033 for irritable bowel syndrome

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing breakthrough treatments for human disease, announced today that it has received "Fast Track" status from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the development of LX1033, an orally-delivered small molecule drug candidate for diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-d).

17 Dec 2012

Bacteriophages may play an important role in competition among bacterial strains

Unique viruses called bacteriophages may play an important role in competition among bacterial strains, influencing the overall ecosystem of the human intestine, scientists at The University of Texas at Arlington and UT Southwestern Medical Center say.

11 Dec 2012

Research Roundup: Medicare Advantage Plan beneficiaries may get more appropriate use of services; CHIP participation grows; College students' flu vaccination rates weak

Analysis Of Medicare Advantage HMOs Compared With Traditional Medicare Shows Lower Use of Many Services During 2003-09 – Researchers compared the utilization rates of Medicare Advantage health maintenance organizations (HMOs) with those of traditional Medicare beneficiaries, 2003-09, "to ascertain whether the HMO enrollees demonstrated different levels of use of services, which can be a hallmark of more integrated care."

7 Dec 2012

Selective targeting of neurotransmitters may allow for new medication therapies for GI conditions

Selective targeting of the neurotransmitter that differentially affects brain cells that control the two distinct functions of the pancreas may allow for new medication therapies for conditions like diabetes, dyspepsia and gastro-esophageal reflux, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers.

5 Dec 2012

Feeding probiotics to baby zebrafish accelerates their development into adulthood

Probiotics like those found in yogurt are not only good for people--they are also good for fish. A new study by scientists at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology found that feeding probiotics to baby zebrafish accelerated their development and increased their chances of survival into adulthood.

4 Dec 2012

Regorafenib able to control resistant gastrointestinal stromal tumor

A new targeted drug demonstrated its ability to control metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumor, an uncommon and life-threatening form of sarcoma, after the disease had become resistant to all existing therapies, report investigators at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute who led the worldwide clinical trial.

21 Nov 2012

Study illuminates how Aldo and galectin-3 protein contribute to vascular remodeling, CHF

Cardiovascular disease will kill nearly 2.5 million people in the United States this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Over time, inflammation, collagen deposition and scar tissue formation can cause blood vessels to stiffen, a process called vascular fibrosis. Though researchers have known that the hormone aldosterone (Aldo) plays a role in this process, the precise mechanisms have been poorly understood.

17 Nov 2012

Gastrointestinal Tract News and Research

VNI cures both acute and chronic forms of Chagas disease

Oleuropein aglycone reduces inflammation associated with intestinal ischemia and reperfusion

IL-13 protein could be the key to development of fibrosis in Crohn's disease

H. pylori may protect against stroke and some cancers

Link between IRGM gene and composition of human gastrointestinal bacteria

Clinical approach to swallowing of foreign bodies

GI bacteria exert some control over their hosts' appetites: Review

Changes in cholesterol metabolism induced by diet can alter the gut flora

Lexicon receives FDA Fast Track status for development of LX1033 for irritable bowel syndrome

Bacteriophages may play an important role in competition among bacterial strains

Research Roundup: Medicare Advantage Plan beneficiaries may get more appropriate use of services; CHIP participation grows; College students' flu vaccination rates weak

Selective targeting of neurotransmitters may allow for new medication therapies for GI conditions

Feeding probiotics to baby zebrafish accelerates their development into adulthood

Regorafenib able to control resistant gastrointestinal stromal tumor

Study illuminates how Aldo and galectin-3 protein contribute to vascular remodeling, CHF

Researchers show how ingesting too much silver can cause argyria

Romney's promise to repeal 'Obamacare' makes it into candidates' foreign policy debate

Novel therapy that uses human stool is safe and highly effective in treating C.diff infection

Proneurotensin associated with diabetes, cardiometabolic disease and breast cancer

Chronic kidney disease changes the composition of intestinal bacterial microbes

Achieving and maintaining ISO 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Latest News