Gastrointestinal Tract News and Research

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Team liberates cellular hostages by silencing Toxoplasma gondii's back-seat driving

Scientists studying a cunning parasite that has commandeered the cells of almost half the world's human population have begun to zero in on the molecular signals that must be severed to free the organism's cellular hostages.

23 Apr 2010

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals presents new data on ALN-TTR01 RNAi therapeutic at amyloidosis symposium

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, presented new pre-clinical data from its ALN-TTR program at the XII International Symposium on Amyloidosis in Rome on April 18 - 21, 2010. ALN-TTR01 is a systemically delivered RNAi therapeutic being developed for the treatment of transthyretin (TTR)-mediated amyloidosis (ATTR), including familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy (FAP) and familial amyloidotic cardiomyopathy (FAC).

22 Apr 2010

University of Nevada professor awarded NIH RO1 grant for study of control of motility in internal anal sphincter

Kathleen Keef, Ph.D., professor of physiology and cell biology at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, has been awarded a four-year, $1.2 million grant from the National Institute of Health to study the control of motility in the internal anal sphincter.

22 Apr 2010

Green tea catechins may protect against glaucoma and other common eye diseases: Scientists

Scientists have confirmed that the healthful substances found in green tea - renowned for their powerful antioxidant and disease-fighting properties - do penetrate into tissues of the eye. Their new report, the first documenting how the lens, retina, and other eye tissues absorb these substances, raises the possibility that green tea may protect against glaucoma and other common eye diseases.

22 Apr 2010

New research indicates patients may develop anemia after gastric bypass surgery

Morbid obesity is one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality in Western countries. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) has become a common procedure for achieving short- and long-term weight loss. It has gained great popularity among surgeons and patients in recent years. Long

21 Apr 2010

First case of treating cystic fibrosis and Crohn's disease with infliximab

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is the most common life-threatening autosomal recessive disease in Caucasian children; it has an incidence of 1 case in every 2500 children born alive. CF involves an anomalous function of the exocrine glands, caused by a mutation of a gene (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, CFTR) located on chromosome 7, which codes for a protein involved in ion transport through the cell membrane.

20 Apr 2010

Results of study comparing REMICADE to azathioprine for Crohn's disease published

Findings published today in The New England Journal of Medicine from a first-of-its-kind comparator trial evaluating the anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha biologic treatment REMICADE (infliximab) in the treatment of moderately to severely active Crohn's disease in patients who were naive to immunomodulator and biologic therapy, showed that a significantly greater proportion of patients receiving REMICADE achieved steroid-free remission and mucosal healing compared with patients receiving azathioprine.

16 Apr 2010

Cequent Pharmaceuticals commences toxicology study of CEQ508 tkRNAi-based therapeutic candidate

Cequent Pharmaceuticals, a pioneer in the development of novel products to deliver RNAi-based treatments to prevent and treat human disease, has initiated a long-term (26-week) toxicology study of CEQ508 – the company's lead drug candidate based on its proprietary tkRNAi technology. This study is designed to enable a Phase II clinical trial slated for 2011. CEQ508 targets beta-catenin, a key oncogene implicated in the formation of colonic polyps and in the progression of polyps to colorectal cancer.

16 Apr 2010

Infliximab-azathioprine combination helps more Crohn's disease patients achieve remission

A study led by Mayo Clinic suggests remission from Crohn's disease may be more likely if patients get biologic therapy combined with immune-suppressing drugs first instead of immune-suppressing drugs alone. The study, published in the April 15, 2010 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, found treatment of moderate to severe Crohn's disease with infliximab plus azathioprine allows more patients to achieve remission and mucosal healing than therapy with azathioprine alone.

15 Apr 2010

S. thermophilus CRL 1190-fermented milk effective in therapeutic treatment of chronic gastritis: Research

Gastritis produced by acetyl-salicylic acid consumption is a common disorder worldwide. The use of probiotics has been proposed to ameliorate different gastrointestinal tract diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, etc. However, little attention has been paid to the use of probiotics in gastric disease.

12 Apr 2010

Gastrointestinal tract disorders GERD and IBS interlinked

Gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are two very common disorders affecting the gastrointestinal tract. About 10% of the population experience daily discomfort from reflux of gastric contents into the esophagus. More than 10% of the population experience abdominal pain and disturbed bowel movement because of irritable bowel syndrome.

2 Apr 2010

Ensuring medication compliance in clinical trials: Pill capsules with microchips to signal ingestion

Seeking a way to confirm that patients have taken their medication, University of Florida engineering researchers have added a tiny microchip and digestible antenna to a standard pill capsule. The prototype is intended to pave the way for mass-produced pills that, when ingested, automatically alert doctors, loved ones or scientists working with patients in clinical drug trials.

1 Apr 2010

New anti-inflammatory drug shows promise for treating inflammatory disorders

Aspirin, ibuprofen and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) remain the most common treatment to relieve symptoms of arthritis and other inflammatory disorders. But despite their widespread use (around 2.5 million Canadians have osteoarthritis) these medications are also known to cause severe, sometimes life-threatening adverse effects within the body, particularly in the gastrointestinal tract

31 Mar 2010

VisEn Medical announces launch of new GastroSense 750 fluorescence agent for imaging gastric motility

VisEn Medical Inc., a leader in fluorescence imaging from research through medicine, announced today the commercial launch of its new GastroSense™ 750 fluorescence agent for imaging gastric motility and related drug effects in vivo.

26 Mar 2010

NIH grant for study on impact of gastric bypass surgery on Type II diabetes patients

Gastric bypass surgery, thought of by many as the last hope of morbidly obese people for losing weight, has many other benefits researchers are only beginning to understand.

25 Mar 2010

Bariatric surgery may delay onset of type 2 diabetes, says study

A team of researchers, led by a UC Davis veterinary endocrinologist, has shown for the first time that a surgical procedure in rats that is similar to bariatric surgery in humans can delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.

25 Mar 2010

Nanoparticles provide a targeted version of photothermal therapy for cancer

In a lecture he delivered in 1906, the German physician Paul Ehrlich coined the term Zuberkugel, or "magic bullet," as shorthand for a highly targeted medical treatment.

15 Mar 2010

Well-characterized molecular alterations of sarcomas make them ideal models for developing new therapies

New breakthrough treatments for the most common cancers could soon come from cutting-edge research into some of the world's rarest tumors.

9 Mar 2010

Study shows ghrelin prevents acute liver damage, reduces oxidative stress and inflammation

Spanish researchers determined that rats treated with recombinant ghrelin displayed a reduction in liver fibrosis. Ghrelin, a stomach hormone, reduced the amount of fibrogenic cells by 25% in the treated rodents. Research further showed ghrelin prevented acute liver damage and reduced oxidative stress and inflammation in the animal models.

1 Mar 2010

Salmonella-infected mice help understand how symptoms of HLH develop

A new University of Colorado at Boulder study shows mice infected with the bacteria salmonella develop clinical signs consistent with a deadly and poorly understood human inflammatory disease, a finding that may lead to new therapies.

26 Feb 2010

Gastrointestinal Tract News and Research

Team liberates cellular hostages by silencing Toxoplasma gondii's back-seat driving

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals presents new data on ALN-TTR01 RNAi therapeutic at amyloidosis symposium

University of Nevada professor awarded NIH RO1 grant for study of control of motility in internal anal sphincter

Green tea catechins may protect against glaucoma and other common eye diseases: Scientists

New research indicates patients may develop anemia after gastric bypass surgery

First case of treating cystic fibrosis and Crohn's disease with infliximab

Results of study comparing REMICADE to azathioprine for Crohn's disease published

Cequent Pharmaceuticals commences toxicology study of CEQ508 tkRNAi-based therapeutic candidate

Infliximab-azathioprine combination helps more Crohn's disease patients achieve remission

S. thermophilus CRL 1190-fermented milk effective in therapeutic treatment of chronic gastritis: Research

Gastrointestinal tract disorders GERD and IBS interlinked

Ensuring medication compliance in clinical trials: Pill capsules with microchips to signal ingestion

New anti-inflammatory drug shows promise for treating inflammatory disorders

VisEn Medical announces launch of new GastroSense 750 fluorescence agent for imaging gastric motility

NIH grant for study on impact of gastric bypass surgery on Type II diabetes patients

Bariatric surgery may delay onset of type 2 diabetes, says study

Nanoparticles provide a targeted version of photothermal therapy for cancer

Well-characterized molecular alterations of sarcomas make them ideal models for developing new therapies

Study shows ghrelin prevents acute liver damage, reduces oxidative stress and inflammation

Salmonella-infected mice help understand how symptoms of HLH develop

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 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

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