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23andMe project aims at validating highly scalable pharmacogenomics research

23andMe has launched a project funded by the National Institutes of Health which is aimed at validating 23andMe's highly-scalable platform for pharmacogenomics research. The company received $190,000 in stimulus funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for "Web-based Phenotyping for Genome-Wide Association Studies of Drug Response" from NIH's National Human Genome Research Institute.

17 Dec 2010

Study highlights death or rehospitalization rates for Medicare beneficiaries with ischemic stroke

Nearly two-thirds of Medicare beneficiaries discharged from hospitals after ischemic stroke die or are readmitted within one year, researchers report in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

17 Dec 2010

Ischemic stroke patients at substantial risk once leaving the hospital: Study

A UCLA-led has study found that after leaving the hospital, nearly two-thirds of Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized for acute ischemic stroke either died or were rehospitalized within a year.

17 Dec 2010

Electronic medical records appear to have varying effects on primary care physicians: UC Davis study

The introduction of electronic medical records in hospitals and clinics—dubbed the "silver bullet" of health care reform—appears to have varying effects on different types of primary care physicians, a UC Davis study has found.

17 Dec 2010

Gene variant affects brain function long before brain begins accumulating amyloid: Study

People with a known, high risk for Alzheimer's disease develop abnormal brain function even before the appearance of telltale amyloid plaques that are characteristic of the disease, according to a new study.

17 Dec 2010

Pediatric plastic surgeon reconstructs patient's jaw

Pediatric plastic surgeon Rohit Khosla, MD, had never seen a case like it: the 12-year-old boy's face ballooned with a rare, aggressive bone tumor. Although it was non-cancerous, the tumor was destroying the patient's jaw. Khosla knew he would need an innovative approach to save the boy's ability to chew.

17 Dec 2010

'Histone code' needs to be used with caution

The function of histones -- the proteins that enable yards of DNA to be crammed into a single cell -- depends on a number of chemical tags adorning their exterior. This sophisticated chemical syntax for packaging DNA into tight little coils or unraveling it again -- called the "histone code" -- is the latest frontier for researchers bent on understanding how genetics encodes life.

17 Dec 2010

Mayo Clinic ACTS project supports African-American dementia caregivers

With a rapidly expanding population of elders, the number of dementia caregivers in Florida is increasing exponentially. According to the Alzheimer's Association, nearly 10 million caregivers provide unpaid care to people with Alzheimer's disease. Finding the best way to support caregivers, especially with fewer state resources available, is one focus of ongoing research at Mayo Clinic in Florida.

17 Dec 2010

Whitehead Institute Founding Member named recipient of 2011 Warren Triennial Prize of MGH

Whitehead Institute Founding Member Rudolf Jaenisch has been named a recipient of the 2011 Warren Triennial Prize of Massachusetts General Hospital.

17 Dec 2010

Human fetal immune system entirely different from adult immune system

UCSF researchers have shown for the first time that the human fetal immune system arises from an entirely different source than the adult immune system, and is more likely to tolerate than fight foreign substances in its environment.

17 Dec 2010

First comprehensive guide to hospital emergency preparedness exercise development

With the publication of the nation's first comprehensive, federally funded guide to hospital emergency preparedness exercise development, Dr. Nathaniel Hupert at Weill Cornell Medical College and his collaborators have provided a new toolset for strengthening hospitals' ability to protect communities nationwide against public health disasters, such as creating care centers during an influenza pandemic or treating casualties in the wake of a bioterrorism attack.

17 Dec 2010

Reuters rates hospitals' cardiovascular program

Loyola University Hospital's mortality rate from heart-bypass surgery is 74 percent lower than the mortality rate at peer hospitals, according to Thomson Reuters Cardiovascular Benchmarks Report.

17 Dec 2010

Study: Biomarkers may aid in early diagnosis of breast cancer

Using a new, powerful method for rapidly screening molecules associated with disease, proteomics expert Joshua LaBaer and colleagues from the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University have identified a broad panel of 28 early predictors, or biomarkers, that may one day aid in the early diagnosis of breast cancer.

17 Dec 2010

New study suggests PSA test effective for men with prostate cancer

The PSA screening test for prostate cancer is not perfect. It can indicate cancer when none is present and miss life-threatening tumors. But a new study suggests the test is more reliable in men taking dutasteride (Avodart®), a drug widely prescribed to shrink an enlarged prostate gland.

17 Dec 2010

Head, neck radiation exposure increases thyroid cancer in children

When children are exposed to head and neck radiation, whether due to cancer treatment or multiple diagnostic CT scans, the result is an increased risk of thyroid cancer for the next 58 years or longer, according to University of Rochester Medical Center research.

17 Dec 2010

High-dose rate brachytherapy procedure to treat prostate cancer

Beaumont Hospital radiation oncologists have launched a research study to treat men with low to intermediate risk prostate cancer with a single dose of radiation.

17 Dec 2010

Scientists decipher genetic code for pediatric medulloblastoma

Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have deciphered the genetic code for medulloblastoma, the most common pediatric brain cancer and a leading killer of children with cancer.

16 Dec 2010

Study reveals immune cell provides new therapeutic strategy for SLE

A new study provides fascinating insight into the underlying pathology associated with the autoimmune disease, systemic lupus erythematosus.

16 Dec 2010

Genetic breakthrough in lung cancer

For the study the team studied samples of lung tumors and nearby healthy lung tissue from 30 patients and examined the samples for the presence of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) associated with 48 known genes for molecules called nuclear hormone receptors. Then they compared the active genes with patient outcomes and found that the expression of genes for certain nuclear hormone receptors helped predict patient survival.

16 Dec 2010

HIV patient cured!

German researchers working with stem cell therapy have claimed they have cured an American patient with HIV and leukemia. Experts are wary of accepting the development at its face value and caution that there is a need for further research. Dr David Scadden, a co-director of the Harvard University Stem Cell Institute added, “Cured is a strong word. But this is very encouraging… from all indications, there was no residual virus… It’s as good an outcome as one could hope for.”

16 Dec 2010