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Rate of suicide in U.S. increases for first time in a decade

The increase in the overall suicide rate between 1999 and 2005 was due primarily to an increase in suicides among whites aged 40-64, with white middle-aged women experiencing the largest annual increase.

21 Oct 2008

A little exercise prolongs life expectancy for people with heart disease

Exercising once a week can help prolong life expectancy for people with heart disease according to a new study from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway.

21 Oct 2008

Discovery of genetic switch critical for cell survival in Hypoxia

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified a critical metabolic "switch" in fruit flies that helps oxygen-deprived cells survive. "A transcriptional suppressor, called hairy, is crucial for reducing the mismatch between supply and demand of oxygen," said Dan Zhou, first author on the study, published October 17 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

21 Oct 2008

People lacking essential antioxidants and sunlight more likely to develop advanced macular degeneration

People who lack essential antioxidants, and who have high levels of sunlight exposure, have a higher risk of developing advanced macular degeneration (AMD), according to a study published today in the journal Archives of Ophthalmology. AMD is the leading cause of poor vision in the UK.

20 Oct 2008

Teva granted FDA approval for Fentanyl transdermal system

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted approval for the Company's Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Fentanyl Transdermal System, 25 mcg/hour, 50 mcg/hour, 75 mcg/hour and 100 mcg/hour, the AB-rated generic equivalent of Ortho McNeil's chronic pain treatment Duragesic. Shipment of this product has commenced.

20 Oct 2008

New tuberculosis test reveals patients at risk

A recently introduced blood test can reveal which patients may develop active tuberculosis (TB) much more precisely than the 100-year old TB skin test, according to a new study published today in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

20 Oct 2008

Getting to grips with the complexity of disease proteins

Drug molecules seldom act simply on one protein but on protein complexes and networks. A deeper understanding of these 'cooperative assemblies' should lead to better targeting of drugs.

20 Oct 2008

Johns Hopkins researchers detect sweet cacophany while listening to cellular cross-talk

Johns Hopkins scientists were dubious in the early 1980s when they stumbled on small sugar molecules lurking in the centers of cells; not only were they not supposed to be there, but they certainly weren't supposed to be repeatedly attaching to and detaching from proteins, effectively switching them on and off.

20 Oct 2008

Birth control has long term effect on hormone exposure

Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine may be one step closer to understanding why past oral contraceptive use dramatically lowers the risk of ovarian and uterine cancers later in life.

20 Oct 2008

New guides to preventing and treating osteoporosis

Dr Maria Fiatarone Singh, geriatrician and Professor of Medicine and Exercise and Sport Science at the University of Sydney has written a series of exercise guides.

20 Oct 2008

Better TB vaccine in the pipeline

Scientists in the U.S. believe they have a vaccine in the pipeline that offers better protection from tuberculosis (TB).

20 Oct 2008

New atlas maps geographical pattern of mortality in Great Britain

Researchers from the Universities of Bristol and Sheffield have created an 'atlas of death' which charts the geographical pattern of mortality in Great Britain. The full-colour atlas shows the wide variation in death rates from a variety of different causes, from heart attacks and cancer to suicide and murder, for over 1,000 neighbourhoods.

20 Oct 2008

Junior doctors in Australia struggling to cope

A new study by the Australian Medical Association (AMA) has found close to half of Australia's junior doctors think their heavy workload could compromise patient care.

20 Oct 2008

Polio could be wiped out in Nigeria thanks to improved vaccine

A recently introduced polio vaccine is four times more effective at protecting children than previous vaccines and has the potential to eradicate type 1 polio in Nigeria if it reaches enough children, according to a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

19 Oct 2008

Depression and suicidal thoughts among police officers differ based on gender and work shift

A quarter of female police officers and nearly as many male officers assigned to shift work had thought about taking their own lives, a new study of police work patterns and stress headed by a University at Buffalo researcher has shown.

19 Oct 2008

Historical accounts of lovesickness

Modern lovers could learn a thing or two from their Elizabethan counterparts about the pains and pleasures of frustrated passion, according to a new book by Dr Lesel Dawson, Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Bristol.

19 Oct 2008

Waste from gut bacteria helps host control weight

A single molecule in the intestinal wall, activated by the waste products from gut bacteria, plays a large role in controlling whether the host animals are lean or fatty, a research team, including scientists from UT Southwestern Medical Center, has found in a mouse study.

19 Oct 2008