Medicine News and Research

RSS

Head-to-head comparison of Forteo and Fosamax

The osteoporosis drug Forteo works better than Fosamax to strengthen bones in arthritis patients with prednisone-induced osteoporosis, according to a new study from a researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB.)

15 Nov 2007

Petition aims to stem the flood of dangerous drugs reaching Americans

In a petition filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, an international coalition of scientists and doctors seeks to compel the agency to stem the flood of dangerous drugs reaching American consumers by mandating the use of scientifically superior non-animal testing methods when those alternatives exist.

15 Nov 2007

Progress in in food allergy prevention

Progress has been made in food allergy prevention and management according to investigators presenting the latest research at the Annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in Dallas. Important research findings may impact diet restrictions of food allergic patients.

15 Nov 2007

Lonesome people may have lower levels of specific brain hormone

The anxiety and aggression that result from social isolation have been traced to altered levels of an enzyme that controls production of a brain hormone.

15 Nov 2007

Captopril may limit radiation kidney damage in bone marrow transplant patients

Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee have found that the risk of radiation injury in normal tissue after exposure may be reduced by a drug in common use. Their study in press appears in the on line issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology and Physics.

15 Nov 2007

Breakthrough innovation for high sensitivity TB and Malaria diagnostics

At this year's 39th World Forum for Medicine in Dusseldorf (MEDICA, November 14-17), Partec, a globally leading developer, manufacturer and provider of dedicated diagnostic solutions in the response to HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is presenting a breakthrough innovation for high sensitivity TB and Malaria diagnostics in low- and middle-income countries.

15 Nov 2007

Bolivian Amazon study finds using insect repellent between dusk and bedtime makes insecticide-treated bednets more effective

Using insect repellent in addition to insecticide treated bednets (ITNs) has been shown to provide greater protection against malaria in areas where mosquitoes feed in the early evening.

14 Nov 2007

Understanding diversity in disease - new routes to prevention, diagnosis and treatment

The Medical Research Council (MRC), the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the health research departments in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have launched a joint initiative of more than £6millon to identify small carefully defined groups of patients to help researchers detect, treat or prevent diseases.

14 Nov 2007

WaferGen and University of Pittsburgh to collaborate on SmartChip

WaferGen Biosystems, Inc. has announced that it has established a research collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh Medical School to have it serve as the alpha test site for WaferGen's SmartChip Real-Time PCR System.

14 Nov 2007

GPRC5A gene found to be a tumor-suppressor for lung cancer

The GPRC5A gene, which is under-expressed in human lung cancer cells, suppresses lung tumors in mouse models and could provide a key to attacking lung cancer in humans, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the Nov. 21 edition of The Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

14 Nov 2007

PET scans useful for some cancer treatment, but how do patients fare?

Positron emission tomography or PET scans can help clinicians diagnose and treat some cancers, but it is not clear yet whether the imaging technology helps people with cancer live longer and healthier lives, according to a comprehensive review by the U.K. National Health Service.

14 Nov 2007

Hope on the horizon for hereditary angioedema sufferers

Although there is currently no treatment approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) for acute attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) - a genetic disease causing swelling of extremities, face and internal organs that can be life-threatening - hope is on the horizon according to a team of experts presenting the latest research at the Annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in Dallas.

14 Nov 2007

Most seniors with diabetes have at least one other major chronic medical condition

As if diabetes weren't enough to handle, a new study shows that 92 percent of older people with the disease have at least one other major chronic medical condition - and that nearly half have three or more major diseases besides their diabetes.

14 Nov 2007

Neurofibromatosis 1 gene drives pivotal decision in early brain development

A gene linked to pediatric brain tumors is an essential driver of early brain development, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found.

14 Nov 2007

Abnormal glutamine repeats interfere with key transcription factor, leading to neurodegeneration

Although repeating sequences of three nucleotides encoding some of the bodies' 20 amino acids are a normal part of protein composition, abnormal expansion of trinucleotide repeats is the known cause of multiple inherited neurodegenerative disorders, including Huntington disease.

14 Nov 2007

New method for early diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension

Researchers at the University of Granada ( UGR ) from the Systemic Autoimmune Diseases Unit and the Cardiology Service of the Hospital Clínico San Cecilio in Granada have developed an innovative system which will help doctors make the earliest diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension possible, which is the main cause of death for patients suffering from scleroderma, a rare disease which affects approximately 1,200 out of every million people.

14 Nov 2007

Zinc transporters regulate pancreatic cancer

Zinc, an important trace element for healthy growth and development, can be related to pancreatic cancer. Too much ZIP4, a molecule that enables the transport of zinc into cells, promotes the growth and spread of pancreatic tumors cells, said a group of researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and the University of Florida in Gainesville, in a report which appears online today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

13 Nov 2007

Nitrite/nitrate-rich foods may help in heart attack survival

Nitrite/nitrate found in vegetables, cured meats and drinking water may help you survive a heart attack and recover quicker, according to a pre-clinical study led by a cardiovascular physiologist at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

13 Nov 2007

Smoking cessation during pregnancy is focus of study

Despite warnings from experts and media campaigns marketing healthy living techniques, approximately one-third of women of childbearing age smoke cigarettes and 25-50 percent of women smoke during pregnancy.

13 Nov 2007

New therapies to switch genes on and off

A new study led by researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) identifies how genes are silenced in cancer cells through distinct changes in the density of nucleosomes within the cells.

13 Nov 2007