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Concord grapes increase good cholesterol

Drinking Concord grape juice significantly increased HDL--the good cholesterol--and significantly lowered two markers of inflammation in people with stable coronary artery disease, according to results of a study presented in the November issue of the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.

16 Nov 2004

Technology to determine a patient's response to aspirin therapy taken to prevent heart attacks

This technology has demonstrated the ability to assess an individual's relative risk for heart attack by measuring the person's degree of aspirin resistance.

8 Nov 2004

Mad cow disease prions can be removed from blood

New research results released today confirm that infectious variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) prions that cause the human form of "mad cow disease" can be removed from blood.

From Pall Corporation 3 Nov 2004

Peripheral blood transplants from donors may be more harmful than bone marrow transplants in pediatric leukemia patients

A new study has shown for the first time that transplantation of peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) from sibling donors may be more harmful than bone marrow in pediatric leukemia patients.

3 Nov 2004

An errant enzyme linked to bipolar disorder impairs awareness, perception and reasoning

The disturbed thinking, impaired judgment, impulsivity, and distractibility seen in mania, a destructive phase of bipolar disorder, may be traceable to overactivity of protein kinase C (PKC), suggests the study, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and National Institute on Aging (NIA), and the Stanley Foundation.

1 Nov 2004

Researchers are one step closer to understanding how blood cells develop through the use of human embryonic stem cells

This process is also significant because the blood cells were developed without the use of animal serum, which was previously thought to be essential for blood cell development. Instead, specific growth factors are added to guide the cell differentiation.

1 Nov 2004

People who drank alcohol on a regular basis appeared to have less cardiovascular disease

Many previous studies have shown a link between moderate alcohol consumption, versus abstinence or heavy consumption, and decreased mortality from cardiovascular disease.

16 Oct 2004

Aspirin might well be considered the top utility player in the medicine cabinet

This cheap over-the-counter drug can be used not only for fever, pain and arthritis, but to prevent heart attack, stroke or angina. It also may reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. Yet aspirin also has side effects worth considering, and its very accessibility may hamper its use.

8 Oct 2004

Potential stem cells treatment for retinitis pigmentosa and other retinal degenerations

A team of researchers from The Scripps Research Institute was able to preserve visual function in mice that were genetically predisposed to developing a profound degenerative disease that destroys their retinas.

16 Sep 2004

Tomato juice may help type 2 diabetics

Tomato juice may be the key to decreasing hyperactive platelet aggregation, which can lead to heart disease, according to the latest nutrition and dietetics study by HMRI researchers based at the University of Newcastle.

27 Aug 2004

Living near to a petrol station may increase the risk of acute childhood leukaemia by 400%

These new findings are based on 280 cases of acute childhood leukaemia and a comparison group of 285 children matched for sex. The children were drawn from four hospitals in France (Nancy, Lille, Lyon, and Paris), and almost two thirds (60%) of the children with leukaemia were aged between 2 and 6.

19 Aug 2004

Drug developers should take a different approach to snake venom and heart medications

With the help of snake venom and sophisticated laboratory testing, scientists believe they've uncovered the reason why a group of new heart medications were doing some patients more harm than good.

17 Aug 2004

Study shows blood transfusions during heart surgery appear to increase death risk

Patients who received blood platelet transfusions during coronary bypass surgery were more likely to have prolonged hospital stays, longer surgeries, more bleeding and higher risk of infection, stroke and death, according to an international study led by the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center.

29 Jul 2004

Thalidomide's role in fighting blood disorders, such as multiple myeloma

From the late 1950s to the end of 1961, thalidomide was a popular sedative and treatment for morning sickness until it was discovered to cause fetal malformations, which proved fatal within the first year of life in 40 percent of affected infants.

13 Jul 2004

Depression in young women doubles risk of metabolic syndrome

Metabolic syndrome is a combination of medical disorders that affect a large number of people in a clustered fashion. In some studies, the prevalence in the USA is calculated as being up to 25% of the population.

29 Jun 2004

Biocompatibility of interactions that occur between implanted biomaterials and the host living tissue

Researchers across the world are working toward biocompatibility by optimizing interactions that occur between implanted biomaterials and the host living tissue.

21 Jun 2004

Umbilical cord blood and bone marrow transplants slow the progression of many cancers

Umbilical cord blood and bone marrow transplants at Loyola University Health System, Maywood, Ill., are curing or slowing the progression of many cancers originating in the bone marrow (i.e., leukemia, myeloma) or lymphatic system (lymphoma).

3 Jun 2004

Chocolate is good for your heart

UCSF scientists are publishing sweet results of a study examining chocolate's effects on blood vessel function in healthy people. The team reports that small daily doses of flavonoid-rich dark chocolate consumed over a two-week period improved blood vessels' ability to dilate, or expand.

1 Jun 2004

Research may lead to elimination of surface-induced thrombus formation

A University of Missouri-Rolla researcher’s investigation into how proteins adhere to surfaces may lead the elimination of surface-induced thrombus formation, a phenomenon known to cause blood clots in artificial arteries, valves and veins.

26 May 2004

Researchers to develop a highly sensitive, portable method of detecting bioterror agents like anthrax

Their method uses "Cellular Analysis and Notification of Antigen Risks and Yields" (CANARY) cells, which are immune-system cells engineered to contain a fluorescent protein naturally found in jellyfish. CANARY cells have the immune system's ability to detect specific disease-causing agents, lighting up when they recognize a pathogen.

24 May 2004