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ROTEM receives FDA clearance for new hemostasis analyzer

Surgical teams now can get faster and more complete information on the status of their patients' coagulation state from the ROTEM hemostasis analyzer, recently cleared by the Food and Drug Administration.

16 Aug 2011

Viewpoints: Health reform 'tax' vs. 'penalty'; super committee forecast; boomer tsunami

In a foolhardy indulgence of partisan ideology, Gov. Sam Brownback of Kansas is returning a $31.5 million federal grant that would have made his state a leader in technology development for the new federal health care law. … He joins other Republican governors willing to sell their constituents short in grandstanding against the health care law from statehouse pulpits.

16 Aug 2011

AVI BioPharma, MDA to initiate exon-51 Phase 2 trial in Duchenne muscular dystrophy

More than a decade of targeted Muscular Dystrophy Association-funded research, made possible as a result of generous public support of the MDA Labor Day Telethon and thousands of grass-roots special events, has today culminated in MDA providing financial assistance for the start of the first Phase 2 placebo-controlled, multiple dose efficacy, safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics clinical trial of an exon-51 skipping drug, eteplirsen, as a potential therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

16 Aug 2011

Regular exercise could help prevent brain damage linked with Alzheimer's

Regular exercise could help prevent brain damage associated with neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, according to research published this month in Elsevier's journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.

16 Aug 2011

Enrollment commences in Omthera's Epanova Phase III trial for hypertriglyceridemia

Omthera Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately-held emerging specialty pharmaceuticals company, announced today that the first patient has been enrolled in its ESPRIT Phase III clinical trial of Epanova, in patients with hypertriglyceridemia (TG level greater than or equal to 200 and < 500 mg/dL) despite treatment with a statin.

16 Aug 2011

New role for harmonin protein in Usher syndrome

University of Iowa scientists have discovered a new role for a protein that is mutated in Usher syndrome, one of the most common forms of deaf-blindness in humans. The findings, which were published Aug. 8 in Nature Neuroscience, may help explain why this mutation causes the most severe form of the condition.

16 Aug 2011

Enrollment commences in RegeneRx RGN-259 Phase 2 trial for dry eye syndrome

RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that the first patients have been enrolled and randomized to receive RGN-259 or placebo in its 72-patient, Phase 2 clinical trial in patients with dry eye syndrome.

16 Aug 2011

Feds offer more exchange details, money to encourage states in developing these insurance marketplaces

The Department of Health and Human Services awarded $185 million in grants to 13 states. The government also clarified how states will be expected to determine who is eligible to participate in exchanges under the health law.

16 Aug 2011

An hour of TV a day shortens lifespan by 22 minutes: Study

Researchers have found that watching too much TV is as dangerous as smoking or being overweight, and that the “ubiquitous sedentary behaviour” should be seen as a “public health problem”.

16 Aug 2011

Toclizumab for juvenile rheumatoid arthritis

The arthritis drug Toclizumab could be a boon for hundreds of children suffering from severe arthritis. It has been re-launched in children after being already licensed for the treatment of adults. At least two thirds of children taking tocizilumab have been able to return to a normal life, after many were bedridden or forced into wheelchairs by the disease, the clinical studies reveal.

16 Aug 2011

Caffeine in sunscreens may protect from skin cancer: Study

Studies have revealed that drinking caffeinated beverages reduces one’s chances of developing some types of cancer, including UV-associated skin cancer. Now, researchers propose a possible mechanism for this observation—the inhibition of a DNA repair pathway that sensitizes cells to death after sun exposure.

15 Aug 2011

‘Methyl magnet’ genes can cause family cancer risk

Medical researchers have discovered a new type of mechanism causing cancer susceptibility, showing that tiny changes in some anti-cancer genes can act as magnets to attract modifying “biochemical tags”, effectively switching them off and predisposing families to an increased risk of the disease.

15 Aug 2011

New ‘cure-all’ antiviral method discovered

In a new development that could transform how viral infections are treated, a team of researchers at MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory has designed a drug that can identify cells that have been infected by any type of virus, then kill those cells to terminate the infection.

15 Aug 2011

Fresh food for years with newly discovered natural preservative

Scientists have discovered a natural preservative capable of destroying a whole class of bacteria, including E.coli and listeria and now food can be made to remain fresh and last for years. There would also be no need to refrigerate produce treated with the preservative, called, bisin, which is produced by harmless bacteria.

15 Aug 2011

Fat interferes with body's sugar sensors to trigger type 2 diabetes

Researchers from the United States have identified how a high-fat diet can trigger type 2 diabetes, in experiments on mice and human tissue. They reveal in their study published in the journal Nature Medicine that fat interferes with the body's sugar sensors. The authors add that deeper understanding of the processes involved could help them develop a cure.

15 Aug 2011

Arrythmia drug may work in stroke prevention: Study

The latest research has revealed that a new drug for treating people with an irregular heartbeat has fewer side effects than the standard treatment and is just as good at cutting the risk of stroke. Rivaroxaban, which is easier for people to take, is as effective as warfarin at preventing blood clots and thus lowering the risk of stroke for patients with atrial fibrillation say researchers.

15 Aug 2011

Increase in public awareness leads to lower obesity in children

Increasing public awareness of the childhood obesity epidemic may be contributing to evidence of overall reductions in body mass index (BMI), a measure of obesity in children, according to the results of a nationwide study presented in Childhood Obesity, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

12 Aug 2011

Multi-prong approach needed to fight famine in Somalia

"The Obama administration deserves credit for acting in advance to ameliorate the effects" of drought in East Africa, a New York Times editorial states, noting that USAID has been working since last summer, when the crisis was predicted, to "plac[e] food and other supplies in Kenya, Djibouti and South Africa" and "working on programs to help Somalia and other countries improve food production to avert future crises."

12 Aug 2011

Kineta's next generation antiviral program receives $2.8 million NIH SBIR grant

Kineta, Inc. announced today its next generation antiviral program has received a 2.8 million dollar grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Awarded under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, the prestigious phase two grant will provide on-going support for Kineta's work on a new class of antiviral drugs targeting an array of global, deadly viruses.

12 Aug 2011

Mixed reports from aid organizations in Somalia after al-Shabab pulls out of Mogadishu

The news from the Horn of Africa is "mixed," NPR's "All Things Considered" reports, adding, "More food is getting through and security has improved for now, but tens of thousands of children have already died and many more are at risk." According to NPR, "Aid groups were pleased last week when al-Shabab, which the U.S. considers a terrorist organization, pulled out of the capital, Mogadishu. That made a dangerous country a little bit less so for aid workers".

12 Aug 2011