Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Dynamic mapping could potentially help fill gaps in influenza research

Influenza outbreaks in the United States typically begin with the arrival of cold weather and then spread in seasonal waves across geographic zones. But the question of why epidemics can vary from one season to the next has baffled scientists.

10 Sep 2012

Tight blood sugar control does not benefit pediatric patients undergoing heart surgery

Although some studies have portrayed tight blood sugar control as a potential means of lowering infection rates in critically ill adults, a new study-led by principal investigator Michael Agus, MD, director of the Medicine Critical Care Program at Boston Children's Hospital-found no indication that the approach benefits pediatric patients undergoing heart surgery.

10 Sep 2012

Research roundup: Reducing risk in shared savings programs

The Design And Application Of Shared Savings Programs: Lessons From Early Adopters --"Shared savings programs reward providers for holding spending below specific targets, thus introducing a level of financial accountability not present in strictly volume-based payment models, such as fee-for-service," researchers write.

7 Sep 2012

University of Rhode Island engineers develop new blood-testing technology

A team of engineers and students at the University of Rhode Island has developed an advanced blood-testing technology that incorporates a smartphone application, a hand-held biosensor and a credit card-sized cartridge to provide rapid, accurate biological analysis and wireless communication of test results.

7 Sep 2012

Book examines highly complex structures of synaptic regions

Synapses are bulbous structures where two neurons communicate. Neurotransmitter molecules released from the presynaptic terminal of one neuron diffuse to the postsynaptic terminal on the other, binding to receptors that lead to propagation or modulation of the signal.

7 Sep 2012

Kalidex announces presentation of data on KPI-10 against MDR strains at ICAAC

Kalidex Pharmaceuticals, a privately-held anti-infective company, today announced the presentation of data on its lead development candidate KPI-10, a broad spectrum, next-generation fluoroquinolone, at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) in San Francisco, September 9 through 12.

7 Sep 2012

CSHL publishes genome-wide analysis of transcripts produced within human cells

Most people understand genes to be specific segments of DNA that determine traits or diseases that are inherited. Textbooks suggest that genes are copied into RNA molecules, which are then used as templates for making protein - the highly diverse set of molecules that act as building blocks and engines of our cells. The truth, it now appears, is not so simple.

6 Sep 2012

Clinical trial to test combination of two drugs in treating fibromyalgia

A chronic pain condition and numerous gastrointestinal disorders may all be caused by a virus. That's a Tuscaloosa-based surgeon's theory likely headed for a clinical trial early next year and one drawing support from a University of Alabama researcher who studies how viruses replicate.

6 Sep 2012

Book on basic stereology for biologists and neuroscientists

Stereological techniques allow biologists to create quantitative, three-dimensional descriptions of biological structures from two-dimensional images of tissue viewed under the microscope. For example, they can accurately estimate the size of a particular subcellular compartment, the total length of a mass of blood vessels, or the number of neurons or synapses in a particular region of the brain.

6 Sep 2012

Prenatal exposure to piperonyl butoxide increases risk of noninfectious cough in children

Children exposed in the womb to the widely used pesticide additive piperonyl butoxide (PBO) have heightened risk of noninfectious cough at ages 5 and 6, according to researchers at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health (CCCEH) at the Mailman School of Public Health and of Columbia University Medical Center.

6 Sep 2012

New cell screening method can identify potential anti-influenza drugs

Medical Systems Virology group at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) at the University of Helsinki, together with its national and international collaborators, developed a new cell screening method that can be used to identify potential anti-influenza drugs.

6 Sep 2012

Antibiotics: facts and fictions: an interview with Dr Philippa Binns, clinical adviser at NPS MedicineWise

Antibiotics are medicines used to treat infections or diseases caused by bacteria, such as some respiratory tract infections (including pneumonia and whooping cough), urinary tract infections, skin infections and infected wounds.

6 Sep 2012

Alnylam announces complete results from ALN-RSV01 Phase IIb trial on RSV infection

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today complete results from its Phase IIb trial with ALN-RSV01 for the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection in lung transplant patients.

6 Sep 2012

Long-term cardiac impact of Japan quake revealed

The 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated parts of north-eastern Japan led to a significantly increased weekly occurrence of cardiovascular disease in the months after the event, study findings show.

5 Sep 2012

Exposure to volcanic ash increases respiratory symptoms

Exposure to volcanic ash can increase respiratory symptoms such as an extreme cough, or phlegm, according to a new study.

5 Sep 2012

Strong antiviral antibody response observed in oral administration of Flucide

NanoViricides, Inc. announced today that anti-influenza drug candidates under its FluCide program, when given orally, led to strong antiviral antibody response. The antibody response with Oral administration was stronger than that with IV administration and was substantially greater than that observed with oseltamivir.

5 Sep 2012

Avanir initiates enrollment in AVP-923 Phase II clinical trial for treatment of agitation in AD patients

Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced the enrollment of the first patient in study AVR-131. The study is a Phase II clinical trial investigating the use of AVP-923 for the treatment of agitation in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

5 Sep 2012

Thermal imaging technology to identify drunks

Thermal imaging technology might one day be to identify drunks before they become a nuisance in bars, airports or other public spaces. Georgia Koukiou and Vassilis Anastassopoulos of the Electronics Laboratory, at University of Patras, Greece, are developing software that can objectively determine whether a person has consumed an excessive amount of alcohol based solely on the relative temperature of different parts of the person's face.

5 Sep 2012

EC grants marketing authorization for Pfizer’s INLYTA to treat renal cell carcinoma

Pfizer Inc. announced today that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for INLYTA (axitinib) for the treatment of adult patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), a type of kidney cancer, after failure of prior treatment with sunitinib or a cytokine.

4 Sep 2012

High-dose vitamin D appears to help patients with TB recover more quickly

For decades before antibiotics became generally available, sunshine was used to treat tuberculosis, with patients often being sent to Swiss clinics to soak up the sun's healing rays. Now, for the first time scientists have shown how and why heliotherapy might, indeed, have made a difference.

4 Sep 2012