Pharmacology News and Research

Latest Pharmacology News and Research

Study demonstrates impact of epilepsy on child and parent sleep patterns

Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital for Children in Boston have determined that pediatric epilepsy significantly impacts sleep patterns for the child and parents. According to the study available in Epilepsia, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), sharing a room or co-sleeping with their child with epilepsy decreases the sleep quality and prevents restful sleep for parents.

18 May 2012

Researchers identify novel base modification in RNA

Over the past decade, research in the field of epigenetics has revealed that chemically modified bases are abundant components of the human genome and has forced us to abandon the notion we've had since high school genetics that DNA consists of only four bases.

18 May 2012

Researchers map processes that power health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids

For the first time, researchers at the University of California, San Diego have peered inside a living mouse cell and mapped the processes that power the celebrated health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. More profoundly, they say their findings suggest it may be possible to manipulate these processes to short-circuit inflammation before it begins, or at least help to resolve inflammation before it becomes detrimental.

16 May 2012

New clinical trial to evaluate effectiveness of ABMT for PTSD

At Ease USA, a Nebraska organization dedicated to providing confidential post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) care for military families, has launched a clinical trial of a promising new therapeutic intervention at Creighton University.

14 May 2012

Anti-epilepsy drug phenobarbital stunts neuronal growth

A brain study in infant rats demonstrates that the anti-epilepsy drug phenobarbital stunts neuronal growth, which could prompt new questions about using the first-line drug to treat epilepsy in human newborns.

11 May 2012

AACN launches enhanced versions of ECG interpretation, EPCCO

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) has launched enhanced versions of its popular ECG interpretation and pediatric critical care E-Learning courses, conveniently delivering the latest clinical information, tools and resources to nurses and other healthcare professionals.

11 May 2012

RNP granules exit the nucleus via new budding mechanism akin to herpes-type viruses

New evidence published in Cell by Vivian Budnik, PhD, Melissa J. Moore, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, reveals a novel budding mechanism, similar to the process used by some viruses, capable of exporting large ribonucleoprotein particles from the nucleus to the cytoplasm.

11 May 2012

Researchers identify cellular mechanism associated with tinnitus

Researchers in the University of Leicester's Department of Cell Physiology and Pharmacology have identified a cellular mechanism that could underlie the development of tinnitus following exposure to loud noises. The discovery could lead to novel tinnitus treatments, and investigations into potential drugs to prevent tinnitus are currently underway.

10 May 2012

Caffeine consumption: How much is too much?

Chocolate, coffee and cola are perhaps three of your favourite consumables; however, they are also three caffeine-rich substances which all contribute to your daily caffeine consumption. According to the BBC, people should not exceed 400mg caffeine a day, and this limit halves for pregnant women, for which only 200mg/day is recommended.

10 May 2012

Chronic exposure to cocaine drives structural changes in the brain

Chronic exposure to cocaine reduces the expression of a protein known to regulate brain plasticity, according to new, in vivo research on the molecular basis of cocaine addiction. That reduction drives structural changes in the brain, which produce greater sensitivity to the rewarding effects of cocaine.

10 May 2012

Zinc oxide could increase risk of skin cancer

As vacationers prepare to spend time outdoors this summer, many of them will pack plenty of sunscreen in hopes it will protect their bodies from overexposure, and possibly from skin cancer. But researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology are discovering that sunscreen may not be so safe after all.

8 May 2012

Galleon GAL-021 safe and well-tolerated in Phase I respiratory depression clinical study

Galleon Pharmaceuticals, a leader in the development of novel medicines to treat breathing disorders, today announced that its investigational drug GAL-021 appeared to be safe and well-tolerated and demonstrated dose-proportional pharmacokinetic effects on respiration in a Phase I clinical study of 30 healthy adults.

7 May 2012

AssureRx introduces new pharmacogenomic test for ADHD

AssureRx Health, Inc. today announced it has launched a personalized medicine test for the growing number of children and adults diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The new pharmacogenomic test can assist clinicians with important medication decisions that result from genomic differences in how individual patients tolerate ADHD medications.

7 May 2012

New system measures strength of communication between muscle cells and motor neurons

In an effort to identify the underlying causes of neurological disorders that impair motor functions such as walking and breathing, UCLA researchers have developed a novel system to measure the communication between stem cell-derived motor neurons and muscle cells in a Petri dish.

5 May 2012

Growing role of body image drugs

In the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics Kanayama et al. analyse the growing role of body image drugs.

4 May 2012

Hispanics more likely to develop precancerous colorectal polyps

Blacks and Hispanics have a significantly higher risk of developing precancerous colorectal polyps compared with whites, according to a study by researchers at NewYork - Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center.

4 May 2012

Study confirms that COX-2 inhibitors predispose people to cardiovascular disease

After nearly 13 years of study and intense debate, a pair of new papers from the Perelman School of Medicine, at the University of Pennsylvania have confirmed exactly how a once-popular class of anti-inflammatory drugs leads to cardiovascular risk for people taking it.

3 May 2012

Scientists discover number of unknown brain networks linked with teen drug abuse

Why do some teenagers start smoking or experimenting with drugs-while others don't? In the largest imaging study of the human brain ever conducted-involving 1,896 14-year-olds-scientists have discovered a number of previously unknown networks that go a long way toward an answer.

30 Apr 2012

Mirror-microRNAs control multiple aspects of brain function

Our genes control many aspects of who we are - from the colour of our hair to our vulnerability to certain diseases - but how are the genes, and consequently the proteins they make themselves controlled? Researchers have discovered a new group of molecules which control some of the fundamental processes behind memory function and may hold the key to developing new therapies for treating neurodegenerative diseases.

30 Apr 2012

Glycolipids play an important role in intercellular signalling

In a new study, scientists at the University of Copenhagen show that a specific type of carbohydrate plays an important role in the intercellular signalling that controls the growth and development of the nervous system. In particular, defects in that carbohydrate may result in the uninhibited cell growth that characterizes the genetic disease neurofibromatosis and certain types of cancer.

30 Apr 2012