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U.N. SG warns withdraw of aid groups from Haiti leaves country struggling with cholera epidemic

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "warned on Friday that Haiti was struggling to cope with a cholera epidemic that has killed thousands and deteriorating conditions in tent camps as aid groups withdraw from the impoverished country due to a lack of funding," Reuters reports.

5 Sep 2012

Educational program for parents helps reduce pressure on children to eat

An educational program for parents helps to reduce pressure on children to eat—which may reduce the child's risk of obesity, reports a study in the September Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, the official journal of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.

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

U.N. food agencies urge world leaders to take action on food prices

"World leaders must take swift, coordinated action to ensure that food price shocks do not turn into a catastrophe that could hurt tens of millions of people in coming months, the United Nations' food agencies said in a statement on Tuesday," Reuters reports.

5 Sep 2012

First global benchmarks for assessing lung function across entire life span

New research has established the first global benchmarks for assessing lung function across the entire life span. The lung growth charts will help healthcare professionals better understand lung disease progression and help raise awareness of lung disease, which is the world's leading cause of death.

5 Sep 2012

NCI awards Soligenix $300,000 SBIR grant for orBec Phase 2 chronic GI GVHD trial

Soligenix, Inc., a development stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today that the National Cancer Institute has awarded Soligenix a Small Business Innovation Research grant to support the conduct of a Phase 2 clinical trial designed to evaluate orBec (oral beclomethasone 17,21-dipropionate or BDP) as a treatment for the gastrointestinal manifestation of chronic Graft-versus-Host disease.

5 Sep 2012

Presidential election could have major impact on Medicaid

The New York Times reports that though Medicare reforms get the headlines, Medicaid is more likely to be immediately affected by the presidential election.

5 Sep 2012

Zalicus commences first of two Z160 Phase 2a clinical studies for chronic neuropathic pain

Zalicus Inc., a biopharmaceutical company that discovers and develops novel treatments for patients suffering from pain and immuno-inflammatory diseases, today announced that it has initiated the first of two Phase 2a clinical studies with Z160, its first-in-class, oral, state-dependent, selective N-type calcium channel blocker for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain indications.

5 Sep 2012

Phase 1b trial validates efficacy of Pulmatrix PUR118 to treat COPD

Pulmatrix, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company creating novel inhaled therapeutics, today announced top line results from a clinical study showing that the novel inhaled therapeutic, PUR118, demonstrated anti-inflammatory efficacy and was well-tolerated in two Phase 1b studies in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

5 Sep 2012

September issue of WHO Bulletin available online

The September issue of the WHO Bulletin features an editorial on expanding HIV testing in Europe, a public health news roundup, a research article on male circumcision programs in Kenya.

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

ARGO Medical, Cyclone Technologies announce availability of ReWalk exoskeleton system

Exoskeleton technology leader, ARGO Medical Technologies, along with mobility solutions provider, Cyclone Technologies, announced today that Claire Lomas has become the first person to take home an exoskeleton system for personal use.

5 Sep 2012

Breastfeeding may lower risk for depression in adulthood

A study published in the last issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics examines the relationship between breastfeeding and onset of depression in adulthood.

5 Sep 2012

President orders additional mental health help for Vets

Obama signed an executive order on Friday, directing the Veterans Administration to hire 1,600 new mental health professionals and to expand the capacity of its crisis line so those who are in crisis can see a counselor within 24 hours. ... The White House says money for the additional mental health care will come from existing resources, though the president sought a 10-percent increase in overall VA funding next year.

5 Sep 2012

S. African, S. Korean research team developing smartphone HIV testing device, application

Researchers from South Africa and South Korea are developing a smartphone-based device and application able to "photograph and analyze blood samples in areas far from laboratories to diagnose HIV and even measure the health of [patients'] immune systems," Agence France-Presse reports.

5 Sep 2012

Fusion-negative prostate tumours display more aberrant DNA methylations

In about half of all prostate tumours, there are two genetic areas that are fused with one another. When this is not the case, the exact way cancer cells originate in prostate tumours was not clear until now.

5 Sep 2012

New strategy for outsmarting cancer through its own social intelligence

In the face of mounting evidence that cancer cells communicate, cooperate and even engage in collective decision-making, biophysicists and cancer researchers at Rice University, Tel Aviv University and Johns Hopkins University are suggesting a new strategy for outsmarting cancer through its own social intelligence.

5 Sep 2012

New MILLENNIUM VILLAGES PROJECT launched in northern Ghana

The Guardian examines a new Millennium Villages Project (MVP) -- "the integrated approach to rural development spearheaded by Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University's Earth Institute" -- that was launched last week in northern Uganda "by Ghana's new president John Dramani Mahama and U.K. international development secretary Andrew Mitchell."

5 Sep 2012

Medivir strengthens hepatitis C platform

Medivir AB, announced today that it has acquired preclinical research stage assets from Novadex Pharmaceuticals AB. The acquisition includes intellectual property and prodrug technologies in order to further strengthen Medivir's hepatitis C platform and know how.

5 Sep 2012

Chemical properties of green tea benefit memory and spatial learning

It has long been believed that drinking green tea is good for the memory. Now researchers have discovered how the chemical properties of China's favorite drink affect the generation of brain cells, providing benefits for memory and spatial learning. The research is published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research.

5 Sep 2012