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Promising anti-diabetic substance found in liquorice root

It provides the raw material for liquorice candy, calms the stomach and alleviates diseases of the airways: liquorice root. Chosen as the "Medicinal plant 2012", the root has been treasured in traditional healing since ancient times. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin have now discovered that liquorice root also contains substances with an anti-diabetic effect.

18 Apr 2012

Allied Healthcare announces Coridon license to vector technology

Allied Healthcare Group (ASX: AHZ) has announced an update on the progress of Coridon, its investment company founded by Professor Ian Frazer and working on developing the next generation of vaccines. Included in these activities, Cordon has entered into a license agreement with Nature Technology Corporation (NTC) and has contracted VGXI Inc. in the US for production of clinical material for the Phase I study scheduled to begin later this year.

17 Apr 2012

DePuy Spine launches VIPER F2 at AANS

DePuy Spine, Inc. has announced the launch of the VIPER® F2 Transfacet Pedicular System (VIPER F2), a transfacet pedicular screw and polyaxial ring system designed to provide stabilization and fixation during degenerative lumbar spinal fusion procedures.

17 Apr 2012

Mission to curtail unnecessary medical testing

Dr. Christine K. Cassel, president and CEO of the ABIM claims to be looking at the big picture. "The campaign is not about rationing or withholding proper care. On the contrary; if waste is not reduced, there will be less money for the care that is necessary," she said. "If we don't as a community collectively address this cost issue, then there's a whole lot of people that aren't going to get the care that they need."

17 Apr 2012

Intervertebral disc repair phase 2 trial update from Mesoblast

Global regenerative medicine company Mesoblast Limited (ASX:MSB) has announced that its Phase 2 clinical trial investigating the use of allogeneic, or off-the-shelf, Mesenchymal Precursor Cells (MPCs) for non-surgical restoration of degenerated intervertebral discs and treatment of low back pain has enrolled 50% of the total study patients. This rapid rate of enrolment attests to the major unmet medical need and to the relative simplicity of Mesoblast’s non-surgical procedure. Mesoblast expects to complete full enrolment by early third quarter.

17 Apr 2012

Innovation in healthcare without borders: An invaluable contribution of diagnostics

For the third year in a row, the European Diagnostic Manufacturers Association (EDMA) has been one of the strategic partners of the European Commission in organising the Innovation in Healthcare without Borders conference.

17 Apr 2012

Imaxio closes EUR 2.9 million funding round

Imaxio, a biopharmaceutical company specialized in the areas of vaccines and genomics, announces today that it has finalized a funding round in which it raised EUR 2.9 million from its principal shareholder, Pradeyrol Developpement.

17 Apr 2012

Accidental deaths among kids down but more needs to be done: CDC report

According to U.S. mortality data the overall death rate from unintentional injury among children and teens fell 29% from 2000 to 2009. What was concerning however, was that rates of death by poisoning in young adults - mostly from prescription drug overdose - and suffocation in infants rose. And unintentional injury still accounted for 37% of all deaths in the 19-and-under age group in 2009 and was the fifth leading killer of patients younger than 1, the report said. The CDC report was published in the April 16 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

17 Apr 2012

Chin implants growing in popularity

“Chin augmentation has increased approximately 70% in the last year, that's an astonishing number,” says Dr. Darrick Antell, A spokesperson for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. “We're much more aware of how we look and we're much more critical of ourselves,” he said. He says a strong chin not only improves a patient's self esteem, it may also boost their bottom line. Experts say that may be part of the reason chin implants saw the biggest surge of any type of cosmetic procedure in the last year.

17 Apr 2012

Hidden sugar in “healthy” fruit drinks often underestimated

The Glasgow University study asked more than 2,000 people in the UK to estimate how much sugar was in a range of drinks. While many overestimated the amount in fizzy beverages, they underestimated levels in ‘smoothies’ and fruit juices. The research also found soft drinks could be accounting for a large chunk of their recommended calorie intake.

17 Apr 2012

High intensity focused ultrasound to treat prostate cancer shows initial success

A new tumor treatment that involves heating it with highly focused ultrasound, may mean men with prostate tumors can be treated without an overnight stay in hospital and avoiding the distressing side effects associated with current therapies.

17 Apr 2012

Tattoos and piercings linked to heavy drinking: Study

Alcohol tests performed on nearly 2,000 young men and women frequenting bars in the west of France showed a strong correlation between body art and drinking, they said. “Pierced and/or tattooed individuals had consumed more alcohol in bars on a Saturday night than patrons in the same bars who were non-pierced and non-tattooed,” said a study for the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.

17 Apr 2012

Dangers of proposed e-health system: Expert warning

Experts warn that patient safety can be in jeopardy under the proposed Australian electronic health records system. The electronic health record scheme, due to start on July 1, is yet to provide safeguards to prevent mistakes with doctors software.

17 Apr 2012

Flu outbreak at veterans home

State Veterans' Affairs Commissioner Linda Schwartz told The Associated Press that the veterans were taken to Hartford Hospital after a number began complaining of flu-like symptoms. The 18 men live at the Connecticut State Veterans Home in either the Sgt. John L. Levitow Veteran's Health Center or a residential facility.

17 Apr 2012

CSL Behring commits donations to World Federation of Hemophilia GAP program

To mark World Hemophilia Day 2012, CSL Behring has again committed to making significant financial contributions and donations of clotting factor concentrate to the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) Global Alliance for Progress (GAP) program over the period of three years, beginning in 2012. The product donations will be made with medicine having a minimum shelf-life of one year.

17 Apr 2012

First Edition: April 17, 2012

Today's health policy headlines include reports from the presidential campaign trail as well as news from the states regarding abortion laws.

17 Apr 2012

More insight into tangled proteins in Alzheimer's disease

In Alzheimer's disease, brain neurons become clogged with tangled proteins. Scientists suspect these tangles arise partly due to malfunctions in a little-known regulatory system within cells. Now, researchers have dramatically increased what they know about this particular regulatory system in mice. Such information will help scientists better understand Alzheimer's and other diseases in humans and could eventually provide new targets for therapies.

17 Apr 2012

Tumor microenvironment contributes critically to drug response

It should be possible to significantly improve the response of common cancers to existing "classical" chemotherapy drugs, say scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), by introducing agents that alter the interaction of cancer cells with their immediate surroundings, called the tumor microenvironment.

17 Apr 2012

Caring for wife with breast cancer can affect men's health

Caring for a wife with breast cancer can have a measurable negative effect on men's health, even years after the cancer diagnosis and completion of treatment, according to recent research.

17 Apr 2012

Novel system for 3D reconstruction and examination of tissues at microscopic resolution

Researchers have developed a novel, easy-to-use system for three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and examination of tissues at microscopic resolution, with the potential to significantly enhance the study of normal and disease processes, particularly those involving structural changes. The new approach, using conventional histopathological methods, is described in the May issue of The American Journal of Pathology.

17 Apr 2012