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SAMHD1 protein cuts off raw material that HIV needs to create DNA and replicate

A protein that protects some of our immune cells from the most common and virulent form of HIV works by starving the virus of the molecular building blocks that it needs to replicate, according to research published online in Nature Immunology.

13 Feb 2012

Coakley and Cuccinelli debate the health law

Two prominent state attorneys general examined the health law case before the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, Reuters reports that some senators are pushing to get television cameras in the Supreme Court.

13 Feb 2012

Sexuality changes throughout life but US policy and research fail to keep up

Americans will spend more than $17 billion on Valentine's Day, but far less on programs like sex education for adolescents. The editors of the new book, Sex for Life, From Virginity to Viagra, How Sexuality Changes Throughout Our Lives, argue that not only do our public policies on sex education need to be reevaluated, our entire concept of human sexuality needs to be broadened.

13 Feb 2012

Health insurance exchanges stall in Kansas and Georgia

The House Appropriations Committee has voted to block Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger from spending any more federal grant dollars to plan for the implementation of the federal health reform law. ... The grants, which totaled about $2.3 million, were intended to help Kansas plan and develop a health insurance purchasing exchange and to educate consumers about the exchange.

13 Feb 2012

PORT may not prolong life in older people with NSCLC

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that post-operative radiation therapy (PORT), a controversial yet frequently administered treatment for lung cancer, may not prolong life in older people with locally advanced disease.

13 Feb 2012

Bishops, GOP candidates push back against Obama's contraception compromise

News outlets reported on the buzz generated by President Barack Obama's announcement yesterday of a compromise on the administration's requirement that most health plans provide birth control access for free.

13 Feb 2012

ICN Food List for interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome patients

When one cup of coffee, tea or cranberry juice can trigger days of pain and/or bladder discomfort, interstitial cystitis, overactive bladder and other urology patients often develop an unhealthy fear of food. A new iPhone and iPad application, (ICN Food List) seeks to change that by giving patients an easy to use food list and database that they can use while shopping and eating out at restaurants.

13 Feb 2012

Examining malaria data methodologies

In this post in the Center for Global Development's (CGD) "Global Health Policy" blog, Victoria Fan, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and Felix Lam, a malaria research analyst, examine the discrepancies between the WHO's estimated number of malaria deaths worldwide and the data recently released by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

13 Feb 2012

Report addresses treatment preferences among depressed patients after heart attack

A report in the last 2011 issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics addresses the treatment preferences that are expressed by depressed patients after a heart attack.

13 Feb 2012

Health plans must provide consumer-friendly health plan summaries by this fall

Moving to implement one of the new consumer protections in the health law, the Obama administration issued regulations Thursday requiring insurers to describe costs and benefits in clear, standardized language.

13 Feb 2012

No link between weight gain and risk of repeat preterm birth

One of the strongest known risk factors for spontaneous or unexpected preterm birth - any birth that occurs before the 37th week of pregnancy, most often without a known cause - is already having had one. For women in this group who would like to avoid this scenario in their second pregnancy, focusing on weight gain and dietary changes may not be the best strategy. A new study reported at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting found no connection between weight gain and the risk of repeat preterm birth.

13 Feb 2012

State roundup: Fraud crackdowns, searching for more doctors, immigrant health care

Illinois Democrats running state government have waited more than a year to win federal approval for a new plan to fight fraud in the health program for 2.7 million of the state's poorest residents. Facing increasing Republican pressure to put reforms in place, this week Quinn's team told the Obama administration that Illinois will wait no longer.

13 Feb 2012

Researchers complete systematic review of three major orthopaedic journals

In a new study presented today at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), researchers completed a systematic review of three major orthopaedic journals - the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (American and British editions) and the Journal of Arthroplasty (JOA) - for all articles related to metal-on-metal total hip replacement between October 1999 and May 2011.

13 Feb 2012

Catholics choosing sides in contraception battle as bishops lead fight again Obama administration

When after much internal debate the Obama administration finally announced its decision to require religiously affiliated hospitals and universities to cover birth control in their insurance plans, the nation's Roman Catholic bishops were fully prepared for battle. Seven months earlier, they had started laying the groundwork ... the birth control mandate, issued on Jan. 20, was their Pearl Harbor.

13 Feb 2012

RUMC sponsors Nutritional Medicine workshop

Rush University Medical Center is sponsoring a Nutritional Medicine workshop March 15 to 16, 2012, that features internationally-renowned faculty who are leaders in research in nutritional medicine.

13 Feb 2012

Lew defends adminstration on contraception, McConnell calls for president to 'back down'

The Republican battle against the President Obama's new birth-control mandate will continue until the policy is reversed, the top GOP senator warned Sunday. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Obama's rule requiring employer-based healthcare plans – even those sponsored by faith-based groups – to cover contraception infringes on the religious freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution.

13 Feb 2012

SFU cell biologist to talk at AJAS conference on Feb. 16

Lynne Quarmby, a Simon Fraser University scientist with a passion for promoting the importance of science to life's sustenance, will have a captive audience during the world's largest science fair in Vancouver.

13 Feb 2012

President's budget not expected to tackle entitlement costs

President Barack Obama's budget proposal Monday will offer several measures to trim the federal deficit in the next 10 years. But it would leave largely unchanged the biggest drivers of future government spending: the Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security programs that are expanding rapidly as the baby boom turns into a senior boom. Calling for major changes in the popular programs would be politically treacherous in an election year because of fierce opposition from seniors, who vote in large numbers.

13 Feb 2012

Preterm birth interventions should be tailored for underlying risk factors and pathways

In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting -, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that indicate that preterm birth interventions should be tailored for underlying risk factors and pathways.

13 Feb 2012

Censorship of public health websites by Russian drug agency an 'assault' on HIV prevention

"Amidst pro-democracy protests, the Russian authorities have taken what is an ongoing assault on HIV prevention to the next level by moving to silence public health advocates whose only infraction has been to spread lifesaving information online and to criticize the government for its own failures," Eka Iakobishvili, a human rights analyst at Harm Reduction International, and Claudia Stoicescu, an analyst on Harm Reduction International's public health research team, write in this Huffington Post opinion piece.

13 Feb 2012