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Cote D'ivoire abandoning free health care scheme due to cost, mismanagement

IRIN reports that Cote d'Ivoire is abandoning its free health care for all scheme after a period of nine months, noting, "Theft, poor management and rising costs have made the service -- introduced by President Alassane Ouattara's government at the end of civil conflict to ease a dire public health situation -- unaffordable."

30 Jan 2012

Nanotechnology firm to develop test for handheld biosensors to detect deadly pathogens

A new company formed around Michigan State University nanotechnology promises to move speedy detection of deadly pathogens and toxins from the laboratory directly to the field.

30 Jan 2012

Two initiatives launched at WEF with aim of ending new HIV infections among children by 2015

"Two groundbreaking initiatives, aimed at realistically achieving the once-unthinkable goal of ending new HIV infections among children by the end of 2015, were launched simultaneously at the World Economic Forum's Annual Conference in Davos" on Friday, according to a Business Leadership Council press release.

30 Jan 2012

Medtronic signs exclusive distribution agreement with Miami Instruments

Medtronic, Inc. today announced that it has entered into an exclusive distribution agreement with Miami Instruments, LLC - a company focused on the design of innovative surgical instruments for minimally invasive cardiac surgery procedures - and has introduced the company's first two products in the U.S.

From Medtronic 30 Jan 2012

SENP1 prevents STAT5 from becoming trapped in nucleus

When SUMO grips STAT5, a protein that activates genes, it blocks the healthy embryonic development of immune B cells and T cells unless its nemesis breaks the hold, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports today in Molecular Cell.

30 Jan 2012

India's proposed Food Security Act would help but not solve country's food insecurity

In this Al Jazeera opinion piece, Stan Cox, a senior scientist at The Land Institute in Salina, Kansas, reports on a proposed Food Security Act in India and examines whether the measure could help solve the country's food insecurity.

30 Jan 2012

Researchers study new strategies to treat patients with influenza

Influenza virus can rapidly evolve from one form to another, complicating the effectiveness of vaccines and anti-viral drugs used to treat it. By first understanding the complex host cell pathways that the flu uses for replication, University of Georgia researchers are finding new strategies for therapies and vaccines, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

30 Jan 2012

OHSU research sheds light on molecules involved in cardiorespiratory control

Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have discovered that a molecule critical to the development and plasticity of nerve cells - brain-derived neurotrophic factor -- is severely lacking in brainstem neurons in mutations leading to Rett syndrome, a neurological developmental disorder.

30 Jan 2012

Researchers identify dual role of key player in human immune system

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine researchers have identified a new and unusual role for a key player in the human immune system. A protein initially believed to regulate one routine function within the cell has proven vital for another critical step in the activation of the immune system.

30 Jan 2012

States redesigning mental health programs, coverage and care

States are grappling with mental health issues including a redesign of a program in Iowa, increased coverage for the mentally ill in California and a mental health first aid pilot program in Pennsylvania.

30 Jan 2012

Pinpoint Genomics makes Pinpoint Dx Lung Assay available to clinicians, patients

Pinpoint Genomics, Inc. announced the publication of key data relating to its Pinpoint Dx Lung Assay in the journal The Lancet, and the availability of its Pinpoint Dx Lung Assay to clinicians and patients exclusively through the company's laboratory in Mountain View, CA.

30 Jan 2012

University of York scientists reveal how cholera attacks body

A team of biologists at the University of York has made an important advance in our understanding of the way cholera attacks the body.

30 Jan 2012

Health policies in the fray of GOP presidential primary debate

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney was challenged on the 2006 Massachusetts health law as his rivals pressed its similarities to the 2010 federal law.

30 Jan 2012

Study finds protein's entwined arm movements may control fate of potentially toxic payload

Like a magician employing sleight of hand, the protein mitoNEET -- a mysterious but important player in diabetes, cancer and aging -- draws the eye with a flurry of movement in one location while the subtle, more crucial action takes place somewhere else.

30 Jan 2012

Addressing TB prevention, treatment among migrant populations

In this post on USAID's "IMPACTblog," Christina Lau, USAID health officer for Central Asia, discusses tackling tuberculosis in migrant populations, writing, "Most migrants are unable to access the health care system because they are undocumented laborers, who lack proper identification documents required for health care treatment, and who fear deportation if their documentation status becomes known."

30 Jan 2012

Study: Electronic health records can improve care, outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes

Use of electronic health records shows promise for improving care and outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes, but still has considerable room for improvement, according to a new study in the journal Health Services Research.

30 Jan 2012

Researchers develop new MRS technique to diagnose brain tumors

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have developed what they believe to be the first clinical application of a new imaging technique to diagnose brain tumors.

30 Jan 2012

Infant studies show intuitive physics knowledge occurs soon after birth

A Northwestern University study has found that the evidence for intuitive physics occurs in infants as young as two months - the earliest age at which testing can occur.

30 Jan 2012

Study finds link between body clock hormone melatonin, type 2 diabetes

A study published in Nature Genetics today has found new evidence for a link between the body clock hormone melatonin and type 2 diabetes. The study found that people who carry rare genetic mutations in the receptor for melatonin have a much higher risk of type 2 diabetes.

30 Jan 2012

Access to food must be considered in talks focused on global financial crisis, WEF participants say

Business and political leaders meeting in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Thursday agreed that the focus on the global financial crisis "won't matter unless people have one basic thing: Enough food to eat," the Associated Press reports.

30 Jan 2012