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HIMSS Asia Pac’11 focuses on eHealth records

The HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) Asia Pac ’11 Conference and Exhibition incorporating the HIMAA 2011 National Conference, opened on Tuesday, bringing together leading international experts in healthcare information systems and technology.

21 Sep 2011

Tackling Alzheimer’s and dementia

The latest research into the prevention and treatment of dementia and Alzheimer’s is the focus of a major conference in Sydney this week.

20 Sep 2011

Niiki Pharma announces positive data from ongoing trial of novel anti-cancer agent NKP-1339

Niiki Pharma Inc. announced interim results from the ongoing Phase I clinical trial of its lead product, NKP-1339. NKP-1339 is a first-in-class transferrin targeted small molecule that down-regulates GRP78, a key regulator of mis-folded protein processing and a tumor survival factor.

20 Sep 2011

Researchers’ discovery may revolutionize treatment of Lou Gehrig’s disease

A team of researchers from the University of British Columbia and the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute have found a key link between prions and the neurodegenerative disease ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The discovery is significant as it opens the door to novel approaches to the treatment of ALS.

20 Sep 2011

Nuevolution announces collaboration in drug discovery with Boehringer Ingelheim

Nuevolution A/S today announced that it has entered into collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim, using Nuevolution’s proprietary Chemetics® drug discovery technology. Within the framework of the collaboration, hundreds of millions of diverse small molecules will be screened to discover and advance drug candidates against drug targets of interest to Boehringer Ingelheim.

20 Sep 2011

Innovative University of Surrey graduate start-up company wins Technology Strategy Board grant to drive NHS cost savings

Thoughtified Limited, a SETsquared start-up company created by graduates of the Department of Computing, University of Surrey has won a major grant from the Technology Strategy Board. The grant will enable the Surrey Research Park-based company to work in the development of a participatory sensing system that will improve the management of NHS patient records in remote patient treatment. The web and smartphone hybrid system will enable significant cost savings for the NHS, through improved utilisation of resources and reducing the inefficiencies that are typically incurred in the treatment of patients at home. The total finance raised for the project amounts to £94,000.

20 Sep 2011

A code beyond DNA: Modified tRNA bases are characteristic of species

Our genetic code consists of four “letters” in the form of the nucleobases in our DNA and RNA. Three letters together form a “word” that are translated into an amino acid by tRNA and combined into proteins. Special markings subdivide the gene into active and inactive regions. A third possible level of information has so far received less attention: the chemical modification of tRNA nucleobases. In the journal Angewandte Chemie Thomas Carell and a team at the University of Munich have now demonstrated that tRNA modification profiles can be used for the characterization of species and the differentiation of pathogenic and nonpathogenic bacterial strains.

20 Sep 2011

GE Healthcare unveils ultra-low dose CT technology with profound image clarity

Emphasizing its commitment to low-dose medical imaging, GE Healthcare today announced 510(k) clearance of its revolutionary Computed Tomography (CT) technology, called Veo,* which may help physicians deliver accurate diagnoses by enabling profound CT image clarity at dramatically lower dose. Veo represents the CT industry’s first Model-based Iterative Reconstruction (MBIR) technique, and is already available on GE Discovery CT750 HD systems in Europe, Canada and regions of Asia.

20 Sep 2011

Thermo Fisher Scientific cassette cuts tissue embedding time in half

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today introduced the Thermo Scientific SecureSette, a new cassette for histology laboratories that reduces embedding time by 50 percent. The innovative design of new SecureSette™ cassettes makes embedding extremely simple; tissues are orientated during grossing and the cassette is not opened during embedding. An integral sponge securely holds tissue in place during processing which not only improves orientation, but also reduces the time spent re-embedding incorrectly aligned samples by more than half. The result is a more efficient workflow, higher quality and improved patient safety without the need to purchase additional equipment.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 20 Sep 2011

Akeso Medical Imaging closes first financing round to develop imaging device for rheumatoid arthritis disease activity monitoring and control

Akeso Medical Imaging BV, a spin-off from Philips Research, announces today the closure of its first financing round led by Thuja Capital Healthcare Seed Fund with additional financing from the Brabant Spin-Off Fund and Point-One Innovation Fund.

20 Sep 2011

Sperm bank spurns potential redhead donors

Cryos International, one of the world's largest sperm banks is refusing potential donors who have red hair. The bank's director told the Danish newspaper Ekstrabladet that there simply wasn't much demand for sperm from red-headed men.

20 Sep 2011

Whooping cough vaccine may lose protective capacity in 3 years: Study

The whooping cough vaccine given to babies and toddlers loses much of its effectiveness after just three years. Doctors believe that could help explain a recent series of outbreaks in the U.S. among children who were fully vaccinated, a study suggests.

20 Sep 2011

Qualitest recalls birth control pills citing “packaging error”

Alabama-based Qualitest Pharmaceuticals is voluntarily recalling several lots of birth control pills because of a packaging error that could leave women at risk for unplanned pregnancy, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced.

20 Sep 2011

The obese can’t help but eat: Study

A new study suggests that brains of people who are obese may be wired differently for impulse control, such as resisting a doughnut when their blood sugar levels drop, compared with people who are not obese.

20 Sep 2011

Gilead’s new 4 in 1 combo HIV pill works

Gilead Sciences Inc's four-drug experimental HIV pill worked as well as a regimen containing protease inhibitor Reyataz in the second pivotal trial of the drug, the company announced this Monday. Although the trial succeeded, it did not show the experimental pill, called the Quad, was superior to the Reyataz regimen and Gilead shares fell less than a percentage point.

20 Sep 2011

Exercise helps teens quit smoking

Research has shown that a program that combines counseling with physical activity may offer teens a more effective way to stop smoking. Less than 5 percent of those who were assigned to a brief smoking cessation intervention had quit smoking after three months. But, in the group of teens that received smoking cessation counseling coupled with physical activity, almost 14 percent were off cigarettes at the three-month mark. And, the findings were most dramatic for boys. Nearly a quarter of the boys in the combination group had quit smoking at the end of three months.

20 Sep 2011

Diabetes and dementia, connection found

A new study revealed that people with diabetes may be at an increased risk of developing dementia. Scientists have suspected the link between the two diseases for several years, but several experts say this latest study highlights how treating preventable diseases like diabetes and obesity may be useful in preventing the onset of dementia.

20 Sep 2011

Many still find insurance unaffordable and employer-sponsored insurance unavailable

Despite the implementation of the Massachusetts health care reform designed to bolster employer-based insurance and to provide no-cost or low-cost insurance to those unable to afford it, the uninsured in Massachusetts remain predominantly the working poor, according to a new study by researchers at Harvard Medical School just published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

20 Sep 2011

Regulatory bias against taking oral anti-cancer medications with food places patients at risk of overdose

A regulatory bias against taking oral anti-cancer medications with food places many patients at increased risk for an overdose and forces them to "flush costly medicines down the toilet," argues Mark Ratain, MD, an authority on cancer-drug dosing.

20 Sep 2011

Minute levels of banned substances in dietary supplements cause athletes to fail doping tests

Minute levels of banned substances in some dietary supplements are leaving athletes susceptible to failed drugs tests according to Loughborough University Professor of Sport and Exercise Nutrition Ron Maughan.

20 Sep 2011