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Knowledge about ecology of disease limits spread of infection

Common frog (Rana temporaria) populations across the UK are suffering dramatic population crashes due to infection from the emerging disease Ranavirus, reveals research published in the Zoological Society of London's (ZSL) journal Animal Conservation.

8 Oct 2010

Non-GMO Day to raise awareness on genetically modified organisms in food supply

On Sunday, Oct. 10, Whole Foods Market and retailers across the country will celebrate Non-GMO Day to raise consumer awareness about the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the food supply. Driven by the nonprofit Non-GMO Project, this Sunday's events are designed to send a wakeup call to consumers across the country.

8 Oct 2010

Kaiser Permanente employees calls for new election

One year and seven months ago, an absolute majority of 43,500 Kaiser Permanente employees in California presented petitions to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), asking for a vote to leave the incumbent union SEIU and form their own union, the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW). When ballots were counted today, 11,364 were for NUHW, and 18,290 were for SEIU and workers are calling for a new election

8 Oct 2010

People involved in ATV crashes are more likely to die from serious trauma: Research

In research that may surprise off-road riding enthusiasts and safety experts, a Johns Hopkins team has found that crashes involving ATVs four-wheeled all-terrain vehicles — are significantly more dangerous than crashes involving two-wheeled off-road motorcycles, such as those used in extreme sports like Motocross.

8 Oct 2010

AFA quarterly magazine features President Obama as guest columnist

President Obama is featured as a guest columnist in the latest issue of the Alzheimer's Foundation of America's (AFA) quarterly magazine for caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's disease and related illnesses, care ADvantage. In his column, he outlines important provisions in the Affordable Care Act that are relevant to the Alzheimer's community, such as health insurance, drug coverage and long-term care.

8 Oct 2010

Researchers discover rhythmic changes in synapse numbers regulate sleep cycles

With the help of tiny, see-through fish, Stanford University School of Medicine researchers are homing in on what happens in the brain while you sleep. In a new study, they show how the circadian clock and sleep affect the scope of neuron-to-neuron connections in a particular region of the brain, and they identified a gene that appears to regulate the number of these connections, called synapses.

8 Oct 2010

Lee National Denim Day event raises $4-$5 million fund for breast cancer

It didn't matter if they were faded, straight leg, boot cut or distressed; hundreds of thousands of people put on jeans with Felicity Huffman to celebrate Lee National Denim Day. The event has become one of the largest single-day fundraisers for breast cancer, and through $5 donations, has raised an estimated $4-$5 million for the Women's Cancer Programs of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), bringing the 15-year total to nearly $85 million.

8 Oct 2010

Experts meet on ESMO Congress to bring new hope to cancer patients

"A congress of records," is how Professor David J. Kerr, President of the European Society for Medical Oncology described the 35th ESMO Congress, at the opening press conference for the biggest medical oncology event in Europe. "We have had record numbers of submitted and accepted abstracts and are expecting a record number of attendees." The ESMO meeting brings together cancer specialists, patients, industry representatives and members of the media. The 35th ESMO Congress takes place at Fiera Milano City, in Milan, Italy, from 8 to 12 October 2010.

8 Oct 2010

Reverby writes commentary for Bioethics Forum on syphilis study

The researcher whose revelations about unethical U.S. studies on syphilis in Guatemala in the 1940's led to apologies from the Obama administration last week has written a commentary for Bioethics Forum, the Hastings Center's online publication. She calls for the need to learn from history to better protect human subjects in the developing world.

8 Oct 2010

Progress made with enactment of ADA, but people still face challenges: Disability and Health Journal

In recognition of the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the October issue of Disability and Health Journal has brought together a series of articles to examine whether the ADA has in fact improved the health of people with disabilities. Areas of progress are identified, most notably acknowledging physical barriers and need for better staff training and communication about and with people with disabilities.

8 Oct 2010

HHS, PEPFAR to invest $130 million to transform African medical education

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is partnering with the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to invest $130 million over five years to transform African medical education and dramatically increase the number of practicing health care workers.

8 Oct 2010

New approach to provide long lasting relief for headache

Most physicians are treating the symptom of headache using medication. Patients often receive temporary relief from the medication but it does not deal with the cause of the headache. The drug companies are sponsoring research programs to test their drugs in conjunction with most "Headache Facilities."

8 Oct 2010

GWUMC to serve as Coordinating Center for multiple NIH MEPI programs

The George Washington University Medical Center has been tapped to serve as the Coordinating Center for multiple NIH Medical Education Partnership Initiative programs and linked grantees that are focused on improving medical education and research in Sub-Saharan Africa. The five-year, $12.5 million grant awarded to GW will fund the Coordinating Center that will oversee the $130 million U.S. commitment to the program.

8 Oct 2010

Portrait painting may help children with craniofacial problems

A group of artists, young people and medical experts are involved in a groundbreaking project at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia that uses the intimate process of portrait painting to help children and young people with craniofacial problems see themselves in a different light.

8 Oct 2010

Defense Department's AFIRM to fund Stratatech's Phase IIb clinical trial of StrataGraft tissue

Stratatech Corp., a regenerative medicine company focused on the commercialization of cell-based, tissue-engineered skin substitute products, today announced that the Defense Department's Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine will fund the Phase IIb clinical trial of the company's flagship StrataGraft living human skin substitute tissue.

8 Oct 2010

Researchers reveal neural responses associated with empathy for others' pain

Witnessing a person from our own group or an outsider suffer pain causes neural responses in two very different regions of the brain. And, the specific region activated reveals whether or not we will help the person in need. Researchers at the University of Zurich studied the brain responses of soccer fans and now have neurobiological evidence for why we are most willing to help members of our own group.

8 Oct 2010

Leavitt Partners introduces Health Reform Bracketology

Lots of people handicap elections. Very few take the next step and say what it means for health reform. Borrowing from the time-worn tradition of creating brackets for various sporting events, Leavitt Partners introduces Health Reform Bracketology, a systematic analysis of various election outcomes and what it means to the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

8 Oct 2010

ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives donates world's largest research collection to USC Libraries

The ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives has donated the world's largest research collection related to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender history to the University of Southern California Libraries.

8 Oct 2010

Correcting vitamin D deficiency before orthopedic surgery improves patient outcome: Study

Almost 50 percent of patients undergoing orthopedic surgery have vitamin D deficiency that should be corrected before surgery to improve patient outcomes, based on a study by researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City. Vitamin D is essential for bone healing and muscle function and is critical for a patient's recovery. The study appears in the October issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.

8 Oct 2010

Mouse study may help develop new therapies for spinal cord injury

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have shown how stem cells, together with other cells, repair damaged tissue in the mouse spinal cord. The results are of potential significance to the development of therapies for spinal cord injury.

8 Oct 2010