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Senate HELP panel begins mark up of bill placing tobacco under FDA oversight

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Tuesday began marking up a bill (S 982) that would allow FDA to regulate tobacco products, CongressDaily reports.

20 May 2009

New Democrat coalition proposes independent panel to oversee comparative effectiveness research

Members of the moderate New Democrat Coalition on Tuesday proposed legislation (HR 2502) that would establish a non-governmental, independent office to oversee research efforts to compare the effectiveness of medical treatments, CQ HealthBeat reports.

20 May 2009

Republicans to introduce health reform plan that would establish state health insurance exchanges, provide tax credits

Congressional Republicans are releasing two health care reform proposals -- one from conservatives and one from moderates -- as alternatives to plans by Democrats, CQ Today reports (Wayne, CQ Today, 5/19).

20 May 2009

Cambodian health officials expand HIV/AIDS prevention education to primary schools

The Cambodian Ministry of Health has begun training primary education teachers in 12 provinces on HIV/AIDS prevention education, the Phnom Penh Post reports.

20 May 2009

Governments should increase efforts to reduce stigma, improve access to HIV services among MSM, UNAIDS Executive Director Sidibe says

Governments worldwide should take action to eliminate stigma and discrimination against men who have sex with men, women who have sex with women and transgender people and improve their access to HIV services, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibe said recently, the Stabroek News reports.

20 May 2009

Georgia receives $63.9 million in Ryan White funding

Georgia has received $63.9 million in Ryan White Program grants to fund treatment and other services for people living with HIV, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

20 May 2009

HIV/AIDS, gay rights advocate McFarlane dies

Rodger McFarlane, a leader in gay rights and HIV/AIDS advocacy efforts, died on Friday in New Mexico at age 54, the New York Times reports.

20 May 2009

HIV/AIDS Vaccine Coalition urges continued funding for research amid economic crisis

A recently released AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition report says that although there has been a renewed focus on discovery, innovation and basic science in vaccine research, action is needed to ensure that research funding continues during the economic downturn, VOA News reports.

20 May 2009

HIV/AIDS advocates react to Obama's proposed global health initiative

Some HIV/AIDS advocates have voiced disappointment with the level of HIV/AIDS funding in President Obama's proposed $63 billion, six-year global health initiative, VOA News reports. According to VOA News, the advocates say that Obama has not met pledges he made as a presidential candidate, while other say that the "picture is more complicated."

20 May 2009

COPD patients benefit from lifestyle program

Patients with moderate COPD were randomized to receive "usual care" or to undergo an interdisciplinary, community-based program (INTERCOM) that offered an intensive lifestyle moderation phase of four months, during which patients were instructed in detail to perform two 15-minute intervals of pleasurable walking or cycling, and offered instruction in other lifestyle changes such as nutrition and smoking cessation.

20 May 2009

Junk DNA may not be so ‘junky’ after all

Scientists have called it "junk DNA." They have long been perplexed by these extensive strands of genetic material that dominate the genome but seem to lack specific functions. Why would nature force the genome to carry so much excess baggage?

20 May 2009

Vitamin D may halt lung function decline in asthma and COPD

Vitamin D may slow the progressive decline in the ability to breathe that can occur in people with asthma as a result of human airway smooth muscle (HASM) proliferation, according to researchers at the University of Pennsylvania.

20 May 2009

Twins born after fertility treatment have a higher risk of problems at birth and in the first three years of life

Twins born as a result of assisted reproductive technology (ART) are more likely to be admitted to neonatal intensive care and to be hospitalised in their first three years of life than spontaneously conceived twins, according to new research published online today (Wednesday 20 May) in Europe’s leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction.

20 May 2009

Algae may the key to SARS vaccine

A protein from algae may have what it takes to stop Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) infections, according to new research.

20 May 2009

Arsenic exposure linked to influenza A (H1N1) susceptibility

The ability to mount an immune response to influenza A (H1N1) infection is significantly compromised by a low level of arsenic exposure that commonly occurs through drinking contaminated well water, scientists at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and Dartmouth Medical School have found.

20 May 2009

Schizophrenia, substance abuse, and violent crime

In the debate surrounding violent crimes referred to as "acts of madness" or the like, it is often assumed that the violence is a direct result of the perpetrator's mental illness.

20 May 2009

Nanoparticles used to stimulate growth of new neurons in adult brain

University at Buffalo researchers have identified a new mechanism that plays a central role in adult brain stem cell development and prompts brain stem cells to differentiate into neurons.

20 May 2009

Good advice for a healthy pregnancy

Women can increase their chances for a healthy pregnancy by eating right, exercising, not smoking, and getting early medical care, says a podcast featuring a National Institutes of Health obstetrician who oversees research on pregnancy and birth.

20 May 2009

NIH to develop therapeutics for rare and neglected diseases

The National Institutes of Health is launching the first integrated, drug development pipeline to produce new treatments for rare and neglected diseases. The $24 million program jumpstarts a trans-NIH initiative called the Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases program, or TRND.

20 May 2009

Take control of your asthma, EPA advises

Asthma is a serious, sometimes life-threatening respiratory disease that affects the quality of life for millions of people; but it can be managed if people know what it is and understand how the environment can affect asthma patients.

20 May 2009