Endocrinology
An MS Society-funded study has highlighted the impact that MS has on partners" lives and demonstrates the need for support and services for partners of people with MS.
UQ"s Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) will host a workshop tomorrow Tuesday July 14 for clinicians and scientists seeking to better understand the syndromes associated with a brain development condition made famous in the movie Rain Man.
NovImmune, an immunology-focused biotech company
Studies have reported an increasing incidence of thyroid cancer since 1980. One possible explanation for this trend is increased detection through more widespread and aggressive use of screening tests. Researchers at the American Cancer Society analyzed thyroid cancer incidence between 1988 and 2005 using the National Cancer Institute"s (NCI"s) Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) dataset.
To ensure patients receive the highest quality and safest food possible, the Premier healthcare alliance released a set of standards for foodservices delivered to hospitals.
Governor Jon S. Corzine and Health and Senior Services Commissioner Heather Howard applauded the Obama administration for allocating $10 million to New Jersey to enhance the state"s efforts to be as prepared as possible to deal with the fall 2009 H1N1 Influenza season.
The Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) announced the appointment of Professor Dickon Weir-Hughes as its new Chief Executive and Registrar.
New data pooled from four large, "real world" post-marketing surveillance studies showed that sucrose-formulated recombinant factor VIII (rFVIII-FS) reduced bleeding and provided data regarding adverse events in more than 950 patients with mild-to-severe hemophilia A. Additionally, rates of inhibitor formation were reported in both previously treated and previously untreated patients. The data were presented at the XXII Congress of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH).(1)(2)
Nanostructured materials have garnered great interest worldwide due to their unique size-dependent properties for chemical, electronic, structural, medical and consumer applications.
Hospital room design can help reduce medical errors, infections and falls, as well as patient stress, according to results emerging from more than 1,500 studies, the New York Times reports. For instance, a study at Bronson Methodist Hospital found that hospital-acquired infection rates dropped by 11% when more single-patient rooms were added, with well-located sinks and better air-flow designs. In addition, research from the Pebble Project -- an effort by the Center for Health Design -- found that lowering noise levels around patients improved self-reported sleep quality by nearly 50%, from 4.9 on a scale of 10 to 7.3. Other studies have suggested that natural light can help with patient depression and that nature scenes can help lower reported pain levels, the Times reports. Anjali Joseph, director of research at the Center for Health Design, said that many new hospitals also are replacing centralized nurses" stations with smaller ones located near patients. Insurance companies want some assurance that upgrades and new features will do more than just attract patients, the Times reports. Susan Pisano, a spokesperson for America"s Health Insurance Plans, said, "When a hospital makes a change -- buys a new machine, builds a new building -- they need to be prepared to discuss those changes with the people purchasing their services," adding, "They have to make the case that these changes will improve quality and safety and efficiency" (Campbell, New York Times, 5/19).
The School Nutrition Association"s 2008 National School Lunch Week Campaign, "Vote for School Lunch - Presidential Edition," was honored by the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) with a 2009 Summit Award. The award will be presented to SNA during the 10th Annual Summit Awards Dinner, September 29, 2009 at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC.
In their first meeting, President Obama and Pope Benedict XVI on Friday discussed their views on abortion, embryonic stem cell research and the rights of health care workers to object to procedures and services that go against their beliefs, the Los Angeles Times reports. During a 30-minute discussion, the pope expressed to Obama his beliefs about "the defense and promotion of life and the right to abide by one"s conscience," according to the Vatican. The Times reports that the statement was a "clear reference" to debates over abortion rights, embryonic stem cell research and "conscience" protections for health care providers who refuse care on moral or religious grounds (Chu, Los Angeles Times, 7/11).According to Time, Benedict showed "no intention of papering over differences on what the Vatican calls "life" issues," including abortion rights. Vatican spokesperson the Rev. Federico Lombardi said that the pope told him how Obama "explicitly expressed his commitment to reducing the number of abortions and to listen to the Church"s concerns on moral issues" (Israely, Time, 7/10). According to White House deputy national security aide Denis McDonough, Obama was "eager to find common ground on these issues and to work aggressively to do that" (Simpson/Feller, AP/Boston Globe, 7/11). However, "[I]t may just be that there"s issues that you can"t come to agreement on," McDonough added, noting that Obama believes that "you can disagree without being disagreeable" (Los Angeles Times, 7/11).Montsignor Georg Ganswein, the pope"s personal secretary, said that Obama was given a copy of "Dignitas Personae," or "The Dignity of a Person," a Vatican document released in December detailing the Roman Catholic Church"s most recent stance on bioethics issues (Time, 7/10). The document "hardened" the Church"s opposition to embryonic stem cell research, cloning and in vitro fertilization (AP/Boston Globe, 7/11). Obama assured the pope he would read the document that day on his flight from Italy to Ghana. Ganswein said that the document "can help the president better understand the position of the Catholic Church." Lombardi noted that it "would be ambiguous to hide or minimize what we believe," adding, "It"s not meant to be divisive or polemical" (Time, 7/10).
Although New York state"s decision to allow state-funded embryonic stem cell researchers to compensate women for donating their eggs "has provoked criticism from some ethicists and runs counter to guidelines issued by" NIH and the National Academy of Sciences, it still "seems justifiable" to pay the women "for undergoing an arduous procedure and to spur progress on potentially important research that has been slowed because of a lack of human eggs," a New York Times editorial states. The state"s Empire State Stem Cell Board last month made the decision to allow researchers to pay women up to $10,000 as compensation.According to the editorial, "[w]omen already get paid comparable sums to donate their eggs to help infertile women have a child through in vitro fertilization," so it "is hard to see why they should not be paid for contributing their eggs for research." The editorial notes that the "money is meant as reimbursement for travel, housing, child care or medical expenses," and it also would "compensate the women for the considerable time, burden and inconvenience of harvesting their eggs, a process that can take 56 hours spread out over many weeks.""The board set reasonable constraints, insisting that the research be rigorously reviewed and approved by oversight committees, that donors be fully informed of potential physical and psychological risks and that they give informed consent to the procedure," the editorial states. It adds, "One concern has been that payments could induce women, especially poor women, to provide eggs without fully considering potential risks." The editorial continues, "In an effort to mitigate that possibility, the stem cell board will follow the guidelines of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, which require justification for payments of $5,000 or more and deem sums above $10,000 inappropriate."The editorial adds, "Human eggs are highly prized for some of the most promising research, notably studies that require matching embryonic stem cells to a particular patient with a particular disease," concluding, "It has proved almost impossible to recruit women to go through the arduous process for free," so the "board was right to allow fair compensation" (New York Times, 7/11).
Some seniors in Illinois are delaying buying prescription drugs because of the cost, according to the AARP. United Press International reports: "Twenty-one percent of AARP members surveyed in Illinois report not filling or delaying filling prescriptions due to cost, a survey indicated. Nearly one in five said they had to cut back on food and utilities to afford needed medications, the AARP survey of Illinois residents 50 and over indicated. The survey found 63 percent are concerned about affordability of their prescription drugs. Eighteen percent reported they took less than the prescribed amount to make the medicine last longer. The survey found women and Hispanics say they tend to be harder hit than the general 50-plus population by high drug costs. In the past year, prices for brand-name prescription drugs increased an average of 8.7 percent, while generic drug prices decreased by nearly 11 percent, Merri Dee, president for AARP in Illinois, said. Prices of specialty prescription drugs, used to treat conditions that tend to affect older populations such as cancer and rheumatoid arthritis, increased by 9.3 percent" (7/13).
Alejandro Gutierrez, MD, is the third recipient of the ASH-AMFDP grant, an award designed to help increase the number of underrepresented minority scholars in the field of hematology, and will begin his research into the pathogenesis of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) this month. The award, the result of a partnership between the American Society of Hematology (ASH) and the Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program (AMFDP) of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, provides four years of support, including an annual stipend of up to $75,000 and an annual grant of more than $29,000 for research activities.
"A large percentage" of U.S. and Mexican men who regularly engage in sexual activity with sex workers in Tijuana, Mexico, do not use condoms and have a history of substance and alcohol use, according to a study published in the online journal AIDS, the Los Angeles Times" blog "L.A. Now" reports. The study, by researchers from Mexico and the University of California-San Diego, surveyed 400 men - both Mexico and U.S. residents - and found that half of the men had unprotected sex with a female sex worker within the last four months. Researchers noted that although Tijuana authorities require that sex workers be registered and tested regularly for HIV, "only about half of [sex workers] have registered or been tested," according to the blog. Thomas Patterson of the UC-San Diego"s department of psychiatry and the Veterans Affairs health center, said the findings indicate a need for an educational campaign targeting men who frequent sex workers (Perry, 7/11).
Going out like a brilliant flame is one way to get attention. If physicians could watch tumor cells committing a form of programmed suicide called apoptosis, a desired effect of workhorse cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, they could more quickly pick the most effective treatment. Now scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found a way to do just that, by lighting up cells as they die.
Individuals who have higher levels of education and who are more impaired by Parkinson"s disease appear to require treatment for their symptoms earlier than do other patients, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the September print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
A new study published yesterday looked at "active commuters" who biked or walked to work, and reported they had reduced cardiovascular risk factors. Commenting on the study (1), Ellen Mason, Cardiac Nurse at the British Heart Foundation (BHF) said:
The Kaiser Family Foundation"s Jackie Judd talks with Kaiser Health News" Mary Agnes Carey about upcoming and recent activities on Capitol Hill this week, including the scheduled "s closed-door "walk through" with panel members to discuss options to finance health care overhaul legislation.
Approximately two-thirds of the 1.5 million Americans living with lupus will develop some type of skin disease. Lupus is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system is unbalanced causing it to become destructive to any organ and tissue in the body. Skin disease in lupus can cause rashes or sores (lesions), most of which will appear on sun-exposed areas, such as a person"s face, ears, neck, arms, and legs. In addition, 40-70 percent of people with systemic lupus will find that their disease is made worse by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays from sunlight or artificial light. For this and other reasons, people with lupus are advised to take steps to protect themselves from exposure to UV light.
New research from the Stanford University School of Medicine and Stanford Hospital & Clinics suggests that the use of a dietary supplement after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery can help obese patients to more quickly lose weight and to avoid deficiency of a critical B vitamin.
The results of a preliminary clinical trial suggest that a new Alzheimer"s drug from Humanetics Corporation is safe for daily use and that cognitive performance in patients with mild to moderate disease remained stable during the six-week course of the trial. The lack of decline in cognitive performance was an encouraging finding to be further evaluated in a Phase IIB clinical trial.
Scientists have shown that E. coli - one of the best known and extensively studied organisms in the world - remains an enigma that may hold the key to human diseases, such as cancer.
Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have turned simple baker"s yeast into a virtual army of medicinal chemists capable of rapidly searching for drugs to treat Parkinson"s disease.
Elsevier has announced the launch of the official version of BrainNavigator, a neuroscience research tool developed in collaboration with the Allen Institute for Brain Science and under the editorship of Professor George Paxinos and Charles Watson, Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute, Sydney. After unveiling the prototype version at the Society for Neuroscience"s Neuroscience 2008 tradeshow last November, the rodent brain version is now available at http://www.brainnav.com.
A UQ Science researcher has received a prestigious honorary fellowship for her long-time work into understanding the underlying mechanisms of pain.
Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust is to host a national conference on combating infections.
Accera, Inc., a biotechnology company delivering breakthrough therapies in central nervous system diseases, today announced further evidence for genetic interactions impacting the efficacy of the ketogenic compound AC-1202 (Axona(TM)) in Alzheimer"s disease. New data from the company"s previously completed double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer"s disease demonstrates an interaction between two genetic markers that strongly influence the therapeutic response in patients. Dr. Samuel Henderson, Executive Director of Research, will present these results at the 2009 International Conference on Alzheimer"s Disease (ICAD) sponsored by the Alzheimer"s Association.
Different segments of the carotid artery that supply the brain with blood respond in different fashions to the build-up of complex, health-threatening plaque, according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and their colleagues.
The New York City-based advocacy group Community Service Society recently released a report that found racial health disparities among state health plan beneficiaries, New York Times" "City Room" reports. The report urged state officials to close the gaps. The roughly 20 health plans that contract with the state public health programs to provide health insurance to low-income residents are required to break down health indicators by race. Using data from the New York State Department of Health, researchers found that out of 12 measures the state uses in quality assurance, including dental visits, asthma management, mammography and almost all diabetes indicators:
The development of essential dementia diagnostic tools could be achieved through the combined observation of biomarkers with other measures such as brain volume, according to research studies.
A new health series following the lives of six South Asian people, and offering diet and healthy lifestyle advice, will be hitting our screens on Sunday 17 May.
A USA Today/Gallup Poll found that "most Americans say it"s important to overhaul health care this year," but "they are less enthusiastic about some of the proposals to pay for it," USA Today reports. "And while a majority say controlling costs should be the legislation"s top goal, more than nine in 10 oppose limits on getting whatever tests or treatments they and their doctors think are necessary." But some good news for President Obama: "A third of those surveyed say they trust him and congressional Democrats most when it comes to changing health care, compared with 10% who choose congressional Republicans. Another 45% trust doctors and hospitals the most."
As the health care debate intensifies, divisions among lawmakers, competing lobbies and interest groups are increasingly tense. "The health care battle in Congress is getting hotter, fueled by growing opposition to taxing health insurance benefits, mandating small-business coverage and cutting Medicare payments and by creeping doubts about a public plan for the uninsured. And this is just among Democrats," the Washington Times reports. Notably, last week the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of conservative Democrats, objected to the cost of an anticipated House reform proposal and said it would hurt small businesses, a key constituency already reeling from the recession. The objection stalled the House, which delayed releasing the proposal (Lambro, 7/14).
Passport Health of Massachusetts, specialists in vaccinations against dread diseases faced by international travelers, is concerned that eastern New England"s wettest spring and early summer in decades can be more deadly than usual.
People with mental health problems could find themselves without adequate help and support under proposals set out in today"s green paper on adult social care, warns leading mental health charity Rethink.
Endothelial progenitor cells may play a role in the start and progression of metastatic disease in children with cancer, according to study results published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
A unique study looking at the difference in cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke) and life expectancy between people of high and low socio-economic status has found that a person"s IQ may have a role to play.
Drugs that block a growth factor receptor on brain cells may prevent epilepsy after brain damage, according to a new study appearing in the July 15 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.
Eliminating polio everywhere will require global cooperation on several fronts, including lowering the cost for poor countries to vaccinate with inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), says a leading global health researcher in the July/August Health Affairs thematic issue on global health.
For the first time, the Society of Interventional Radiology has assembled a major electronic collection of professional articles about uterine artery embolization, a treatment directed toward a number of conditions involving the uterus-most often adverse health effects that may occur due to the presence of uterine fibroids. The Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology "virtual" collection allows health care providers and the public to view the abstracts on current research on this topic in one place, eliminating the need to search topics individually.
As summer vacations begin, experts at Lighthouse International urge everyone to take eye safety seriously and prevent damage from the sun that could be permanent. Lighthouse International, based in New York City, is the 104 year old non-profit leader in vision health.
St. Jude Medical, Inc. (NYSE:STJ) announced Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approval of its Libra® and LibraXP™ deep brain stimulation (DBS) systems for treating the symptoms of Parkinson"s disease, a neurological disorder that progressively diminishes a person"s control over his or her movements.
Scientists have found a way to identify breast cancer patients at risk of heart disease after radiotherapy, according to a report published yesterday.
New insights into how a Phase III Alzheimer"s drug might work were among the advances in potential therapies targeting two abnormal brain proteins - beta amyloid and phosphorylated tau - at ICAD.
Sanofi-aventis (EURONEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY) announced the release of an Expert Statement by a multidisciplinary board of renowned international experts following an in-depth assessment of the recent publications of registry analyses with Lantus(R) (insulin glargine [rDNA] injection) in Diabetologia. This board of international specialists in the field of endocrinology, oncology and epidemiology came to the conclusion, that all four manuscripts have significant methodological limitations and shortcomings, and that they provide inconsistent and inconclusive results regarding a potential link between insulin glargine use and an increased risk of cancer.
Researchers at Rush University Medical Center are testing a novel regimen of hip-muscle exercises to decrease the load on the knee joints in patients with osteoarthritis. The goal is not only to relieve pain but also, possibly, to halt progression of the disease.
Most people get allergic conjunctivitis when their eyes come into contact with an allergen - a substance which makes the body"s immune system overreact. The eye becomes sore, inflamed and sometimes painful. Symptoms occur because the overreacting immune system makes the body release histamine and other active substances by mast cells - these cause dilation of blood vessels (blood vessels expand, widen), which irritates the nerve endings and causes increased secretion of tears.
A U.S. company registered by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Center for Veterans Enterprise as a veteran-run business filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and with NYS Governor David A. Paterson, alleging discriminatory practices by the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH).
"President Barack Obama may rely only on Democrats to push health-care legislation through the U.S. Congress if Republican resistance doesn"t eventually give way, two of the president"s top advisers said," Bloomberg reports.
The president of the American College of Physicians (ACP) today told the chairmen of the House Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce, and Education and Labor Committees that America"s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009, H.R. 3200, is "closely aligned" with ACP policies on coverage, workforce, and payment and delivery system reform.
The CFO for Johnson & Johnson"s said President Obama"s deal with hospitals to cut Medicare costs will reduce the sales of medical devices, Bloomberg reports: "Hospitals buy medical devices, including J&J"s artificial hips and stents to prop open clogged arteries, directly from the manufacturer, (Johnson and Johnson CFO Dominic) Caruso said today in an interview with Bloomberg News. The hospitals are reimbursed by government-run health plans for the cost of a procedure regardless of the price of the equipment, pressuring hospitals to cut purchases of the latest technologies, he said. ò€¦ "The deal that the hospital industry struck will obviously have an impact on the medical-device business," Caruso said. "Medicare reimburses the hospital for a basket of costs related to a procedure, of which medical devices are included"" (Randall, 7/14).
Over 80% of rural and remote doctors recently surveyed by the Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA) believe adding a significant rural and remote loading on Medicare items would assist in recruiting and retaining doctors in their communities.
An overhaul of the U.S. health care system would probably help maintain improvements already made in Iowa, Gov. Chet Culver and other health advocates said Tuesday, according to the Des Moines Register.
"Rising unemployment and spiking Medicaid and welfare caseloads have put [New Hampshire"s] most recent budget to the test just two weeks after its adoption," New Hampshire Public Radio reports. The state"s Medicaid caseload is just 39 enrollees away from putting the "state"s Medicaid budget in the red."
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) on Tuesday announced plans to invest $97 million over 10 years "to improve research, development and access to AIDS drugs in Africa," Reuters reports. GSK also put forth "a new free voluntary licensing agreement for AIDS drug abacavir, or Ziagen with South African generic drugmaker Aspen Pharmacare." According to Reuters, Aspen will be able to "manufacture a cheaper generic version of the drug."
The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) testified yesterday before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts and Competition Policy on "Biologics and Biosimilars: Balancing Incentives for Innovation."
AcroMetrix, a leading manufacturer of quality control standards and controls for clinical diagnostic and blood testing laboratories, announced the release of the first standardized quality control for molecular Group B Streptococcus (GBS) testing. The OptiQual GBS Positive Control is designed to help clinical laboratories comply with CLIA guidelines for qualitative molecular assays that detect Group B Streptococcus DNA, ensuring accuracy and precision throughout the testing procedure.
The "sloppier copier" discovered by USC biologists is also the best sixth man in the DNA repair game, an article in the journal Nature shows.
Just like a conductor cueing musicians in an orchestra, Fgf10, a member of the fibroblast growth factor (Ffg) family of morphogens, lets brain stem cells know that the moment to get to work has arrived, ensuring that they hit their first developmental milestone on time, report scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in the July 16, 2009, edition of the journal Neuron.
AARP CEO Barry Rand released this statement following the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee"s passage of the Affordable Health Choices Act:
Advanced Therapeutics & Co. (ADVTX) announced that Fibrinoplate-S™ has shown efficacy in reducing the bleeding in animals exposed to extreme doses of radiation. Survivors of a nuclear event or a dirty bomb explosion will have similar damage from the ionizing radiation of such bombs.
A review published Online First and in a future edition of The Lancet reports that men who have sex with men (MSM) in sub-Saharan Africa are a high risk group for HIV infection. However, religious, political, and social shame signify that this isolated group cannot access vital services. It is crucial that the HIV/AIDS community take action to deal with this crisis. The review discusses those issues and is the work of Dr Adrian D Smith, of the University of Oxford, UK, and his team.
Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPGY), the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, announces it has received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for velaglucerase alfa, its enzyme replacement therapy in development for the treatment of Type I Gaucher disease. Shire is working with the FDA to determine subsequent steps and timing for the filing of its NDA.
A recently identified gene allows immune cells to start the self-destructive processes thought to underlie autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and rheumatoid arthritis, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shed new light on a process that fixes breaks in the genetic material of the body"s cells. Their findings could lead to ways of enhancing chemotherapy drugs that destroy cancer cells by damaging their DNA.
Votes are planned Thursday in the House Education and Labor and Ways and Means committees on a $1.5 trillion plan to overhaul the nation"s health care system, The Associated Press reports.
Determined to cut Medicare costs, the White House unveiled a plan that would shift much of the power over Medicare payment rates from Congress to the executive branch.
Daily Monitor Reports On Success, Expansion Of Pilot Study Using Health Text Messages
US researchers have discovered the molecular mechanisms by which the human body metabolizes selenium, a trace element that plays an essential
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) received copies of Lord Gill"s report[1] into the explosion, caused by a leak of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) on 11 May 2004, when nine people died and many more were injured at the ICL Plastics factory in Maryhill, Glasgow.
After a period of improvement, trends in the sexual and reproductive health of U.S. teens and young adults have flattened, or in some instances may be worsening, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Every 30 seconds a person somewhere in the world loses a lower limb to amputation due to diabetic foot disease.
UPMC is once again the region"s only medical center named on the annual U.S. News & World Report Honor Roll of America"s Best Hospitals. UPMC is ranked 13th of only 21 hospitals nationwide who made the Honor Roll of the "nation"s best" in the 2009 survey.
Some people say they never forget a face, a claim now bolstered by psychologists at Harvard University who"ve discovered a group they call "super-recognizers": those who can easily recognize someone they met in passing, even many years later.
The Royal College of Nursing welcomed the signing of a joint agreement by European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) and the European Hospital and Healthcare Employers Association (HOSPEEM). This is an EU-wide agreement which the RCN has played a key role in bringing about to prevent one million medical sharps injuries per year. Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said:
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: BCRX) announced positive results from two Phase 3 studies of intravenous (i.v.) peramivir in patients with seasonal influenza. The studies were sponsored by BioCryst"s partner Shionogi & Co., Ltd. of Osaka, Japan and conducted during the 2008-2009 influenza season. Shionogi and Green Cross Corporation, the license holder of peramivir in Korea, co-conducted the portion of the studies in Korea.
Adults between the ages of 34 and 56 are at a greater risk of dying from poisonings than from motor vehicle accidents, according to a new report from the CDC.
Respiratory infectious diseases continue to be a huge and rising burden to health-care systems and societies worldwide. Published by Wiley-Blackwell, the latest issue of Respirology includes an invited review series focused on infectious pulmonary diseases.
The House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday voted 23-18 to approve its health care reform bill (HR 3200) after rejecting dozens of Republican amendments, including attempts to exclude abortion coverage from the essential benefit package created in the legislation, CQ Today reports. An amendment offered by Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Texas) was rejected in an 18-23 vote; Reps. Bill Pascrell (N.J.), Earl Pomeroy (N.D.) and John Tanner (Tenn.) were the only Democrats to support the amendment. The amendment included exceptions for abortion to save the woman"s life or in cases of rape or incest. Committee members voted 19-22 to reject a similar amendment by House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.).The House health reform bill would establish a panel to set a minimum benefits package that health insurers must offer. The bill aims to expand health insurance coverage by mandating that individuals obtain insurance, requiring employers to offer workers coverage or pay a fine, and establishing a health insurance exchange where people could compare and purchase plans. The exchange would include a government-run health insurance option that would compete with private plans (Rubin, CQ Today, 7/17).
MorphoSys AG (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced the start of a further two oncology-focused therapeutic antibody programs within its collaboration with DAIICHI SANKYO COMPANY, LIMITED (TSE: 4568, hereinafter Daiichi Sankyo). By exercising two options available under the parties" existing agreement, Daiichi Sankyo has selected two new target molecules against which MorphoSys will generate antibodies using its proprietary HuCAL technology. Daiichi Sankyo will carry out pre-clinical and clinical development and has worldwide marketing rights for all resulting products. MorphoSys receives exclusive license fees and stands to receive milestones and royalties for the therapeutic antibody programs, as per the terms of the companies" existing agreement. Further financial details were not disclosed.
One thing that "has been conspicuously absent" from the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is "substance," Jonathan Turley, the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University, writes in a USA Today opinion piece. According to Turley, "The vast majority of questions and answers remained on a shallow and predictable level where Sotomayor did little more than describe current doctrines and case law -- avoiding disclosures of her own views." He continues, "What is most striking is how Sotomayor"s statements were virtually identical to both her conservative and liberal predecessors," including her comments that Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey are "the precedent of the court."Turley writes, "The content-light character in these hearings is largely the product of the "Ginsburg rule" -- named after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who refused to answer questions in her 1993 confirmation hearing about any case or matter upon which she might later vote." According to Turley, "Later nominees for both parties have relied on the Ginsburg rule to turn the hearings into prolonged photo-ops for senators, who largely ask wafer-thin questions to solicit largely scripted answers." The rule "allows nominees to get by with meaningless sound bites that promise to respect precedent, the Framers [of the Constitution] and collegiality in general," he adds. Furthermore, it "tells the public nothing about a nominee"s philosophy or purpose before giving her life tenure on the world"s most powerful court," Turley writes.According to Turley, there is a "simple solution to returning substance to the confirmation process: End the Ginsburg rule by insisting that nominees answer questions about their specific views on constitutional rights." Although "the current system works well for presidents, nominees and senators," it "does little for the public or the system of justice," he writes (Turley, USA Today, 7/16).
Researchers have warned people to beware of the damage that acidic beverages have on teeth. Yet, for some, the damage and problems associated with drinking sodas, citric juices or certain tea may have already begun to take effect. The question remains: What can be done to restore teeth already affected?
The June cover of the Journal of Virology features a photograph of the unusual effects on a cell infected by a virus. Montana State University researchers were the first to view the virus, which they collected from a boiling, acidic spring in Yellowstone.
As the winter cold and flu season tightens its grip, the National Asthma Council Australia is concerned that Australians may be incorrectly pointing the finger at milk as the mucus-causing culprit.
The incidence of obesity among US blacks is higher than among Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites, reports the Centers for Disease Control and
Medical practitioners should be required to participate in a new national medical labour force survey as part of their registration obligations, to assist workforce planning, according to an article published in this year"s General Practice edition of the Medical Journal of Australia.
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is launching its "LOVE Condom" campaign with an event today in the New Delhi region on the 18th of July, 2009. The campaign includes the distribution of free AHF "LOVE"-brand condoms, as well as a "Stay Negative" public service advertising campaign. Bollywood actor Ronit Roy will be the chief guest at today"s launch event. The event will be at Metropolitan Hotel Nikko, New Delhi. This campaign will be a new start of HIV AIDS education in India.
PolyMedix, Inc., an emerging biotechnology company developing acute care products for infectious diseases and acute cardiovascular disorders based on biomimetics, announced that three posters relating to the Company"s heptagonist compounds were presented at the International Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis Conference. The posters were presented at the conference on July 16, 2009, by PolyMedix"s collaborators at Loyola University.
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center researchers have uncovered a gene signature that may help predict clinical outcomes in certain types of breast cancer.
AACP presents:
A research team led by the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology has identified the specific gene which triggers the body to produce disease-fighting antibodies -- a seminal finding that clarifies the exact molecular steps taken by the body to mount an antibody defense against viruses and other pathogens. The finding, published online in the prestigious journal Science, has major implications for the development of new and more effective vaccines. The La Jolla Institute"s Shane Crotty, Ph.D., was the lead scientist on the team, which also included researchers from Yale University.
People have the opportunity to have their eyes checked with one-of-a-kind equipment for free, while helping to solve the mystery behind the leading cause of blindness in Australia. Even people with healthy eyes, aged 50 and over, are being encouraged to participate in the Queensland University of Technology study. Eye specialist and QUT researcher Dr Beatrix Feigl is embarking on the study to detect the early signs of age-related macular degeneration, a disease that progressively causes vision loss.
Actelion Ltd (SIX: ATLN) announced the launch of Zavesca® (miglustat) in the UK and Republic of Ireland; the first and only licensed treatment available for people with Niemann-Pick type C (NP-C) disease [1]. NP-C is a rare, genetic disease with significant neurological deterioration that can be fatal and affects infants, children and adults [2,3].
King Saud University professor, Dr. Adel Almogren, along with a diverse team of academic researchers from the United States, Canada, and Taiwan, has discovered a new process that could lead to a vaccine to block cancer cell adhesion and growth.
Experts from the Institute of Psychiatry will tell attendees of a unique conference on the 25th July in Reading that health professionals often fail to correctly identify when someone suffers from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). As a consequence, the burden of this very disabling and distressing condition tends to fall on family members.
Children with stressed out parents may be more susceptible to developing asthma associated with environmental triggers such as high levels of traffic-related pollution and tobacco smoke, according to a new study led by researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC).
-39% of suicides by hanging took place when the patient was supposed to be subject to observation by staff
The development, which has taken five years to complete, is part of a ÷£500m PFI scheme, commissioned by Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CMFT), and delivered in partnership with Catalyst Healthcare. The new Royal Manchester Children"s Hospital - a "super-hospital" for children - will be accompanied by The Manchester Royal Infirmary, Saint Mary"s Hospital and Manchester Royal Eye Hospital.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Friday announced that he will oppose Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, even as increased Republican support seemed to ensure that she would be confirmed, the New York Times reports. McConnell said that he would not support Sotomayor"s nomination because her "record of written statements suggests an alarming lack of respect for the notion of equal justice, and, therefore, in my view, an insufficient willingness to abide by the judicial oath." McConnell intends to deliver the remarks to the Senate on Monday. Meanwhile, Republican Sens. Richard Lugar (Ind.), Mel Martinez (Fla.) and Olympia Snowe (Maine) said that they would support Sotomayor. The Times reports that the senators" backing of Sotomayor -- combined with her "solid Democratic support" -- shows that she should receive "strong confirmation approval" (Hulse, New York Times, 7/18). Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and ranking member Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) would not predict how many Republicans could vote for her confirmation. Sessions said that Republicans are seeking a committee vote on Sotomayor on July 28, one week later than the date sought by committee Democrats. During that week, Republicans hope to review her record, her answers from her confirmation hearings and other responses to questions (AP/Boston Globe, 7/20).