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University of Florida researchers have used a common gel to successfully deliver gene therapy to the diaphragm

The technique, described in the current issue of Molecular Therapy, could eventually lead to a method to correct genetic conditions in humans that cause diaphragm weakness and respiratory failure -- a leading cause of death in tens of thousands of patients with forms of muscular dystrophy, including Pompe’s disease. Thousands of Americans with muscle-weakening diseases are placed on ventilators each year, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

7 Apr 2004

Cinacalet helps control overactive thyroids, a major complication of advanced kidney disease

A new drug can help control an overactive thyroid, a major complication of advanced kidney disease, by playing a trick on the gland, a new study finds. The drug, cinacalet, is much more effective at keeping the parathyroid gland working normally than a placebo, according to the study. It may be a good alternative to standard therapy, researchers said.

7 Apr 2004

Intensive diabetes management yields positive results

Increasing diabetes awareness and integrating a multi-faceted, approach to improve patient care and education, results in significantly improved patient outcomes, according to a report in the April issue of Clinical Diabetes, a publication of the American Diabetes Association.

7 Apr 2004

Protein kinase complex influences the outer layer of skin to control the eventual shape of the full-grown skeleton and skull

Continuing studies about an important regulatory protein kinase complex called I-kappa-B kinase (or IKK) have now shown that a subunit of IKK – IKK alpha – influences the outer layer of skin in developing mice to control the eventual shape of the full-grown skeleton and skull.

7 Apr 2004

Molecular analyses of leukemia patients suggest strategies for better treatments

The cure rate for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) might continue to rise with improved use of conventional therapies. But even more effective and less toxic therapies based on genetic and pharmacogenetic studies might one day push the success rate close to 100 percent, according to an article published by investigators at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the April 8 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

7 Apr 2004

Research shows that intense high dose cholesterol lowering drugs result in a major reduction in deaths and severe heart attacks

If you want to increase your chances of living longer, taking cholesterol drugs is an easy way to do it. That's the message from a Harvard study of 4,162 people hospitalized in 350 places in eight countries. It is the first research to show that intense lowering of cholesterol results in a major reduction in deaths and severe heart attacks.

7 Apr 2004

Time-reversal acoustics research promises medical breakthroughs

Scientists have not yet found a way to actually make time run backward, but in the cutting-edge world of recent acoustics research, they have shown a way to make sound waves run backward in a kind of ultra-focused reverse echo. By the technology known as time-reversal acoustics, sound waves - in exact reverse order from the original sound - echo directly and very precisely back to their source point.

7 Apr 2004

Women with a history of pre-eclampsia are at increased risk of cancer

Women with a history of pre-eclampsia are at increased risk of cancer, particularly cancers of the stomach, breast, ovary, lung and larynx, according to a Columbia University study recently published by the British Medical Journal. Researchers studied 37,000 women in western Jerusalem, Israel, who delivered babies in three large hospitals between 1964 and 1976.

7 Apr 2004

Lack of vigorous physical activity is the main contributor to obesity in adolescents ages 11 to 15

Lack of vigorous physical activity is the main contributor to obesity in adolescents ages 11 to 15, according to a study of 878 adolescents by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine, in collaboration with investigators at San Diego State University.

6 Apr 2004

Oral sildenafil improved exercise tolerance, cardiac output and quality of life in 22 patients with primary pulmonary hypertension

Oral sildenafil (Viagra®) improved exercise tolerance, cardiac output and quality of life in 22 patients with primary pulmonary hypertension, according to the results of the first randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover study, reported in the April 7, 2004 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

6 Apr 2004

New method to induce embryonic stem cells to develop into bone marrow and blood cells

Researchers at Northwestern University have devised a method to induce embryonic stem cells to develop into bone marrow and blood cells. Injecting the stem cells into the bone marrow cavity of mice whose bone marrow cells had been depleted restored production of blood cells, including cells of the immune system, which normally are created in the bone marrow.

6 Apr 2004

Trauma Highly Prevalent Among Delinquents

Almost every boy and girl currently detained in a juvenile facility in the United States has experienced at least one major trauma, and a large proportion of these children have post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a study in the April issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

6 Apr 2004

A new technique for engineering protein crystals is helping scientists figure out the three-dimensional structures of some important biological molecules

A new technique for engineering protein crystals is helping scientists figure out the three-dimensional structures of some important biological molecules, including a key plague protein whose structure has eluded researchers until now. The technique, developed with support from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), promises to help pharmaceutical companies develop more effective drugs to treat various diseases by tailor-making molecules to "fit" a protein's shape.

6 Apr 2004

Scientists studying vaccinia virus, a relative of smallpox, have determined that a gene necessary for virus replication also has a key role in turning off inflammation

Scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studying vaccinia virus, a close relative of smallpox, have determined that a gene necessary for virus replication also has a key role in turning off inflammation, a crucial anti-viral immune response of host cells.

6 Apr 2004

Alzheimer's live about half as long as those of similar age without dementia

Age, seriousness of impairment, and the severity of other medical conditions are important indicators of how long an individual might survive after an Alzheimer's disease diagnosis, Eric B. Larson, M.D., M.P.H. and colleagues report in the April 6 Annals of Internal Medicine. Study authors include Linda Teri, Ph.D., recipient of an Alzheimer's Association $1 million Pioneer research grant.

6 Apr 2004

Genetic cause of cancer identified as a defect in the function of otherwise normal genes

In a landmark study published today in Nature Genetics, researchers from St Vincent's Hospital, The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute and the University of New South Wales have shown that a possible cause of cancer is a defect in the function of otherwise normal genes.

6 Apr 2004

Number of breaths given during CPR may be linked to survival

Researchers have identified a factor that may improve cardiac arrest survival rates according to a first-of-its-kind study of paramedic responses reported in today’s rapid access issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

5 Apr 2004

Collaboration to create a series of small molecule drugs leads against a Takeda target

Array BioPharma Inc. today announced the commencement of a drug discovery collaboration with Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd. to create a series of small molecule drug leads against a Takeda target. This collaboration is in addition to Array's existing research agreement with Takeda that began in 2001.

5 Apr 2004

Ohio university to get major expansion cancer program

The Ohio State University Board of Trustees today has authorized the preparation of architectural and engineering plans for a possible major expansion of the university’s cancer program.

5 Apr 2004

Research shows giving Tourette Syndrome patients the drug levodopa normalizes brain activity

Scientists have known for years that abnormal activity involving a brain chemical called dopamine is somehow connected to the movements and vocalizations, or tics, associated with Tourette syndrome. Now neuroscience researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found brain activity in these patients is abnormal during memory tasks, as well.

5 Apr 2004

Medicine News and Research

University of Florida researchers have used a common gel to successfully deliver gene therapy to the diaphragm

Cinacalet helps control overactive thyroids, a major complication of advanced kidney disease

Intensive diabetes management yields positive results

Protein kinase complex influences the outer layer of skin to control the eventual shape of the full-grown skeleton and skull

Molecular analyses of leukemia patients suggest strategies for better treatments

Research shows that intense high dose cholesterol lowering drugs result in a major reduction in deaths and severe heart attacks

Time-reversal acoustics research promises medical breakthroughs

Women with a history of pre-eclampsia are at increased risk of cancer

Lack of vigorous physical activity is the main contributor to obesity in adolescents ages 11 to 15

Oral sildenafil improved exercise tolerance, cardiac output and quality of life in 22 patients with primary pulmonary hypertension

New method to induce embryonic stem cells to develop into bone marrow and blood cells

Trauma Highly Prevalent Among Delinquents

A new technique for engineering protein crystals is helping scientists figure out the three-dimensional structures of some important biological molecules

Scientists studying vaccinia virus, a relative of smallpox, have determined that a gene necessary for virus replication also has a key role in turning off inflammation

Alzheimer's live about half as long as those of similar age without dementia

Genetic cause of cancer identified as a defect in the function of otherwise normal genes

Number of breaths given during CPR may be linked to survival

Collaboration to create a series of small molecule drugs leads against a Takeda target

Ohio university to get major expansion cancer program

Research shows giving Tourette Syndrome patients the drug levodopa normalizes brain activity

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

Global and Local Efforts to Take Action Against Hepatitis

Addressing Important Cardiac Biology Questions with Shotgun Top-Down Proteomics

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