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Disclosure of medication to dentist can save a patient's life

Do you regularly take aspirin or antiplatelet medications? Do you know whether or not these drugs should be stopped before dental procedures or surgeries?

25 Nov 2008

Researchers repair injured heart muscle with novel stem cells

Researchers at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC have been able to effectively repair damaged heart muscle in an animal model using a novel population of stem cells they discovered that is derived from human skeletal muscle tissue.

25 Nov 2008

Cancer declines for first time in United States

The overall incidence of cancer and death due to cancer dropped for the first time in men and women in the United States, according to a report published in the November 25 online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

25 Nov 2008

Scientists develop peptide that converts Bcl-2 protein from a cancer cell's friend to a foe

If you're a cancer cell, you want a protein called Bcl-2 on your side because it decides if you live or die.

25 Nov 2008

Adiponectin is a metabolic link between obesity and bone mineral density

Researchers at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Toronto, Canada, have discovered that adiponectin, a protein secreted from adipocytes, is a metabolic link that can explain, in part, the known positive relationship between obesity and both bone mineral density and reduced susceptibility to fractures.

25 Nov 2008

New study on pancreatic cancer survival

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest and most difficult to treat cancers. Now, in a major step forward, researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center have shown that administering radiation therapy prior to surgery nearly doubles survival in pancreatic cancer patients with operable tumors.

25 Nov 2008

Declines in cancer incidence and death rates across U.S.

A new report from the nation's leading cancer organizations shows that, for the first time since the report was first issued in 1998, both incidence and death rates for all cancers combined are decreasing for both men and women, driven largely by declines in some of the most common types of cancer.

25 Nov 2008

Presence of gum disease may help dentists and physicians identify risk of cardiovascular disease

Individuals reporting a history of periodontal disease were more likely to have increased levels of inflammation, a risk factor for heart disease, compared to those who reported no history of periodontal disease, according to an American Journal of Cardiology report available online today.

25 Nov 2008

Understanding how oxidative stress impairs endothelial progenitor cell function may lead to antioxidant therapy to prevent cardiovascular disease

Although its been over a decade since endothelial progenitor cells or EPCs, cells that circulate in the blood repairing and replacing the cells that line blood vessels, were identified, the field is still evolving. EPCs are now being studied as biomarkers to assess the risk of future cardiovascular disease and as potential agents for vascular regeneration.

25 Nov 2008

$2.7 million boosts effort to create the big view of cancer

Many scientists like to discuss how each form of cancer is a distinct disease with its own causes and its own treatments. But researcher Hartmut "Hucky" Land, Ph.D., takes the opposite approach: He is hunting for the most basic rules that all cancers share to make good cells go bad.

25 Nov 2008

Researchers find clue to safer obesity drugs

Once hailed as a miracle weight-loss drug, Fen-phen was removed from the market more than a decade ago for inducing life-threatening side effects, including heart valve lesions. Scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center are trying to understand how Fen-phen behaves in the brain in order to develop safer anti-obesity drugs with fewer side effects.

25 Nov 2008

Potassium loss from blood pressure drugs increases diabetes risk by 50%

According to researchers in the U.S. the loss of potassium experienced from taking blood pressure drugs may explain higher risk of adult diabetes.

25 Nov 2008

Patients with severe traumatic brain injuries can relearn social communication skills

According to new research from Australia patients who have suffered traumatic brain injuries can benefit from being re-educated in important social communication skills.

25 Nov 2008

Australian scientists discover a way to stop meningitis

Australian scientists have discovered a bacteria which could stop meningitis - the scientists at the University of Western Australia believe their discovery will help researchers understand how the meningitis bacteria infects cells and could lead to the prevention of infections such as meningitis.

25 Nov 2008

Researchers develop new strategy for broad spectrum anti-viral drugs

Bavituximab, an anti-viral drug developed by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers, shows promise as a new strategy to fight viral diseases, including potential bioterrorism agents.

24 Nov 2008

Blood transfusions increase clot risk in hospitalized cancer patients

Blood transfusions used to treat anemia in patients with cancer are associated with an increased risk of life-threatening blood clots, at a similar rate as other treatments for cancer-induced anemia, according to scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

24 Nov 2008

Reliability of Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale - Cognitive (ADAS-Cog) tool varies widely

A study published in the November issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease (Volume 15:3) suggests the reliability of the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale - Cognitive (ADAS-Cog) may vary and possess the ability to affect clinical trial outcomes.

24 Nov 2008

Big sperm not necessarily fastest

Contrary to common scientific belief, the length of a sperm's tail does not always determine how fast it can swim.

24 Nov 2008

Scientists discover that blocking a neuropeptide receptor decreases nicotine addiction

The study was published in an online Early Edition issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , the week of November 24.

24 Nov 2008

Scientists present 'moving' theory behind bacterial decision-making

Biochemists at North Carolina State University have answered a fundamental question of how important bacterial proteins make life-and-death decisions that allow them to function, a finding that could provide a new target for drugs to disrupt bacterial decision-making processes and related diseases.

24 Nov 2008