Medical Science News

RSS

WPI researchers measure molecular forces that enable cranberry juice to fight off urinary tract infections

Revealing the science behind the homespun advice, a team of researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has identified and measured the molecular forces that enable cranberry juice to fight off urinary tract infections in people.

16 Jul 2010

Two-thirds of world's population are vitamin D-insufficient or deficient

Vitamin D surfaces as a news topic every few months. How much daily vitamin D should a person get? Is it possible to have too much of it? Is exposure to the sun, which is the body's natural way of producing vitamin D, the best option? Or do supplements suffice?

16 Jul 2010

FDA confirms GRAS status for Ajinomoto's AjiGRAS-Leucine

Ajinomoto AminoScience LLC (AAS) today announced that it has confirmed GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) status of its AjiGRAS-Leucine, meeting the safety standards demanded by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). As the only formulation of Leucine currently with FDA acknowledged GRAS status, Ajinomoto's AjiGRAS-Leucine is the first amino acid to be allowed as an ingredient for use in conventional foods like non-milk and milk based meal replacements, sports and isotonic beverages, vitamin enhanced waters, and meal replacement bars, at levels of 0.5 to 3 grams per serving.

16 Jul 2010

Studying retrovirus assembly can help new drug development for infection control

How a retrovirus, like HIV, reproduces and assembles new viruses is different than previously thought, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers. Understanding the steps a virus takes for assembly could allow development of a way to prevent the spread of retroviral diseases. The team studied a chicken virus called Rous sarcoma virus that causes cancer in chickens and is similar to HIV.

16 Jul 2010

Penn researchers reverse cognitive decline in fruit flies with Alzheimer's gene mutation

Investigators have found that fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) males -- in which the activity of an Alzheimer's disease protein is reduced by 50 percent -- show impairments in learning and memory as they age. What's more, the researchers were able to prevent the age-related deficits by treating the flies with drugs such as lithium, or by genetic manipulations that reduced nerve-cell signaling.

16 Jul 2010

Study reveals improved process to obtain, store RNA from lung tumor biopsies

Analyzing the genes expressed by cancer cells allows for a better understanding of that patient's specific disease and in turn, a more personalized approach to treatment. But obtaining the RNA from a tumor in the lungs in order to conduct the genetic analysis is a challenging prospect. Currently, lung cancer researchers are limited to using RNA extracted from early-stage tumors removed during surgery. The small quantities of tissue extracted during routine diagnostic biopsies have not been useful to researchers, due to their small size and the variety of ways they have been processed.

16 Jul 2010

Study results to help researchers better understand cancer genetics, improve treatment regimens

The largest study to correlate genetics with response to cancer drugs releases its first results today. The researchers behind the study, based at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, describe in this initial dataset the responses of 350 cancer samples to 18 anticancer therapeutics.

16 Jul 2010

DNA copying error in autism sufferers discovered

Rubicon winner Dalila Pinto discovered a copying error in the DNA of trial subjects who suffered from autism or a similar condition. Some segments of their DNA were copied either once too often or missed out of the copying process. This is a highly promising result from the world's largest investigation into autism. The top journal Nature placed the results online on 9 June.

16 Jul 2010

Lyophilized rPA anthrax vaccine more immunogenic than liquid formulation: Study

PharmAthene, Inc., a biodefense company developing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, today announced results from a New Zealand White Rabbit study showing that its lyophilized recombinant Protective Antigen (rPA) anthrax vaccine was more immunogenic than a liquid formulation of rPA vaccine and produced a robust response with only 2 doses.

16 Jul 2010

Scientists discover gene mutation responsible for CDG

An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, has discovered the gene mutation responsible for a condition in which eye and brain development is severely disrupted in affected infants.

16 Jul 2010

Spanish scientists develop new parasite detection method to prevent Anisakidosis

A new method enables anisakids to be detected in any fish product, from a whole fish, fresh or frozen, to tinned fish and surimi. Developed by Spanish scientists, the system is based on molecular techniques and overcomes the limitations of traditional procedures.

16 Jul 2010

Essential nutrient in eggs may reduce risk of infant heart defects

A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a choline-deficient diet is associated with increased risk for heart defects during prenatal development. Choline is an essential nutrient required for normal cell activity, healthy brain and nerve function, liver metabolism and transportation of nutrients throughout the body.

16 Jul 2010

New study finds no evidence in support of LTPP's superiority over shorter-term methods of psychotherapy

This paper criticizes the methodology of a meta-analysis and 8 studies published in the JAMA last year which indicated that longer term psychodynamic psychotherapy (LTPP) was more effective than short therapies. The investigators found a miscalculation of the effect sizes used to make key comparisons and found no evidence to support claims of superiority of LTPP over shorter-term methods of psychotherapy.

16 Jul 2010

Arsenic nanoparticle to combat aggressive type of breast cancer prevalent in young women

You can teach an old drug new chemotherapy tricks. Northwestern University researchers took a drug therapy proven for blood cancers but ineffective against solid tumors, packaged it with nanotechnology and got it to combat an aggressive type of breast cancer prevalent in young women, particularly young African-American women.

16 Jul 2010

Waist circumference predicts diabetes risk

Waist circumference gives a better prediction of diabetes risk than does BMI. This is the conclusion drawn by Silke Feller and her colleagues from the German Institute for Nutritional Research in Potsdam-Rehbr-cke, in the current edition of Deutsches -rzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2010; 107[26]: 470-6).

16 Jul 2010

i26 hyperimmune egg balances improper immune inflammatory response

Our immune systems are in a constant battle with foreign invaders to keep our bodies healthy. Outside forces like pollution, poor nutrition and new strains of disease keep our immune systems at an overly boosted or inflamed state, which affects energy levels, body and emotional health and overall quality of life. Through inflammatory immune cells, our bodies fight to defend us from this onslaught. Too few of these cells can result in illness, while too many could lead to a high immune response, resulting in heightened inflammation and collateral damage to the body's once-healthy tissues.

16 Jul 2010

Scientists discover that C35 gene becomes overactive in HER2 positive tumours

UK scientists have discovered that a gene called C35 can work together with other cancer-promoting genes to drive the growth and invasion of breast cancer cells in the lab.

16 Jul 2010

New findings on macrophage activation can facilitate development of early diagnosis tools

Immune system cells called macrophages spring into action to surround and destroy threats such as viruses or cancer cells. But sometimes the would-be protective response leads to persistent inflammation, which, in turn, can cause disease.Scientists don't know exactly how macrophages cross the line from being good cops to bad cops, but researchers at the University of Florida recently unearthed several clues about the mechanisms involved. Through the lens of two inflammation-related diseases, HIV and rheumatoid arthritis, they identified changes in specific proteins linked to the action of macrophages, white blood cells that are key to the body's natural defenses.

16 Jul 2010

Elusys, Lonza partner for commercial production of Anthim antibody for inhaled anthrax treatment

Elusys Therapeutics and Lonza today announced an agreement for the scale-up and commercial production of Anthim, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody in late-stage development for the treatment of inhaled anthrax. Under the new contract, Lonza will provide process scale-up, technology transfer, validation, and commercial manufacturing at one of its facilities in the USA. The manufacturing process for Anthim was optimized for full scale production by Lonza under a separate agreement announced in 2009.

16 Jul 2010

Professor develops sensor to better regulate fluid flow in hydrocephalus

Hydrocephalus, or "water on the brain" as it is often called, is a condition that is diagnosed in tens of thousands in the U.S. every year, causing symptoms from mild gait problems to life-threatening seizures.

16 Jul 2010

Medical Science News

WPI researchers measure molecular forces that enable cranberry juice to fight off urinary tract infections

Two-thirds of world's population are vitamin D-insufficient or deficient

FDA confirms GRAS status for Ajinomoto's AjiGRAS-Leucine

Studying retrovirus assembly can help new drug development for infection control

Penn researchers reverse cognitive decline in fruit flies with Alzheimer's gene mutation

Study reveals improved process to obtain, store RNA from lung tumor biopsies

Study results to help researchers better understand cancer genetics, improve treatment regimens

DNA copying error in autism sufferers discovered

Lyophilized rPA anthrax vaccine more immunogenic than liquid formulation: Study

Scientists discover gene mutation responsible for CDG

Spanish scientists develop new parasite detection method to prevent Anisakidosis

Essential nutrient in eggs may reduce risk of infant heart defects

New study finds no evidence in support of LTPP's superiority over shorter-term methods of psychotherapy

Arsenic nanoparticle to combat aggressive type of breast cancer prevalent in young women

Waist circumference predicts diabetes risk

i26 hyperimmune egg balances improper immune inflammatory response

Scientists discover that C35 gene becomes overactive in HER2 positive tumours

New findings on macrophage activation can facilitate development of early diagnosis tools

Elusys, Lonza partner for commercial production of Anthim antibody for inhaled anthrax treatment

Professor develops sensor to better regulate fluid flow in hydrocephalus

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

Latest News