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Researchers discover new form of the Rett syndrome protein

Adrian Bird and Skirmantas Kriaucionis of the University of Edinburgh have discovered a novel form of the protein MeCP2. This alternate form, coined MeCP2 alpha, differs from the original only in the first 19 amino acids. Interestingly, Adrian Bird, Director of the Welcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology at Edinburgh University, found that MeCP2 alpha, is ten times more prevalent not only in the brain but also in other tissues. These findings are currently reported online in Nucleic Acids Research. Similar findings were reported yesterday in Nature Genetics online by Berge Minassian, a neurologist and scientist at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children.

22 Mar 2004

Decreased collagen may make women more susceptible to pelvic organ prolapse

Decreased collagen levels might make some women more susceptible to pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence, according to a new study by physicians at Temple University School of Medicine and Temple University Hospital. The study, “Collagen content of nonsupport tissue in pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence,” appears in a recent issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

22 Mar 2004

DNA repair enzymes to fight cancer

The body has a set of DNA repair enzymes that clean up damage to the genome, to reduce potential problems. Many commonly used cancer chemotherapies work by alkylating DNA. However, the DNA repair enzymes are just as capable of repairing this alkylation as if it were damage from any other source, and so they act to overcome the effects of the therapy, reducing its effectiveness.

22 Mar 2004

Olopatadine nasal spray shown to minimise hay fever

Alcon announced today results from a Phase III clinical trial demonstrating that olopatadine nasal spray, a nasal formulation of its market leading ophthalmic anti-allergy product, Patanol(R) ophthalmic solution, reduced seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) symptoms compared to placebo.

22 Mar 2004

Clinical study - Diagnostic testing for epilepsy released

Bionomics Limited announced today the publication of its international clinical study involving patients with a form of epilepsy confined to early childhood in the scientific journal, Annals of Neurology. The publication details genes associated with a condition known as Benign Familial Neonatal Infantile Spasms (BFNIS), a condition in which infants experience seizures in the first few months of their life.

22 Mar 2004

Raptiva, 20 percent improvement in an individual's signs and symptoms of arthritis.

Genentech, Inc. and XOMA Ltd. today announced preliminary results of a randomized, placebo-controlled Phase II study with RAPTIVA™ (efalizumab) in 107 patients with psoriatic arthritis. The study did not reach statistical significance at 12 weeks (84 days) for the primary endpoint, ACR 20 response. An ACR 20 response indicates at least a 20 percent improvement in an individual's signs and symptoms of arthritis.

22 Mar 2004

Scientists identify genetic changes during infection by tuberculosis

Researchers at the Center for Biomedical Inventions at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have identified the genetic changes that Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes tuberculosis, undergoes during infection of a living host.

22 Mar 2004

Plasticiser Phthalates connected with rising infertility rates

Phthalates, largely used as plasticisers, have long been suspected in connection with rising infertility rates, particularly among men. These substances are quite common and are considered highly hazardous to human health because they disrupt the hormonal balance and impair reproduction and development. What has not been clear up to now is the amount of phthalates that enter the human body.

22 Mar 2004

Study suggests cigarette smoking increases likelihood of death by prostate cancer

Although cure rates for prostate cancer patients who smoke cigarettes are about the same as patients who do not smoke, researchers have found that smokers were more likely to die of other causes than non-smokers, according to a new study in the March 15, 2004, issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology•Biology•Physics, the official journal of ASTRO, the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology.

22 Mar 2004

The placebo effect, study suggest pain management is possible

A Columbia professor has uncovered fresh evidence of the existence of the often-debated placebo effect. Even the professor himself, Tor D. Wager, of the Department of Psychology, was surprised by his team's findings. The study showed that the human brain processes pain differently when people believe that they have been given a pain-relieving skin cream. Wager, lead author of the study, defines "placebo" as a treatment that has no direct pharmacological effect and that may influence one's experience and physiology through one's beliefs.

22 Mar 2004

New Treatment for Chronic Head Pain

Dr. Levy pioneered a procedure known as supraorbital nerve stimulation or SOS, in which neurotransmitters are implanted into the forehead to block head pain. Tiny wires are burrowed under the skin until the precise location of pain is marked by a tingling response to electrical charge. The wires are kept in place for a week, and if pain is lessened and the patient is comfortable with the technology, neurotransmitters are surgically implanted under local anesthesia. The patient is able to control pain relief by manually adjusting the level of electrical stimulation through a hand held device.

22 Mar 2004

Spina bifida on the decline

The incidence of spina bifida has decreased by 32 percent in the United States over the past decade. The decrease indicates the success of the Public Health Service’s recommendations released in 1992 urging women to increase their levels of folic acid intake prior to becoming pregnant.

22 Mar 2004

Metal-on-metal disc, effective alternative to spinal fusion

The neck and arm pain caused by degenerative cervical (neck) disc disease may be eliminated by replacing the problem disc with a metal-on-metal artificial disc, according to the results of a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine & Peripheral Nerves.

22 Mar 2004

New drug to treat urinary tract infections, a step closer

Depomed, Inc. today announced top line results from the Phase III clinical trial of its Ciprofloxacin GR, an extended release formulation of ciprofloxacin HCl, which is used to treat urinary tract infections. The data confirmed Phase II results, demonstrating that Depomed's once-daily Ciprofloxacin GR eliminated the organisms responsible for urinary tract infections as effectively as twice-daily CIPRO(R), but with fewer gastrointestinal side effects, specifically fewer incidences of nausea and diarrhea.

22 Mar 2004

FDA approves new chewable formulation of Zyrtec® aimed at young allergy sufferers

Pfizer Inc and UCB Pharma today announced the approval of a new chewable formulation of Zyrtec® (cetirizine HCl) for the treatment of seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis (inflammation of the nasal passages) and chronic idiopathic urticaria (itching and hives of unknown causes) in children aged two years and older. The approval by the US Food and Drug Administration makes Zyrtec the first and only prescription antihistamine available in both syrup and chewable form.

22 Mar 2004

New research may help treatment of Norrie disease and familial exudative vitreoretinopathy (FEVR)

Researchers have discovered that genetic mutations underlying two inherited eye disorders arise in different components of a single intracellular signaling pathway that is responsible for development of blood vessels in the eye.

22 Mar 2004

Information about Lasik eye surgery, a new technique to treat cataracts

Using an advanced microsurgical technology, called Aqualase(R), a New York eye surgeon is now able to use a procedure to essentially "wash" cataracts away. "By using Aqualase(R) to treat my cataract patients, I am able to dissolve the clouded lens with pulses of warm, naturally balanced salt water solution in order to 'wash away' the lens layer by layer," said Satish Modi, M.D., F.R.C.S. ( C ), a leading ophthalmic surgeon in Poughkeepsie.

22 Mar 2004

New surgical glove alleviates need for "double gloving"

A unique, high-sensitivity, double surgical glove that saves time and money will be debuted at the Association of Operating Room Nurses (AORN) Congress in San Diego, March 20-25. The glove was developed by Bio-Barrier Inc., an infection control technology company based in Los Angeles. The new glove features two separate layers originating from a single cuff at the wrist.

22 Mar 2004

New pill for post-traumatic stress disorder

Every day, people suffer traumatic experiences that scar their minds. Combat, rape, bombings, burns, beatings, and horrific car accidents haunt them with memories impossible to suppress. Such day- and nightmares are part of a problem known as post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.

22 Mar 2004

Liverpool scientist presents chronic illness study to House of Commons

A social scientist from the University of Liverpool has visited the House of Commons to present preliminary findings of an innovative research project to MPs.

22 Mar 2004