AScribe Medicine News Service articles from February 2006

AScribe Medicine News Service archives from February 2006

Mathematics and Statistics Combat Epidemics & Bioterror: NIH 'MIDAS' Modeling Grant Awarded to Team Led by Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care; Team Will Concentrate Initially on Improving Detection of Influenza Outbreaks.
February 1, 2006... Byline: Harvard University Medical School BOSTON, Feb. 1 (AScribe Newswire) -- A Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care-led research team was today awarded one of four new national Models of Infectious Disease Agent Study...

Biologists Build Better Software, Beat Path to Viral Knowledge.
February 1, 2006... Byline: Purdue University WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., Feb. 1 (AScribe Newswire) -- Insight into the workings of previously inscrutable viruses has been made possible by a team of biologists whose improvements to computer software may one day...

Gene Discovery Linked to Increasingly Diagnosed Gastrointestinal Disease; Study Offers First Molecular Insight Into Eosinophilic Esophagitis.
February 1, 2006... Byline: Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati CINCINNATI, Feb. 1 (AScribe Newswire) -- Researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center have discovered the first gene associated with eosinophilic esophagitis, one of a...

Engineered Heart Tissue Offers Insights Into Irregular Heartbeats, Defibrillator Failure.
February 3, 2006... Byline: Duke University DURHAM, N.C., Feb. 3 (AScribe Newswire) -- Engineers who have induced heart cells in culture to mimic the properties of the heart have used the tissue to gain new insight into the mechanisms that spawn irregular...

Proteins' Subtle 'Backrub' Motion Could Have Important Implications.
February 7, 2006... Byline: Duke University DURHAM, N.C., Feb. 7 (AScribe Newswire) -- Biochemists have detected a surprising, subtle new gyration that protein molecules undergo in the intricate, squirming dance that influences their activity in the cell. The...

Mayo Clinic Researchers Challenge Sepsis Theory, Propose New Approach for Better Treatment of Deadly Condition.
February 7, 2006... Byline: Mayo Clinic ROCHESTER, Minn., Feb. 7 (AScribe Newswire) -- A Mayo Clinic research team has challenged the accepted theory on the cause of sepsis -- a condition in which the body's cells generate fever, shock and often death. Sepsis...

New Images Capture Virus in Extraordinary Detail.
February 7, 2006... Byline: MIT CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 7 (AScribe Newswire) -- Fifty years after MIT researchers pioneered the use of electron microscopy to study viruses, MIT scientists have helped produce the most detailed images yet of the tiny infectious...

New York Academy of Sciences' China Conference Reveals Latest Advances in Neuroscience, Chemical Biology, Genomic Medicine, Infectious Diseases; Shanghai Conference Featured Over 100 Noted Scientists From U.S., Europe, Asia.
February 8, 2006... Byline: New York Academy of Sciences NEW YORK, Feb. 8 (AScribe Newswire) -- China has experienced tremendous growth within the past decade. Its economic boom and growing domestic market is now paralleled by its ascendancy in the life...

Tiny Bubbles Can 'See' Crohn's Disease.
February 8, 2006... Byline: University of Virginia Health System CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Feb. 8 (AScribe Newswire) -- Inflammatory bowel disease, the general term for Crohn's and ulcerative colitis, can be notoriously tough for doctors to diagnose and monitor....

Researchers at Medical College of Wisconsin and Children's Research Institute Find Children Fare Better at Pediatric Trauma Centers; Study Findings Similar to Recent Johns Hopkins Study of Adults.
February 8, 2006... Byline: Medical College of Wisconsin MILWAUKEE, Feb. 8 (AScribe Newswire) -- A study by researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and Children's Research Institute concludes that the risk of death for injured children is...

Searle Family to Fund Biomedical Research in Chicago.
February 8, 2006... Byline: University of Illinois at Chicago CHICAGO, Feb. 8 (AScribe Newswire) -- The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust has made a grant of $5 million to the Chicago Biomedical Consortium (CBC), a collaboration of Northwestern...

Diet, Stimulant Stories Show Difficulty of Translating Scientific Research Into Advice, Duke University Expert Says.
February 10, 2006... Byline: Duke University DURHAM, N.C., Feb. 10 (AScribe Newswire) -- People expect science to provide clear-cut answers -- especially on health matters -- but scientific research doesn't always yield simple conclusions, says a Duke...

Emergency Preparedness a Click Away at Purdue Biosecurity Site.
February 13, 2006... Byline: Purdue University WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., Feb. 13 (AScribe Newswire) -- Preparedness is the name of the game when it comes to dealing with biosecurity emergencies, and a Purdue University Web site just gave the animal emergency...

Penn Neurosurgery Goes 3D; New Imaging Technology Results in Less-Invasive Brain Surgeries.
February 14, 2006... Byline: University of Pennsylvania Health System PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 14 (AScribe Newswire) -- Neurosurgeons and neuroradiologists at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania are the first in Philadelphia to use virtual reality,...

New Compound Protects Against Liver Cancer.
February 15, 2006... Byline: Bloomberg School of Public Health BALTIMORE, Feb. 15 (AScribe Newswire) -- Scientists have identified a new compound called CDDO-Im that protects against the development of liver cancer in laboratory animals. Experiments, led by...

Scientists Exploring Inflammation in Rheumatoid Arthritis Make Unexpected Discovery That One Day May Lead to New Treatments.
February 15, 2006... Byline: Joslin Diabetes Center BOSTON, Feb. 15 (AScribe Newswire) -- What makes joints in people with rheumatoid arthritis, and related conditions like Lyme disease or lupus, so susceptible to attack by the body's immune system, leading to...

Howard Hughes Medical Institute Awards $10 Million to Graduate Programs That Combine Science and Medicine.
February 15, 2006... Byline: Howard Hughes Medical Institute CHEVY CHASE, Md., Feb. 15 (AScribe Newswire) -- The Howard Hughes Medical Institute wants to shorten the time it takes to translate basic science discoveries into new medical treatments by challenging...

Medical Graduates Express Confidence in LSU Health Sciences Center Graduate Medical Education in Ophthalmology Early Match.
February 15, 2006... Byline: LSU Health Sciences Center NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 15 (AScribe Newswire) -- Dr. Larry Hollier, Chancellor of Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, announced today that all eight positions in the 2006...

Study Reveals Dramatic Metabolic Differences in How Adults, Infants, Children Process Drugs.
February 16, 2006... Byline: Medical College of Wisconsin MILWAUKEE, Feb. 16 (AScribe Newswire) -- A Medical College of Wisconsin study provides the strongest and most complete evidence to date of major changes occurring during human development in the types...

Penn Researchers Discover Second Molecular Pathway That Promotes Cell Survival During Low Oxygen Conditions; Findings Give Clues to Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease Physiology.
February 16, 2006... Byline: University of Pennsylvania Health System PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 16 (AScribe Newswire) -- Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have identified a second molecular pathway that promotes cell survival in...

Columbia Receives Up to $15 Million From Spinal Muscular Atrophy Foundation; Funding Supports Center for Motor Neuron Biology and Disease, Targeting Deadliest Genetic Disease of Infants and Toddlers.
February 16, 2006... Byline: Columbia University Medical Center NEW YORK, Feb. 16 (AScribe Newswire) -- Columbia University has been awarded up to $15 million from the Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Foundation. The grant will fund activities by Columbia's newly...

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Recognized for Commercializing Technology.
February 16, 2006... Byline: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory RICHLAND, Wash., Feb. 16 (AScribe Newswire) -- The Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been recognized for transferring technologies that treat and cure cancer,...

Lower Doses of Clot-Busting Drug Safer for Stroke Patients; Mortality Rates Down 37 Percent From Last Year.
February 17, 2006... Byline: Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions BALTIMORE, Feb. 17 (AScribe Newswire) -- A Johns Hopkins study has shown that patients treated for a type of stroke caused by bleeding in the brain, or intracerebral hemorrhage, survived more often...

National University of Singapore Study Finds People With Diabetes May Have Higher Risk of Developing Colorectal Cancer.
February 17, 2006... Byline: National University of Singapore SINGAPORE, Feb. 17 (AScribe Newswire) -- A recent study on Singapore Chinese conducted by researchers from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS) found that...

The Rising Tide of Ocean Plagues: How Humans are Changing the Dynamics of Disease.
February 17, 2006... Byline: SeaWeb ST. LOUIS, Feb. 17 (AScribe Newswire) -- A leading group of epidemiologists, veterinarians and ecologists report that humans are affecting the oceans in ways that are changing the dynamics of disease. Previously harmless...

Johns Hopkins Study Zeroes in on Genetic Roots of Rare But Often Fatal Heart Condition in Young Athletes; Research Advances Possibility of Blood Screening Test.
February 20, 2006... Byline: Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions BALTIMORE, Feb. 20 (AScribe Newswire) -- A baker's dozen mutations in a gene called plakophilin-2 (PKP2) have been identified by Johns Hopkins scientists as the most likely origins of a rare heart...

Proteomics Center Marks Grand Opening With Day-Long Symposium; Emerging Science Builds on Human Genome Project to Seek Clues About Disease.
February 21, 2006... Byline: Children's Hospital Boston BOSTON, Feb. 21 (AScribe Newswire) -- Marking the grand opening of its state-of-the-art Proteomics Center, Children's Hospital Boston will present a day-long symposium, Proteomics 2006, on Thursday,...

The Broad Foundation Donates $25 Million to Create New Stem Cell Institute at Keck School of Medicine of USC; Gift to Support Construction of New 215,000 Square-Foot Facility; Largest Stem Cell Research Facility in California.
February 23, 2006... Byline: USC Health Sciences LOS ANGELES, Calif., Feb. 23 (AScribe Newswire) -- The University of Southern California announced today it has received $25 million from The Broad Foundation to create the Broad Institute for Integrative...

Infection 'Alarm' Yields Clues to Immune System Behavior; Computer Model May Help Develop Drugs to Combat Cancer, Septic Shock, Other Ills.
February 24, 2006... Byline: Johns Hopkins University BALTIMORE, Feb. 24 (AScribe Newswire) -- Drawing on lab experiments and computer studies, Johns Hopkins researchers have learned how a common protein delivers its warning message to cells when an infectious...

Harvard Medical School Researchers Discover How Gold, Other Medicinal Metals in Its Class Function Against Rheumatoid Arthritis, Other Autoimmune Diseases; Finding Makes Possible New, More Effective Generation of Gold-based Drugs With Fewer Side Effects.
February 26, 2006... Byline: Harvard University Medical School BOSTON, Feb. 26 (AScribe Newswire) -- Gold compounds have been used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases for more than 75 years, but until now, how the metals work...

A Case of Mistaken Molecular Identity.
February 27, 2006... Byline: Howard Hughes Medical Institute CHEVY CHASE, Md., Feb. 27 (AScribe Newswire) -- Researchers in Argentina have determined that night blindness is a new clinical symptom of Chagas disease. A team led by Howard Hughes Medical Institute...

Mayo Clinic and North Central Cancer Treatment Group Researchers Improve Treatment of Anemia, a Common Side Effect of Cancer Treatment.
February 27, 2006... Byline: Mayo Clinic ROCHESTER, Minn., Feb. 27 (AScribe Newswire) -- Mayo Clinic researchers working in concert with other North Central Cancer Treatment Group (NCCTG) investigators have found that administering epoetin alfa for anemia once...

Chemotherapy Given Directly to Liver Improves Survival for Patients With Colorectal Cancer That Has Spread to Liver.
February 27, 2006... Byline: American Society of Clinical Oncology ALEXANDRIA, Va., Feb. 27 (AScribe Newswire) -- A new study shows that patients whose colorectal cancer has spread to the liver who received an approach called hepatic arterial infusion (HAI) -...

ELISA: At 35 Years, Test Is Used for Numerous Applications From Detecting Pregnancies to Analyzing Famous Art.
February 28, 2006... Byline: The Burnham Institute LA JOLLA, Calif., Feb. 28 (AScribe Newswire) -- It's been nearly 35 years since Dr. Eva Engvall co-discovered one of the most widely used diagnostic tests in the world, which she named ELISA. Today, you would...

Procedure to Remove Small Tumors Near Inner Ear Shows Promise at Preserving Hearing; Study of Surgery for Removing Small 'Acoustic Neuromas' Indicates High Success Rate for Hearing Preservation Compared With Other Techniques.
February 28, 2006... Byline: University of Michigan Health System ANN ARBOR, Mich., Feb. 28 (AScribe Newswire) -- Even when they're extremely small, tumors on the nerves that connect the brain to the ear can wreak havoc on a person's hearing and balance. But...

MIT Method Reveals How Radiation Damages the Body.
February 28, 2006... Byline: MIT CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 28 (AScribe Newswire) -- Researchers at MIT have devised a new method for examining how radiation damages normal tissue in the body. The knowledge may make it possible to reduce side effects for cancer...

University of Maryland Cancer Researcher to Receive Dorothy P. Landon-AACR Prize for Translational Cancer Research; Dr. Angela Brodie's Groundbreaking Work Produced New Drugs to Treat Breast Cancer.
February 28, 2006... Byline: University of Maryland Medical System BALTIMORE, Feb. 28 (AScribe Newswire) -- University of Maryland cancer researcher Angela Hartley Brodie, Ph.D., has won the prestigious Dorothy P. Landon-AACR Prize for Translational Cancer...