Just a small fraction of patients who have a stroke receive the only drug — TPA — available to treat the condition. Now doctors and scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center have developed a potential new treatment that will reach a milestone in the next few months, when the experimental treatment is tested for the first time in people who have suffered a stroke or “brain attack.”
Researchers have found a highly unusual distribution of two proteins in the lungs and airways of people with cystic fibrosis, a discovery that could be a step in determining how the disease progresses. The proteins, first uncovered as a result of the human genome project, are thought to play a role in the body’s immune system.
You may have heard claims that the supplement coenzyme Q10 can lower blood pressure, boost the immune system and improve certain heart diseases. There are also claims it can help fight cancer, Parkinson’s disease, wrinkles, diabetes, gum diseases and many other problems.
For years researchers have been trying to understand how a few HIV-infected patients naturally defeat a virus that otherwise overwhelms the immune system. Last year, a research team at the University of Rochester Medical Center confirmed that such patients, called long-term non-progressors, maintain higher than normal levels of the enzyme called APOBEC-3G (A3G) in their white blood cells, which function to stave off infections. Now, the same group has teamed up with a structural biologist to provide the first look at the A3G structure. Such information represents an early step toward the design of a new class of drugs that could afford to all the same natural protection enjoyed by few, according to a study published today in The Journal of Biological Chemistry.
Mayo Clinic Cancer Center has opened a new clinical study using a vaccine strain of the measles virus to attack recurrent glioblastoma multiforme, a largely untreatable brain tumor. This is the second of several pending molecular medicine studies in patients using measles to kill cancer.
Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) has awarded its highest honor, for the promotion of high public health standards among vulnerable populations, to William H. Foege, former Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and a founder of the Task Force for Child Survival and Development, and Anthony S. Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). The two recipients have dedicated their lives to protecting people in this country and throughout the world from infectious diseases.
A compromised immune system makes people more prone to contracting a cold or flu, and Cognis is helping companies meet the growing demand worldwide for immunity boosting dietary supplements and functional foods. Colds and flu are the most frequent infections across all age groups. Each year, Americans suffer from one billion colds, 100,000 are hospitalized and about 36,000 die from the flu and its complications. Immune health is also a global concern with frequent colds and flu ranked as one of the top three health problems by consumers in China, India and Latin America.
The experience of racial discrimination may be a key factor in explaining why African Americans have higher rates of obesity and suffer at higher rates from such diseases as diabetes and cardiovascular disorders, according to UCLA researchers. Repeated responses to such discrimination — which include elevated blood pressure and heart rate — can cause enormous stress on a person’s mental and physical health, according to research scheduled to be published in Volume 58 of the Annual Review of Psychology.
New research suggests a brisk walk may help prevent the common cold. Add a half-hour’s worth of exercise to your day, and you may be able to toss out the cough drops and Kleenex, says a new study. Not only that, but researchers found the longer you exercise on a regular basis, the greater the benefit.
What’s the best treatment for a cold? Some say rest and lots of liquids, others say to feed a cold and starve a fever. But what if a person has a cold with a fever? Does medication help?