Stem Cell :: 3-D scaffold for growing stem cells
Stem cells grew, multiplied and differentiated into brain cells on a new three-dimensional scaffold of tiny protein fragments designed to be more like a living body than any other cell culture system.
Skin
Skin Cancer :: Laura Bush discusses her skin cancer
Laura Bush, the first lady, wife of U.S. president had a small cancerous tumor removed from her right leg shortly after the November 7th election. Laura Bush says she initially thought the lesion under her knee was an insect bite, but when it didn’t heal normally she had it biopsied.
Botulism :: Wound botulism
In a case study in PLoS Medicine, doctors report on the case of a 35-year-old heroin user who came to the accident and emergency department with double vision, slurred speech, drooping eyelids and eye muscle weakness. The diagnosis turned out to be wound botulism. Wound botulism is a potentially fatal illness that occurs when spores of the bacterium Clostridium botulinum contaminate a wound, germinate and produce botulimum nerve toxin.
Cancer :: Mistletoe is not an anti-cancer drug
The belief that mistletoe can help treat cancer is a myth which can cause harm, warn doctors in this week’s Christmas issue of the BMJ. The warning follows the case of a cancer patient who attended hospital with a tumour-like growth under the skin induced by mistletoe.
Liver Disease :: Gene chip – jaundice chip individualizes treatment for 5 hereditary liver diseases
Researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center have developed the first gene chip to use in the early diagnosis of at least five hereditary liver diseases, to detect genetic causes of jaundice in children and adults, and potentially to lead to personalized treatment options.
Skin Cancer :: Laura Bush?s Skin Cancer
The wife of U.S. president had a small cancerous tumor removed from her right leg shortly after the November 7th election.
Pain :: Pain relief effectiveness down to mind-set?
Research by the Human Pain Research Group at the University of Manchester suggests that people’s responses to placebo or “dummy” pain relief varies according to their way of thinking.
Kidney Transplant :: Kidney transplantation linked with increased risk of various cancers
Following kidney transplantation, some recipients may face a three-fold increased risk of certain cancer types, according to a study in the Dec. 20 issue of JAMA.
Immunity :: Clues about how deadly bacterium gains foothold
How a potentially deadly bacterium that could be used as a bioterrorist tool eludes being killed by the human immune system is now better understood, researchers report in the December issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology.
Melanoma :: Study identifies characteristics of fast-growing skin cancers
Melanomas (skin cancers) are more likely to grow rapidly if they are thicker, symmetrical, elevated, have regular borders or have symptoms, according to a report in the December issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In addition, rapidly progressing melanoma is more likely to occur in elderly men and individuals with fewer moles and freckles, and its cells tend to divide more quickly and have fewer pigments than those of slower-growing cancers.