As public health officials around the world keep a nervous eye on the spread of avian influenza, the University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) has uncovered a key step in how the influenza virus causes infection.
A device first implanted in the United States at the University of Rochester Medical Center as part of a clinical trial is showing a significant reduction in blood pressure in patients who suffer from severe hypertension and cannot control their condition with medications or lifestyle changes.
New clues about the origins of cosmic rays, mysterious high-energy particles that bombard the Earth, have been revealed using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. An extraordinarily detailed image of the remains of an exploded star provides crucial insight into the generation of cosmic rays.
Using nanotechnology, a team of University of Georgia researchers has developed a diagnostic test that can detect viruses as diverse as influenza, HIV and RSV in 60 seconds or less. In addition to saving time, the technique — which is detailed in the November issue of the journal Nano Letters — could save lives by rapidly detecting a naturally occurring disease outbreak or bioterrorism attack.
A study published in the October journal of Clinical and Applied Thrombosis/Hemostasis shows Pycnogenol (pic-noj-en-all), an antioxidant plant extract from the bark of the French maritime pine tree reduced edema, a typical side effect of antihypertensive medications, by 36 percent in patients taking these medications.
The actions of a mutated protein in cells linked to thyroid cancer have been uncovered by researchers at Queen’s University. The discovery paves the way for the future development of drugs to more effectively target, treat and possibly even prevent both inherited and non-inherited thyroid cancers.
The messages for Food Safety Week this year are aimed at young people leaving home. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Health and Ageing, Christopher Pyne, said research consistently showed that young people, especially young men, had the worst knowledge of safe food handling.
British researchers have developed a vaccine that stimulates colorectal cancer patients’ immune systems to fight cancerous cells.
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital is ranked the overall #1 hospital in New York City, according to New York magazine’s 2006 “Best Hospitals” issue.
By fine-tuning “fine-needle aspiration” biopsies with a super-fast genetic microarray technology, a team of surgeons from NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City says they can greatly enhance the accuracy of these tests.