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Sun Pharma to launch chiral version of omeprazole soon

Many drugs have two or more forms of the same chemical entity but the molecules arranged differently in space. Of the isomers, only one generally offers all the therapeutic benefits with the others having side-effects. Isolation of benefits results in smaller dosages with lesser side-effects. SUN Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd is to launch a chiral version of the anti-ulcerant drug omep...

Video Games, The Latest Craze Of American Adults

Americans are increasingly orienting themselves to video games, highlights a new poll conducted by Iposs, a leading international polling firm//. According to the poll conducted on 3, 024 American adults, nearly 40% of the respondents admitted that they enjoyed video games. This approximates to a total of 1,046 gamers, taking into consideration the sampling error as well. Most...

Brazil & Kenya Seek Support For A New Resolution At WHO’s Annual Mee

The World Health Assembly (WHO), begins its annual meeting on Monday with delegations from more than 190 countries will meet in Geneva from May 22nd to the 27th//. Brazil and Kenya have announced plans earlier this week to put pressure at the WHO assembly, for more funds to combat neglected diseases, including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Kenya and Brazil are planning to introd...

Crazy Things - Children aged five joining junior gym

‘Kid gyms’ have aroused as fear about childhood obesity grows and thus private fitness clubs rush// to install child-sized machines, during the past two years. Biggest Junior gym firms, like Shokk and Zig Zag was building new facilities and installing machines for their little customers. According to NHS sta...

Crazy Shoppers Lose More Weight

A group of postgraduate students at Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) have recommended shopping till you absolutely cannot walk another inch//. No, this is not revenge on your husband or even your bank manager; it’s just the latest method to fight obesity. Department of sport and physical rehabilitation sciences lecturer and study supervisor Dr Andrew McKune said that the group o...

Brazilian Women to Be Vaccinated To Prevent Uterine Cancer

Human Papilloma virus is a major cause of uterine cancer. According to the statistics it was found that the HPV causes 70 % of Brazil’s uterine cancer cases//. Hence the Brazilian government plans to test the new Gardasil vaccine which treats HPV. After the positive test results then the government plans to release the vaccine in the market. Brazilian health officials are planning to cond...

Brazil Slashes the Price of Contraceptives to Stop Illegal Abortions

The Brazilian government has announced a 90 percent reduction in the price of contraceptives in a bid to stop clandestine abortions and the rising number of deaths caused by them. The discounted birth control pills will be sold at 3,500 "people's pharmacies," where the government offers subsidized medicines. The new programme comes amid a controversy between the Cath...

Malaria and TB Kills Indian Kids in Brazil

Two children from the Pirah? people died during the first days of January and many other indigenous people are suffering from malaria and suspected tuberculosis//. This was disclosed by the general coordinator of the Tora, Tenharim, Mura and Parintintin Indigenous Peoples' Organization (Opittamp), Elton Rodrigues Paes, who has accused the National Health Foundation (Funasa), of not pro...

13,000 Cases of Dengue Found in Brazil in January

At least 13,000 cases of dengue fever, including two fatal hemorrhagic dengue, have been reported in the southern Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul in January, official// news agency "Brasil" said on Wednesday. Health Minister Agenor Alvares described this figure as very high, nearly matching the 15,000 cases seen in the first 11 months of last year. Alvares said health...

Down Syndrome Dolls in Brazil After Child Actor's Success

A Down Syndrome child actor's runaway success in a Brazilian soap opera has inspired the production of a doll with features of the genetic disorder.// The doll will be based on "Paginas da Vida" (Pages of Life) character Clarinha, played by young actor Joana Mocarzel. In the soap, the five-year-old Clarinha was abandoned by her genetic family because of the syndrome. Moca...

Masala Bhangra is the Latest Fitness Craze in US

An Indian American fitness guru has created a fusion of Indian bhangra and aerobics that has become the latest craze in the United States//. Sarina Jain, also dubbed the Indian Jane Fonda, is the creator of 'Masala Bhangra' and is credited with the introduction of Bhangra, the lively folk dance of Punjab, to the fitness world. Jain holds her aerobic classes all over the U...

Brazil’s Claim to Fame - Fat Women and Drunk Men, Survey Find

Brasilia – Svelte models have lent their charm in the many carnivals for which Rio de Janeiro is well-known. Having set an enviable trend//, a recent survey has painted a different picture of Brazil, suggesting that women are not as slim as they are thought to be and the men drink far too much. Nearly 44 percent of women in Rio de Janeiro fall in the over weight category, the survey revea...

Brazilian Boost for Bird Flu Vaccines

Brazilian scientists have developed a modifying agent which could make vaccines for the H5N1 bird flu virus cheaper, more effective, and easier to produce//. The development could help developing countries at the forefront of any bird flu pandemic struggling to access and afford the vaccines and drugs produced and stockpiled by developed countries. Researchers from the But...

Brazil Will Purchase Merck’s Antiretroviral If Price Not Lowere

Brazilian Health Minister Jose Gomes Temporao on Wednesday signed a decree declaring that the country would purchase from an India-based drug maker a generic version of Merck's// antiretroviral Efavirenz if the company does not offer the drug at a lower price. According to the decree, Efavirenz is a "public interest" medicine. Temporao at a news conference said the country did not is...

Brazil Spider Offers Hope for Those Suffering from Erectile Dysfunction

In Brazil, emergency room staff can immediately spot the victims of a bite from the Brazilian wandering spider (Phoneutria nigriventer). Patients not only experience// overall pain and an increase in blood pressure, they also sport an uncomfortable erection. And therein perhaps lies the key to the quest for more Viagras. Scientists say they have figured out the chemical that seems to be r...

Brazil Government In Contention With Merck Over Anti-AIDS Drug

The Brazil government is up against giant drug manufacturers- Merck &Co. //The issue in contention is the ‘pricey’ anti-AIDS drug Efavirenz.According to the Brazilian government, there is no call to charge as much as 1.59 US dollars for a 600mg pill when Thailand is paying 65 cents for the same. Negotiations between Merck and the Brazilian government began last November. Last week th...

Brazil Opens a 'green' Fashion Week

Sao Paulo's Fashion Week, Latin America's biggest couture event, got underway Wednesday featuring eye-catching confections and celebrating the theme of ecological awareness. Nearly 50 designers incorporated environmental themes into their collections for this year's edition of the event, which highlights such issues as water conservation, recycling and alternative energy....

Astrazeneca's Investigational Cancer Therapies Revealed at ASCO

CHICAGO, AstraZeneca today announced details of two new investigational cancer therapies at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting. AZD2281 (KU-0059436) is a small molecule inhibitor of Poly-ADP Ribose Polymerase (PARP). PARP is an enzyme involved in Base Excision Repair which is a key pathway in the repair of DNA single-stranded breaks. Inhibiting this DNA repair...

Pediatric Seizure Study Underway in US to Decide Between Diazepam and Lorazepam

A nationwide study has been launched in US to determine which of the two current medications for pediatric seizures, diazepam and lorazepam, is more effective. Childhood seizures pose a serious problem for doctors. Epilepticus or continuous unrelenting seizures can lead to brain damage or even death if not treated. Now there are two drugs currently prescribed to tackle e...

Extinction Risk of Grazing Animals Depends on Reproductive Speed

A new study by researchers from the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center in Durham, North Carolina, US, has revealed how reproductive speed prevents large grazing animals such as deer and antelope, that are regularly hunted by humans, from becoming extinct. The study revealed that though habitat loss and living in a limited geographic area does pose significant risks for extincti...

GlaxoSmithKline, Brazil Expected To Sign Deal on Providing Antiretroviral at Reduced Cost

GlaxoSmithKline and Brazil by Friday are expected to sign an agreement that would reduce the cost of GSK's antiretroviral Abacavir by 27% in the country , an unnamed health ministry official announced on Thursday, Dow Jones reports. Although the official did not specify how much Brazil would save from the deal, he said that GSK likely will lower the cost of Abacavir from $2.76 per d...

Brazilian President Silva Issues Compulsory License for Merck's Antiretroviral Efavirenz

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday issued a compulsory license to produce a lower-cost, generic version of Merck's antiretroviral Efavirenz, the AP/Forbes reports. World Trade Organization regulations allow governments to declare a "national emergency" and issue compulsory licenses on any grounds without consulting the foreign patent owner. Brazilian Health Min...

Brazil Opts for Indian Drugs Bypassing Merck

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has allowed his country to ignore US pharmaceutical giant Merck's patent on AIDS drug Efavirenz and opted for a cheaper generic alternative from India. With a decree he signed Friday, Brazil will be able to import generic versions of Efavirenz from three companies in India - and the price for the drugs will be 72 percent lower than the pri...

Brazil Government In Contention With Merck Over Anti-AIDS Drug

The Brazil government is up against giant drug manufacturers- Merck &Co. The issue in contention is the pricey anti-AIDS drug Efavirenz.According to the Brazilian government, there is no call to charge as much as 1.59 US dollars for a 600mg pill when Thailand is paying 65 cents for the same. Negotiations between Merck and the Brazilian government began last November. Last week the...

Brazil Government New Health Offer

Health Minister Jose Gomes Temporao plans to distribute "morning after" pills to the poor. After just a few months in office, Brazils new health minister has managed to offend a lot of people with his new offerings. Brazil's government has added "morning after" pills to its newly expanded birth control program in hopes of helping poor people reduce unwanted pregnancies and dangerous...

AIDS Foundation Lauds Brazil for Negotiating Price Cut on Abbott's Kaletra

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the US' largest HIV/AIDS healthcare, prevention and education provider, which operates free AIDS treatment clinics in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean and Asia, today lauded the government of Brazil for successfully negotiating a price cut of 30% on Abbott Laboratories' lifesaving medication, Kaletra (its two drug AIDS drug combination including l...