Ulti

Naked DNA Vaccination May Conquer Arthritis and Multiple Sclerosis

A novel modification of a new technology born of genetic engineering, and known as naked DNA vaccination, holds the potential of overcoming autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. The vaccine is currently being successfully tested in animals. In multiple sclerosis (MS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the body essentially attacks itself, caus...

Multi billion-dollar suit filed against cell phone firm for causing brain tumours

In the United States of America, a lawyer- Peter Angelos, who won millions of dollars as compensation from the tobacco industry in Maryland, has announced that he is dragging Vodafone to court in a billion dollar suit. He is claiming compensation to cell phone users who are said to have developed brain tumours after using the instruments made by Verizon wireless. This case has raised eyeb...

Healthcare sector is now a multi billion-dollar industry in India

A Confederation of Indian Industry study has identified the health care sector in India as a potential gold mine. India is poised to develop into a 'regional healthcare hub' with the $17 billion healthcare industry growing at a rate of 13 per cent the study says. With a 16% increase in budgetary outlay the healthcare industry is poised to zoom ahead bringing with it big bucks as returns....

Antidepressants come in handy for patients on treatment for hepatitis, cancers and multiple sclerosis

The sad part in the treatment of certain cancers, hepatitis and multiple sclerosis with interferon therapy is that while the treatment can extent life, it can seriously spoil its quality. Alpha interferon a drug used to fight these diseases can cause crippling depression. A new research now shows that the use of an antidepressant before starting the treatment can avoid this problem. Al...

The Link Between Hepatitis B Vaccine And Multiple Sclerosis Questioned

A recent study by Harvard researchers suggests a link between the hepatitis B vaccination and multiple sclerosis. In their study, people who received the vaccine were three-times more likely to develop MS // over the next three years than those who were not vaccinated. While this finding is disturbing, the investigators emphasize the overall effect of the vaccine on the development of MS...

Telomerase Vital In Maintaining Ability of Stem Cell to Multiply

Carol Greider, Ph.D., director and professor of molecular biology and genetics in the Johns Hopkins Institute of Basic Biomedical Sciences and colleagues have found that the length of telomeres is important// in ensuring that stem cells are able to divide indefinitely. Telomeres are the ends of the chromosomes that protect genetic information while the chromosome is undergoing division....

Thalidomide is the new approved drug for treating multiple cancers

Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) had approved the drug for use to treat the cancer multiple myeloma in 2003. This was revealed by a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Ageing. It is available through Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.// "The next step with any drug is to go to the PBS," as said by the spokesperson. The history of the drug use reveals that the dru...

GlaxoSmithKline To Cultivate Non-Smoking Environment

GlaxoSmithKline is putting its best foot forward in completing its social responsibility. The steps will also enable the company promote Zyban, its anti-smoking drug. Glaxo is aiding companies cultivate a non-smoking environment as part of its policy, along with providing teams to help in the transition. // Some of the corporate, which have negotiated for this 'no-smoking' environment...

Multiple organ disease cured by genes

Researchers University of Pennsylvania report the first ever use of gene therapy, in dogs, to cure a gene involving multiple body organs.// Mucopolysaccharidosis VII (MPS) is one of a group of rare genetic disorders called lysosomal storage diseases. Other examples include Tay Sachs disease and Gaucher disease. MPS involves an enzyme defect, leading to blindness, heart disease, and loss o...

Associated therapy for multiple myeloma

According to a new study it is observed that thalidomide is effective as first-line therapy for newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients when combined with a standard chemotherapy agent. Researchers from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.// gave 60 newly diagnosed myeloma patients the drug thalidomide along with the synthetic steroid dexamethasone. Results show 55 percent of patients r...

Latest drug shows promise in multiple myeloma

According to researchers, many trials show that a new type of drug can assist patients with multiple myeloma who have failed to respond to other treatments.// Multiple myeloma is an incurable cancer of the bone marrow. Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have been assessing a new drug, called bortezomib, in a group of 180 patients who had not been helped by other forms of treatmen...

Gene connected to Multi-System disorder discovered

A complex and rare disorder that affects many systems of the body, called oculodentodigital dysplasia, has been found to be the result of faulty cell communication. This syndrome is said to affect various body structures including the eyes, face, teeth and fingers and can also cause hearing loss, heart trouble// and neurological problems. A Hopkins-led research team, which studied the gen...

Adult stem cells in treatment for Multiple sclerosis (MS)

Researchers have found that treatment with adult stem cells has cured mice suffering with a form of multiple sclerosis. While some have recovered completely from paralysis of their back legs, and many showed improvement. Researchers injected the diseased mice with stem cells extracted from the brains of adult in the bloodstream or spinal cord. On examination mice showed that the stem cell...

Multi-Drug Therapy Effective in Lowering Blood Pressure

Researchers from the University of Florida College of Medicine designed a randomized //trial to compare two different treatments for hypertension in older patients. Researchers say most patients require more than one medication to control their blood pressure, so this study was set up to look at multidrug strategies rather than individual drugs. The study found patients had similar outc...

Life Quality For Patients With Multiple Sclerosis

A survey was conducted among about 200 people with multiple sclerosis ( MS ). Questions posed by the researchers covered areas such as pain, tiredness,// emotional well-being, vitality, social functioning, and the ability to perform essential activities of daily living. Results from the MS patients were then compared to results taken from a sample of people in the general population. Mul...

Effective Pain Relief For Patients Suffering From Multiple Sclerosis

Dronabinol, shows success reducing pain in patients with multiple sclerosis, according to a new study published . Dronabinol, also known as Marinol, has been used to soothe nausea and to stimulate appetite.// Researchers evaluated the effect of Dronabinol on pain in patients with multiple sclerosis. 24 patients with multiple sclerosis and central pain participated in the study . They we...

Multi-Drug Therapy Found To Be More Effective in Lowering B.P

Researchers from the University of Florida College of Medicine designed a randomized trial to compare two different treatments for hypertension // in older patients. Researchers say most patients require more than one medication to control their blood pressure, so this study was set up to look at multidrug strategies rather than individual drugs. The study found patients had similar outco...

Hope For Patients With Multiple Sclerosis

Weekly injections of beta interferon are found to protect people with early stages of multiple sclerosis from loss of brain tissue.// Researchers followed up on a previous study which showed that beta interferon injections delayed the progression of symptoms among people with early evidence of MS and found people who have the shots lose less brain tissue. People who received the active...

Individuals Born In May At A Higher Risk Of Developing Multiple Sclerosis

Latest research shows the month an individual is born in may play a role in determining whether or not he or she end up with the nervous system disorder multiple sclerosis.// Results showed people born in May are at higher risk for the disease while people born in November are at lowest risk. Those with May birthdays had a 13-percent increased risk compared to those with November birthd...

Debating The Link Between Sex Hormones And Multiple Sclerosis

Researchers are now debating whether sex hormones could be responsible for some of the problems experienced by people with multiple sclerosis.// After measuring levels of five different sex hormones in men and women with MS researchers compared them to those found in healthy people. All the MS patients also underwent brain scans to measure for inflammation and brain damage characterist...

Vitamin D to reduce multiple sclerosis

The researchers at Harvard School of Public Health had found out that the intake of vitamin D might reduce the risk of having multiple// sclerosis (MS) in women. The study said that women who took a vitamin D supplement had a 40% less chance of developing MS than the ones who did not take any such supplements. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic neurological disease of the central nervous...

New drug to multiple sclerosis symptoms

A new drug AVP-923 is all set to provide relief to people suffering from the dreaded disease of multiple// sclerosis, said the researchers from University of Vermont College of Medicine, US. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic neurological disease of the central nervous system. The disease affects the brain and spinal cord and medication till date had only been able to treat the problem sy...

Smoking may affect multiple sclerosis

Cigarette smoking was considered to be a risk factor for multiple sclerosis. New study shows that smoking may //enhance the neural degeneration more in people suffering from multiple sclerosis. In a research done by the scientists of Harvard school of medicine, researchers had been able to associate habitual smoking with rapid progression of the condition of multiple sclerosis. In a st...

Chemicals in clear plastics can cause learning difficulties

In a recent study that came out in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives had brought out the// detrimental effects of clear plastics on human beings. Bisphenol-A (BPA) is a chemical founding the clear plastics that are used as food grade materials for making air tight containers, drinking water bottles, even feeding bottles for infants. The scientists from Yale School of Medic...

Low immunity in people with multiple sclerosis may be genetical

People who have low immunity that had lead to inability to curbing of inflammatory cells// and cause multiple sclerosis may have genes that act likewise. Researchers from Oregon Health & Science University have reported that the FOXP3 gene may be responsible for the low immune problem that leads to progress of multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic neurological disease of...

Warning Issued by FDA on consumption of the drug Tysabri used to treat Multiple Sclerosis

Recently the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public health advisory to inform patients and health care // providers about the suspended marketing of Tysabri (nataluzimab) the drug meant to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) which was approved by the FDA in 2004. FDA supports the decision to voluntarily suspend marketing of the drug as well as the use of the...

Older People May Not Need Multivitamins To Prevent Infections

A recent research that is published in the latest issue of BMJ said that multivitamins //and multi-mineral supplements do not prevent infections in the elderly population. At least 10% of older people have a vitamin or mineral deficiency, which can lead to poor immunity and increased risk of infection. At least a quarter of older people in the UK take nutritional supplements, but it is...

Cultivating gold on a fig tree

Money may not grow on trees, but gold can. In a remarkable experiment, Indian scientists have developed a form of gold using a micro-organism from a fig tree as the 'factory'. But before rushing to try cultivating fig trees and converting the gold into ornaments, here is a word of caution : The scientists have been able to use the micro- organism to churn out gold nanoparticles 8,000 time...

Decreasing Multiple Births By Single Embryo Transfers

Researchers say women opting to undergo a single embryo transfer instead of a double embryo transfer during in vitro fertilization can decrease the chance of multiple births without substantially lowering live births, // according to a new study. Researchers studied 661 women younger than 36 and compared the two approaches of in vitro fertilization. They also evaluated pregnancy rates re...

Phase 3 trials of two multi-kinase inhibitors against cancer

Sorafenib and stutent multi-kinase inhibitors against cancer is undergoing phase 3 trials// and these two drugs gained more appreciation in this years ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology) conference. This drug is gaining interest due to its multiple mechanism of action – known as Multi-kinase inhibitors. These drugs are in trial against different types of cancer and are found to b...

Physicians Lack Clinical Guidelines For Treating Elderly With Multiple Illnesses

According to an article in JAMA, clinicians lack guidelines for treating the elderly with many illnesses. The aging of the population and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases pose challenges to the development and application of clinical practice guidelines (CPGs Clinical practice guidelines are based on clinical evidence // and expert consensus to help decision making about...

Different Types Of Multiple Sclerosis May Be Treated Differently

Researchers from the Mayo Clinic had demonstrated that there are differences in pathological subtypes of multiple sclerosis that may react differently to treatment. Only those multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with evidence for antibody deposition or complement activation // -- immune cells that can cause tissue destruction -- in their lesions are likely to respond to plasma exchange, a tr...

Latest Research Shows That Multivitamins Might Not Prevent Infections In All Elderly

Multivitamin and mineral supplements do not appear to prevent infections in older people living at home, report researchers in Scotland today, raising questions for a significant segment of the supplement-taking population. // Studies in the past have shown that when taking vitamin E supplements, elderly people in nursing homes were 20 per cent less likely to get a cold and also had fe...

First-Born Children Are Not At Increased Risk From Multiple Sclerosis

Research published in the latest online edition of The Lancet Neurology says that the fact that first-borns have a higher chance of having multiple sclerosis is nothing but a myth. Birth order of the children does not increase their risk of having the disease, nor does their family size // have any affect on the incidence of multiple sclerosis. Studies suggest that both environmental a...

Prevent Multiple Sclerosis From Oral Contraceptives

Women who take oral contraceptives may be less at risk from developing the dreaded disease of multiple sclerosis. This study result was published in the recent issue of Archives of Neurology. In previous studies, estrogen delayed the onset // and eased the course of a MS-like disease in animals, suggesting that oral contraceptives, which contain estrogen, and pregnancy and the postpartum...

Molecule Behind Multiple Sclerosis Discovered

Researchers have discovered that a single molecule is the cause of an autoimmune disease in the central nervous system, called transverse myelitis (TM). This disease is related to multiple sclerosis//. In a study published in the October issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, had showed that the levels of the protei...

Genetical Screening Can Detect Early Signs Of Multiple Sclerosis

Research shows that gene variations make some people vulnerable to suffer from the dreaded disease of multiple sclerosis and a simple genetic testing can diagnose the risk//. According to the most complete genetic study to date in the disorder, presented by the researchers from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee at the 130th annual meeting of the American Neurological Associ...

Multiple Sclerosis drug, Tysabri banned due to neurological disorders

Tysabri, which is used in the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), has been withdrawn from market after the two patients taking the drug complained of neurological disorders. The relationship between the drug and // Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML) is being researched by the scientists. If the drug is deemed to pose a significant risk, it could be a serious setback for th...

New Hope For Patients With Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis

Over two million people worldwide are estimated to suffer from multiple sclerosis (MS), which is the leading cause of neurological disability in young adults, and has a significant impact on the overall quality of life. // Currently marketed therapies afford an average reduction in relapse rates of 30% in two-year studies and require frequent injections ranging from daily to weekly. Da...

Evoprinter, a multigenomic comparative tool for rapid identification of functionally important DNA

Deciphering the regulatory mechanisms that control coordinate gene expression is a long-standing goal of biology. The comparison of orthologous DNA sequences from multiple vertebrate or invertebrate // species holds promise in identifying the cis-regulatory elements central to the dynamic interplay between a gene and its transcriptional regulators. This cross-species comparison, termed ph...