Blood is the juice of life, as while circulating through the body it delivers vital substances such as oxygen and nutrients to cells and tissues. Chemotherapy, radiotherapy and blood loss in general impoverish the system. A special kind of cells in the bone marrow, called hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) is able to replenish the impoverished system by giving rise not only to red blood cells, but…
Green blood is one of the most unusual characteristics in the animal kingdom, but it's the hallmark of a group of lizards in New Guinea. Prasinohaema are green-blooded skinks, or a type of lizard. The muscles, bones and tongues of these lizards appear bright, lime-green due to high levels of biliverdin, or a green bile pigment, which is toxic and causes jaundice. Surprisingly, these lizards…
A new blood test has been found to more accurately predict the development of tuberculosis up to two years before its onset in people living with someone with active TB, according to research published online in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, an American Thoracic Society journal. Those living with someone with active TB are at highest risk for developing the…
The recent ACC/AHA Guidelines have increased the number of patients said to have hypertension by up to 40 percent (new 130/80 mmHg). The international recommendation is to treat hypertension with angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs). These drugs, however, have significant adverse effects: Often a chronic dry cough leads to patients withdrawing from treatment. On rare occasions, ACEIs…
In the second edition of their customer magazine bioLOGICAL, Greiner Bio-One (GBO) presents exciting articles about capillary blood sampling. In the article by Jasna Lenicek Krleza, PhD, learn about which factors you need to pay special attention to in capillary blood collection to get high-quality samples. We'll also take you to the neonatal station and visit our smallest patients using the GBO…
‘With our new MRI method, we can finally visualise tiny leaks in the blood-brain barrier. They shed light on the vascular contribution to dementia and may indicate Alzheimer’s disease. However, the MRI scan is only a tool to diagnose cerebrovascular damage. We have not yet found a cure for Alzheimer’s,’ confirms Walter H Backes, medical physicist and professor at Maastricht University…
Loyola Medicine is the first academic medical center in Illinois to use the TCAR system, which reduces stroke risk during carotid artery procedures by temporarily reversing blood flow. Carotid arteries on each side of the neck supply blood to the brain. In patients with carotid artery disease, a build-up of plaque can cause blockages. A common method to open the artery involves a balloon…
Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers developed a single blood test that screens for eight common cancer types and helps identify the location of the cancer. The test, called CancerSEEK, is a unique noninvasive, multianalyte test that simultaneously evaluates levels of eight cancer proteins and the presence of cancer gene mutations from circulating DNA in the blood. The test is aimed at…
Testing the level of caffeine in the blood may provide a simple way to aid the diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease, according to a study published in the online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study found that people with Parkinson’s disease had significantly lower levels of caffeine in their blood than people without the disease, even if they…
Donating blood is a tangible way to help people who are struggling with serious health conditions, yet many people may not think about it or make time for it. In January – which the American Red Cross has dubbed National Blood Donor Month – blood bank supplies are typically among the lowest of the year, as many people have been traveling or busy with the holidays. Inclement weather can also…
A new marker that could be used to diagnose fatal breast cancer up to one year ahead of current methods has been identified in a study led by UCL. The study found that changes detected in a part of DNA which the researches named EFC#93 could suggest early signs of deadly breast cancer. Importantly, these abnormal patterns are present in blood serum before the cancer becomes detectable in the…
The ability to demonstrate blood perfusion as well as organ function using contrast agentenhanced ultrasound is quickly finding innovative uses in clinical practice. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) has advanced rapidly since its first introduction. Today it is widely used as a primary imaging technique for a number of indications and pathologies. At a symposium organised by Bracco Imaging…
DNAe, the inventor of semiconductor-based genomic analysis technologies, and the developer of a new, game-changing test for bloodstream infections that can lead to sepsis announced new data on its test for bloodstream infections, LiDia BSI. The data demonstrates the ability of the LiDia BSI closed cartridge-based test to rapidly identify low levels of bacterial and fungal pathogens and resistance…
EKF Diagnostics, the global in vitro diagnostics company, introduces POC Connect - a data management smartphone application for its DiaSpect Tm hemoglobin analyzer. At Medica 2017 on Stand H3/C70, EKF will be highlighting how DiaSpect Tm is the only reagent-free hemoglobin analyzer with mobile connectivity. Lightweight and palm-sized, the DiaSpect Tm analyzer delivers laboratory quality…
A Swiss hospital group is using drones to fly medical laboratory specimens between its key centres. In what is believed to be a world first, the eight-hospital Ticino EOC organisation has partnered with Swiss Post and US drone manufacturer Matternet to spearhead faster, more efficient specimens transport. The trial is being held for flights covering the 1.3 km between two of its Lugano hospitals,…
The capillary blood collection system not only benefits geriatric patients, or those who need regular blood sampling, but also burns victims and others, including the youngest patients. All need a gentle approach. To that end, Austrian firm Greiner Bio-One has developed and optimised its MiniCollect system.
A new blood test to detect heart attacks has been developed by a team of researchers at King’s College, London, which could speed up diagnosis, according to results from pan-European trials. The test is quicker than the standard test, which combines an ECG with a blood test to measure the levels of troponin. Under current guidelines, suspected heart attack cases are tested for high blood…
Blood-thinning drugs not only reduce the risk of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) but are also associated with a significant reduction in the risk of dementia, according to new research published today in the European Heart Journal.
Researchers at the James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, UK, have developed a highly sensitive blood test that could be used before surgical operations to predict which patients are at risk of complications will survive in the long-term.
The taller you are, the more likely you may be to develop blood clots in the veins, according to new research in the American Heart Association journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics.
In a bid to detect cancers early and in a noninvasive way, scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center report they have developed a test that spots tiny amounts of cancer-specific DNA in blood.
There are various concepts about how blood cells develop. However, they are based almost exclusively on experiments that solely reflect snapshots. In a publication in Nature, scientists from the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg now present a novel technique that captures the process in a dynamic way.
New findings from a scientific collaboration between the German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), the National Centre for Tumour Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg and the Thoraxklinik Heidelberg suggest liquid biopsy as a promising tool to monitor lung cancer patient tumours early. Scientists associated liquid biopsy readouts with clinical data and could track tumour responses to cancer drugs in real-time.
The Society for Virology (GfV) which promotes virology through the increase and exchange of research within German speaking countries, as well as via cooperation with other scientific societies, announced this year that a new test can unambiguously confirm the diagnosis of a Zika virus infection – leading to fast diagnosis and identification of an infection.
Scientists from the University of Würzburg give fascinating 3D-insights into the bone marrow, and successfully elucidated new details about the process of thrombocyte generation.