Many drug treatments do not work due to their poor ability to reach their intended targets inside patients’ cells. To address this, researchers at Cardiff University’s Schools of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Biosciences have designed a highly efficient method to improve the delivery of therapeutic molecules into diseased cells such as those in stomach cancer, breast cancer and…
A new study by a Yale researcher may support the use of a device for patients suffering from irregular heart rhythms.
An international team led by researchers at the Austrian Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) in Vienna and the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore discovered that genetically determined breast cancer can be largely prevented by blocking a bone gene. An already approved drug could be quickly available and would then be the first breast cancer prevention drug.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the cobas EGFR Mutation Test v2, a blood-based companion diagnostic for the cancer drug Tarceva (erlotinib). This is the first FDA-approved, blood-based genetic test that can detect epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutations in non-small cell lung cancer patients. Such mutations are present in approximately 10-20 percent of non-small cell…
Drexel University scientists have discovered an unusual mechanism for how two new antimalarial drugs operate: They give the parasite’s skin a boost in cholesterol, making it unable to traverse the narrow labyrinths of the human bloodstream. The drugs also seem to trick the parasite into reproducing prematurely.
North West EHealth announced that its unique Linked Database System technology was used to deliver the world’s first digitally enhanced Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) in the ground-breaking Salford Lung Study* (SLS). The study relied on bespoke software, developed by NorthWest EHealth and securely hosted within the NHS network, that integrated the electronic medical records of consented…
Around the world, especially in developing nations, counterfeit medicines are a real problem. Until now, in many countries there hasn't been a standard protocol to conduct investigations and pursue prosecution. New research, led by Michigan State University, is providing the foundation to apply criminology theory to preventing the production and sale of fake and substandard medicines.
As one of medicine’s largest challenges, viral infections often escape vaccines due to their natural ability to mutate rapidly and develop drug resistance easily. Many viruses, such as Zika, Ebola and dengue fever, have grown into major global health epidemics with great human and economic toll. IBM Research and Singapore’s Institute of Bioengineering, Nanotechnology (IBN) announced they have…
A novel class of compounds developed by a University of Saskatchewan (U of S)-led research team could yield more effective and less toxic chemotherapy drugs to treat cancer. Team leader Jonathan Dimmock, a medicinal chemistry researcher in the U of S College of Pharmacy and Nutrition, explained their compounds work by interacting with thiols, naturally occurring chemicals that perform several…
A research team led by University of Arkansas chemist Jingyi Chen and University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences microbiologist Mark Smeltzer has developed an alternative therapeutic approach to fighting antibiotic-resistant infections.
A team of researchers at the MedUni Vienna has, in collaboration with the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, developed two new PET tracers that allow the activity of drug transporters at the blood-brain barrier to be measured. The studywas able to demonstrate that people with a genetic polymorphism in a transporter gene have lower transporter activity at the blood-brain barrier, which can lead…
An international team working at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has captured the first high-resolution 3-D images from individual double-helix DNA segments attached at either end to gold nanoparticles. The images detail the flexible structure of the DNA segments, which appear as nanoscale jump ropes.
Scientists from MIPT (Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology), MSU (Moscow State University), and National University of Science and Technology "MISIS" provided an overview of the most promising compounds which can be used as medications for prostate cancer. The article was published in the Journal of Drug Targeting.
Randox Quality Control are pleased to announce, as part of our ongoing growth and development, the launch of our new Acusera Calibration Verification range for Beckman and Roche Cobas instruments.
Liposomes are currently used as drug delivery vehicles but recognized by the immune system. Scientists from the universities of Basel and Fribourg have shown that special artificial liposomes do not elicit any reaction in human and porcine sera as well as pigs. The study was published in the Journal Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology, and Medicine.
By using drug delivery vehicles, so-called nanocarriers, pharmaceuticals reach the diseased area in the body. There they accelerate the healing process. But in order to prevent them from getting ingested by phagocytes, the surfaces of the nanocarriers are typically coated with the biocompatible synthetic polymer poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). Scientists at the Mainz University Medical Center and…
Tumours kill off surrounding cells to make room to grow, according to new research from the University of Cambridge. Although the study was carried out using fruit flies, its findings suggest that drugs to prevent, rather than encourage, cell death might be effective at fighting cancer – contrary to how many of the current chemotherapy drugs work.
A common heart drug may stop the progression of angiosarcoma, a cancer of the inner lining of blood vessels, according to a study by researchers at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) El Paso.
Around 25 treatments for seriously ill patients with specific cancers listed on England’s National Health Service’s Cancer Drug Fund are to be removed. This large change is likely to affect patients with cancers of the breast, bowel, prostate, blood, upper gastrointestine, brain and central nervous system, as well as gynaecological cases. Report: Mark Nicholls
Access to pain relieving medication varies greatly within Europe. ‘The availability and reimbursement of certain pain relieving medications for patients depends less on medical criteria than luck – living in the right country,’ declared Professor Hans Georg Kress, past president of the European Pain Federation EFIC, speaking in Vienna this September at the 9th EFIC Congress. Report:…
Increasing requirements for specialisation and diagnostic quality in pathology on the one hand and the importance of pathology findings for treatment planning on the other hand call for new solutions in pathomorphological diagnostics. One important starting point is the fast-paced opportunity for digitalisation along with communication systems which facilitate the storage and transfer of large…
A banana a day may not keep the doctor away, but a substance originally found in bananas and carefully edited by scientists could someday fight off a wide range of viruses, new research suggests. And the process used to create the virus-fighting form may help scientists develop even more drugs, by harnessing the “sugar code” that our cells use to communicate. That code gets hijacked by…
A nanofiber hydrogel infused with snake venom may be the best material to stop bleeding quickly, according to Rice University scientists.
At this year's European Health Forum Gastein (EHFG), several discussions focused on the increasing demands for new strategies to ensure equal access to high quality healthcare. The funding and pricing of medicines as well as universal access to healthcare were also addressed, as was the role of the EU in this area.
In an interview in advance of the European Health Forum in Gastein, Dr. Stanimir Hasurdjiev, a board member of the European Patients’ Forum, talked about the challenge of multimorbidity and how to make it work for the patient. Report: Michael Krassnitzer