Embryo clone scientist urges women to donate eggs
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Women having fertility treatment should be given the option to donate for research any extra eggs they do not use, the head of the first European team to clone a human embryo believes.
Dr Miodrag Stojkovic, of Newcastle University in northern England, told Reuters one of the greatest obstacles to stem cell research - which could lead to cures for conditions such as diabetes, cancer and Parkinson’s - was obtaining fresh eggs.
“What we are using are eggs which are usually discarded. The development potential is not the same as fresh eggs,” said Stojkovic, a stem cell expert from Serbia who has also worked in Germany.
House to debate expanded stem cell research
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Legislation that would loosen restrictions on government funding of embryonic stem cell research headed for debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday under a veto threat from President Bush.
Bush, who has yet to veto a bill during his presidency, planned to join the debate from the White House with a speech about why the government should stick with his policy.
In 2001 Bush allowed federal funding for stem cell research but limited it to 78 stem cell lines that existed as of Aug. 9, 2001. Advocates of expanded research are pressuring Congress to change the policy, hoping stem cells will one day lead to medical advances on such diseases as Alzheimer’s and diabetes.
Philippines culls 500 parrots on bird-flu fears
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The Philippines culled about 500 parrots imported from Indonesia as part of efforts to prevent the spread of the bird-flu virus from other Southeast Asian countries, officials said on Tuesday.
The Philippines, which has remained free of the virus that ravaged poultry farms and killed 53 people across large parts of Asia since late 2003, has banned the import of poultry from countries affected by bird flu.
Groups urge US to reject silicone breast implants
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U.S. regulators should deny applications to sell silicone gel-filled breast implants because the manufacturers have not met the legal benchmark for proving safety, 20 consumer groups and individuals said in a petition released on Tuesday.
Inamed Corp. and Mentor Corp. are trying to win Food and Drug Administration approval to resume widespread sales of silicone breast implants for the first time since 1992.
Scan effective at finding clogged arteries - study
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An imaging device that scans slices of the body diagnosed clogged arteries about as well as the traditional method where dye is injected through a catheter threaded into the body, researchers said on Tuesday.
The scanning method, called multislice computed tomography, was performed on 103 patients suspected of having coronary artery disease and the accuracy of diagnoses were only percentage points lower than traditional invasive coronary angiography.
China rushes in vaccine after deadly bird flu found
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China has rushed more than three million doses of bird flu vaccine to a remote western province after migratory birds were found dead from the H5N1 strain which can be fatal to humans, state media said on Monday.
Poultry across Qinghai province, neighbouring Tibet and Xinjiang, had become the “target of a compulsory vaccination campaign”, the China Daily newspaper said.
Scientists had proved that the virus killed scores of geese in Qinghai in early May, media said at the weekend, the first report of H5N1 detected in China since last year.
Resveratrol may have anti-flu activity
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Resveratrol, a chemical found in red grapes, blocks replication of the influenza virus in cell culture and in animals, Italian researchers report.
“Resveratrol merits further investigation as a potential weapon for combating the growing threat of influenza,” Dr. Anna Teresa Palamara of the Institute of Microbiology in Rome and colleagues conclude.
In cell culture experiments, resveratrol prevented influenza from replicating.
U.N. adopts new rules to curb disease spread
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Possible travel and trade restrictions to help prevent deadly diseases such as bird flu or SARS crossing borders were among new rules approved by member states of the World Health Organization on Monday.
The regulations, adopted by the U.N. agency’s 192 member states after two years of negotiations, oblige countries to tighten up disease detection and set guidelines for international measures to be taken.
Computers no cure-all for drug errors
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Even with computerized systems for ordering and checking medications, a high rate of adverse drug events (ADEs) occurs, according to a report released today.
Several reports have shown that computerized ordering is useful in reducing medication errors, but the impact such systems have on adverse drug events was unclear, investigators explain in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Bird flu kills Vietnamese, toll hits 18 since Dec
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Bird flu may have claimed the life of a Vietnamese man in the past week, bringing the country’s toll to 18 since the latest outbreak in late December, health officials said on Monday.
A provincial health official told Reuters preliminary tests by the Hanoi-based National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology had confirmed the 46-year-old man from the northern province of Hung Yen died last Thursday at a Hanoi hospital from bird flu.
The official said by telephone from Hung Yen, 64 km (40 miles) southeast of Hanoi, that the man was admitted to hospital a week ago with a high fever and coughing.
Iodine pills curb radiation-induced cancer risk
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A study confirms that exposure in childhood to radioactive iodines, mainly iodine-131, increases the risk of thyroid cancer and suggests that both iodine deficiency and iodine supplementation may be important and independent modifiers of this risk.
These results have important public health implications, researchers say. They think, based on their study, that giving iodine pills to iodine-deficient populations may substantially reduce the risk of thyroid cancer from radioactive iodine exposure in childhood that may occur after radiation accidents or during medical diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
Bush would veto House bill on stem cells
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President Bush said on Friday he would veto legislation that would loosen restrictions on embryonic stem cell research and expressed concern about human cloning research in South Korea.
In the House of Representatives, supporters of embryonic research sponsored by Republican Rep. Mike Castle of Delaware and Democratic Rep. Diane DeGette of Colorado hope for a vote next week and believe it will be close.
Bush said the bill would violate his principles.
Honduras sees 1.5 mln at risk from Chagas disease
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The deadly Chagas disease has infected 300,000 Hondurans and could spread to 1.5 million more without measures to halt it, a health official said on Thursday.
Chagas, which is transmitted mainly by blood-sucking insects known as kissing bugs, kills up to a third of its victims and disproportionately affects the rural poor in Latin America.
J&J says FDA rejects Risperdal as autism treatment
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Johnson & Johnson said on Friday U.S. regulators rejected its application to market antipsychotic drug Risperdal for patients with autism.
Johnson & Johnson’s Pharmaceutical Research & Development unit said it received a “not-approvable” letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on its petition for an additional use of the drug, which currently is used as a treatment for schizophrenia.
Rifaximin protects against Montezuma’s revenge
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The antibiotic rifaximin seems to be effective for preventing Traveler’s Diarrhea, not just for treating the problem, according to a new report.
Rifaximin, sold under the brand name Xifaxan (and possibly others), is not absorbed into the bloodstream so it’s useful for treating intestinal infections. It has proven to be an effective treatment for travelers’ diarrhea, and was recently approved for this purpose in the US.
