http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Omega-3 fatty acid supplements were not associated with beneficial effects on disease activity in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, according to a report of a randomized controlled trial published Online First by Archives of Neurology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-omega-fatty-acids-beneficial-effects.html Neuroscience Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:00:12 EST news253810802 New data from a number of clinical trials presented for the first time at the International Liver Congress 2012 provides hope for previously difficult to treat hepatitis C (HCV) patient populations. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-drug-interactions-wont-exclude-hcv.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 19 Apr 2012 06:59:22 EST news254037544 (HealthDay) -- Growth of the deadly skin cancer melanoma may be triggered by the immune system turning on itself, according to a new study that also identified the mechanism that causes this to happen. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-reveals-trigger-melanoma-growth.html Cancer Wed, 28 Mar 2012 17:24:27 EST news252174239 Music has a fundamental affect on humans. It can reduce stress, enhance relaxation, provide a distraction from pain, and improve the results of clinical therapy. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery demonstrates that music can reduce rejection of heart transplants in mice by influencing the immune system. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-music-heart-transplant.html Cardiology Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:00:02 EST news251654476 (HealthDay) -- For patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepcidin, a regulator of iron homeostasis, is induced following a single dose of pegylated interferon-α (PEG-IFNα), and may be a surrogate marker of immediate efficacy of IFN-α, according to a study published online Feb. 15 in Hepatology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-hypoferremia-treatment-response-ifn-.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 01 Mar 2012 15:40:01 EST news249837964 A drug once taken by people with HIV/AIDS but long ago shelved after newer, modern antiretroviral therapies became available has now shed light on how the human body uses its natural immunity to fight the virus—work that could help uncover new targets for drugs. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-patients-infected-hiv-hepatitis-drug.html Medications Wed, 29 Feb 2012 14:32:02 EST news249748315 A new study has found that patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) who have not responded to interferon treatments experience long-term benefits when they switch to the targeted drug imatinib. Published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that imatinib is the treatment of choice for these patients. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-drug-leukemia-patients-benefit-therapy.html Cancer Mon, 27 Feb 2012 05:09:06 EST news249541736 More Americans died in 2007 of hepatitis C infection, which causes incurable liver disease, than from the virus that causes AIDS, US health authorities said this week. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-hepatitis-americans-hiv.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:40:22 EST news249241213 (Medical Xpress) -- Thanks to the sequencing of the 27 known human interferon genes, researchers from the Institut Pasteur and the CNRS reconstruct the genetic history of these proteins so central for our immune system, and put forward potentially innovative ways to improve the clinical use of interferons in the treatment of pathologies such as Hepatitis C, multiple sclerosis, and some cancers. These results are published on December 19th, 2011, in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-genetic-diversity-crucial-survival-ways.html Genetics Tue, 20 Dec 2011 09:00:01 EST news243592512 The active ingredient boceprevir has been available since the middle of 2011 as a treatment for chronic hepatitis C of genotype 1. In an early benefit assessment pursuant to the "Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products" (AMNOG), the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) has now examined to establish whether boceprevir offers added benefit in comparison with the previous standard therapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-boceprevir-indication-added-benefit-specific.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 09 Dec 2011 10:37:27 EST news242649434 In populations with a low prevalence of tuberculosis (TB), the majority of positives with the three tests commercially available in the U.S for the diagnosis of TB are false positives, according to a new study. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-discordance-commercially-available-diagnostics-latent-tb.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 09 Dec 2011 02:53:48 EST news242621589 When the activity of a molecule that is normally elevated during viral infections is inhibited in the brain, mice learn and remember better, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine reported in a recent article in the journal Cell. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-neuroscientists-boost-memory-genetics-memory-enhancing.html Neuroscience Thu, 08 Dec 2011 13:00:42 EST news242571591 Traumatic brain injury is associated with a profound suppression of the patient's ability to fight infection. At the same time the patient also often suffers hyper-inflammation, due to the brain releasing glucocorticoids in response to the injury. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Critical Care shows that including probiotics with nutrients, supplied via the patient's feeding tube, increased interferon levels, reduced the number of infections, and even reduced the amount of time patients spent in intensive care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-probiotics-infections-patients-intensive.html Medical research Fri, 02 Dec 2011 02:16:19 EST news242014559 A new study in Nature Medicine describes how different types of immune system T-cells alternately discourage and encourage stem cells to regrow bone and tissue, bringing into sharp focus the importance of the transplant recipient's immune system in stem cell regeneration. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-recipient-immune-stem-cell-regeneration.html Medical research Sun, 20 Nov 2011 13:00:22 EST news241013089 A study of burn patients has found that those who suffered the most severe smoke inhalation also had more inflammation and spent more time on ventilators and in intensive care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-documents-toll-inhalation-injuries.html Health Wed, 16 Nov 2011 12:52:43 EST news240670355 Patients who rely on recombinant, protein-based drugs must often endure frequent injections, often several times a week, or intravenous therapy. Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston demonstrate the possibility that blood vessels, made from genetically engineered cells, could secrete the drug on demand directly into the bloodstream. In the November 17 issue of the journal Blood, they provide proof-of-concept, reversing anemia in mice with engineered vessels secreting erythropoietin (EPO). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-drug-secreting-blood-vessels-reverse-anemia.html Medical research Tue, 15 Nov 2011 16:27:32 EST news240596839 Cytokines, a varied group of signaling chemicals in the body, have been described as the software that runs the immune system, but when that software malfunctions, dysregulation of the immune system can result in debilitating autoimmune diseases such as lupus, arthritis, and diabetes. Leading experts in the field of cytokine research present their most up-to-date findings and unique perspectives on the role of cytokines in autoimmune diseases in a special issue of Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-role-cytokines-autoimmune-diseases.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 27 Oct 2011 16:53:27 EST news238953199 One of the obstacles to developing an effective AIDS vaccine is the difficulty in measuring how well a potential vaccine primes the body to defend itself against HIV. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-cells-hiv.html HIV & AIDS Fri, 14 Oct 2011 09:46:01 EST news237804348 A possible new target for breast cancer therapy comes from the discovery that the Tyk2 protein helps suppress the growth and metastasis of breast tumors, as reported in Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-potential-therapeutic-breast-cancer.html Cancer Wed, 05 Oct 2011 16:18:58 EST news237050329 Alcohol is known to worsen the effects of disease, resulting in longer recovery period after trauma, injury or burns. It is also known to impair the anti-viral immune response, especially in the liver, including response against Hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Immunology shows that alcohol modulates the anti-viral and inflammatory functions of monocytes and that prolonged alcohol consumption has a double negative effect of reducing the anti-viral effect of Type 1 interferon (IFN) whilst increasing inflammation via the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNFα. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-alcohol-impairs-body-ability-viral.html Health Fri, 30 Sep 2011 05:23:24 EST news236578990 Patients being treated for chronic hepatitis C become less likely to take their medications over time, according to a new study from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Since the study also showed better response to the drugs when they're taken correctly, the researchers say the findings should prompt clinicians to assess patients for barriers to medication adherence throughout their treatment, and develop strategies to help them stay on track. The study is published online this month in Annals of Internal Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-hepatitis-patients-falter-adherence-treatment.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 29 Sep 2011 16:47:54 EST news236533666 Researchers from Yale University are looking to a virus from the same family as the rabies virus to fight a form of cancer primarily found in children and young adults. They report their findings in the September 2011 issue of the Journal of Virology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-virus-childhood-cancers.html Cancer Mon, 29 Aug 2011 11:44:49 EST news233837075 (Medical Xpress) -- Interferons, protective chemicals produced by most cells in the body, live up to their name, hampering cancer and viral infections. It takes many different kinds of interferon molecules to get the job done, with each one activating a particular component of the body’s defense systems. Researchers have long been puzzled by how interferons could call in such a wide range of cellular attacks if they all transmitted their messages to cells through the same molecular antenna, or receptor. A new study suggests that key may be in how tightly the interferons grip that receptor at each of their attachment points. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-interferon-code.html Medical research Wed, 24 Aug 2011 09:30:01 EST news233396172 A study of seven patients examined use of a pressure device worn overnight to supplement other therapy for auricular keloids (scar tissue buildup of the ear), as reported in an article published Online First today by Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-pressure-device-worn-ear-night.html Other Mon, 15 Aug 2011 17:35:13 EST news232648491 Avian influenza virus is a threat to the commercial chicken industry and, with its recent rapid spread across China, has also shown the ability for transmission from chickens to humans and other mammals. In an article in Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., Chinese researchers report that oral chicken interferon-alpha may significantly reduce influenza virus levels when given either preventively or therapeutically. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-oral-interferon-avian-influenza-virus.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 28 Jul 2011 13:58:56 EST news231080279 Stanford University School of Medicine investigators have linked a master molecule of the immune system, gamma-interferon, to the pathology of asthma, in a study of mice. This somewhat surprising finding — the key immune molecule has often been assumed to steer the immune system in a different direction from the cluster of allergic disorders to which asthma belongs — could lead to new treatments for the disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-key-immune-substance-linked-asthma.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:30:57 EST news228742245 British researchers have identified specific resistance mutations for two classes of p7 inhibitor, which may explain their lack of effectiveness in clinical trials combined with current standard of care. Study results support the role of p7 inhibitor combinations as potential components of future HCV-specific therapies and are available in the July issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-p7-protein-resistance-mutations-drug.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 28 Jun 2011 10:41:00 EST news228476444 Targeted multi-drug treatments for hepatitis C patients that could stop the virus in its tracks have come a step closer, thanks to researchers at the University of Leeds, UK. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-drugs-block-hepatitis-virus-tracks.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 28 Jun 2011 10:17:09 EST news228474968 Scientists at The University of Nottingham have discovered a molecular mechanism which could bring about the development of new treatments for Multiple Sclerosis (MS) -- a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-breakthrough-treatments-multiple-sclerosis.html Medical research Tue, 21 Jun 2011 09:27:54 EST news227867260 Advanced hepatitis C patients with chronic liver disease may benefit from drinking coffee during treatment, according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. Patients who received peginterferon plus ribavirin treatment and who drank three or more cups of coffee per day were two times more likely to respond to treatment than non-drinkers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-coffee-hepatitis-treatment-response.html Addiction Tue, 07 Jun 2011 10:35:05 EST news226661649