A recent research led by Dr. Una McCann of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, has revealed that regular users of the popular recreational drug Ecstasy are exposing themselves to a risk of developing sleep apnea. The drug has also been linked to various cognitive problems by the study.
Characterized by pauses in breathing when sleeping, sleep apnea is one of the most common disorders and affects and estimated 15 million Americans. Read the rest of this entry »
A team of scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) report their success in solving the molecular structure of a key portion of a cellular receptor implicated in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other serious illnesses.
Assistant Professor Hiro Furukawa, Ph.D., and colleagues at CSHL, in cooperation with the National Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory, obtained crystal structures for one of several “subunits” of the NMDA receptor. This receptor, formally called the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, belongs to a family of cellular receptors that mediate excitatory nerve transmission in the brain. Excitatory signals represent the majority of nerve signals in most regions of the human brain. Read the rest of this entry »
Scientists have identified a drug which may offer hope to patients with a particularly lethal form of lung cancer.
The drug eliminated small cell lung cancer tumours in 50% of mice, and blocked the cells’ ability to resist standard chemotherapy treatment.
The Imperial College London team now hope to test it in patients with an inoperable form of the disease.
Their study appears in the journal Cancer Research. Read the rest of this entry »
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have shown that intermittent access to foods rich in fat and sugar induces changes in the brain which are comparable to those observed in drug dependence. The findings, reported in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, may explain how abstinence from these foods contributes to relapse eating among dieters as well as related eating disorders.
Forms of obesity and eating disorders can be defined as chronic relapsing conditions with alternating periods of abstinence (dieting to avoid “forbidden” foods-rich in sugar and fat also known as palatable foods) and relapse (compulsive, often uncontrollable, eating of highly-palatable foods) that continue despite negative consequences. Read the rest of this entry »
Scientists claim a new drug has been developed which kills leukaemia cells.
Researchers say the drug, PBOX-15, can destroy cancerous cells in adult patients with a poor prognosis who have shown resistance to other treatments.
Professor Mark Lawler of Trinity College Dublin said it could be three to five years before the drug could be used as a potential therapy.
Belfast City Hospital also played a role in the development of the new leukaemia drug. Read the rest of this entry »
Nearly half of patients who completed 56 weeks of treatment with Orexigen Therapeutics Inc’s experimental obesity treatment, Contrave, lost at least 10 percent of their weight in a late-stage study and the drug also appeared to help cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
The drug demonstrated an even greater improvement in non- weight loss measures in patients considered to be at high risk of heart disease, according to data released on Saturday.
Orexigen released top-line data in July from a trio of Phase III trials showing Contrave met its primary goal of at least 5 percent weight loss compared with a placebo. Read the rest of this entry »
