Health and Medicine

Genital infections with Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) have risen in western Scotland over the last 15 years, particularly among young women, finds a study in this week’s BMJ.

Researchers reviewed all genital samples of herpes simplex processed between 1986 and 2000 at the West of Scotland Specialist Virology Centre.

Of the 3,181 swabs testing positive for the virus, 63% were from women and 37% were from men. Twenty-nine per cent of patients were aged 21-25 years. In 1986-1988,

In this month`s issue of EMBO Reports Kahle et al. describe how they genetically engineered a mouse to show pathological symptoms similar to those of human patients suffering from the neural disease Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), also known as Shy-Drager-Syndrome. The model could help researchers to develop and test new efficient drugs against this wide spread disease.

More than 100,000 Europeans and 100,000 US-Americans suffer from MSA. Affected individuals either show symptoms similar to t

Ph.D. candidate Nina Isoherranen wins Kaye Awards

Nina Isoherranen, a Ph.D. candidate at the Hebrew University School of Pharmacy, was awarded a Kaye Innovation Award this week for developing a new medication to treat epilepsy, migraine headaches, and chronic pain that does not cause birth defects in animal models, unlike other medicines currently used to treat epilepsy.

Ms. Isoherranen explained that 1% of the population suffers from epilepsy, a central nervous system (CNS)

Study of Lupus Patient Confirms Promise of Stem Cell Transplant Therapy
Findings Indicate Need for Wider Clinical Trials

For patients with severe autoimmune diseases, blood stem cell transplantation may be promising therapy option. This process involves an infusion of healthy blood cells to replace the body`s own malfunctioning ones and restore immune function. A recent case study, published in the June 2002 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, has shown this approach to be particul

Prioritise resources towards primary prevention, say EUROPREVAL researchers

The largest study on the prevalence of cancer in Europe is published today (Thursday 6 June) in Annals of Oncology, journal of the European Society for Medical Oncology.

Thirty-eight cancer registries in 17 countries provided data on 3 million cancer patients for EUROPREVAL. An objective of the study was to provide health systems with essential information for health planning and resource allocation.

The progressive lack of the tumor suppressor gene Rb2/p130 could be an early indicator of prostate cancer in males, according to a study by researchers at Temple University’s College of Science and Technology.

The results of the study, “Expression of Cell-Cycle-regulated Proteins pRb2/p130, p107, p27kip1, p53, Mdm-2, and Ki-67 (MIB-1) in Prostatic Gland Adenocarcinoma,” appear in the June issue of Clinical Cancer Research ( clincancerres.aac