SO PAULO & SAN CARLOS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein and Natera, a leading innovator in prenatal genetic testing, today announced a partnership to offer Panorama, Nateras non-invasive prenatal test. Panorama currently offers detection of chromosomal abnormalities, including trisomy 21 (Down syndrome), trisomy 13 (Patau Syndrome), trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome), monosomy X (Turner syndrome), triploidy and vanishing twins, using only the mothers blood as early as nine weeks gestation. Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein is committed to providing patients with the best medical care possible, and Panorama is not only a best-in-class non-invasive prenatal test but is also capable of detecting abnormalities beyond trisomies with high accuracy, said Rita Sanchez, M.D., director of maternal fetal medicine at Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein in So Paulo. This test enables us to provide expecting parents with reliable information about the genetics of their baby early on in pregnancy. Added Matthew Rabinowitz, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Natera, Our partnership with a highly respected hospital such as Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein exemplifies Nateras commitment to delivering the highest quality of genetic tests in the world, based on accuracy, clinical coverage and fast turnaround time. Panorama uses a simple blood draw from the mother, examines cfDNA … Continue reading →

Oct. 30, 2013 Performing early stem cell transplants in patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma does not improve overall survival in high-risk patients, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. But early transplantation does appear to be beneficial among a small group of patients who are at the very highest risk, the study found. Lead author is Patrick Stiff, MD, director of Loyola University Medical Center's Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center. The study was developed by the SWOG cancer research cooperative group and funded by the National Cancer Institute. Stiff is chair of the SWOG Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplantation Committee. The traditional first-line therapy for aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is a combination of four chemotherapy drugs. In recent years, physicians have added a fifth drug, the monoclonal antibody rituximab. This five-drug regimen is known as R-CHOP. The treatment typically puts patients into remission. But many patients relapse and go on to get an autologous stem cell transplant after second-line chemotherapy. The study was designed to determine whether doing an early stem cell transplant -- without first waiting to see whether a patient relapses -- would increase survival. The clinical trial included 40 sites in the United … Continue reading →

By Rob Wright There are three taboo topics at work sex, politics, and religion. You would think discussing science should therefore be acceptable. However, strike up a conversation on stem cell research, and youre likely going to be covering all three of those taboo topics. Now imagine you are the CEO of a stem cell therapy research and development company, and you decide to discuss the benefits of stem cell research with the executive leadership of one of the largest and wealthiest organizations in the world, which, by the way, has also taken a firm and very public position against the use of embryonic stem cell research the Roman Catholic Church. That is exactly what Robin Smith, M.D., chairman and CEO of NeoStem (NASDAQ: NBS), decided to do. Not only did Smith strike up a conversation, she and the team at NeoStem successfully orchestrated what has been characterized as the Vaticans first-ever contract of collaboration with an outside commercial venture to advance adult stem cell research. This unprecedented initiative pairs NeoStem and the Stem for Life Foundation (SFLF), a public charity it helped form and for which Smith serves as president and chairman, together with the Pontifical Council for Culture … Continue reading →

The drug topiramate, used to treat epilepsy and migraine headaches, may be an effective treatment for cocaine dependence, a new study suggests. There are currently no medications approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat cocaine addiction, Science Daily reports. The study was conducted by Dr. Bankole A. Johnson of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, who previously found topiramate was a safe and effective treatment for alcohol dependence. The new study, published in JAMA Psychiatry, included 142 adults who were seeking treatment for cocaine dependence. They were randomly assigned to receive either topiramate or a placebo. The researchers found topiramate was more effective at increasing the likelihood that participants would have cocaine-free weeks. The drug was also significantly associated with a decrease in cocaine craving, and an improvement in participants overall functioning. Side effects of the drug were mild, and included abnormal tingling skin sensations, taste distortions, anorexia, and difficulty concentrating. Our findings reveal that topiramate is a safe and robustly efficacious medicine for the treatment of cocaine dependence, and has the potential to make a major contribution to the global health crisis of addiction, Dr. Johnson said in a news release. However, topiramate treatment also is … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 30-Oct-2013 Contact: Jessica Studeny Jessica.studeny@case.edu 216-368-4692 Case Western Reserve University A discovery from Case Western Reserve and Cleveland Clinic researchers could provide epilepsy patients invaluable advance guidance about their chances to improve symptoms through surgery. Assistant Professor of Neurosciences Roberto Fernndez Galn, PhD, and his collaborators have identified a new, far more accurate way to determine precisely what portions of the brain suffer from the disease. This information can give patients and physicians better information regarding whether temporal lobe surgery will provide the results they seek. "Our analysis of neuronal activity in the temporal lobe allows us to determine whether it is diseased, and therefore, whether removing it with surgery will be beneficial for the patient," Galn said, the paper's senior author. "In terms of accuracy and efficiency, our analysis method is a significant improvement relative to current approaches." The findings appear in research published October 30 in the open access journal PLOS ONE. About one-third of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy do not respond to medical treatment and opt to do lobectomies to alleviate their symptoms. Yet the surgery's success rate is only 60 to 70 percent because of the difficulties in identifying the diseased brain … Continue reading →

BALTIMORE, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- The drug topiramate, used to treat epilepsy and migraines, is a safe and efficacious medicine for the treatment of cocaine dependence, U.S. researchers say. Study leader Dr. Bankole A. Johnson of the University of Maryland School of Medicine and head of the School's new Brain Science Research Consortium Unit said addiction affects 13.2 million to 19.7 million cocaine users worldwide and cocaine is responsible for more U.S. emergency room visits than any other illegal drug. The study enrolled 142 participants, age 18 years or older, seeking treatment for cocaine dependence. Following enrollment, participants were randomly assigned into a topiramate group or placebo group. Neither the participants nor the healthcare professionals administering the treatment knew who was in which group. The study, published in the JAMA Psychiatry, found topiramate was more efficacious than placebo at increasing the participants' weekly proportion of cocaine non-use days and in increasing the likelihood that participants would have cocaine-free weeks. Topiramate also was significantly associated with a decrease in craving for cocaine and an improvement in participants' functioning, the study said. The investigators also observed few side effects due to drug treatment. In general, participants in the topiramate group experienced mild … Continue reading →

Vaughan Citizen Those hoping to get up and get down at the Autism Speaks Canada fundraiser in Vaughan last Saturday night got that and more as Maestro Fresh Wes rapped out a quartet of yesterdays hits to a packed and raucous dance floor. A good time was had by all, especially organizers John and Fi Ferraro who, backed by a large committee of volunteers and sponsors, were able to bring out close to 400 people and, in Ms Ferraros estimation, raise upwards of $50,000. Autism Speaks Canada is the largest autism and science advocacy organization in the country and is dedicated to funding research into the causes, prevention and treatment of autism. Ms Ferraro, whose family has been affected by autism, held what she called a small get together of close friends and family, about 100 people, last year at her Vaughan home. The demand for a second event was so great that the West River Event Centre on Rutherford Road was chosen as the host venue. The night was emceed by comedian/actress Carla Collins and guests took part in silent and live auctions that helped to raise thousands of dollars. Guests also dined on a wide selection of foods … Continue reading →