LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Cell Medica today announced the treatment of the first patient in the ASPIRE Trial, an early stage Phase I/II clinical study investigating the safety and efficacy of CytovirTM ADV for the treatment of adenovirus infections in immunosuppressed pediatric patients following bone marrow transplantation. The ASPIRE Trial represents a collaborative R&D project among Cell Medica, UCL Institute of Child Health and the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children. The project is funded in part by a grant from the Technology Strategy Board, the UKs innovation agency. Cytovir ADV is under development as a new way to treat adenovirus infections in pediatric patients following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell (bone marrow) transplantation. These patients are profoundly immunosuppressed for a period of three to six months after the procedure and therefore highly vulnerable to serious infections. In certain high risk pediatric groups following bone marrow transplantation, there is a mortality risk of up to 30% for patients developing adenovirus infections. No drug is currently approved for the treatment of adenovirus infections in this patient group. Cytovir ADV is comprised of naturally occurring T lymphocyte cells (T cells) which demonstrate immune response functions when exposed to adenovirus antigens. The ASPIRE Trial will explore … Continue reading →

Thoughts on Medical Cannabis and FDA Approval So a lot of Illinois republicans don't support the medical cannabis bill because it isn't FDA approved, but what does FDA approved really mean? This is the o... By: mos619 … Continue reading →

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 07, 2013 On April 20, 2013 the Epilepsy Foundation of America held its 7th National Walk for Epilepsy in Washington, DC. Fourteen teams walked to raise funds for the American Epilepsy Society (AES). Team Northeast Regional Epilepsy Group (NEREG) walked in this category and raised over $25,000 for AES. They are now the proud recipients of the 2013 Yale Cup for their fundraising achievement. Team captain, Dr. Lorna Myers, Director of Clinical Neuropsychology at the Northeast Regional Epilepsy Group and clinical psychologist commented: We joined the walk this year to raise funds for the American Epilepsy Society because we know that 100% of the funds raised for AES go to support epilepsy research and education of epilepsy doctors and specialists. Our motivated team of 48 members was made up of patients, sons, daughters, wives, husbands, moms, dads, medical doctors, psychologists, social workers, research assistants, and office support staff. The teams initial goal was $5000. By the day of the walk, the team had raised a whopping $26,074.77! This incredible amount was the result of 4 months of hard work which included patients knitting purple scarves for raffling, others selling these raffle tickets in New Jersey … Continue reading →

Epileptic mice had inhibitory cells transplanted in their brains to halt seizures (wiki commons) Epilepsy that does not respond to drug treatments has been stopped in adult mice, giving hope of a cure to human sufferers. Researchers at the UC San Francisco have found a way to halt seizures in adult mice by transplanting medial ganglionic eminence (MGE) cells into the mice brains. MGE cells inhibit signalling in overactive nerve circuits. They were inserted into the hippocampus, which is associated with seizures, as well as learning and memory. During epileptic seizures, the brain abnormally fires many excitatory nerve cells at the same time. Seizures can cause sufferers to lose consciousness, fall and sometimes be seriously injured. The cells that were transplanted into the mice brains prevented the "nerve-signalling firestorm" and stopped seizures in half of the mice. It also dramatically reduced the number of seizures in the other half. The mice were given a form of epilepsy resembling mesial temporal lobe epilepsy, in which seizures are believed to arise from the hippocampus. This form of the disease often develops in human adolescence. The mice model also shared other features of the human form of the disease, such as loss of … Continue reading →

Valproate products have several FDA-approved uses including: prevention of migraine headaches; treatment of epilepsy (seizures); and treatment of manic episodes associated with bipolar disorder (manic-depressive disorder). Valproate products have several FDA-approved uses including: prevention of migraine headaches; treatment of epilepsy (seizures); and treatment of manic episodes associated with bipolar disorder (manic-depressive disorder). Medicines that contain valproate already have a boxed warning for fetal risk, including birth defects. The recently published Neurodevelopmental Effects of Antiepileptic Drugs (NEAD) study found further evidence of the IQ risk, leading to todays strengthened warnings. Valproate medications should never be used in pregnant women for the prevention of migraine headaches because we have even more data now that show the risks to the children outweigh any treatment benefits for this use, said Russell Katz, M.D., director of the Division of Neurology Products in the FDAs Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. For its other approved uses bipolar disorder and seizures valproate may have some value in pregnant women, but it should only be taken if other medications have not controlled the symptoms or are otherwise unacceptable. Women who can become pregnant should not use valproate unless it is essential to managing their medical condition. Women who … Continue reading →

San Francisco, May 7 (IANS) US scientists have successfully managed to restrict epilepsy in mice that failed to respond to drugs, through transplantation of a particular group of cells, says a study. Epilepsy that does not respond to drugs can be halted in adult mice by transplanting a specific type of cell into the brain, University of California - San Francisco researchers have discovered, raising hope that a similar treatment might work in severe forms of human epilepsy. The UC-SF scientists controlled seizures in epileptic mice with a one-time transplantation of medial ganglionic eminence (MGE) cells, which inhibit signalling in overactive nerve circuits into the hippocampus, a brain region associated with seizures, as well as with learning and memory. Other researchers had previously used different cell types in rodent cell transplantation experiments and failed to stop seizures, reports Science Daily. Cell therapy has become an active focus of epilepsy research, in part because current medications, even when effective, only control symptoms and not underlying causes of the disease, according to Scott C. Baraban, who led the new study. In many types of epilepsy, he said, current drugs have no therapeutic value at all. "Our results are an encouraging step toward … Continue reading →

By: Lanetra Bennett May 7, 2013 A new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that at least one million children in the United States have autism. The CDC's estimate puts the prevalence of autism from about 1 in 88 to about 1 in 50 in just one year. In our special report, Eyewitness News Reporter Lanetra Bennett met one local family who's lived that statistic for the past three years. Four-year-old A.J. was Laura and Adam Roberts' first child. Like many parents, they say they didn't have a clue. So, even when they noticed delays in A.J.'s development as a baby, they dismissed it by saying, 'everyone's different.' Mrs. Roberts says, "We weren't concerned with the not making sounds because everybody says boys talk later. Your brother didn't talk until he was three. A.J. will be fine, it's fine. It's a good thing we didn't listen." When A.J. was a year old, the Roberts found out he had autism. A new government survey says 1 in 50 U.S. schoolchildren has the spectrum disorder. Read the original: Special Report: Our Kids & Autism … Continue reading →

RP-VITA can navigate to your room to put you in touch with a doctor, and it's being used in everything from newborn care to stroke treatment. RP-VITA is designed to make doctors more widely available through telepresence. Would you mind if your doctor were treating you through a display on top of a robot? What if that display could save your life? Well, that could be the case if you find yourself at one of seven U.S. and Mexican hospitals that have deployed the RP-VITA telepresence robot, which obtained FDA approval earlier this year as the first of its kind. RP-VITA, which stands for Remote Presence Virtual + Independent Telemedicine Assistant, is now on hand at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, five other medical centers in the U.S., and one in Mexico City, developers iRobot and InTouch Health announced today. "During a stroke, the loss of a few minutes can mean the difference between preserving or losing brain function," the companies quoted Paul Vespa, director of neurocritical care at the Reagan Center, as saying in a release. "The new technology enables me to concentrate on caring for my patient without being distracted by the need to … Continue reading →