Washington, Apr 20 (ANI): Seven new genetic regions associated with pulmonary fibrosis has been identified in a new genome-wide association study of more than 6,000 people. In the study, researchers at National Jewish Health, the University of Colorado and several other institutions found a number of genes associated with host defense, cell-cell adhesion and DNA repair, which provide clues to possible mechanisms underlying this currently untreatable disease. "This research gives us several new targets for investigation of pulmonary fibrosis ," David Schwartz, MD, senior author on the paper, Professor of Medicine at National Jewish Health and Chair of Medicine the University of Colorado School of Medicine, said. "We believe that there are several relatively common genetic risk factors, which combine with repeated lung injury to cause this devastating lung disease," he said. Pulmonary fibrosis is a potentially deadly scarring of lung tissue. Although there are a number of known contributors to its development, most cases have no known cause. Without an approved medical therapy, patients with the most common form, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, survive an average of only two to three years after diagnosis. "Pulmonary fibrosis has resisted our attempts to find a clearly beneficial treatment," co-author Kevin K. Brown, … Continue reading →

Melbourne, A[r 19 : A new University of Melbourne and Austin Health led study has revealed further insight into fainting showing the phenomenon may be genetic and, in some families, only one gene may be responsible. However, a predisposition to certain triggers, such as emotional distress or the sight of blood, may not be inherited a new study has found. Fainting, also called vasovagal syncope, is a brief loss of consciousness when your body reacts to certain triggers. It affects at least one out of four people. The study, published in the prestigious journal Neurology today and led by Professor Samuel Berkovic from the University of Melbourne's Department of Medicine, based at Austin Health, shows fainting may run in families while triggers may not. "Our study strengthens the evidence that fainting may be commonly genetic," Professor Berkovic said. "Our hope is to uncover the mystery of this phenomenon so that we can recognise the risk or reduce the occurrence in people as fainting may be a safety issue," he said. Researchers interviewed 44 families with a history of fainting and reviewed their medical records. Of those, six families had a large number of affected people, suggesting that a single gene … Continue reading →

Apr. 19, 2013 A new genome-wide association study of more than 6,000 people has identified seven new genetic regions associated with pulmonary fibrosis. In findings published online in Nature Genetics on April 14, 2013, researchers at National Jewish Health, the University of Colorado and several other institutions found a number of genes associated with host defense, cell-cell adhesion and DNA repair, which provide clues to possible mechanisms underlying this currently untreatable disease. "This research gives us several new targets for investigation of pulmonary fibrosis," said David Schwartz, MD, senior author on the paper, Professor of Medicine at National Jewish Health and Chair of Medicine the University of Colorado School of Medicine. "We believe that there are several relatively common genetic risk factors, which combine with repeated lung injury to cause this devastating lung disease." Pulmonary fibrosis is a potentially deadly scarring of lung tissue. Although there are a number of known contributors to its development, most cases have no known cause. Without an approved medical therapy, patients with the most common form, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, survive an average of only two to three years after diagnosis. "Pulmonary fibrosis has resisted our attempts to find a clearly beneficial treatment," said co-author … Continue reading →

Genetic testing isn't the best way to predict who will develop Type 2 diabetes, a new study suggests. An international team of researchers arrived at this conclusion after tracking health outcomes for more than 15,000 people on four different continents over and three-year period. The researchers looked at whether 16 genetic markers that are believed to be related to Type 2 diabetes in Caucasians played a role in the development of the disease for people of other ethnicities, particularly, South Asians and self-identified Latinos. The association between the genetic factor and diabetes was generally quite consistent across the ethnic groups, said Dr. Sonia Anand, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont. and the study's principal investigator. After making this discovery, the researchers, she said, wanted to find out whether testing for these variants is an effective way to predict whether an individual will develop Type 2 diabetes. We said, 'How important is this genetic information? Is it better than the information we already use to predict diabetes, and that type of information includes things such as family history of diabetes? What the person's body weight is, do they have fat around the middle and things … Continue reading →

By Christian V. Esguerra Philippine Daily Inquirer Former Senator Ernesto Maceda. FILE PHOTO AGOO, La Union, PhilippinesThanks to the wonders of science, the oldest candidate in the May 13 senatorial election has managed to keep up with the grueling campaign. So far, 78-year-old former Senate President Ernesto Maceda said Friday, he has not gotten sick despite a tough campaign schedule that usually requires him to travel from one province to anotherall thanks to the stem cell therapy he got for P600,000 at a medical facility in Germany in March last year. I am now convinced that my stem cell therapy is effective and thats the reason why Ive been able to keep up with the rigorous campaign schedule, he told reporters before climbing the campaign stage at the Eriguel compound. Maceda said the therapy was relatively cheap, noting that it would have cost him around P2.5 million if he had it in the Philippines. And it was worth it, he said. I feel 20 years younger, he said. Maceda joined a growing list of aging politicians who have resorted to stem cell therapy. They include Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, 89, and former President Joseph Estrada, who celebrated his 76th … Continue reading →

About 50 researchers from UCR attended the symposium at Loma Linda University By Iqbal Pittalwala on April 19, 2013 UC Riversides Prue Talbot, the director of the Stem Cell Center, gave welcoming remarks. Photo credit: Talbot Lab, UC Riverside. RIVERSIDE, Calif. A year ago, stem cell research laboratories at the University of California, Riverside, Loma Linda University and the California State University at San Bernardino formed the Inland Empire Stem Cell Consortium (IESCC) to enhance collaboration among the three universities and bring focus to stem cell work being done in inland Southern California. The IESCC had its first symposium at UC Riverside last year. The second IESCC symposium, which was attended by more than 100 participants, took place April 17 at Loma Linda University. Dr. Philip Schwartz from the Childrens Hospitalof Orange County Research Institute was the keynote speaker and gave an exciting presentation on the potential to treat devastating metabolic diseases in children using stem cell therapy. Some student members of the IESCC gave platform presentations and many students and postdoctoral fellows participated in a poster session followed by a session devoted to outreach activities. The poster session at the symposium showcased some of the latest stem cell research. … Continue reading →

By Christian Esguerra Philippine Daily Inquirer Former senator Ernesto Maceda. FILE PHOTO AGOO, La UnionThe oldest candidate in the May 13 senatorial election said he has managed to keep up with the grueling campaignthanks to modern stem cell therapy. So far, 78-year-old former Senate President Ernesto Maceda claimed he had not gone sick despite a tough campaign schedule that required him to jump from one province to another. He credited this to stem cell therapy, he got for P600,000 at a medical facility in Frankfurt, Germany, in March last year. I am now convinced that my stem cell therapy is effective and thats the reason why Ive been able to keep up with the rigorous campaign schedule, he told reporters before climbing the campaign stage at the Eriguel compound. Maceda said the therapy was relatively cheap, noting that it would have cost him around P2.5 million if he had it in the Philippines. And it was worth it, he said. 20 years younger I feel 20 years younger, he said. Maceda joined a growing list of aging politicians who say they have resorted to stem cell therapy. They include Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, 89, and former President Joseph Estrada, … Continue reading →

Manju Gunawardene, winner of the Dassis Award at the National Innovations exhibition in 2012, won a Gold prize and Silver for his two inventions at the 41st 'Inventions Geneva' exhibition held from April 10 to 14. Gunawardene brought honour to the country for his two inventions, developed using nanotechnology. Manju Gunawardene on arrival at the airport The Gold award was presented for his air purifying nano photocatalytic CFL lamp and the Silver was for the nano visible light photocatalysis based hospital infection control system. The Gold Medal was awarded in the category of 'Food stuff, drinks, cosmetics, paramedical, health and hygiene' for the nano photocatalytic CFL lamp that sanitizes air by killing microorganisms in air without the use of any harmful sanitizers or any type of chemicals. The innovative coating on the bulb not only kills germs, but also destroys odors and harmful chemical vapors in the air. The Silver Medal was awarded in the category of 'Medicine, surgery, hygiene, orthopedics and material for handicap.' Gunawardene is a serial inventor from Matara. He was a student of Mahanama College and Royal College, Colombo. In 1990, Gunawardene became the Junior Inventor of the Year of Sri Lanka for developing a formalin … Continue reading →