STRATCOM Research News

The following is a review of diagnostics related medical research worldwide

The information is updated the first week of every month - so ... make this a regular stop in your information gathering activities.

The following information has been compiled from publicly available Sources, StratCom does not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or the authenticity of the information and StratCom cannot be held liable for errors.

Research News for May 2000

Neuroscientists at the Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Canada have developed a sensitive blood test for detecting Alzheimer's disease in its early stages. The test measures low levels of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) messenger RNA in circulating lymphocytes. The researchers had earlier found that the protein is elevated in the brains of AD patients but unexpectedly low in their blood.

Eight adults with severe diabetes were able to quit their insulin shots after scientists University of Alberta, Edmonton tried a new technique in transplanting insulin-producing pancreas cells. The team intends to continue to perform at least 32 additional cell transplants. Islet-cell recipients received a new genetically engineered anti-rejection drug called Zenapax.

Bioengineering researchers at the University of Washington will lead a multi-million-dollar effort to grow functional human heart tissue, an undertaking that could lead to tissue-engineered replacement hearts and set in place the technology to grow other major organs in the laboratory.
The project, funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health for $10 million over five years, will initially focus on culturing thick patches of cardiac muscle that could be grafted onto damaged hearts to improve their efficiency. In growing such devices, and eventually an entire heart, researchers will begin with a scaffolding, or porous structure upon which cardiac cells can gain a foothold. The scaffolding is seeded with cells then placed in a bioreactor, which maintains a steady temperature conducive to development and provides cells with the nutrients they need to grow and reproduce. Advanced Tissue Sciences' patented technology will play a key role in the partnership's efforts.

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York have found that people who have high levels of uric acid in their blood may have an increased risk of dying from heart disease. The exact role that uric acid plays in an increased risk of dying from heart disease is a mystery, but uric acid is a byproduct of the continual process in the body where old cells are broken down and new ones are formed. Normally, the acid is eliminated from the body in urine.
Source: The Journal of the American Medical Association May 2000; 283:2404-2410.

The following is a review of diagnostics related medical research worldwide

Research News for May 2000

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Send mail to stratcom@pagebleu.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Concept and Design Blue Page Productions
Copyright © 1996-2000 STRATCOM
Last modified: June 2, 2000