Stem Cells Can Be Engineered To kill HIV
LOS ANGELES (ASRN.ORG)- Researchers from the UCLA AIDS Institute and colleagues have for the first time demonstrated that human blood stem cells can be engineered into cells that can target and kill HIV-infected cells — a process that potentially could be used against a range of chronic viral diseases.
Who Gets Expensive Cancer Drugs? A Tale Of Two Nations
PHILADELPHIA, PA (ASRN.ORG)- The well-worn notion that patients in the United States have unfettered access to the most expensive cancer drugs while the United Kingdom’s nationalized health care system regularly denies access to some high-cost treatments needs rethinking, a team of bioethicists and health policy experts says.
FDA Panel Backs Crestor For Heart Attack, Stroke Prevention
GAITHERSBURG, MD (ASRN.ORG)- Federal health advisers said that expanded use of AstraZeneca's cholesterol pill Crestor can benefit patients with healthy cholesterol levels by preventing heart attack, stroke and death.
When Is A Stem Cell Really A Stem Cell?
BOSTON (ASRN.ORG)- Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) are adult cells reprogrammed to look and function like versatile embryonic stem cells which are of growing interest in medicine. They may provide a way to create different kinds of patient-matched stem cells as treatments for disease, while sidestepping many of the ethical questions surrounding stem cells created from embryos.
Glass Thermometers Still A Safety Hazard
BOSTON (ASRN.ORG)- A study by emergency physicians at Children's Hospital Boston provides a wake-up call to parents to get rid of their old glass thermometers. A 12-year review of patients seen in emergency department (ED) shows that glass thermometers pose one more safety hazard in addition to mercury exposure: injuries from broken glass.