Newborns with low vitamin D levels seem to be more vulnerable to respiratory infections and the occurrence of wheezing. Researchers analysed data from the New Zealand Asthma and Allergy Cohort Study which followed more than 1,000 children in the cities of Wellington and Christchurch. The study was designed to examine the relationship between the actual [...]
Posts Tagged ‘massachusetts general hospital’
Poor Vit D levels in newborns up risk of respiratory infections
December 27th, 2010 |
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HP, Intel, Microsoft Technology Enable Less-Invasive Virtual Colonoscopies
December 10th, 2010 |
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With HP’s multicore PCs, Microsoft’s high-performance computing technology and Intel’s Parallel Studio 2011, Massachusetts General has shortened a virtual colonoscopy from 30 minutes to under 4 minutes. – Using technology from HP, Intel and Microsoft,
a researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital has developed an
algorithm to make colonoscopies less invasive, faster and less
expensive.
Hiro Yoshida, director of 3D imaging research in
the radiology department at Massachusetts General Hospital …
Sept. 30, 1846: Ether He Was the First or He Wasn’t
September 30th, 2010 |
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1846: Dentist William Morton uses ether to anesthetize a patient in Boston. It was not the first such use, but it began a train of events leading to the widespread adoption of ether for surgical anesthesia.
Dr. Crawford Long of Jefferson, Georgia, removed a tumor from the neck of James Venable under ether anesthesia March 30, [...]
Help Veterans with Combat Stress Disorders and/or Traumatic Brain Injuries
March 5th, 2010 |
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On May 23rd at 8am I will be running a 9k road race. The last big race I ran was Falmouth back in the summer, and I was looking for an event to begin this year’s warm weather with. My co-worker Adam mentioned that he was in for the Run To Home Base, a race [...]
Head injury could amplify depression in survivors of torture
November 7th, 2009 |
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Head injuries could aggravate depression and other emotional symptoms in survivors of torture and other traumatic experiences, according to a study from the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma (HPRT), based in the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Department of Psychiatry.
In the study, researchers found structural changes in the brains of former South Vietnamese political detainees who [...]
Scientists develop potentially safer general anaesthetic
July 24th, 2009 |
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A novel general anaesthetic developed by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) physicians may be safer for critically ill patients, says a report.
Published in the journal Anesthesiology, the article describes the drug called MOC-etomidate as a chemically altered version of an exiting anaesthetic that does not cause the sudden drop in blood pressure seen with most [...]
Europe’s unwieldy patent regime: Smother of invention
July 23rd, 2009 |
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European companies are suffering from an ineffective patent system
IN 1997 the European Patent Office (EPO) gave a patent to Massachusetts General Hospital for its use of nitric oxide to treat bronchoconstriction, a method often used for “blue baby” syndrome. Three gas companies—America’s Air Products, France’s Air Liquide and Germany’s Westfalen Gas—appealed against the grant of the patent. Mass General and its Swedish licensee, AGA, then launched actions for infringement in the Netherlands, France and Germany. In 2000 a Dutch court said the patent was partially valid, in 2003 a French court said its validity was questionable and in the same year a German court judged it valid. Then in 2004 the EPO revoked the patent entirely.
Such cases infuriate companies in Europe. They want a single European patent to protect intellectual property across the region, and a single court in which to defend their rights. At the moment, inventors can apply to the EPO, with which all 27 members of the European Union and nine other European countries co-operate. But EPO patents, once granted, must be validated, translated and annually renewed in all those countries in which a firm wants protection. Litigation is country by country, and national courts can in effect overturn patents granted by the EPO, or uphold patents which have been invalidated by it. Firms can take advantage of this by filing directly with national patent offices. …
Women ‘naturally weaker’ to HIV
July 14th, 2009 |
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Experts believe women are naturally programmed to be the weaker sex when it comes to fighting off HIV.
It is well known that HIV progresses faster in women than in men with similar levels of HIV in the blood.
Now a US research team has found that a receptor molecule involved in the first-line recognition of HIV responds differently in women.
The findings in Nature Medicine might provide new ways to treat HIV and slow or stop the progression to Aids.
The Massachusetts General Hospital team explored whether known gender differences in the immune system might explain why HIV progresses faster in women.
They focused on immune cells called plasmacytoid dendritic cells or pDCs which are among the first cells to recognise and fight HIV.
Lab studies showed that a higher percentage of these cells from healthy, uninfected women became activated when presented with HIV-1 as compared with pDCs from healthy men.
Next they studied whether a woman’s hormone levels might be involved.
Hormonal link
They found that pDCs from older women who had gone through the menopause had similar activity to that observed in men.
But premenopausal women with higher levels of the hormone progesterone had increased activation of pDCs in response to HIV-1.
Armed with this knowledge they then tested whether this increased activation of pDCs, in turn, led to activation of other immune cells called T cells.
"Whilst there are some genetic differences based on sex, access to treatment remains the single most important factor in preventing HIV from progressing to Aids"
Jo Robinson from Terrence Higgins Trust
When they tested the blood of men and women with HIV-1 they found the women did have higher levels of activated CD8-positive T cells than men with identical blood levels of HIV-1.
Lead researcher Dr Marcus Altfeld said: "While stronger activation of the immune system might be beneficial in the early stages of infection, resulting in lower levels of HIV-1 replication, persistent viral replication and stronger chronic immune activation can lead to the faster progression of Aids that has been seen in women."
Ultimately, drugs that work to modify this pathway might help patients with HIV, he said.
His team is beginning preliminary laboratory studies into this.
Jo Robinson from Terrence Higgins Trust said: "This is an interesting piece of research exploring whether HIV progresses faster in women than in men.
"Whilst there are some genetic differences based on sex, access to treatment remains the single most important factor in preventing HIV from progressing to Aids.
"Unfortunately women are most likely to be affected by the virus in places like sub-Saharan Africa, where they are also least likely to be able to access HIV treatment." </p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.