Daily non-political popular news in brief.

Study finds unexpected results in acid suppression between two OTC heartburn treatments

01-10-2007 · EurekAlert!

This release announces research that directly compared the early therapeutic response of drugs from widely used classes of heartburn medications, omeprazole magnesium, a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) and famotidine, a histamine-2 receptor antagonist (H2RAs), in an over-the-counter (OTC) setting.

Keywords: study, unexpected, results, acid, suppression, otc, heartburn, treatments, result, treatment

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Acid suppression medication linked with increased risk of hip fracture
12-26-2006 · EurekAlert!
Use of the drugs proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for the treatment of acid-related diseases such as gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is associated with a greater risk of hip fracture, according to a study in the December 27 issue of JAMA.
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After scrutiny, preemie lung treatments turn out to be safe, effective
03-05-2007 · EurekAlert!
Preemies between 28 and 32 weeks are not harmed by a treatment no longer used to help their lungs mature before birth, according to findings of a study in this month's Pediatrics. Even though previous observational studies suggested that repeated courses of steroids in the womb may result in brain damage, this study shows that the babies' brains are virtually unaffected.
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Common cancer treatments toxic to healthy brain cells
11-29-2006 · EurekAlert!
Common drugs used to treat cancer may be more harmful to healthy brain cells than the cancer cells that they are intended to destroy, according to a new study. The results, which also indicate that chemotherapy may cause long-term brain damage, represent the closest that scientists have come to pinpointing the underlying physiological cause of "chemo brain," a common side effect of cancer treatment that scientists are only now beginning to comprehend.
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Study indicates different treatment may be needed for infection-related breathing problems
01-31-2007 · UT Southwestern Medical Center
New research suggests that different treatments may be needed for chronic asthma, depending on whether it results from allergies or lung infections.
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Advance in understanding of blood pressure gene could lead to new treatments
02-04-2007 · EurekAlert!
Research by scientists at UCL (University College London) has clearly demonstrated for the first time the structure and function of a gene crucial to the regulation of blood pressure. The discovery could be important in the search for new treatments for illnesses such as heart disease, the UK's biggest killer. In a paper published online today in Nature Medicine, the team, led by Professor Patrick Vallance and Dr James Leiper, UCL Department of Medicine, reveal the role of the human gene dimethylarginine dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH), showing that loss of DDAH activity disrupts nitric oxide (NO) production. NO is critical in the regulation of blood pressure, nervous system functions and the immune system. The role of DDAH is to break down modified amino acids (Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and monomethyl arginine (L-NMMA)) that are produced by the body and have been shown to inhibit NO synthase. These molecules accumulate in various disease states including diabetes, renal failure and pulmonary and systemic hypertension, and their concentration in plasma (the fluid component of blood) is strongly predicative of cardiovascular disease and death. In a healthy human body, the majority of ADMA is eliminated through active metabolism by DDAH. Scientists have hypothesised that if DDAH function is impaired, NO production is reduced, and that this could be an important feature of increased cardiovascular risk. To examine this pathway in more detail, the researchers deleted the DDAH gene in mice. These mice went on to develop hypertension, or high blood pressure. They also designed specific inhibitors (small molecules) which bind to the active site of human DDAH. These small molecule inhibitors also induced hypertension in mice, confirming the importance of DDAH in the regulation of blood pressure. Dr Leiper, UCL Medicine, said: “These genetic and chemical approaches to disrupt DDAH showed remarkably consistent results, and provide compelling evidence that loss of DDAH function increases the concentration of ADMA and thereby disrupts vascular NO signalling. “There has been considerable scientific interest in this pathway and the role of ADMA as a novel risk factor, but so far there's been little evidence to support the idea that it's a cause of disease, rather than just a marker. Genes and their pathways are crucial to our understanding of cardiovascular disease and a better understanding of DDAH-1 could lead to important new treatments. “It could help us to establish if genetic variation predisposes certain people to these diseases, or whether environmental factors exert some of their effects through modulation of DDAH activity. “Our research also shows that this pathway could be harnessed therapeutically to limit production of NO in certain situations where too much nitric oxide is a bad thing; for example, hypotension and septic shock. These are some of the biggest problems in intensive care medicine and there is a huge unmet need for drug treatments.” The study, which was carried out at UCL's Rayne Institute, was funded by grants from the British Heart Foundation, the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council. Professor Jeremy Pearson, Associate Medical Director of the British Heart Foundation, said: "The unexpected finding in the 1980s that a simple gas, nitric oxide (NO), is made by cells in the blood vessel wall and is a powerful control of blood vessel relaxation led to the award of the Nobel Prize in 1998 to its discoverers. "More recently, there has been increasing evidence that impairment of NO production is likely to be an important factor in the development of heart and circulatory disease, but the mechanisms responsible are not fully understood. "This study suggests for the first time that the loss of the activity of the enzyme DDAH-1 leads to reduced NO production and may cause heart and circulatory disease. These findings are likely to be important in the search for new ways to optimise the health of our blood vessels." ### Notes for Editors 1. For more information, please contact Ruth Metcalfe in the UCL Media Relations Office on tel: +44 (0)20 7679 9739, mobile: +44 (0)7990 675 947, out of hours: +44 (0)7917 271 364, e-mail: r.metcalfe@ucl.ac.uk2. 'Disruption of methylarginine metabolism impairs vascular homeostasis' is published in the February issue of the journal Nature Medicine. Advance online publication is embargoed to 18.00 GMT (13.00 US Eastern) Sunday 4 February 2007. Journalists can obtain copies of the paper by contacting the UCL Media Relations Office.3. The study was funded by the British Heart Foundation, the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council. About UCL Founded in 1826, UCL was the first English university established after Oxford and Cambridge, the first to admit students regardless of race, class, religion or gender, and the first to provide systematic teaching of law, architecture and medicine. In the government's most recent Research Assessment Exercise, 59 UCL departments achieved top ratings of 5* and 5, indicating research quality of international excellence. UCL is the fourth-ranked UK university in the 2006 league table of the top 500 world universities produced by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University. UCL alumni include Mahatma Gandhi (Laws 1889, Indian political and spiritual leader); Jonathan Dimbleby (Philosophy 1969, writer and television presenter); Junichiro Koizumi (Economics 1969, Prime Minister of Japan); Lord Woolf (Laws 1954, Lord Chief Justice of England & Wales); Alexander Graham Bell (Phonetics 1860s, inventor of the telephone), and members of the band Coldplay.
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New study shows Actonel almost halves the risk of hip fractures compared to alendronate
11-17-2006 · EurekAlert!
Data published today from a retrospective study of over 33,000 postmenopausal women showed that among patients newly prescribed one of the two most popular osteoporosis treatments, patients taking Actonel® (risedronate sodium) were approximately half as likely to sustain a hip fracture as those taking alendronate in the first year of treatment. These results were published today in the peer-reviewed journal Osteoporosis International.1
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New treatments have major impact on heart failure rates
05-01-2007 · EurekAlert!
Deaths from severe heart attacks following admission to hospital have nearly halved in six years as a result of advances in medical treatment.In the largest study of its kind, research led by the University of Edinburgh, analyzed hospital treatment and outcomes for 44,372 patients admitted to 113 hospitals in 14 countries with heart attacks or unstable angina (threatened heart attacks).
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Study indicates different treatment may be needed for infection-related breathing problems
01-31-2007 · EurekAlert!
New research suggests that different treatments may be needed for chronic asthma, depending on whether it results from allergies or lung infections.
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Repair not destruction: A new approach to treating retinopathy
11-16-2006 · EurekAlert!
Many diseases of the eye (such as diabetic retinopathy) that result in loss of vision are the result of the growth of abnormal blood vessels that leak and bleed. Current treatments prevent this abnormal blood vessel growth. However, the authors of a new study using a mouse model of retinopathy suggest that an alternative treatment strategy might be to repair these blood vessels so that they do not leak and bleed.
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Does Stimulant Treatment for ADHD Increase Risk of Drug Abuse?
06-18-2007 · Brookhaven National Laboratory
Parents, doctors, and others have wondered whether common treatments for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) inadvertently predispose adolescents to future drug abuse. The answer may depend on the age at which treatment is started and how long it lasts, say the authors of a new brain-imaging and behavioral study conducted in animals at Brookhaven National Laboratory.
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