Pharmacology

Are Slime Molds The Holy Grail Of Pain Relief?

Scientists studying one of nature’s simplest organisms have helped to unravel the structure of a key molecule that controls pain in humans. Chronic pain, unlike the acute pain associated with trauma, has no apparent physiological benefit, often being refer ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 11 2007 - 4:46pm

Src Inhibitors May Prove Beneficial In Breast Cancer Therapy

Estrogen, which binds estrogen receptor alpha (ER-alpha), is a risk factor for breast cancer development. However, one-third of new breast cancers lack detectable ER-alpha. These ER-alpha–negative cancers are more aggressive and have a worse prognosis than ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 14 2007 - 2:02pm

Forget The Sugar- Flavonoids Make Orange Juice Healthy

Orange juice, despite its high caloric load of sugars, appears to be a healthy food for diabetics due to its mother lode of flavonoids, a study by endocrinologists at the University at Buffalo has shown. Flavonoids suppress destructive oxygen free radicals ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 17 2007 - 3:36pm

Pediatric Ritalin Use May Affect Developing Brain

Between 2 to18 percent of American children are thought to be affected by ADHD, and Ritalin, a stimulant similar to amphetamine and cocaine, remains one of the most prescribed drugs for the behavioral disorder. A new study says Ritalin use by young childre ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 19 2007 - 11:00am

'Landmark Accomplishment' In Nicotine Research

When nicotine binds to a neuron, how does the cell know to send the signal that announces a smoker’s high? As with other questions involving good sensations, the answer appears to be sugar. A University of Southern California study proposes a role for suga ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 22 2007 - 12:53pm

PPARγ Deficiency And Toxic Milk

Dr. Ronald Evans (Salk Institute) and colleagues have discovered that mutations in the mouse gene encoding PPARγ adversely affect lactation milk quality, and have serious health consequences for nursing pups. “By examining PPARγ functions in vivo, our work ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 23 2007 - 5:18pm

Dietary Supplement Can Turn The Skin Permanently Blue

Colloidal silver is peddled as a cold medicine, decongestant, all-around germ fighter, and a kind of cure-all. Is there any legitimate reason for taking the dietary supplement? The short answer is no, and there may be some serious and strange side effects, ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 24 2007 - 4:55pm

The Link Between Breast Cancer And Hormone Therapy

A new study raises the issue of a direct link between breast cancer incidence and use of postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT). Breast cancer incidence and mammography screening rates during 1980–2006 showed similar but not synchronous periodic fluctuations. ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 25 2007 - 5:52pm

One Marijuana Joint Equal To Five Cigarettes In Lung Damage

A single cannabis joint has the same effect on the lungs as smoking up to five cigarettes in one go, indicates research published ahead of print in the journal Thorax. The researchers base their findings on 339 adults up to the age of 70, selected from an ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 31 2007 - 9:57am

How Much Salt Is Safe?

An increasing body of evidence indicates that we should reduce the amount of salt in our diet. The American Medical Association (AMA), the American Heart Association (AHA), the American Dietetic Association (ADA), and the National Institutes of Health have ...

Article - News Staff - Aug 2 2007 - 12:19am