The World Health Organization says a yellow fever booster vaccination given 10 years after the initial shot isn’t necessary.
The U.N.’s global health agency said today that its expert group on immunization believes a single dose of vaccination is sufficient to confer lifelong immunity against the disease.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/one-yellow-fever-shot-enough
Injected Nanogel Can Help Fight Diabetes
Injectable nanoparticles developed at MIT may someday eliminate the need for patients with Type 1 diabetes to constantly monitor their blood-sugar levels and inject themselves with insulin.
The nanoparticles were designed to sense glucose levels in the body and respond by secreting the appropriate amount of insulin, thereby replacing the function of pancreatic islet cells, which are destroyed in patients with Type 1 diabetes. Ultimately, this type of system could ensure that blood-sugar levels remain balanced and improve patients’ quality of life, according to the researchers.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/injected-nanogel-can-help-fight-diabetes
Speech Valve with Zirconia Lasts Longer
Morgan Technical Ceramics (MTC) worked with the UK-based Univ. of Hull to develop a new valve used to restore vocal function for patients with throat cancer. The new tracheo-oesophageal fistula speech valve uses Zyranox bio-compatible Yttria partially-stabilized Zirconia, specifically developed for surgical implant devices.
The iterative design process for this innovative valve included a close collaboration, featuring consultation on materials, prototyping to test the design and precision manufacturing to meet the extremely tight tolerances required.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/articles/2013/05/speech-valve-zirconia-lasts-longer
Health Workers Catch SARS-Like Virus from Patients
A deadly new respiratory virus related to SARS has apparently spread from patients to health care workers in eastern Saudi Arabia, health officials say.
The Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia told world health officials that two health care workers became ill this month after being exposed to patients with the virus. One is critically ill.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/health-workers-catch-sars-virus-patients
Stem Cells Recovered from Cloned Human Embryos
Scientists have finally recovered stem cells from cloned human embryos, a longstanding goal that could lead to new treatments for such illnesses as Parkinson’s disease and diabetes.
A prominent expert calls the work a landmark, but notes that a different, simpler technique now under development may prove more useful.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/stem-cells-recovered-cloned-human-embryos
Paper-Thin Flexible ‘Skin’ Monitors Heart Health
Most of us don’t ponder our pulses outside of the gym. But doctors use the human pulse as a diagnostic tool to monitor heart health.
Zhenan Bao, a professor of chemical engineering at Stanford, has developed a heart monitor thinner than a dollar bill and no wider than a postage stamp. The flexible skin-like monitor, worn under an adhesive bandage on the wrist, is sensitive enough to help doctors detect stiff arteries and cardiovascular problems.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/paper-thin-flexible-skin-monitors-heart-health
Today in Lab History: May 15, 1923- Listerine introduced
In 1923, Listerine was registered as a trademark. The modern Listerine is a mouthwash, but the original amber-colored product was a disinfectant for surgical procedures, dating back to its formulation in 1879 by Joseph Lawrence and Jordan Lambert. The name they chose incorporated the name of the English surgeon, Joseph Lister, famous for performing the first antiseptic surgical procedure on Aug 12, 1865 and pioneering wider use of antiseptics by surgeons.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2012/09/today-lab-history
Bright Nanoscale Alloys Have Potential Medical Applications
Alloys like bronze and steel have been transformational for centuries, yielding top-of-the-line machines necessary for industry. As scientists move toward nanotechnology, however, the focus has shifted toward creating alloys at the nanometer scale — producing materials with properties unlike their predecessors.
Now, research at the Univ. of Pittsburgh demonstrates that nanometer-scale alloys possess the ability to emit light so brightly they could have potential applications in medicine. The findings have been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/bright-nanoscale-alloys-have-potential-medical-applications
New Options for Breast Cancer Surgery
Treating breast cancer almost always involves surgery, and for years the choice was just having the lump or the whole breast removed. Now, new approaches are dramatically changing the way these operations are done, giving women more options, faster treatment, smaller scars, fewer long-term side effects and better cosmetic results.
It has led to a new specialty — “oncoplastic” surgery — combining oncology, which focuses on cancer treatment, and plastic surgery to restore appearance.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/new-options-breast-cancer-surgery
How Sharply Should U.S. Cut Salt?
A surprising new report questions public health efforts to get Americans to sharply cut back on salt, saying it’s not clear whether eating super-low levels is worth the struggle.
Make no mistake: most Americans eat way too much salt, not just from salt shakers but because of sodium hidden inside processed foods and restaurant meals. The report stresses that, overall, the nation needs to ease back on the sodium for better heart health.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/how-sharply-should-us-cut-salt
Depressed People’s Body Clocks are Altered at Cell Level
Every cell in our bodies runs on a 24-hour clock, tuned to the night-day, light-dark cycles that have ruled us since the dawn of humanity. The brain acts as timekeeper, keeping the cellular clock in sync with the outside world so that it can govern our appetites, sleep, moods and much more.
But new research shows that the clock may be broken in the brains of people with depression – even at the level of the gene activity inside their brain cells.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/depressed-peoples-body-clocks-are-altered-cell-level
New research is raising fresh concern that an age-old treatment for troubled pregnancies — bed rest — doesn’t seem to prevent premature birth, and might even worsen that risk.
Doctors have known for years that there’s no good evidence that bed rest offers any benefit for certain pregnancy complications, and it can cause side effects in the mother, not to mention emotional and financial strain. Yet estimates suggest nearly one in five moms-to-be is told to cut her activity — ranging from quitting work to actually staying in bed all day — at some point during pregnancy.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/bed-rest-may-be-detrimental-pregnancy
Restorative Gel May be Key to Reversing Paralysis
Some parts of the body, like the liver, can regenerate themselves after damage. But others, such as our nervous system, are considered either irreparable or slow to recover, leaving thousands with a lifetime of pain, limited mobility, or even paralysis.
Now a team of Tel Aviv Univ. researchers, including Shimon Rochkind of TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine and Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center and Prof. Zvi Nevo of TAU’s Department of Human Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, has invented a method for repairing damaged peripheral nerves. Through a biodegradable implant in combination with a newly developed Guiding Regeneration Gel (GRG) that increases nerve growth and healing, the functionality of a torn or damaged nerve could ultimately be restored.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/restorative-gel-may-be-key-reversing-paralysis
A new study looking at the genomes of more than 13,000 men identified four new genetic variants associated with an increased risk of testicular cancer, the most commonly diagnosed type in young men today. The findings from this first-of-its-kind meta-analysis were reported online in this week’s Nature Genetics by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the Univ. of Pennsylvania.
The discovery of these genetic variations — chromosomal “typos,” so to speak — could ultimately help researchers better understand which men are at high risk and allow for early detection or prevention of the disease.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/researchers-find-four-gene-risks-testicular-cancer
Cilia Find Has Implications for Hearing, Vision, Kidney Disease
Experiments at Johns Hopkins have unearthed clues about which protein signaling molecules are allowed into hollow, hair-like “antennae,” called cilia, that alert cells to critical changes in their environments.
Researchers found that the size limit for entry is much greater than previously thought, allowing most of a cell’s proteins into cilia. The researchers believe that the specific collection of proteins in each cilium, customized to the needs of each cell type, is determined by whether and how cilia keep proteins inside once they enter –– not which ones they allow in initially.
Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/05/cilia-find-has-implications-hearing-vision-kidney-disease
