Scientists Find The Structure Of A Key 'Gene Silencer' Protein Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have determined the three-dimensional atomic structure of a human protein that is centrally involved in regulating the activities of cells. Knowing the precise structure of this protein paves the way for scientists to understand a process known as RNA-silencing and to harness it to treat diseases... Mon, 30 Apr 2012 01:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Levaquin Approved For Treating Plague, USA Levaquin (levofloxacin) has been approved by the FDA for the treatment and prevention of the plague. Levofloxacin is a synthetic antibiotic of the fluoroquinolones drug class; it is currently used for the treatment of severe bacterial infection, or infections for which other antibiotics have not worked. Levaquin is produced and marketed by Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc... Sun, 29 Apr 2012 10:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Defence Against Bioterrorism Researchers may have found a way to protect us against otherwise deadly chemical attacks, such as the subway sarin incident in Tokyo that left thirteen people dead and thousands more injured or with temporary vision problems... Sat, 21 Apr 2012 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Promising Treatment In Development For Safely Decontaminating Humans Exposed To Radioactive Actinides The New York Times recently reported that in the darkest moments of the triple meltdown last year of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Japanese officials considered the evacuation of the nearly 36 million residents of the Tokyo metropolitan area... Thu, 08 Mar 2012 01:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
How To Balance Risk Of Escape Of New H5N1 Viruses With Benefits Of Research In the controversy surrounding the newly developed strains of avian H5N1 flu viruses, scientists and policy makers are struggling with one question in particular: what level of biosafety is best for studying these potentially lethal strains of influenza? In a pair of commentaries, researchers from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and the University of Michigan arg... Tue, 06 Mar 2012 06:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Disarming The Botulinum Neurotoxin Sanford-Burnham researchers determine the first 3-D structure of the botulinum neurotoxin, together with the protein bodyguard that guides it through the body -- revealing weak spots that could be exploited to develop new counterterrorism measures... Sat, 25 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Researchers Propose New Approach To Tackle Terrorism With a growing number of terrorist attacks being committed by 'home-grown' radicals, researchers at Queen Mary, University of London are proposing a totally new approach to preventing terrorism... Thu, 16 Feb 2012 01:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Seeking Out Terrorists With New Crime-Fighting Tools Fingerprints, ballistics, DNA analysis and other mainstays of the forensic science toolkit may get a powerful new crime-solving companion as scientists strive to develop technology for "fingerprinting" and tracing the origins of chemical substances that could be used in terrorist attacks and other criminal acts... Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Anthrax Susceptibility Varies Between Individuals Susceptibility to anthrax toxin is a heritable genetic trait that may vary tremendously among individuals, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Among 234 people studied, the cells of three people were virtually insensitive to the toxin, while the cells of some people were hundreds of times more sensitive than those of others... Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Challenges Posed By A Major Terrorist Attack Highlighted By Mumbai Hospital Review Meticulous forward planning, effective casualty assessment by a senior surgeon and efficient teamwork by medical and administrative staff are essential when handling injuries sustained in major terrorist incidents... Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Newly Engineered Highly Transmissible H5N1 Strain Ignites Controversy About Balancing Scientific Discovery And Public Safety Scientists have engineered a new strain of H5N1 (commonly known as bird flu) to be readily transmitted between humans. Two perspectives being published early online in Annals of Internal Medicine, the flagship journal of the American College of Physicians, raise concerns about if and how this research should be continued, and how the data should be shared for the benefit of public health... Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Tracing Explosives And Fish With Chemical Tags Researchers at the University of Oviedo (Spain) have come up with a way of tagging gunpowder which allows its illegal use to be detected even after it has been detonated. Based on the addition of isotopes, the technique can also be used to track and differentiate between wild fish and those from a fish farm, such as trout and salmon... Sat, 14 Jan 2012 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
WTC Responders' PTSD Linked To Respiratory Illness More than a decade after 9/11, the "FirstView" section online in Psychological Medicine published results of a study in which the association between two signature health problems amongst WTC first responders was examined, namely respiratory illness and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The study was led by Benjamin J. Luft, M.D., an Edmund D... Fri, 06 Jan 2012 04:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
WTC Attack Responders - PTSD Linked To Respiratory Disease Results of an investigation analyzing the association between the two signature health problems - post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and respiratory illness - among recovery workers who responded first at the World Trade Center (WTC), have been revealed after more than a decade following the terrorist attacks on the WTC. The study was led by Benjamin J. Luft, M.D., the Edmund D... Thu, 05 Jan 2012 09:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Mutated Bird Flu Research Worries World Health Organization Research on the H5N1 influenza (bird flu) virus' human transmissibility is seriously starting to worry WHO (World Health Organization) experts - in a written statement, the authors express concern about the potential risks linked to this research. The possible negative consequences of some experiments are serious and potentially dangerous... Fri, 30 Dec 2011 10:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Terrorists Who Use Nerve Gas And Other Agents Could Be Tracked Down Using New Test Scientists are reporting development of a first-of-its-kind technology that could help law enforcement officials trace the residues from terrorist attacks involving nerve gas and other chemical agents back to the companies or other sources where the perpetrators obtained ingredients for the agent... Mon, 26 Dec 2011 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
US Govt Asks Scientists To Keep Lab-Bred Bird Flu Blueprint Secret Imagine this, our worst nightmare becomes our reality: as anticipated, the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus that kills most people it infects has acquired the ability to transmit easily from bird to human and then from human to human and has reached pandemic proportions... Wed, 21 Dec 2011 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
The Toll On Human Health Is Still Being Counted 10 Years After Attacks On World Trade Center The World Trade Center disaster exposed nearly half a million people to hazardous chemicals, environmental toxins, and traumatic events. According to research published in the December 2011 issue of Elsevier-published journal Preventive Medicine, this has resulted in increased risk of developing physical and mental health conditions after 9/11... Wed, 14 Dec 2011 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
When Planning For Terrorist Chemical Weapons, Pharmacists May Be Crucial Terrorist attacks with chemical weapons are a real possibility, according to a study that appears in the online open access Journal of Pharmacy Practice, published by SAGE. Thanks to their extensive knowledge of toxic agents, and how to treat those who have been exposed, pharmacists are an invaluable resource in the event of an actual or potential chemical weapons attack... Tue, 13 Dec 2011 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Anthrax Attack, US Government Agrees $2.5 Million Payout, But Does Not Admit Fault The family of Florida photo editor, Robert Stevens, who died following an anthrax attack, is to receive a payout of $2.5 million from the US government. According to court filings, Maureen Stevens will no longer pursue other claims. The lawsuit, which was filed in 2003, claimed government negligence because it did not stop somebody at U.S... Tue, 29 Nov 2011 11:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Norwegians Still Coming To Terms With Terror How will the terrorist attacks in Norway on 22 July change the country? That question has been put to three social scientists at the University of Stavanger (UiS). "Norwegians are still in a state of shock," says professor Odd Einar Olsen. "These incidents were so extensive and gruesome that people need time to come to terms with them... Mon, 28 Nov 2011 00:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday
Leading Chemical Weapons Preparedness Companies Announce Partnership To Deploy Break-through Diagnostic Test Internationally ProQares a leading provider of testing, evaluation and certification services for protective equipment against chemical hazards announced a partnership with U.S.-based Rapid Pathogen Screening, Inc. (RPS®) a leading developer of point-of-care diagnostic tests, to deploy ChemTox™ in numerous countries throughout the European and Asia Pacific regions... Fri, 25 Nov 2011 01:00:00 PDT - Source:MedNewsToday