Newswise BETHESDA, MD April 18, 2012 -- The Genetics Society of America (GSA) invites the public to visit its exhibit booth, Americas Next Top Model Organism, at the 2nd USA Science & Engineering Festival (USASEF) in Washington, D.C., April 28-29, 2012, and examine the workhorses of genetics research, including live mice, fruit flies, fungi, and Arabidopsis plants. Learn why geneticists conduct research on these systems and then vote for your favorite model organism.

The GSA exhibit will feature several activities. Participants will be able to observe normal (or wildtype) and mutant examples of mice, fruit flies, fungi, and Arabidopsis plants. Students will be able to build-a-fly based on common genetic traits eyes, wings and other characteristics to take home with them. GSA will also demonstrate the impact of evolution by illustrating how modern-day corn was bred from ancient maize. Most importantly, visitors will be able to learn about genetics research from practicing scientists who are GSA members. They will be volunteering at the booth to help with activities and answer questions.

This is an exciting outreach opportunity for GSA, said Adam Fagen, Ph.D., Executive Director. We look forward to engaging directly with the public to explain the value of genetics for enhancing our understanding of the natural world, including the contributions of scientific research on model organisms such as mice, fruit flies, fungi, and plants, he added.

The USAEF is designed to celebrate science and is being held Saturday, April 28 and Sunday, April 29, 2012 in downtown Washington, D.C. with satellite events worldwide. The Festival, which includes an Expo & Book Fair, is a free event open to children and adults, and features more than 3,000 fun, interactive exhibits including GSAs plus more than 100 stage shows and 33 author presentations. Several hundred thousand people attended the first USASEF in 2010.

The Exhibit Hall is open to the general public, Saturday, April 28, from 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM, and Sunday, April 29, from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., 801 Mount Vernon Place, NW, near the Mt. Vernon Sq/7th St Convention Center Metro stop. The GSA booth is 2711 and is located in Hall A, to the left of the exhibit entrance and near the National Institutes of Health exhibit. For more information on GSAs involvement in the USASEF, contact Beth Ruedi at eruedi@genetics-gsa.org.

About the USA Science & Engineering Festival: The USA Science & Engineering Festival is the countrys only national science festival, and was developed to increase public awareness of the importance of science and to encourage youth to pursue careers in science and engineering by celebrating science in much the same way as we celebrate Hollywood celebrities, professional athletes and pop stars. Lockheed Martin is again the presenting host of the USA Science & Engineering Festival and is joined by many other Festival sponsors and partners. The USA Science & Engineering Festival is a grassroots collaboration of over 500 of the United States leading science and engineering organizations. For more information on the USA Science & Engineering Festival, please visit the Festival website.

ABOUT GSA: Founded in 1931, the Genetics Society of America (GSA) is the professional membership organization for scientific researchers, educators, bioengineers, bioinformaticians and others interested in the field of genetics. Its nearly 5,000 members work to advance knowledge in the basic mechanisms of inheritance, from the molecular to the population level. The GSA is dedicated to promoting research in genetics and to facilitating communication among geneticists worldwide through its conferences, including the biennial conference on Model Organisms to Human Biology, an interdisciplinary meeting on current and cutting edge topics in genetics research, as well as annual and biennial meetings that focus on the genetics of particular organisms, including C. elegans, Drosophila, fungi, mice, yeast, and zebrafish. GSA publishes GENETICS, a leading journal in the field and a new online, open-access publication, G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics. For more information about GSA, please visit http://www.genetics-gsa.org. Also follow GSA on Facebook at facebook.com/GeneticsGSA and on Twitter @GeneticsGSA.

See original here:
Learn About Genetics at the USA Science & Engineering Festival

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

NEW HAVEN Conn., April 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- JS Genetics announces the launch of XCAT-FX, its propitiatory buccal swab test for the detection of Fragile X syndrome. Fragile X syndrome is the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability (mental retardation) in males and a leading cause of infertility and fragile X-associated primary ovarian insufficiency in females. Fragile X is also the most common known genetic (single gene) cause of autism. This PCR based test can identify Fragile X in both males and female patients.

The result of XCAT-FX will typically be available within 3 business days following the receipt of the samples at JS Genetics' CLIA certified, CAP accredited laboratory.

"I am very pleased that we are now including Fragile X in the JS Genetics diagnostic menu," stated Henry Rinder MD, Medical Director of JS Genetics. "Fragile X testing will further enhance our laboratory's ability to aid physicians in making the sometimes difficult diagnosis of disorders of sex chromosomes, which also include Turner and Klinefelter syndromes and related sex chromosome aneuploidies."

About JS Genetics For more information about JS Genetics or XCAT-FX visit http://www.jsgenetics.com. Physicians who would like to obtain testing kits at no charge can order at http://www.jsgenetics.com or call1-888-217-8947.

JS Genetics Inc., a private company, develops and markets proprietary, high value DNA diagnostic tests for medical conditions in newborns, children, and adolescents. (CLIA ID# 07D1091103; CAP# 72115351)

See the rest here:
JS Genetics Announce Launch of its Bloodless, Cheek Swab Test for Fragile X Syndrome

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

SAN MARINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Viral Genetics (Pinksheets: VRAL.PK - News) today published its April 2012 Letter to Shareholders. Providing updates on the companys progress, the letter discusses the expanded product development pipeline for the Targeted Peptide and the Metabolic Disruption Technology platforms, as well as developments at the VG Energy subsidiary, and moves being made to manage this new growth.

The letter is available on the companys website at http://www.viralgenetics.com/shareholder-letters/Letter-to-Shareholders-Apr-2012.PDF.

About Viral Genetics, Inc.

San Marino, California-based Viral Genetics discovers drug therapies from two platform technologies based on over 60 patents: Metabolic Disruption (MDT) and Targeted Peptides (TPT). Founded in 1994, the biotech company is researching treatments for HIV/AIDS, Lyme Disease, Strep, Staph and drug resistant cancer. A majority-owned subsidiary, VG Energy (www.vgenergy.net), is dedicated to exploring biofuel and agricultural applications for the MDT platform. For more information, visit http://www.viralgenetics.com.

About VG Energy

VG Energy Inc. is an alternative energy and agricultural biotech company that is a majority-owned subsidiary of Viral Genetics Inc. Using its Metabolic Disruption Technology (MDT), Viral Genetics' cancer research led to discoveries with major consequences in a wide variety of other industries, including production of biofuel and vegetable oils. VG Energy holds the exclusive worldwide license to the MDT patent rights for use in the increase of production of various plant-derived oils from algae and seeds. Application of MDT technology to the biofuel industry could potentially allow it to overcome its major obstacle in the area of production efficiency: namely, an increase in production yields leading to feasible economic returns on investment, allowing renewable biodiesel to be competitive with fossil fuels. For more information, please visit http://www.vgenergy.net.

SAFE HARBOR FOR FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties associated with financial projections, budgets, milestone timelines, clinical trials, regulatory approvals, and other risks described by Viral Genetics, Inc. from time to time in its periodic reports, including statements about its VG Energy, Inc. subsidiary. None of Viral Genetics' drug compounds are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration or by any comparable regulatory agencies elsewhere in the world, nor are any non-pharmaceutical products of VG Energy, Inc. commercialized. While Viral Genetics believes that the forward-looking statements and underlying assumptions reasonable, any of the assumptions could be inaccurate, including, but not limited to, the ability of Viral Genetics to establish the efficacy of any of its drug therapies in the treatment of any disease or health condition, the development of studies and strategies leading to commercialization of those drug compounds in the United States, the obtaining of funding required to carry out the development plan, the completion of studies and tests including clinical trials on time or at all, the successful outcome of such studies or tests, or the successful commercialization of VG Energy, Inc.s non-pharmaceutical products. Therefore, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statements included in this release will prove to be accurate. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included herein, the forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation by Viral Genetics or any other person that the objectives and plans of Viral Genetics will be achieved.

Continued here:
Viral Genetics April 2012 Shareholder Update Alerts Investors to Product Pipeline Expansion and Developments at Algal ...

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

NEW YORK, April 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --N-Gene Research Laboratories, Inc. ("N-Gene"), today announces that Australian scientists in close cooperation with N-Gene have shown that BGP-15, a heat shock protein inducer, may be a novel therapy for treating the deadly, rare disease, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), as recently reported in the journal Nature.

Currently there is no cure and no adequate therapy for DMD. BGP-15 was not only able to make a key protein functional again, thereby reducing muscle damage, but also increase the strength and endurance, and ultimately the lifespan, of DMD animals.

"This pioneering work strengthens N-Gene's roleat the forefront of heat shock protein science," said Gabor K. Kalman, chief executive officer of N-Gene.

Peter Literati, Ph.D., co-founder and chief scientific officer of N-Gene said, "We believe this publication reinforces the expectation that N-Gene's platform technology, based on stress-response regulation, will eventually result in the emergence of a novel drug class with diverse therapeutic directions. We are remaining focused on advancing BGP-15 for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but we look forward to seeking partners with which to advance this technology and realize its potential in the treatment of DMD as well as many other disease indications."

Dr. Literati will be speaking at a news event today in Budapest, Hungary, to discuss the data described above, the publication and the potential for N-Gene compounds to treat DMD and many other diseases.

About N-Gene Research Laboratories

N-Gene Research Laboratories, Inc. ("N-Gene"), is a biopharmaceutical research company with a pipeline of proprietary drugs to treat insulin-resistance syndrome, improve cancer chemotherapy and target other major disease classes. BGP-15, N-Gene's lead compound, is a co-inducer of HSP-72 that increases insulin sensitivity via blocking JNK phosphorylation. Results from a defining international Phase 2b study of BGP-15 in patients with type 2 diabetes are expected by the end of 2012.

For more information please visit http://www.ngene.us.

Media Contacts

Corporate Contact

Continue reading here:
Nature Publishes Work Utilizing N-Gene's Core Technology to Advance the Treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

ANN ARBOR, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

RetroSense Therapeutics, a biotechnology company dedicated to developing gene therapy approaches to vision restoration welcomes Peter Francis, MD, PhD to its senior management team as Clinical Director.

Dr. Francis brings extensive clinical experience in retinal degenerative conditions to the team. As we progress toward the clinic with our treatment, Dr. Francis experience in ocular gene therapy will be instrumental, stated Sean Ainsworth, CEO and founder of RetroSense Therapeutics. His passion and enthusiasm for helping patients will be well-placed at RetroSense.

Dr. Francis has been influential in the early clinical development of several novel therapeutic approaches, including gene therapies. For his outstanding work, throughout his career, he has received numerous awards including "best up-and-coming medical researcher in the United Kingdom 2002" and the Foulds Trophy best-research prize at the UK National Ophthalmology Conference. Dr. Francis recently directed a translational research center specializing in human clinical trials for orphan and inherited diseases of the retina, and has participated in preparation and submission of multiple INDs to the FDA.

I am very excited to join the RetroSense team. We are working to swiftly and safely bring our optogenetic therapy for the eye to the clinic. This treatment is exciting because it has great promise for vision restoration in patients with currently blinding diseases of the retina.

Dr. Francis graduated from medical school in the UK and undertook residency in London, UK. He is fellowship trained in retina and genetics (Moorfields Eye Hospital, London, and Casey Eye Institute, USA). Dr Francis has held academic faculty positions at St Thomas Hospital, London and most recently, Casey Eye Institute, Portland, OR.

About RetroSense Therapeutics:

RetroSense Therapeutics is a biotechnology company developing a game-changing gene therapy to restore vision in patients suffering from blindness due to retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and advanced dry age-related macular degeneration (advanced dry-AMD). There are currently no FDA approved therapies to improve or restore vision in patients with these retinal degenerative conditions. RetroSense is led by a team of seasoned veterans with deep experience in taking products from the discovery stage through to the clinic. For more information about RetroSense, visit http://www.retro-sense.com/.

View original post here:
RetroSense Welcomes Dr. Peter Francis as Clinical Director

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Editor's Choice Main Category: Stem Cell Research Also Included In: Heart Disease Article Date: 14 Apr 2012 - 8:00 PDT

email to a friend printer friendly opinions

Current Article Ratings:

5 (1 votes)

The ORMC's leading researcher for the clinical trial, Vijaykumar S. Kasi, MD, PhD, an interventional cardiologist, director, Cardiovascular Research, explains:

The PreSERVE-AMI Study assesses the efficacy and safety of infusing stem cells obtained from a patient's bone marrow into the artery in the heart, which may have caused the heart attack in patients who received a stent to open the blocked artery after a specific heart attack history, such as STEMI.

A ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) is a critical type of heart attack that occurs due to the blood supply to the heart being blocked for a prolonged period of time, which affects a large area of the heart muscle and causes changes in the blood levels of key chemical markers.

The national, randomized, double blinded and placebo controlled study will involve approximately 160 patients, at about 34 sites, to evaluate the efficacy and safety of infusing stem cells obtained from a patient's bone marrow into the artery in the heart that may have caused the heart attack.

The surgeons will first insert a catheter into an incision in the patient's groin. Guided by an x-ray camera, the doctors will then position the catheter in the location of the heart artery where the stent was placed, before inflating a balloon within the stent and infusing either AMR-001, a cell therapy product comprised of stem cells taken from the patient's own bone marrow, or a placebo into the affected area.

Before the infusion is made, the patients undergo various tests, including an electrocardiogram, a cardiac MRI and a cardiac nuclear test. After the patient has received all screenings required, the doctors will perform a mini-bone marrow procedure, in which they remove stem cells from the bone marrow of the patient's pelvic bone with a special needle. The stem cells are subsequently processed in preparation for infusion. The bone marrow of patients randomized to receive placebo will be frozen and stored in case they require bone marrow for any reason.

More here:
Restoring Heart Muscle Function With Pelvic Bone Stem Cells

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Public release date: 1-Apr-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Bonnie Prescott bprescot@bidmc.harvard.edu 617-667-7306 Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

BOSTON -- In a finding that may challenge popular notions of body fat and health, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have shown how fat cells can protect the body against diabetes. The results may lead to a new therapeutic strategy for preventing and treating type 2 diabetes and obesity-related metabolic diseases, the authors say.

In the last decade, several research groups have shown that fat cells in people play a major role in controlling healthy blood sugar and insulin levels throughout the body. To do this crucial job, fat cells need a small portion of the sugars derived from food. Obesity often reduces the dedicated sugar transport molecules on fat cells, blocking the glucose from entering fat cells. As a result, the whole body becomes insulin resistant, and blood sugar rises, leading to diabetes.

The new study shows why glucose is so important to fat cells. The team discovered a new version of a gene inside fat cells that responds to sugar with a powerful systemic effect.

"If we change that one gene, that makes the animal more prone to or more protected from diabetes," said senior author Barbara Kahn MD, the George R. Minot Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Vice Chair of the Department of Medicine at BIDMC. "Many foods get converted into sugar, so there is no need to eat more sugar."

The paper is published online April 1 in the journal Nature. In the study, the BIDMC researchers pinpointed the fat gene and its effect in mouse models of human obesity and insulin resistance and reported supporting evidence from fat tissue samples from both lean and obese people.

"Two things were surprising first, that a lone gene could shift the metabolism of the fat cell so dramatically and then, that turning on this master switch selectively in adipose tissue is beneficial to the whole body," Kahn said. Twelve years ago, Kahn first demonstrated that fat cells are a master regulator of healthy levels of glucose and insulin in mice and require sugar to do the job.

"The general concept of fat as all bad is not true," said first author Mark Herman MD, an investigator in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism at BIDMC and Instructor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School (HMS). "Obesity is commonly associated with metabolic dysfunction that puts people at higher risk for diabetes, stroke and heart disease, but there is a large percentage of obese people who are metabolically healthy. We started with a mouse model that disassociates obesity from its adverse effects."

In the latest study, evidence suggests the newfound gene also may account for the protective effect of glucose uptake in human fat. German collaborators found more gene activity in people with greater insulin sensitivity, based on 123 adipose tissue samples from non-diabetic, glucose tolerant people. The fat gene activity also correlated highly with insulin sensitivity in obese, non-diabetic people, as measured in 38 fat samples by another pair of co-authors based in St. Louis.

Original post:
Study finds protective gene in fat cells

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Public release date: 1-Apr-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Les Lang llang@med.unc.edu 919-966-9366 University of North Carolina School of Medicine

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers working as part of the International Cystic Fibrosis Consortium have discovered several regions of the genome that may predispose cystic fibrosis (CF) patients to develop an intestinal blockage while still in the uterus.

A report of this international study appears online April 1, 2012 in the journal Nature Genetics. It was the work of the North America CF Gene Modifier Consortium, which brought together dozens of investigators from the United States, Canada, and from France, to identify genetic variations that could be linked with meconium ileus (MI), an intestinal obstruction that usually requires emergency surgery for treatment, and can result in a substantially increased rate of serious health problems.

MI affects roughly 15-20 percent of all patients with CF, a genetic condition that causes scarring throughout the body, especially the lungs and pancreas. Though every CF patient carries mutations in both copies of the same gene coding for a protein called cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, or CFTR symptoms can vary widely from patient to patient.

The genome-wide association study (GWAS) of more than 3,700 CF patients identified non-CFTR genetic variants in the cell membrane that separates the interior of cells from the outside environment. More specifically, the variants involved genes responsible for ion transport in the lower end of the small intestine.

"These variants involve cells in the small intestine that predispose CF patients to develop MI while still in the womb," said one of the senior study authors Michael Knowles, MD, professor of pulmonary and critical care medicine at UNC and a member of UNC's Cystic Fibrosis-Pulmonary Research and Treatment Center.

"The discovery provides new understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms underlying MI. In addition, it offers the possibility of developing therapies to intervene in utero," Knowles said. "Further, it provides molecular insight into the role of genetic variation in ion transporters in CF, which may be applicable to more commonly, and severely, involved organs such as the lungs."

###

Other UNC study coauthors are Wanda K. O'Neal, Rhonda G. Pace, Jaclyn R. Stonebraker, Sally D. Wood, and Fred A. Wright. In the U.S., the study was funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the U.S. Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Visit link:
Gene variations linked to intestinal blockage in newborns with cystic fibrosis

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Public release date: 1-Apr-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Caroline Arbanas arbanasc@wustl.edu 314-286-0109 Washington University School of Medicine

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are using powerful DNA sequencing technology not only to identify mutations at the root of a patient's tumor considered key to personalizing cancer treatment but to map the genetic evolution of disease and monitor response to treatment.

"We're finding clinically relevant information in the tumor samples we're sequencing for discovery-oriented research studies," says Elaine Mardis, PhD, co-director of The Genome Institute at the School of Medicine. "Genome analysis can play a role at multiple time points during a patient's treatment, to identify 'driver' mutations in the tumor genome and to determine whether cells carrying those mutations have been eliminated by treatment."

This work is helping to guide the design of future cancer clinical trials in which treatment decisions are based on results of sequencing, says Mardis, who is speaking April 1 at the opening plenary session of the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting in Chicago. She also is affiliated with the Siteman Cancer Center at the School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

To date, Mardis and her colleagues have sequenced all the DNA the genome of tumor cells from more than 700 cancer patients. By comparing the genetic sequences in the tumor cells to healthy cells from the same patient, they can identify mutations underlying each patient's cancer.

Already, information gleaned through whole-genome sequencing is pushing researchers to reclassify tumors based on their genetic makeup rather than their location in the body. In patients with breast cancer, for example, Mardis and her colleagues have found numerous driver mutations in genes that have not previously been associated with breast tumors.

A number of these genes have been identified in prostate, colorectal, lung or skin cancer, as well as leukemia and other cancers. Drugs that target mutations in these genes, including imatinib, ruxolitinib and sunitinib, while not approved for breast cancer, are already on the market for other cancers.

"We are finding genetic mutations in multiple tumor types that could potentially be targeted with drugs that are already available," Mardis says.

She predicts, however, that it may require a paradigm change for oncologists to evaluate the potential benefits of individualized cancer therapy. While clinical trials typically involve randomly assigning patients to a particular treatment regimen, a personalized medicine approach calls for choosing drugs based on the underlying mutations in each patient's tumor.

View post:
DNA sequencing lays foundation for personalized cancer treatment

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

California's $3 billion stem cell agency, now more than 7 years old, has joined research partnerships with science and health agencies in eight foreign countries, the San Francisco institute announced.

The agreements call for collaboration in efforts aimed at speeding stem cell research from the laboratory to the hospital, where researchers hope that basic human cells will be programmed to treat scores of human degenerative diseases.

Research partnerships between American and foreign stem cell scientists are encouraged, but the California institute's funds would only be spent within the state, institute officials said.

Alan Trounson, president of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, signed agreements with stem cell funding agencies in Brazil and Argentina last week, he said Thursday.

"Both Brazil and Argentina have strong and robust stem cell research communities in basic science and transitional clinical science, which should create exciting synergies with many scientists in California," Trounson said in a statement.

He has signed similar pacts with stem cell agencies in Canada, Britain, France, Spain, Australia, Japan, China and Indiana.

The California institute was created in 2004 after Proposition 71, a $3 billion bond issue, was approved by California voters at a time when use of federal funds was barred for research into the promising field of embryonic stem cells.

So far the state agency has committed $1.2 billion to scientists and training centers at 56 California institutions, and the rest of the bond money should last until 2020, a spokesman said.

This article appeared on page C - 9 of the SanFranciscoChronicle

View post:
Stem cell institute to work with foreign agencies

Recommendation and review posted by simmons

Paulina Porizkova is the face of Avon Cosmetics latest breakthrough anti-aging miracle, Anew Genics.

Paulina who? To a generation more familiar with the likes of Gisele, Kate and Heidi, the name might not ring the loudest of bells. Ask any true-blue beauty and fashion hound, however, and she (or hegays will kill for their mastery of supermodel lore) will tell you that some two decades ago, even before Linda, Naomi, Elle and Christy became global first-name icons who hogged the same headlines as Hollywood stars, the Czech-born Porizkova was the fashion worlds model du jour, her Alpine cheekbones adorning every magazine cover from Vogue to Sports Illustrated and her $6-million dollar modeling contract with Este Lauder then the highest ever paid to a mannequin.

Porizkova is now 46, ancient by modelling standards, but in Avons recently rolled out Anew Genics ad campaign, she looks as stunning as ever. The beauty brand is not caught up in some trendy retro mode in hiring Porizkova for its latest product. Here, the medium is unmistakably the message, for the seemingly ageless Porizkova is hawking what Avon says is a skincare breakthrough serum that helps you look up to 10 years younger.

One look at its spectacular-looking poster girl, just four years shy of 50, and the product makes it point.

Pioneer status

The Anew Genics line, beginning with the Treatment Concentrate that is now available in the Philippines exclusively through Avon representatives (at P1,799), is the latest iteration of the beauty companys flagship anti-aging brand, Anew, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. Launched in 1992, the brand has become a worldwide $1-billion bestseller, with some 11,000 units of Anew reportedly sold every hour.

Avon claims pioneer status in the skincare industry as the first to mass-market alpha hydroxy acidnow a standard part of many anti-aging productsas the main ingredient of its Anew line. The brand has regularly introduced variants through the yearsamong them Anew Clinical, Anew Rejuvenate, Anew Reversalist, Anew Ultimate, Anew Platinum and Anew Solar Advanceto incorporate the latest skincare innovations its scientists and researchers have come up with.

Anew Genics, says Dr. Xiaochun Luo, chief scientific officer and group vice president for Avons global research and development, is another groundbreaking product that women will definitely be excited to try. Our international team of researchers and product developers invested 10 years in developing this product to make younger and reenergized skin accessible to women.

Come-on

Look up to 10 years younger! is Anew Genics come-onmade possible, says Xiaochun, by a patented YouthGen technology thats supposed to stimulate the activity of a youth gene in the body, which in turn leads to younger-looking skin.

Follow this link:
Harnessing the youth gene to fight skin aging

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Rice University and IBM today have announced a partnership to build the first award-winning IBM Blue Gene supercomputer in Texas. Rice also announced a related collaboration agreement with the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil to initiate the shared administration and use of the Blue Gene supercomputer, which allows both institutions to share the benefits of the new computing resource.

Rice faculty will use the Blue Gene to further their own research and to collaborate with academic and industry partners on a broad range of science and engineering questions related to energy, geophysics, basic life sciences, cancer research, personalized medicine and more.

The collaborative agreement securing Brazil's share of time on Rice's Blue Gene was signed in Sao Paulo March 27 by a delegation that included Rice President David Leebron and USP President Joo Grandino Rodas. Leebron is traveling with a delegation led by Houston Mayor Annise Parker. The delegation includes Rice Provost George McLendon, Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) President and CEO Jeff Moseley and other GHP members.

"Collaboration and partnership have a unique place in Rice's history as a pre-eminent research university, and it is fitting that Rice begins its second century with two innovative partnerships that highlight the university's commitments to expanding our international reach, strengthening our research and building stronger ties with our home city," Leebron said.

USP is Brazil's largest institution of higher education and research, and Rodas said the agreement represents an important bond between Rice and USP. "The joint utilization of the supercomputer by Rice University and USP, much more than a simple sharing of high-tech equipment, means the strength of an effective partnership between both universities," he said.

Mayor Parker, a 1978 Rice alumna, said, "When I was at Rice, it looked inward. Today it looks outward through this agreement. It strengthens not only Rice University but also the city of Houston."

Rice's new P series Blue Gene supercomputer, which has yet to be named, is slated to become operational in May. It is based on IBM's POWER processor technology, which was developed in part at the company's Austin, Texas labs. Rice and IBM shared the cost of the system.

"High-performance computers like the IBM Blue Gene/P are critical in virtually every discipline of science and engineering, and we are grateful for IBM's help in bringing this resource to Rice," McLendon said. "For individual faculty, the supercomputer will open the door to new areas of research. The Blue Gene also opens doors for Rice as the university seeks to establish institutional relationships both in our home city and with critical international partners like USP."

Unlike the typical desktop or laptop computer, which have a single microprocessor, supercomputers typically contain thousands of processors. This makes them ideal for scientists who study complex problems, because jobs can be divided among all the processors and run in a matter of seconds rather than weeks or months. Supercomputers are used to simulate things that cannot be reproduced in a laboratory -- like Earth's climate or the collision of galaxies -- and to examine vast databases like those used to map underground oil reservoirs or to develop personalized medical treatments.

USP officials said they expect their faculty to use the supercomputer for research ranging from astronomy and weather prediction to particle physics and biotechnology.

View post:
Rice, IBM partner to build Texas’ first Blue Gene supercomputer

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

31-03-2012 00:11 Project Walk in conjunction with SCI Business Solutions, has recently released our brand new Telehealth Program . Initial entry into this program is limited to only 200 "Pilot" members. These members will receive a large discount for joining our "Pilot" program and helping us develop this system for future spinal cord injury clients who may or may not be able to visit a Project Walk facility.

Read more:
Spinal Cord Injury - Home Workout - Video

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Is your child about to lose her milk tooth? Instead of throwing it away, you can now opt to use it to harvest stem cells in a dental stem cell bank for future use in the face of serious ailments. Now thats a tooth fairy story coming to life.

Still relatively new in India, dental stem cell banking is fast gaining popularity as a more viable option over umbilical cord blood banking.

Stem cell therapy involves a kind of intervention strategy in which healthy, new cells are introduced into a damaged tissue to treat a disease or an injury.

The umbilical cord is a good source for blood-related cells, or hemaotopoietic cells, which can be used for blood-related diseases, like leukaemia (blood cancer). Having said that, blood-related disorders constitute only four percent of all diseases, Shailesh Gadre, founder and managing director of the company Stemade Biotech, said.

For the rest of the 96 percent tissue-related diseases, the tooth is a good source of mesenchymal (tissue-related) stem cells. These cells have potential application in all other tissues of the body, for instance, the brain, in case of diseases like Alzheimers and Parkinsons; the eye (corneal reconstruction), liver (cirrhosis), pancreas (diabetes), bone (fractures, reconstruction), skin and the like, he said.

Mesenchymal cells can also be used to regenerate cardiac cells.

Dental stem cell banking also has an advantage when it comes to the process of obtaining stem cells.

Obtaining stem cells from the tooth is a non-invasive procedure that requires no surgery, with little or no pain. A child, in the age group of 5-12, is any way going to lose his milk tooth. So when its a little shaky, it can be collected with hardly any discomfort, Savita Menon, a pedodontist, said.

Moreover, in a number of cases, when an adolescent needs braces, the doctor recommends that his pre-molars be removed. These can also be used as a source for stem cells. And over and above that, an adults wisdom tooth can also be used for the same purpose, Gadre added.

Therefore, unlike umbilical cord blood banking which gives one just one chance - during birth - the window of opportunity in dental stem cell banking is much bigger.

Read more from the original source:
Your child’s milk tooth can save her life

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

OMAHA, Neb.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Transgenomic, Inc. (OTCBB: TBIO.OB - News) today announced that Jeana DaRe, Ph.D., Assistant CLIA Laboratory Director at Transgenomic, presented clinical findings from patients tested for nuclear mitochondrial disorders using Transgenomics NuclearMitome Test on Thursday, March 29, at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG) in Charlotte, North Carolina. The discussion, titled Clinical re-sequencing of over 410 genes to diagnose mitochondrial disorders included details of both the technical performance of the NuclearMitome Test as well as the wide variety of clinically revealing results discovered through its use. The NuclearMitome Test employs next-generation sequencing technology to identify mutations in 448 genes, and represents the most comprehensive genetic test available for mitochondrial disorders.

In her presentation, Dr. DaRe highlighted two case studies. In both cases, patients achieved a definitive diagnosis through the identification of genetic mutations far outside the normal spectrum of genetic testing. These results concluded the patients diagnostic odysseys, which had encompassed wide-ranging genetic and non-genetic tests as well as consultation with various medical specialties, all of which had failed to pinpoint the underlying disease. These results are a typical occurrence in patients sent for NuclearMitome testing.

The NuclearMitome Test is a cutting-edge technology that is reshaping the process for accurately diagnosing and effectively treating patients with mitochondrial disorders, said Craig Tuttle, CEO of Transgenomic. Since its launch in June 2011, clinicians have embraced this test as a way to simultaneously assay the hundreds of genes relevant to mitochondrial-based developmental disorders and achieve otherwise impossible diagnoses. The NuclearMitome test is rapidly becoming an important asset for the medical and patient communities and for Transgenomic.

About Mitochondrial Diseases

Mitochondrial diseases are the most common metabolic diseases of childhood with an estimated frequency of 1 in 2000 births. They are characterized by multi-organ involvement, particularly neuromuscular symptoms, and often follow a rapidly progressive course. The variability in clinical presentation makes diagnosis tremendously challenging, as it traditionally relies on often-inconclusive enzymatic analyses that do not pinpoint the underlying molecular defect. Knowledge of the specific cause of disease can be important for developing personalized treatment strategies.

About Transgenomic, Inc.

Transgenomic, Inc. (www.transgenomic.com) is a global biotechnology company advancing personalized medicine in cancer and inherited diseases through its proprietary molecular technologies and world-class clinical and research services. The company has three complementary business divisions: Transgenomic Pharmacogenomic Services is a contract research laboratory that specializes in supporting all phases of pre-clinical and clinical trials for oncology drugs in development. Transgenomic Clinical Laboratories specializes in molecular diagnostics for cardiology, neurology, mitochondrial disorders, and oncology. Transgenomic Diagnostic Tools produces equipment, reagents, and other consumables that empower clinical and research applications in molecular testing and cytogenetics. Transgenomic believes there is significant opportunity for continued growth across all three businesses by leveraging their synergistic capabilities, technologies, and expertise. The company actively develops and acquires new technology and other intellectual property that strengthen its leadership in personalized medicine.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking statements of Transgenomic within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those with respect to management's current views and estimates of future economic circumstances, industry conditions, company performance and financial results, including the ability of the Company to grow its involvement in the diagnostic products and services markets. The known risks, uncertainties and other factors affecting these forward-looking statements are described from time to time in Transgenomic's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any change in such factors, risks and uncertainties may cause the actual results, events and performance to differ materially from those referred to in such statements. Accordingly, the Company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 with respect to all statements contained in this press release. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release and Transgenomic does not undertake any duty to update this information, including any forward-looking statements, unless required by law.

More here:
Transgenomic, Inc. Announces Presentation of Results from 448-Gene NuclearMitome Test in 78 Patients at the 2012 ...

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

HOUSTON, March 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Rice University and IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced a partnership to build the first award-winning IBM Blue Gene supercomputer in Texas. Rice also announced a related collaboration agreement with the University of Sao Paulo (USP) in Brazil to initiate the shared administration and use of the Blue Gene supercomputer, which allows both institutions to share the benefits of the new computing resource.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090416/IBMLOGO )

Rice faculty will use the Blue Gene to further their own research and to collaborate with academic and industry partners on a broad range of science and engineering questions related to energy, geophysics, basic life sciences, cancer research, personalized medicine and more.

The collaborative agreement securing Brazil's share of time on Rice's Blue Gene was signed in Sao Paulo March 27 by a delegation that included Rice President David Leebron and USP President Joao Grandino Rodas. Leebron is traveling with a delegation led by Houston Mayor Annise Parker. The delegation includes Rice Provost George McLendon, Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) President and CEO Jeff Moseley and other GHP members.

"Collaboration and partnership have a unique place in Rice's history as a pre-eminent research university, and it is fitting that Rice begins its second century with two innovative partnerships that highlight the university's commitments to expanding our international reach, strengthening our research and building stronger ties with our home city," Leebron said.

USP is Brazil's largest institution of higher education and research, and Rodas said the agreement represents an important bond between Rice and USP. "The joint utilization of the supercomputer by Rice University and USP, much more than a simple sharing of high-tech equipment, means the strength of an effective partnership between both universities," he said.

Mayor Parker, a 1978 Rice alumna, said, "When I was at Rice, it looked inward. Today it looks outward through this agreement. It strengthens not only Rice University but also the city of Houston."

Rice's new Blue Gene supercomputer, which has yet to be named, is slated to become operational in May. It is based on IBM's POWER processor technology, which was developed in part at the company's Austin, Texas labs. Rice and IBM shared the cost of the system.

"High-performance computers like the IBM Blue Gene/P are critical in virtually every discipline of science and engineering, and we are grateful for IBM's help in bringing this resource to Rice," McLendon said. "For individual faculty, the supercomputer will open the door to new areas of research. The Blue Gene also opens doors for Rice as the university seeks to establish institutional relationships both in our home city and with critical international partners like USP."

Unlike the typical desktop or laptop computer, which have a single microprocessor, supercomputers typically contain thousands of processors. This makes them ideal for scientists who study complex problems, because jobs can be divided among all the processors and run in a matter of seconds rather than weeks or months. Supercomputers are used to simulate things that cannot be reproduced in a laboratory -- like Earth's climate or the collision of galaxies -- and to examine vast databases like those used to map underground oil reservoirs or to develop personalized medical treatments.

More:
Rice University, IBM Partner to Bring First Blue Gene Supercomputer to Texas

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

A forum critical of UC Berkeleys plans to ramp up genetic engineering research at a planned massive new second campus of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Richmond drew a capacity crowd to the David Brower Center Thursday night.

One speaker after another ripped into the potential consequences of the universitys grandiose plans, including the human and environmental devastation certain to be wrought on Africa and Latin America.

We will be posting several articles on the gathering, but we will begin with a focus on some of the ways the labs end products could impact other lands targeted by the labs emphasis on using genetic engineering to transform living plants into fuel.

A resonant voice from Nigeria

Environmental activist Nnimmo Bassey, executive director of Environmental Rights Action in Nigeria and chair of Friends of the Earth International, ripped into comments made a day earlier by Jay Keasling, UC Berkeley professor, founder of three genetic engineering companies, and head of the Department of Energy-funded Joint BioEnergy Institute [JBEI], which is slated to relocate to the new Richmond campus.

In an article in the San Francisco Chronicle, Keasling had dismissed criticisms by Bassey and others that any successful program to use genetically altered microbes to create fuel from plant matter would wreak ecological and human devastation in Africa, Latin America, and Asia:

Thast so-called wasteland is somebodys land, Bassey said. The worlds pastoralists thrive on lands marginal or unsuitable for farming. People do live in the Sahara desert. People do live in the Kalahari Desert. People do live in the desert here in the United States.

The one sure result of a global land grab is conflict, he said. A second is the introduction of genetically modified organisms [GMOs] into more nations where theyve been previously banned.

Bassey, whose words flow in resonant, almost musical bass tones, is a winner of the 2010 Right Livelihood Award, often called the Alternate Nobel Prize because it is awarded by the Swedish legislature the day before the Nobels are handed out in the same city, Stockholm. The prize is given for working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today.

Much of Basseys work has centered on the devastation wrought on his country by oil companies like Chevron, which has sunk its claws and talons into Richmond, and, like Shell, BP, and other oil companies is moving into agrofuels.

Here is the original post:
Stakeholders weigh in on UC Berkeley GMO complex

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

30-03-2012 11:44 Personalized medicine is becoming an increasingly important aspect of cancer treatment. Levi Garraway, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Broad Institute, describes a new database of nearly 1000 cancer cell lines, across numerous tumor types, that will be used to help predict the effectiveness of cancer drugs based on a tumor's genetic profile.

See more here:
Levi Garraway on cancer cell genetic profile catalogs | Dana-Farber Cancer Institute - Video

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Editor's Choice Academic Journal Main Category: Cardiovascular / Cardiology Also Included In: Heart Disease;Genetics Article Date: 30 Mar 2012 - 8:00 PDT

email to a friend printer friendly opinions

Current Article Ratings:

Following PCI, the standard care for patients commonly consists of aspirin and clopidogrel to reduce the risk of blood clot formation, however, this dual antiplatelet therapy results in many patients becoming vulnerable to major adverse cardiovascular events.

This persistent vulnerability is linked to elevated on-treatment platelet reactivity, which can lead to a sudden blockage in the stents that can cause heart attacks or death. The characteristics of elevated on-treatment platelet reactivity are inadequate inhibition of the platelet PsY12 receptor following clopidogrel treatment.

According to scientists, numerous clinical variables have been implicated, however, the strongest predictor is the loss-of-function CYP2C19*2 allele (rs4244285), which is a common genetic variant that occurs in almost 30% of western Europeans and in about 50% of Asians.

Two unique P2Y12 inhibitors are prasugrel and ticagrelor, which compared with clopidogrel provide a more potent platelet inhibition. Although both drugs reduce major adverse cardiovascular events following acute coronary syndrome, they are also linked to higher complications in terms of bleeding. The researchers point out that retrospective genetic studies demonstrated that both, prasugrel and ticagrelor remained unaffected by the CYP2C19*2 allele. According to the authors, personalization of dual antiplatelet therapy after PCI could successfully minimize major adverse cardiovascular and adverse bleeding events if CYP2C19*2 carrier status could be identified in the future.

Spartan Biosciences in Ottawa, ON, Canada, has developed Spartan RX CYP2C19 as a point-of-care genetic test for the CYP2C19*2 allele that is performed with a buccal swab, which enables health-care personnel with no previous training in genetic laboratory techniques to undertake genotyping at the patient's bedside.

The researchers decided to evaluate the clinical feasibility and pharmacodynamic efficacy of personalized dual antiplatelet therapy in patients who receive PCI treatment for acute coronary syndrome and stable coronary artery disease.

The standard care for these patients is a medical regimen of aspirin and clopidogrel, however, the new genetic test means that physicians can personalize the patient's therapy and select whether they should opt to administer a more potent anti-platelet drug like prasugrel to those patients who have a high risk of failing treatment with clopidogrel.

Read the original post:
Using Antiplatelet Therapy After Coronary Interventions - Study

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

By a GenomeWeb staff reporter

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) Interleukin Genetics today reported that its fourth-quarter revenues increased 13 percent, driven by a partnership with Amway.

The Waltham, Mass.-based genetic test maker had total revenues of $575,339 for the three-month period ended Dec. 31, compared to $510,767 for the fourth quarter of 2010. It said that its revenue came primarily from the sale of its Inherent Health genetic tests through the Amway global sales channel. That partnership dates back to October 2009.

Interleukin's net loss for the quarter was $1.4 million, or $.04 per share, compared to a net loss of $1.2 million, or $.03 per share, for Q4 2010.

Its R&D spending increased to $387,106 from $354,051 year over year, while its SG&A spending declined to $1.1 million from $1.3 million.

For full-year 2012, Interleukin's revenues climbed around 45 percent to $2.9 million from $2 million in 2011.

"Our genetic testing revenue has grown by more than forty percent this year over last year as we added new partnerships for distribution of our tests," Interleukin Genetics CEO Lewis Bender said in a statement. "In addition, our collaboration with Stanford University continued with an extension study whose results showed that the genetic patterns identified by our Weight Management Test can help individuals lose more weight when diets are selected based on genotype."

The firm also is developing a genetic test for periodontal disease risk.

Interleukin posted a net loss of $5 million, or $.14 per share, compared to a net loss of $6 million, or $.17 per share, for 2010.

Its R&D spending for the year was $1.4 million, flat with 2010, and its SG&A expenses declined to $4.7 million from $5.5 million.

Read more:
Interleukin Genetics' Revenues Rise

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands, March 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics (Euronext: AMT - News), a leader in the field of human gene therapy, announced that the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) of shareholders was held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, today in accordance with the EGM Notice of February 17, 2012. At the EGM, shareholders approved all the resolutions proposed for the substantial corporate restructuring and financing transaction, which will result in the assets and certain liabilities being acquired by a newly formed private company, uniQure BV, and the AMT legal entity being liquidated.

The shareholders in uniQure previously included a condition to the transaction that meant an additional 1.0 million of investment was to be secured by AMT prior to completion. This condition has been waived. Completion of the uniQure transaction is expected to occur in early April 2012. Further details on timing on the uniQure transaction are set out on the company's website.

The resolutions put to the EGM convened in accordance with the Notice were passed by a majority in excess of 99 percent. The detailed voting information and results pursuant to Section 2:120 paragraph 5 of the Dutch Civil Code will be posted on the website http://www.amtbiopharma.com.

About Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics

AMT is a world leader in the development ofhuman gene based therapies.AMT has a product pipeline of gene therapy products in development for hemophilia B, acute intermittent porphyria, Parkinson's disease and SanfilippoB. Using adeno-associated viral (AAV) derived vectors as the delivery vehicle of choice for therapeutic genes, the company has been able to design and validate probably the world's first stable and scalable AAV manufacturing platform.This proprietary platform can be applied to a large number of rare(orphan) diseases caused by one faulty gene and allows AMT to pursue its strategy of focusing on this sector of the industry. The assets of AMT are subject to a proposed acquisition by uniQure BV. AMT was founded in 1998 and is based in Amsterdam. Further information can be found at http://www.amtbiopharma.com.

About uniQure

uniQure BV is a private company created specifically to acquire specific assets and liabilities of Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics (AMT). The company is funded by Forbion Capital Partners, an existing investor in AMT. uniQure will act as the new holding company for the gene therapy business currently carried out by AMT.

Certain statements in this press release are "forward-looking statements" including those that refer to management's plans and expectations for future operations, prospects and financial condition. Words such as "strategy," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "will," "continues," "estimates," "intends," "projects," "goals," "targets" and other words of similar meaning are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on the current expectations of the management of AMT only. Undue reliance should not be placed on these statements because, by their nature, they are subject to known and unknown risks and can be affected by factors that are beyond the control of AMT. Actual results could differ materially from current expectations due to a number of factors and uncertainties affecting AMT's business. AMT expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements herein except as required by law.

Continued here:
Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics Announces Results of Extraordinary General Meeting

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

By: Mahita Gajanan / Staff Writer

Posted on 30. Mar, 2012 in News

For one Pitt alumnus, a simple cheek swab was enough to begin a process that would eventually help save a childs life.

In 2010, Jenna Tamburro, then a sophomore, registered at Pitts first annual bone marrow drive sponsored by the Nursing Student Association through DKMS, a bone marrow donation center.

The next year, Tamburro found out she was a potential match for a cancer patient, and after some blood work and a physical, discovered that her bone marrow was suitable to be transplanted into a patient.

This year, NSA will hold its third bone marrow drive with DKMS on April 2 and 3 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the William Pitt Union. Nursing students Rebecca Sponberg, Lindsey Pretsch and Jarae Payne organized the event.

At the drive, students who are interested in donating bone marrow will have a nurse swab the inside of their cheek with a cotton swab. The interior lining of the cheek provides a persons human leukocyte antigen, a protein on the bodys cells that allows the immune system to recognize the cells as its own, said Sponberg, the vice president of NSA. This test will allow potential candidates to find out if they are eligible to donate bone marrow.

Its important that the donors HLA matches the recipients HLA so the immune system will accept it, Sponberg, a sophomore, said.

Sponberg said that in the past two years, 604 students have registered as donors. Out of the 604, 19 students have been contacted as actual matches and 6 of the 19 have gone through the marrow donation process. None of the organizers could estimate how many people they are expecting to register this year.

I thought it was so crazy that I got matched, Tamburro, who now works at Phipps Conservatory, said. I was shocked when it happened, but then actually really excited.

Go here to see the original:
Nursing Student Association hosts bone marrow drive

Recommendation and review posted by sam

LIVINGSTON, NJ--(Marketwire -03/30/12)- Inpatient Medical Associates (www.imahospitalists.com), a provider of hospitalist services, will debut its personalized iPad-based recruiting application at the Society of Hospital Medicine's annual meeting HM12, April 1-4, 2012, at the San Diego Convention Center. The medical group will also showcase its innovative approach in using scribes to support hospitalists' quality of practice.

"We identified the need to develop a personalized solution that quickly and effectively matches providers' practice preferences, recreational interests and geographical preference with available positions," explains Raymond Iannaccone, MD, FACEP, president and chief executive officer of Inpatient Medical Associates. "Through the eco-friendly app, recruiting information is sent electronically to interested providers before they even leave our exhibit booth."

The second innovation to dbut at HM12 is Inpatient Medical Associate's hospitalist-specific scribe program, which is intended to improve physician productivity, patient satisfaction and physician quality of practice. While emergency physician groups have used scribes for years, the practice is still new to hospitalists. The use of scribes has been shown to increase patient satisfaction and enhance physician productivity, which is critical in today's hospitalist practice where up to 34% of a hosptialist's time can be devoted to documentation, even when charting using an electronic medical record.

"Healthcare reform places greater emphasis on reducing lengths of stay, readmissions and supporting value-based purchasing. Our scribe program supports our commitment to achieving exceptional clinical and operational performance while remaining focused on patient satisfaction," states Maninder "Dolly" Abraham, MD, medical director for Inpatient Medical Associates.

Inpatient Medical Associates is exhibiting at Booth 213 at the 2012 Society of Hospitalist Medicine's annual HM12 conference in San Diego.

About Inpatient Medical AssociatesInpatient Medical Associates is an inpatient medicine practice providing hospitalist services at academic medical centers and community hospitals on the east coast. For more information, visit http://www.imahospitalists.com, http://www.twitter.com/IMAHospitalists or http://www.facebook.com/pages/Inpatient-Medical-Associates/104876569598099.

See original here:
Inpatient Medical Associates to Showcase Personalized Recruiting Application and Scribe Program at HM12 in San Diego

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Eric LeGrand took the stage Wednesday in front of an audience of 70 people at the Busch Campus Center to present his outlook for the future, reflecting the events theme of Dont Stop Believing.

Dr. Wise Young, his physical therapist and mentor, held the microphone for LeGrand as he recalled his injury during the Oct. 16, 2010 Scarlet Knights football game against Armys Black Knights in the Meadowlands Stadium.

When I first got hurt, I was laying on that field, and I felt like I knocked the wind out of myself, LeGrand said. Coach [Greg] Schiano came running up to me and said you just got to keep praying, you just got to fight.

LeGrand said he saw his mother before he was taken off the field and assured her that he would be all right.

After seeing his mother, LeGrand said he blacked out and was unable to remember anything that happened until the following Wednesday, four days after his injury.

The first year, you face things youve never faced in your whole life, LeGrand said.

Young, director of the Unversitys W.M. Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience said he first met LeGrand about six weeks after his injury.

Young said he told LeGrand that he was working on therapies for chronic spinal cord injuries and that he wanted LeGrand to feel that he was not alone.

I want to make sure that Eric understands that we are here working for him, Young said. Hes my hero. He always was poised. He always had this confidence that he was able to do this.

LeGrand said he began therapy with a lot of stretching and soon progressed to therapies, such as what he called the standing frame where LeGrand would be able to stand with assistance from a mechanical frame.

See the rest here:
LeGrand expresses hope in research

Recommendation and review posted by sam

VANCOUVER, March 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - The Rick Hansen Institute (RHI) and Rick Hansen Foundation (RHF) today thanked the Harper government for partnering in their vision of an accessible and inclusive society and a cure for paralysis after spinal cord injury (SCI).

Today's Federal Budget announcement will support essential advancements in research for a cure for paralysis after spinal cord injury, and make a positive difference by promoting the translation of promising research discoveries and best practices into real, practical benefits for the more than 86,000 Canadians with spinal cord-related injuries and illnesses.

"The Government of Canada has been a critical partner in my 25 year journey towards a healthier and more inclusive world, and we are extremely grateful for their continued support," said Rick Hansen. "This renewed federal investment will allow us to further advance in our collective goal of achieving a cure for paralysis after spinal cord injury and achieve better medical care and outcomes as we assist SCI patients in becoming more active members of the community. While much has been accomplished, I truly believe our best work is in front of us."

The Rick Hansen Institute and the Rick Hansen Foundation are committed to advancing clinical research studies in such priority areas as reduction of paralysis and secondary complications; the implementation of validated best practice guidelines in SCI care nationally and build capacities for hospitals to adopt these standards; and the expansion of the pan-Canadian SCI clinical research network to enhance collaboration between Canadian and international SCI experts.

"Together we are solidifying Canada's position as a global leader and a world-class SCI centre of excellence," added Hansen. "The path we are taking is reducing hospital visits, readmissions from secondary complications, and the financial burden that comes with the injury, as we work towards a world without paralysis after SCI. We are grateful for not having to take the path alone".

About RHI: The Rick Hansen Institute's goal is creating a world without paralysis after SCI. It works towards this goal by accelerating research and translating clinical findings into practical solutions to develop new treatments, improve care and reduce the cost burden on taxpayers.

About RHF: In 1987, following the Man In Motion World Tour (MIMWT), Rick established the Rick Hansen Foundation (RHF) to continue his quest for an accessible and inclusive society and a cure for spinal cord injury (SCI). Under Rick's leadership, RHF functions as a social innovator - finding collaborative solutions to challenges in the community and the resources necessary to implement those solutions. RHF has been successful in leveraging the original $26M raised during the MIMWT to more than $245M in support of people, programs and research in pursuit of a healthier and more inclusive world. As part of the 25th Anniversary campaign, the Rick Hansen Foundation has launched a national public fundraising campaign to support ongoing programs and initiatives. For ways to get involved, or to make a donation, please visit http://www.rickhansen.com.

Go here to see the original:
Renewed Federal Government Investment Gives Further Hope to Canadians living with Spinal Cord Injury

Recommendation and review posted by sam