Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles

AMA Backs House Reform Bill, Other Groups, Businesses Eye Reform Positions
The American Medical Association has backed the House bill that carries mandates on employers and individuals, a government-run health plan and reforms to Medicare and Medicaid, Politico reports.

'Pro-choice Community' Should Find New 'Way Of Talking About Reproductive Freedom,' Opinion Piece Says
"Most of the push-back" from antiabortion-rights advocates to a recent e-mail message from author Judy Blume on behalf of Planned Parenthood -- which asked mailing list subscribers for donations -- was generated by an article in the antiabortion-rights publication LifeNews, columnist Meghan Daum writes in a Los Angeles Times opinion piece. The article put a "heavy, misrepresentative spin" on Blume"s message, which urged donors to "do all [they] can to support" the increasing number of women turning to Planned Parenthood centers for health care during the economic downturn.The LifeNews article said, "Blume notes how more women are seeking abortions from Planned Parenthood because of the difficult economy, and she urges readers of the e-mail to use that as a reason to support the abortion business." According to Daum, "this is just the kind of thing that makes abortion-rights advocates apoplectic," noting that abortion-rights advocates "fired-back" in the "blogosphere ... imparting the statistic about abortion making up only 3% of Planned Parenthood"s services and pointing out that many of the women being yelled at by picketers in clinic parking lots aren"t even pregnant but, rather, trying to avoid getting pregnant." Daum continues that the organization, much like Blume, "occupies a clear position on the post-Roe cultural map," adding, "Generally speaking, if you"re on board with abortion rights, you"re on board with Planned Parenthood." In addition, if you are against abortion rights, the "organization is the headquarters of Godlessness," she adds. Daum writes that it is not difficult to see why Planned Parenthood enlisted Blume -- an "icon of 1970s-era feminism and its efforts on behalf of sex education and women"s health" -- because she conjures "nostalgia for the early days of the fight that makes pro-choicers want to keep fighting today."Daum writes that as she watched this "saga unfold in [her] inbox," she was "struck by a troubling question. Even though Blume may not be associated with abortion in and of itself … is there something about her persona that signals a lack of dispassion about its ramifications? Is she reminding people of a time when, in the relief of Roe being decided, there was a cultural perception that abortion was a simple procedure that needn"t come with attendant emotional baggage?"Daum adds that there is "no denying that the language and overall tone around abortion has changed. Despite what many pro-life groups seem to think, most abortion-rights advocates prefer "safe, legal and rare" to "no big deal."" According to Daum, President Obama, "pro-choice though he is, is hardly strident -- and even a little evasive -- on the issue." She adds that Obama favors language about reducing the need for abortions and "finding common ground with the other side." Daum notes that the pop cultural arena "has become downright allergic to the issue" of abortion, with a recent movie coining the term "shmashmortion" because the characters "can"t even get the word out." Daum adds that although Blume "was undoubtedly effective" at bringing in funding for Planned Parenthood, perhaps what might have been "even more radical is if the pro-choice community could find a way of talking about reproductive freedom that neither reverts to the perceived casualness of the 1970s nor panders to the "shmashmortion" dialect of today. "Safe, legal and rare" comes close. But "safe, legal, rare and a big deal" might be even better" (Daum, Los Angeles Times, 5/14).
News of the day
Stirling Products Limited (ASX:STI) Gets Approval For TB And HIV Treatment "Immunoxel" In South Africa
Australian healthcare company Stirling Products Limited (ASX:STI) is pleased to announce another milestone in the expansion of the licensed (pending joint venture approval) botanical products to markets outside of Ukraine. Immunoxel (Dzherelo) has been granted approval in South Africa. This approval will allow immediate sales of the phytoconcentrate as an immune adjuvant for TB and HIV treatment.
Public Health

Argos Therapeutics Presents Positive Transplantation And Immunosuppression Data For Soluble CD83 At The American Transplant Congress

Argos Therapeutics announced the presentation of new information on its soluble CD83 (sCD83) protein program in a poster session at the 2009 American Transplant Congress, held May 30-June 3 in Boston. The poster presentation, to be made on June 2 at 5:30pm by Argos" collaborating scientists from the University of Western Ontario, demonstrates that combination therapy with sCD83 can prolong kidney allograft survival in an animal model of transplantation, and that sCD83 attenuates pathological changes in kidney allografts, induces generation of T regulatory cells and inhibits dendritic cell maturation, all of which may contribute to immunosuppression and allograft tolerance. In the study, researchers tested the safety and immunosuppressive efficacy of sCD83 alone and in combination with rapamycin in a preclinical allograft model. Kidney allografts were transplanted with sCD83-only treatment, rapamycin-only treatment, or both agents in combination. While sCD83 monotherapy did not significantly prolong allograft survival and grafts treated with rapamycin monotherapy were rejected with median survival of 16 days, the combination therapy of sCD83 and rapamycin markedly prolonged kidney allograft survival to 30-45 days. The combination therapy further decreased intragraft deposition of IgG, IgM, CD4, CD8 and CD20, all of which are typically associated with heightened immune response, which can negatively impact allograft survival. Additionally, both sCD83 monotherapy and the combination therapy induced a significant increase in circulating T regulatory cells in all recipients. "This study builds upon our prior studies of sCD83 as a monotherapy and in combination with other therapies and demonstrates that sCD83-based combination therapy may help prolong kidney allograft survival, potentially broadening its therapeutic relevance," said Charles Nicolette, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President of Research and Development at Argos Therapeutics. "We believe that sCD83 may have significant applications for future clinical development in transplantation and other immune-mediated disorders, particularly considering its favorable safety profile demonstrated thus far with no organ toxicity observed. As such, we are continuing our preclinical development of this program to prepare it for future clinical trials." Argos also announced that two additional abstracts were accepted for oral presentations at the conference. These abstracts, which were also presented at a prior scientific meeting, are detailed below. The abstract titled "Modulation of Dendritic Cells by Soluble CD83 Induces Kidney Allograft Tolerance," was selected to receive a Young Investigator Award. According to the abstract, treatment with sCD83 in an animal model of kidney transplantation effectively prevented rejection and achieved long-term graft tolerance, significantly improved survival, and inhibited development of anti-donor antibodies when compared to untreated kidney graft recipients. Additionally, DCs from tolerant sCD83 recipients exhibited significantly decreased expression levels of MHC II, CD40, CD80 and intracellular IL-12, all of which are important to triggering an immune response. These data suggest that sCD83 is multifunctional, and may function via direct mechanisms involving B and T cells and indirectly through DC attenuation. The third abstract was titled "Soluble CD83 Mediated Suppression of B-cell Activation and Differentiation Prolongs Murine Cardiac Allograft Survival." In a heart transplantation animal model, allograft recipients treated with sCD83 exhibited markedly decreased intragraft B cell infiltration, reduced Immunoglobulins M and G deposition, and significantly lower circulating anti-donor antibody levels. Treatment with sCD83 alone was capable of controlling antibody-mediated rejection and prolonging survival of cardiac allografts by twofold when compared to untreated controls. The first abstract was authored by ML Baroja, J Arp, Weihua Liu, G Strejan, S Brand, C Nicolette, W Wall, B Garcia, DM Rothstein, AM Jevnikar, and H Wang. The second abstract was authored by: Zhu Lan, Wei Ge, Miren L. Baroja, Jacqueline Arp, Jifu Jiang, Weihua Liu, Stephen Brand, Charles Nicolette, Bertha Garcia and Hao Wang. The third abstract was authored by: Wei Ge, Siobhan I. Ramcharran, Jacqueline Arp, Miren L. Baroja, Zhu Lan, Jifu Jiang, Weihua Liu, Anthony Jevnikar, Stephen Brand, Charles Nicolette, Bertha Gardia and Hao Wang. About Soluble CD83 CD83 is a glycoprotein expressed on the cell surface of mature dendritic cells (DCs), the most potent stimulators of immune responses. The strong up-regulation of this protein during DC maturation suggests that it plays an important functional role in the induction of immune responses. Experimental data demonstrate that soluble CD83 can potently down-regulate immune responses, indicating that it can be developed to treat transplantation rejection and variety of autoimmune disorders. Importantly, data from animal models demonstrate that soluble CD83 exerts its effects without a requirement for chronic administration and does not leave the subject globally immunosuppressed. The development of CD83 is part of Argos" research and development collaboration with its Canadian partner, DC Bio. Argos Therapeutics, Inc.


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009