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Smokefree Innotec, Inc. Addresses FDA Concerns About Electronic Cigarettes
Smokefree Innotec, Inc. (Pink Sheets: SFIO) issued a statement referring to articles in USA Today and The New York Times of Wednesday, July 22, and Thursday, July 23rd, regarding the FDA taking aim at electronic cigarettes. The national dailies stated that tests show that certain e-cigarettes contain "known carcinogens and toxic chemicals," including diethylene-glycol (an ingredient used in antifreeze, printing ink, brake fluid and glue) and nitrosamine (which is used in rubber products, the tobacco industry, and - less concentrated - in beer and fish-products).
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Continued International Investment, Decreased Discrimination Key To Fight Against HIV/AIDS, Says U.N. Secretary-General
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon during a General Assembly meeting Tuesday urged governments not to cut aid for the international fight against HIV/AIDS, the AP/Washington Post reports. Even as Ban "called for "bold action" not only to increase funding but also to break down social barriers to achieve the goal set by world leaders in 2006 of universal access to comprehensive HIV prevention services, treatment, care and support by 2010," he and other speakers at the meeting "reviewing progress and challenges in the battle against AIDS indicated that it will be exceedingly difficult - if not impossible - to reach the goal" (Lederer, AP/Washington Post, 6/16).
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BIO Commends Senate Committee On Small Business And Entrepreneurship's SBIR Reauthorization
Under legislation reported by the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, small companies that receive the majority of their financing from venture capital will once again be considered eligible to compete for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants. The change will allow more small biotechnology start-ups to compete for these funds and continue critical research and development of medical advancements and breakthroughs. Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) President and CEO Jim Greenwood made the following statement today:
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New Path For Cocaine Addiction Research

Cocaine is one of the oldest drugs known to humans, and its abuse has become widespread since the end of the 19th century. At the same time, we know rather little about its effects on the human brain or the mechanisms that lead to cocaine addiction. The latest article by Dr. Marco Leyton, of the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University and the McGill University Health Centre, which was published in the journal Biological Psychiatry on May 15, 2009, not only demonstrates a link between cocaine and the reward circuits in the brain but also associates the susceptibility to addiction with these mechanisms. The results of this study show that sniffing cocaine triggers high levels of dopamine secretion in a central region of the brain called the striatum. Dopamine is known to play a critical role in the brain"s response to reward as well as in its response to addictive drugs. This study was carried out in ten non-addicted users of cocaine, all of whom sniffed cocaine on one test day and placebo powder on another. Participants underwent blood tests before and after taking the drug, and dopamine release in the brain was measured using PET scans. "The ability of cocaine to activate dopamine release varies markedly from person to person. Our study suggests that this is related to how much of the drug the person consumed in the past," explained Dr. Leyton. The more cocaine someone has used in his or her lifetime, the more the brain will secrete dopamine during subsequent cocaine use. "It"s possible therefore that the intensity of the reward-circuit response is related to increased susceptibility to addiction," stated Dr. Leyton. Although the relationship between the intensity of dopamine secretion and the frequency of drug use has been demonstrated, researchers still do not fully understand its mechanism of action. Is it the repeated stimulation of the reward circuit that leads to addiction, or is it an inherent sensitivity to addiction that leads to the increased secretion of dopamine? This question is not easy to answer, especially since other factors come into play, such as other aspects of the subject"s personal history. Whatever the answer, the relationship between dopamine and cocaine means that this hormone could be a potential target for treatment against addiction. More research is required before treatments are available, but this study opens a new door in this direction. Funding This study was funded with a grant from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. Salary support was given by the Fond de recherche en santçİ du Quçİbec Dr Marco Leyton Dr. Marco Leyton is a researcher on mental illnesses and addiction at the Research Institute of the MUHC andthe Montreal Neurological Institute. He is also an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McGill University and the recipient of a William Dawson research chair. Partners This study is a collaboration between several laboratories of the McGill University Health Centre and McGill University, involving : Dr Sylvia M.L. Cox, Dr Chawki Benkelfat, Dr Alain Dagher, Dr J. Scott Delaney, France Durand, Samuel A. McKenzie, Dr Theodore Kolivakis, Kevin F. Casey, Dr Marco Leyton. This release is available in a French. Isabelle Kling McGill University Health Centre


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