Over the past 20 years, 3D printing has made incredible leaps forward – from paper products to spare parts for the space station, it seems there are few limits to what the technology can create. And those limits have been stretched even further by recent innovations in live tissue printing. Known as bioprinting, the process has enabled scientists to engineer bones and tissue from samples of a patient’s own cells, and it has tremendous potential in the areas of prosthetics, organ replacement and clinical research. With the power to change how drugs are tested and how disease is treated, 3D.. READ MORE »
Have you ever enrolled in a class, attended the first lecture and then realized it was nothing like you thought it would be? Perhaps the material was not what you had in mind, the projected assignments seemed out of line with what you’d read in the course description – or maybe you just had a change of heart. No big deal. You just drop the course and sign up for another. But what if you’re already part way through your certification or diploma program and you discover you’ve chosen unwisely? You’ve already invested too much to turn back – switching.. READ MORE »
We often think of acetaminophen as a fairly innocuous pain medicine, great for headaches, hangovers and sore joints. However, the FDA recently recommended we re-consider just how much of it we’re ingesting. The agency is instructing health care professionals to discontinue prescribing and dispensing prescription combination drug products that contain more than 325 milligrams (mg) of acetaminophen per tablet, capsule or other dosage unit. When taken in combination with other drugs, patients often fail to keep track of acetaminophen – and while there is no evidence to suggest taking more does your body good, clinical research reveals that taking too much.. READ MORE »
We often turn to antibiotics as a kind of silver bullet; a bacterium-eradicator with the power to relieve whatever ails us. A wide variety of conditions are routinely treated with antibiotics, from common infections to more serious illnesses like tuberculosis. However, in our zeal to wipe out bacteria we have given the invaders precisely what they need to mutate and adapt – resulting in ever-more resistant strains that have rendered many of our stand-by drugs quite powerless. Antibiotic over-use has made bacteria stronger, while our ability to formulate more effective alternatives continues to decline. This is why Sanofi, partnered with.. READ MORE »
Over the last decade, foodies, environmentalists, animal rights advocates and health officials have spoken out about the dangers of “unnatural” foods. The excessive use of pesticides, the unhealthy – even deadly – side effects of hormone injected cattle, and the implications of genetically modified produce; all reasons many of us have gone organic, willing to spend extra on free-range and all-natural. Last year, cattle producers joined the chorus, taking aim at pharma giant Merck when its growth stimulant Zilmax allegedly caused disastrous side effects. Merck denies there is any clinical research to validate the claims and is currently strategizing a.. READ MORE »
The global diabetes management market accounted for $41.9 billion in 2010, and is expected to rise to $114.3 billion by 2016. Even more staggering is the dramatic increase in those diagnosed; a figure that has risen by more than 373% over the last 30 years. Industry professionals and students in pharmaceutical courses have seen Big Pharma pursue innovative treatments for the disease, evolving from injections to inhalers and most recently, to new oral therapies. Johnson & Johnson and Bristol/AstraZeneca are the front runners in this race, having both recently released drugs that represent a brand new class of treatment for.. READ MORE »
We’re often told that washing our hands throughout the day will help to ward off germs, sickness and infection. And the best soap to use? Antibacterial, of course. However, according to the FDA, the very product we rely on to shield us from illness may well be making us sick. In a statement released on December 16, FDA officials warned consumers that the active ingredient in antibacterial soaps – triclosan – may be responsible for hormone imbalances and antibiotic resistance. In fact, despite its widespread use there is no clinical research to confirm that antibacterial soap has any added health.. READ MORE »
Is it possible to have too much of a good thing? With global challenges of poverty and scarcity, it’s hard to imagine governments thinking twice about embracing new sources of food supply. But that is exactly what is happening throughout the European Union (EU) this month with regard to farm animal cloning. The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm in Brussels is pushing for a ban on domestic animal cloning and any importation of cloned meat. EU Health Commissioner Tonio Borg describes the proposed regulation as “a ban on the technique, a ban on imports of the cloned animals themselves.. READ MORE »
GlaxoSmithKline has recently announced the winners of its first North American Discovery Fast Track competition. In a new kind of drug discovery partnership, the pharma giant offers entrants from Canada and the US an opportunity to transform their novel clinical research into medicine. Winners get the very best in pharmaceutical collaboration and expertise, including GSK’s screening platforms and access to their highly unique compound collections. If advanced chemical screening is successful, the academic investigators could be offered a collaboration with GSK’s Discovery Partnerships with Academia (DPAc) who contribute to all aspects of testing and development, including pharmaceutical quality assurance. Criteria for.. READ MORE »
Watery eyes, scratchy throat, angry rashes. From pesky annoyance to life threatening reaction: how many of us suffer from allergies? Health Canada says that non-food allergies have become chronic in people over the age of twelve. Over 65 million Americans have some sort of allergy, and in Europe over 87 million people struggle to control allergen sensitivities. Controlling allergies is a big business, and because typical treatments only ease symptoms rather than eliminating the root cause, allergies continue to torment their victims. On the quest for a definitive cure, researchers are on the lookout for new data and permanent solutions… READ MORE »
