http://www.bioscinews.co.uk News from the Bio Medical Community BioScientifica Ltd BioSciNews.co.uk 4ab45e0b-19c3-4d2d-83a2-ca10bbd43a8f http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2382 A meta-analysis of trials on calcium supplementation published in the <i>British Medical Journal</i> has found that calcium supplementation can increase the risk of heart attack by 30%. The study excluded trials where vitamin D was co-administered with calcium. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-10805062">Full article</a></p> Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT bb52b4ca-19de-4207-8cc0-2d1d66dc13c5 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2383 A team of researchers from Spain and Cambridge has produced new data to further characterise the role of inflammation in the development of type 2 diabetes and help explain why obesity does not always lead to insulin resistance and beyond. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=82172&amp;CultureCode=en">Full article</a></p> Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT b31d6ef5-70a6-4901-a972-8fe465a217ec http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2380 The National Resources Defense Council, a non-profit environmental group, has filed a suit against the US Food and Drug Administration for failing to establish safe conditions of use for the anti-microbial soaps triclosan and triclocarban, which are claimed to cause a number of health problems including disruption of thyroid and sex hormone production. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE66R3Y120100728">Full article</a></p> Wed, 28 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 744ff9ae-8a18-4767-b211-b6e024448151 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2373 An Indian health minister has highlighted a growing practice by Indian farmers of injecting fruit and vegetables with the hormone oxytocin before sale to make them seem plumper, and warned of its potential dangers. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ht1b_BmocJMYnJx-vSXqAFFESJSg">Full article</a></p> Wed, 28 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 6ba105c4-c14a-40b5-97ba-6db52f8051c1 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2372 The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has issued new guidelines to address concerns from pregnant women over the advice they are given on weight loss. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-10781031">Full article</a></p> Tue, 27 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 6846298c-339c-49db-bb62-8e0475db511d http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2362 Researchers from Cardiff University have suggested that a large rise in spending on drugs to control blood sugar is not fully explained by a rise in the number of people with type 2 diabetes, but is also due to a rise in the use of more expensive diabetes therapies. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-10740224">Full article</a></p> Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 7398eebb-8a94-49e2-aa20-c1e667330407 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2360 US scientists have shown a link between osteocalcin, a hormone involved in bone turnover, and the development of type 2 diabetes. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-10727169">Full article</a></p> Fri, 23 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT f04294aa-a584-47f1-b9d8-d2325cd2c2a9 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2364 Research published in the journal <i>Cell</i> has demonstrated a unique communication between pancreas and bone cells through a number of metabolic hormones. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/195620.php">Full article</a></p> Fri, 23 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 2303cd40-5b7c-4c03-8c46-f737d6277807 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2359 A paper in the journal <i>Nature</i> discusses ways in which new drugs may be developed for the treatment of type 2 diabetes in obese people, following the recent implications of an increased risk of heart-attack with Avandia (generic name rosiglitazone). <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100721/full/466420a.html">Full article</a></p> Wed, 21 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 478d3b51-41ac-4aa8-91dd-6b6a138bfd37 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2356 New research published in the journal <i>Endocrine-Related Cancer</i> has shown that the hormone leptin is able to increase the growth, survival and resitance to certain chemotherapy treatments in colorectal cancer stem cells. This link may help to substantiate the link between obesity and colorectal cancer, and provide new treatment options in this increasingly common disease. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/195440.php">Full article</a></p> Wed, 21 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 87a5b1ba-4eb8-4669-8a61-59a82c7c1219 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2349 A study from the University of Adelaide, Australia has found that high maternal cortisol levels can affect the birth weight of female fetuses, which is not seen in male fetuses. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19195-male-fetuses-ignore-their-stressedout-mothers.html">Full article</a></p> Tue, 20 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 0bfa0fdc-4b3e-4524-bca2-331d47da464f http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2344 Research published in the <i>Journal of the American Geriatrics Society</i> has further characterised the effects of the different types of body fat, finding that fat carried around the hips is more detrimental to women's memory than that carried elsewhere. The study authors propose that this is due to greater production of oestrogen by belly fat than by hip fat. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-10614837">Full article</a></p> Wed, 14 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT c8ba8181-8673-47a7-bc37-916a1dfcd718 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2341 Professor Richard Sharpe, convenor of the SfE Endocrine Disruptors Special Interest Group, has responded to an article in the <i>Daily Telegraph</i>, 29 June 2010, which reported that shopping could cause impotence in men through the effect of the substance bisphenol A, which can be found in the ink of some till receipts. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.senseaboutscience.org.uk/index.php/site/other/515">Full response</a></p> Tue, 13 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 7ae1cd1e-0324-4c3c-9df3-82485c50de18 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2332 A study from the Medical Research Council has suggested that patients recommended for weight-loss programmes may acheive better results if they are referred to a 'slimming club' style scheme instead of the current NHS programme. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/10577030.stm">Full article</a></p> Mon, 12 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 5197dd8a-fd8f-40d9-847b-3471ded2ecde http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2325 A study published in the journal <i>Cell</i> has found that mice placed in an 'enriched' environment have a greater ability to prevent the progression of injected cancer cells. The researchers also present evidence showing that the hormone leptin may have a part to play in this protective effect. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100708/full/news.2010.342.html">Full article</a></p> Thu, 08 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 1447263f-b538-456a-bcb6-78b54015f494 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2357 The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has released draft guidelines to recommend against NHS provision of Roche's Avastin (generic name bevacizumab) for advanced breast cancer, stating that clinical trials of the drug produced "uncertain evidence". <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/idCNN2025714420100720?rpc=44">Full article</a></p> <p><b>Update:</b> <a target="_blank" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2025714420100720">US panel rejects Roche's Avastin for breast cancer</a> (Reuters, 20 July 2010).</p> Thu, 08 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 44d02299-7622-4c09-9709-6732ad7d8485 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2321 A non-intervention prosepctive cohort study following 202 Plymouth children over a period of 4 years has provided further information towards establishing where the causality lies, if any, in the link between obesity and physical activity. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/10545542.stm">Full article</a></p> Wed, 07 Jul 2010 12:00:00 GMT 75aae825-2898-4e53-9cdb-b7f3254952bb http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2309 New initiatives to prevent diabetic crises include a medical alert dog, which is able to sense hypoglycaemia in its owner and warn her accordingly. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/10446817.stm">Full article</a></p> Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 GMT 1cdac75a-b760-4dbd-83f8-6c885578be27 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2307 A study on courtship behaviour in birds has shown that females can become more fertile after observing a 'better' courtship ritual by males, can produce eggs containing more testosterone, and that this association is independent of the sperm quality. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/06/100629-science-animals-birds-mating-breeding-females-males/">Full article</a></p> Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 GMT 18e86334-6704-44db-b331-fcea1aba8958 http://www.bioscinews.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=2308 A feature article by the Wellcome Trust looks at the effect of maternal diet on the developing baby's long-term health, in particular its effect on bone and metabolic health. <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/News/2010/Features/WTX059952.htm?utm_source=N%26F28610b&amp;utm_medium=Newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=N%26F">Full feature</a></p> Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 GMT