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Why Do People With Down Syndrome Have Less Cancer?
Most cancers are rare in people with Down syndrome, whose overall cancer mortality is below 10 percent of that in the general population. Since they have an extra copy of chromosome 21, it"s been proposed that people with Down syndrome may be getting an extra dose of one or more cancer-protective genes. The late cancer researcher Judah Folkman, MD, founder of the Vascular Biology Program at Children"s Hospital Boston, popularized the notion that they might be benefiting from a gene that blocks angiogenesis, the development of blood vessels essential for cancer"s growth, since their incidence of other angiogenesis-related diseases like macular degeneration is also lower. A study from Children"s confirms this idea in mice and human cells and identifies specific new therapeutic targets for treating cancer.
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New Lease Of Life For Vintage Oral Health Posters, UK
The BDA has produced a series of vintage oral health promotional posters and postcards featuring designs produced by the Ministry of Health between the nineteen thirties and sixties. The exclusive series, unveiled at the British Dental Conference and Exhibition, uses a combination of eye-catching vintage illustrations and photographs to emphasise the value of good oral health and nutrition in a fun and novel way.
News of the day
UAW To Accept Up To 20% Of GM Stock; Agrees To Concessions On Retiree Health Care Obligations, Labor Rules
United Auto Workers leaders on Tuesday agreed to accept up to 20% of General Motors stock, as well as concessions on labor rules and retiree health care obligations, as the automaker faces a June 1 deadline to restructure or seek bankruptcy protection, the Detroit News reports (Aguilar/Shepardson, Detroit News, 5/27). Under the deal, the voluntary employees" beneficiary association would receive 17.5% of common GM stock, $6.5 billion of preferred shares, a $2.5 billion note and warrants equal to 2.5% of GM"s stock (Reuters/USA Today, 5/27). In addition, the VEBA would receive $585 million annually in interest income on its preferred stock (Detroit News, 5/27). Another concession included in the tentative deal is the elimination of dental, vision and some prescription drug coverage for hourly retirees (Shepardson/Aguilar, Detroit News, 5/26). UAW also would hold a seat on the GM board of directors (Cho et al., Washington Post, 5/27).Because of a proposed deal announced earlier this month, the Treasury Department and UAW, together, are to own 89% of GM"s stock, meaning that if the UAW-GM deal is approved, the Treasury would own about a 70% share of GM"s stock (Detroit News, 5/26). Current bondholders would hold about a 10% stake in the company (Washington Post, 5/27). The remaining 1% would be held by existing shareholders (Detroit News, 5/26).The total 20% is about half of what was anticipated (Higgins, Detroit Free Press, 5/26). The "significant concessions" made by UAW, which was eligible to receive up to 39% of GM"s equity through the VEBA, "could mean that [GM] is attempting to appease unsecured bondholders, who charged that the UAW was getting a better deal," according to the News (Detroit News, 5/27). UAW said the revised agreement with GM was necessary for the automaker to survive, but the deal will leave hundreds of thousands of GM retirees paying higher out-of-pocket medical expenses, the Wall Street Journal reports (Stoll et al., Wall Street Journal, 5/27).UAW members are scheduled to vote on the agreement on Wednesday and Thursday (Detroit News, 5/26). However, "[e]ven with UAW approval, GM is still likely to file for bankruptcy, since bondholders are unlikely to swallow deep concessions," according to the News (Detroit News, 5/27).
Sexual Health

Alkermes Initiates Two New Clinical Trials Of ALKS 33

Alkermes, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALKS) announced the initiation of two new clinical trials of ALKS 33, an oral opioid modulator for the potential treatment of addiction and other nervous system disorders. Study ALK33-004 is a phase 1 clinical trial designed to examine the ability of ALKS 33 to block the effects of an opioid following a single oral dose of ALKS 33 in healthy, non-dependent, opioid-experienced subjects. Study ALK33-003 is a phase 1 clinical trial designed to evaluate the pharmacokinetics, safety and tolerability of multiple doses of ALKS 33 in healthy volunteers. The initiation of these studies follows the successful completion of a phase 1 dose escalation study of ALKS 33 in healthy volunteers. Alkermes expects to report data from both ALK33-004 and ALK33-003 in the second half of calendar 2009. "ALKS 33 is an excellent example of how Alkermes is leveraging its new insights about opioid receptor pathways to develop medications with unique advantages over currently available therapies," stated Elliot Ehrich, M.D., chief medical officer at Alkermes. "We expect to use the data from these additional phase 1 studies to shape our plans for phase 2 clinical development." ALKS 33 Study Designs ALK33-004 is a phase 1, randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled, single-dose study designed to test the ability of ALKS 33 to block the effects of an opioid agonist, remifentanil, a commercially available analgesic. Approximately 24 healthy, non-dependent, opioid-experienced subjects will be randomized to receive a placebo dose as well as one of two dose levels of ALKS 33. The ability of ALKS 33 to block the effects of remifentanil will be measured by pupillometry assessments and subjective measures of opioid effects. The pharmacokinetics and safety of ALKS 33 will also be evaluated. ALK33-003 is a phase 1 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-dose study designed to assess the steady-state pharmacokinetics, safety and tolerability of ALKS 33. Approximately 30 healthy subjects will be randomized to receive seven consecutive, daily oral doses of one of two dose levels of ALKS 33 or placebo. About ALKS 33 ALKS 33 is an oral opioid modulator that builds on Alkermes" scientific expertise in brain reward pathways as well as the company"s clinical and commercial knowledge in the field of addiction. In April 2009, Alkermes presented topline data from a phase 1 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of ALKS 33 in 16 healthy volunteers. Data from the study showed that ALKS 33 was generally well tolerated and demonstrated rapid oral absorption, high plasma concentrations and duration of action that supports once daily dosing. The study results are consistent with previous findings that ALKS 33 is not metabolized by the liver, a unique advantage over existing oral therapies for addiction. About Opioid Receptor Pathways Opioid receptor pathways have biological activity throughout the body including the brain, gastrointestinal system, immune system and cardiovascular system. Consequently, opioid receptor pathways play a key role in a broad range of nervous system disorders such as pain, addiction, psychiatric disorders, gastrointestinal disorders and immune disorders. Opioid modulators can act as agonists, antagonists or partial agonists at opioid receptors throughout the body. Emerging biological research and new medicinal chemistry insights now allow for the development of novel opioid modulators with the potential to show enhanced activity at opioid receptor sites and could ultimately lead to improved therapeutic options. Alkermes


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