• Platelet shortages come to an end with this new discovery

  • ‘New tumour-shrinking nanoparticle to fight cancer’

  • Vaccine credited with HPV virus reduction in Scotland

  • Lasers help doctors remove brain cancer- study

  • Niger state to spend N5.5bn on fertilizer procurement

  • Australian scientists use soybean oil to create graphene

  • Drug inspired from sharks’ immune system may aid pulmonary fibrosis treatment

Drones can save lives of heart attack patients faster than ambulances

Jun 15, 2017 0

A new study has found that drones equipped with a portable medical device can help save lives of heart attack patients by reaching the spot four times faster than an ambulance. A team of researchers of Karolinska Institutet in Sweden compared the time taken to deliver an automated external defibrillator (AED) using fully autonomous drones for simulated out-of- hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) with emergency medical services (EMS). The Swedish Transportation Agency has developed a drone equipped with an AED, a portable device that checks the heart rhythm and can send an electric shock to the heart to try to restore a normal rhythm.. The drone was equipped with a global positioning system (GPS) and a high-definition camera and integrated with an autopilot software system. It was dispatched for out-of-sight flights to locations where OHCAs were within a 10 kilometre radius from the fire station. ...

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Platelet shortages come to an end with this new discovery

May 22, 2017 0

A new discovery may be the key to stopping shortages of these vital blood-clotting cells that can represent the difference between life and death, says a study. The finding from the University Of Virginia School Of Medicine also could offer big benefits for premature babies, opening the door to new treatments for a serious condition called neonatal thrombocytopenia that affects up to 30 percent of babies in neonatal intensive care units. The researchers identified a “master switch” that they may be able to manipulate to overcome the obstacles that have prevented doctors from producing platelets in large quantities outside the body. “The platelet supply is limited and the demand is growing,” said researcher Adam Goldfarb. ...

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‘New tumour-shrinking nanoparticle to fight cancer’

May 3, 2017 0

Scientists have developed a new cancer-fighting nanoparticle aimed at shrinking breast cancer tumours, while also preventing recurrence of the disease. In the study by researchers at Mayo Clinic in the US, mice that received an injection with the nanoparticle showed a 70 to 80 per cent reduction in tumour size. Mice treated with these nanoparticles showed resistance to future tumour recurrence, even when exposed to cancer cells a month later. The results show that the newly designed nanoparticle produced potent anti-tumour immune responses to HER2-positive breast cancers. Breast cancers with higher levels of HER2 protein are known to grow aggressively and spread more quickly than those without the mutation. “We were astounded to find that the animals treated with these nanoparticles showed a lasting anti-cancer effect,” said Betty YS Kim, neurosurgeon and neuroscientist at Mayo Clinic. ...

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Vaccine credited with HPV virus reduction in Scotland

Apr 6, 2017 0

A campaign to vaccinate girls against a cancer-causing sexually transmitted infection has led to a dramatic drop in reported cases. Researchers have found a 90% fall in levels of the human papilloma virus (HPV) in Scottish women since the vaccine was made available in 2008. HPV virus types are thought to account for about 90% of cervical cancers. Scientists hope the drop in HPV cases will lead to a significant drop in future cervical cancer cases. The researchers, led by senior epidemiologist Dr Kevin Pollock at Health Protection Scotland, said they hoped to see a decrease in new diagnoses within a year. ...

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Lasers help doctors remove brain cancer- study

Feb 8, 2017 0

Lasers can help surgeons rapidly analyse brain cancers and decide how much tissue to remove, a study shows. It is a difficult decision as taking too little leads to the cancer coming back, while too much could lead to disability. ...

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Niger state to spend N5.5bn on fertilizer procurement

Feb 5, 2017 0

The Commissioner of agriculture, Alhaji Kabiru Abbass has disclosed in Minna that the Niger state Government has approved the sum of N3 billion for the purchase of fertilizer for farmers and a loan of N2.5 billion to purchase excess bumpers as a precautionary measure to check food scarcity this farming season in the state, adding that the Government will purchase 30,000metric tones of fertilizers at federal government price of N5, 000. He has stated that the state government has put every arrangement in motion to ensure that the farmers get the fertilizer as early as March, as a way to curtail all encumbrances encountered by farmers every farming season. ...

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Australian scientists use soybean oil to create graphene

Feb 1, 2017 0

Australian scientists have turned ordinary cooking oil into graphene, in a discovery they say lowers its cost to produce. Graphene, a strong carbon material, is just one atom wide and conducts electricity better than copper. ...

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Drug inspired from sharks’ immune system may aid pulmonary fibrosis treatment

Jan 31, 2017 0

New Delhi: Sharks are known to have unusual immune systems. The fact is that these marine predators have a remarkable cancer shield. Earlier research revealed a promising anti-tumor agent obtainable in quantity from shark cartilage. ...

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