Recent News

New Compounds Effective Against Alzheimer’s Disease Onset and Progression Drug discovery researchers at Northwestern University have developed a new class of compounds that have the potential to reduce the inflammation of brain cells and the neuron loss associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The new class of compounds are aminopyridazines. The original compound, called MW01-070C, is used[…]

November 23, 2004 Chronic Back Pain Shrinks ‘Thinking Parts’ of Brain CHICAGO—Chronic back pain, a condition afflicting many Americans, shrinks the brain by as much as 11 percent—equivalent to the amount of gray matter lost in 10 to 20 years of normal aging, a Northwestern University research study found. Loss in brain density is related[…]

November 3, 2004 Robert Bazell to Give Feinberg Lecture CHICAGO—Robert Bazell, NBC News’ chief health and science correspondent, will be the lecturer at the 9th Annual Frances Feinberg Memorial Lecture on November 15 at the Feinberg Pavilion Conference Center, third floor, 251 East Huron Street. There will be a reception at 4:30 p.m., followed by[…]

November 9, 2004 Cruise Ships: Alternative for Elderly Living? CHICAGO—Living on a cruise ship is a feasible and cost-effective option to assisted living facilities, and the services offered on a cruise ship parallel—even surpass—what is provided in senior care facilities, according to a study in the November issue of the Journal of the American Geriatric[…]

Feinberg Lecture Features NBC’s Robert Bazell This year’s shortage of the flu vaccine has once again highlighted a potential public health threat that shouldn’t be taken lightly, according to Robert Bazell, chief health and science correspondent for NBC News and a regular contributor to NBC Nightly News, Today, and Dateline NBC. Bazell spoke at the[…]

November 2, 2004 Scientists Find ‘Holy Grail’ of Hearing Research CHICAGO—Northwestern University neuroscientists and colleagues have identified a protein long considered to be the missing link in hearing research, a finding that may eventually lead to gene therapies for deafness. In the online version of the journal Nature, Jaime Garcia-Añoveros, PhD, Anne Duggan, PhD, and[…]

November 9, 2004 Over-the-Counter Drugs Could Save $4.75 Billion Annually Using nonprescription, or over-the-counter (OTC), medications to treat common upper respiratory infections could save $4.75 billion a year, according to a new study conducted by researchers from Northwestern University. The study, which was sponsored by the Consumer Healthcare Products Association and was presented on October[…]

November 16, 2004 Stable Weight Reduces Heart Risk CHICAGO—Gaining 15 pounds or more over several years is the major contributor to progression of risk factors for heart disease and development of metabolic syndrome, while maintaining a stable weight—even in individuals considered obese—significantly reduces those risks, according to a study led by a Northwestern University researcher.[…]

Study Assesses Effect of Tomato Oil on Precancerous Prostate Changes Lycopene, an antioxidant commonly found in tomatoes and tomato-based products, is perceived to reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer. A new study at Northwestern University seeks to determine whether natural tomato oil with a high concentration of lycopene may reverse or delay progression of[…]

October 5, 2004 System Helps Curb Severe Anemia CHICAGO—Cooperation among international adverse event reporting agencies has led to an 83 percent decline in a rare, potentially life-threatening form of anemia associated with recombinant human erythropoietin (epoetin), a widely used product for anemia that occurs among cancer patients or persons undergoing dialysis. Epoetin is the most[…]

September 28, 2004 Aneurysm Study Uses Gene Bank SamplesCHICAGO—In a major milestone in genetic research at Northwestern University, a study on the possible genetic causes of abdominal aortic aneurysms will be the first to use samples from NUgene, the University’s gene banking project. William Pearce, MD, professor of surgery and chief of vascular surgery at[…]

Arthritis Costs Are Double That of Other Patients By Elizabeth Crown Medical care expenditures for those with arthritis are at least double the amount spent by those without arthritis, according to research presented at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Scientific Meeting in San Antonio, Texas. Researchers from Northwestern University used results from the 1999–2000[…]

October 6, 2004 Study Looks at Drug to Treat Brain Cancer CHICAGO—A Northwestern University cancer researcher is conducting a study that will compare the effects of whole brain radiation therapy with supplemental oxygen without or with EfaproxynTM (efaproxiral), an experimental radiation sensitizer, in participants with brain cancer originating from metastatic breast cancer. Efaproxiral may improve[…]

October 21, 2004 Grant to Advance Technologies for Diabetes By Elizabeth Crown CHICAGO—Northwestern University has received a major grant from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) to advance technologies in the field of islet cell replacement for the treatment of type 1 diabetes. Principal investigator on the $1.5 million JDRF program project is Dixon B.[…]

October 19, 2004 Contact: Pat Vaughan Tremmel at 847/491-4892 or atp-tremmel@northwestern.edu Researchers Pinpoint False Memories Formation EVANSTON—False memories are the controversial subject of hotly contested arguments about the validity of repressed memories that can surface years after a traumatic event and about the credibility of eyewitness accounts in criminal trials. Because memories are imperfect under[…]

Stem Cell Biologist John Kessler Argues for Change in Government Policies The controversy over stem cell research continues to grab headlines, especially in this presidential election year. For scientists, the field shows great promise for developing treatments and cures for a wide variety of diseases and conditions. For the general public, the field is often[…]

Young Women with Low Risk Have Lower Death Rate By Elizabeth Crown Young women at low risk for coronary heart disease and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) have lower long-term death rates from these diseases and all other causes compared with those with higher risk levels, according to an article in the Oct. 6 issue of the[…]

October 12, 2004 Nobel Winner is Northwestern Researcher CHICAGO—Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine has a connection to the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Nobel laureate Aaron Ciechanover, PhD, who with two other scientists discovered how a protein called ubiquitin within cells targets other proteins to be discarded, is in the second year of a[…]