ScienceCache
Vol. 213
Dec. 12, 2005
EPA FUNDS STUDY OF AIR POLLUTION, HEART DISEASE
Today the Environmental Protection Agency awarded the Medical Center
$8 million to study the link between cardiovascular health and the
harmful ambient air particles we breathe every day. Hospitalizations
for heart problems tend to soar when urban air pollution levels are
highest, but scientists are unsure why. Toxicologists, pulmonologists,
cardiologists, epidemiologists and atmospheric scientists will work
together to test the hypothesis that pollution leads to inflammation,
heart disease, and sometimes, early death from cardiac arrest. This
is especially worrisome for vulnerable individuals such as diabetics,
people with respiratory disease, and elderly individuals with other
pre-existing medical conditions. “This cross-disciplinary, five-year
team approach is designed to identify the sources of the finest particles
of air pollution, characterize their health effects, and provide the
government with information that could change the regulation of those
particles most likely to cause health problems,” says Gunter
Oberdoerster, director of the University’s Particulate Matter
Center and professor of environmental medicine. The university’s
center is one of five established by EPA to study particulate matter,
which comes from coal-burning power plants, factories, construction,
vehicles, tilled fields, unpaved roads, stone-crushing, and the burning
of wood and other materials.
Full story
NEW THERAPY OFFERS HOPE FOR TREATING ADVANCED-STAGE LYMPHOMA
Oncologists have been stymied when treating some patients with lymphoma
who do not respond to new, targeted therapies. Now a study by scientists
at the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center shows some promise for an experimental
drug that may combat non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma when other drugs fail.
In results presented today at the American Society of Hematology’s
annual meeting in Atlanta, scientists showed that nearly three out of
four patients responded to the experimental medication bendamustine,
which attacks the DNA of cancer cells and forces them to self-destruct.
Most of the 77 patients in the study had advanced follicular lymphoma
and had not responded to rituximab, considered the wonder drug for lymphomas. “This
is very exciting because it’s the first study of chemotherapy for
a class of patients who didn’t respond to rituximab and it provides
an effective alternative for them,” says Jonathan Friedberg, associate
director of lymphoma clinical research at Wilmot, who presented the results. “Typically
these patients need several different therapies over the years and none
of them are curative. This data suggests that bendamustine will add to
our treatment options for this disease.”
Full story
NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENT TESTED FOR PARKINSON’S, HUNTINGTON’S
Medical Center scientists are coordinating two clinical trials involving
1,200 patients to verify whether a high dose of a popular nutritional
supplement, coenzyme Q10, stalls the disabling symptoms of early Parkinson’s
disease and Huntington’s disease. Previous studies have shown that
CoQ10 at lower doses appeared to slow the progression of the illnesses,
but physicians say more evidence is needed before they can recommend
CoQ10 as a treatment. The new trials will test the safety and benefit
of CoQ10 at a higher dosage. Huntington’s and Parkinson’s
diseases are both progressive neurological disorders that result in the
death of vital brain cells. Patients experience a gradual decline in
the ability to function mentally and physically. Improving the energy
production of cells is one treatment strategy for the diseases. CoQ10,
which is found naturally in nearly all of the cells in our body, has
an important role in keeping healthy the mitochondria, a cell’s
energy storehouse. CoQ10 is also an anti-oxidant. The National Institute
of Neurological Disorders and Stroke awarded the university $13 million
to conduct the studies. The investigators include David Oakes, Michael
McDermott, and Karl Kieburtz.
Full story
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