Kansas firm recalls cantaloupe linked to Listeria outbreak

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota n">(Reuters) - A Kansas-based food processor recalled hundreds of pounds of fresh-cut cantaloupe on Friday because of possible Listeria contamination linked to melons from Colorado that were blamed for an outbreak that has killed eight people.Carol's Cuts was recalling 594 pounds of cantaloupe packaged in 5-pound trays and as an ingredient in fruit medleys distributed in Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska, a recall notice posted on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website said.In addition to the eight deaths, a total of 55 people in 14 states have...

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Roche, Genentech researchers avoid business talk

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Ransdell PiersonNEW YORK | Fri Sep 23, 2011 5:34pm EDT NEW YORK (Reuters) - When scientists at Genentech and parent Roche need to discuss business, they do not talk to each other -- they use lawyers.Roche acquired the remaining stake of Genentech it did not already own in 2009, against the protests of critics who feared the cancer-drug powerhouse would lose the innovation prowess that made it the envy of the biotech world if it was absorbed by far-bigger Roche Holding AG.But Roche research chief Jean-Jacques Garaud says the creative fires are burning...

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Creepy-crawlies may help heal diabetes wounds

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Fran LowryFri Sep 23, 2011 5:14pm EDT n">(Reuters Health) - Researchers from Hawaii have a suggestion for how to jump-start the healing of difficult diabetic wounds: let maggots do the work.To allow such wounds to heal, doctors remove infected or dead tissue with scalpels or enzymes, a process they call debridement.But these tools often fail, said Dr. Lawrence Eron from Kaiser Hospital and the University of Hawaii in Honolulu."These problem patients with diabetes really need better treatments in order to salvage their limbs," he told Reuters...

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U.S. FDA guidance on biosimilars may be imminent

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Lewis KrauskopfNEW YORK | Fri Sep 23, 2011 4:32pm EDT NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration appears to be on the verge of issuing long-awaiting guidelines for the development of generic versions of complex biotechnology medicines.The FDA still plans to release the guidance by the end of the year but the agency's top drug official, Janet Woodcock, has indicated it could come "as early as the next few weeks, maybe even days," Janice Soreth, deputy director of the agency's Europe office in London, said on Friday.Europe is ahead...

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Woman wins court order against 1972 Idaho abortion law

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Laura ZuckermanSALMON, Idaho | Fri Sep 23, 2011 11:35pm EDT SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) - An Idaho woman prosecuted for terminating her own pregnancy with abortion pills she ordered online won a temporary court order on Friday barring enforcement of the decades-old law under which she was charged.But the federal judge in the case also rebuffed her separate bid to block a newly enacted state law that bans abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy unless there is proof the woman's life is in danger.On that issue U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill ruled...

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Very preterm kindergartners face learning trouble

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Anne HardingNEW YORK | Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:56pm EDT NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Kindergartners who were born extremely prematurely are much more likely to have learning problems than their peers who were born at term, even if they do not have overall intellectual impairment, new research shows.Yet more than a third of children in the study with learning problems were not enrolled in special education programs, Dr. H. Gerry Taylor of the University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland and his colleagues found.The results underscore the importance...

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Food for thought: can fish lower your stroke risk?

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Fresh sardines, caught just after sunrise, are on display at a fish market on Croatia's largest Adriatic city of Split Aug 20, 2004. Credit: Reuters/ Matko BiljakBy Genevra PittmanNEW YORK | Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:35pm EDT NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People who eat fish a few times each week are slightly less likely to suffer a stroke than those who only eat a little or none at all.That's the conclusion of an analysis of 15 studies, each of which asked...

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Dutch doctors urge end to male circumcision

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Roberta CowanAMSTERDAM | Fri Sep 23, 2011 10:49am EDT AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch doctors want politicians and human rights groups to speak out and discourage the practice of male circumcision in the Netherlands because they say it is a "painful and harmful ritual," and a violation of children's rights.Between 10,000 and 15,000 boys are circumcised in the Netherlands each year, mostly for religious reasons and not always with an anesthetic, according to the Royal Dutch Medical Association (KNMG) which represents surgeons, pediatricians, general...

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Bayer drug a "major new player" in prostate cancer

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota By Kate KellandSTOCKHOLM | Fri Sep 23, 2011 6:12pm EDT STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - An experimental drug from Germany's Bayer and Norwegian biotech Algeta that prolongs the lives of patients with advanced prostate cancer is a major step forward in treatment of the disease, cancer experts said on Saturday.A late stage trial of Alpharadin, a new type of drug that delivers minute, highly-charged doses of radiation to secondary tumors in the bone, was halted early after researchers saw patients on the new treatment living almost three months longer on average...

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How safe is your indoor pool?

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota It's important for swimmers to minimize the amount of contaminants in the water by showering beforehand.Researchers trying to determine the long-term effects of the chemicals in pool waterContaminants mix with chlorine to form chloramines, which give off a strong odorSwimming in indoor chlorinated pools has been linked to asthma and bronchitis in children(CNN) -- Catherine Garceau doesn't go to the pool anymore. The former Olympic swimmer has trained...

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The death of a friend

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Marci Smith "just wanted to enjoy every minute she had left," said her husband, Tim. Their son is Joshua. Marci Smith was one of the first people featured in this columnThe ultimate empowered patient, she diagnosed her own cancerCohen: She beat cancer in how she lived the last 4½ years(CNN) -- It's never easy when you get that phone call, even when you've known for years that it might be coming. But on Friday, I got the call that someone I loved had...

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Better heart, better sex

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Nearly 1 in 5 men in the U.S. has difficulty achieving or maintaining an erectionErectile dysfunction is also a known harbinger of heart diseaseDoctors should inform the public of this connection, researchers sayExercise is key for heart health and blood vessel function(Health.com) -- Middle-aged men who take steps to improve their heart health by eating better, getting more exercise, or taking cholesterol-lowering drugs may end up improving their sex...

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Depression increases risk of stroke, study says

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Four percent of the estimated 795,000 strokes that occur in the United States each year can be attributed to depression.Depression increased the risk of ischemic strokeDepression increases the risk of heart attacks (and especially fatal ones)People who are depressed are more likely to smoke or drink heavily(Health.com) -- People with depression are more likely to have a stroke than their mentally healthy peers, and their strokes are more likely to be...

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Is Sperm from Redheads Really Less Desirable?

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Redheaded men are probably feeling a little hurt this week in light of news that one of the world's largest sperm banks is up-to-here and has stopped accepting their gametes.In a cringe-worthy choice of words, the head of the Cryos International sperm bank in Denmark told MSNBC.com that — inasmuch as it relates to sperm donated by redheads — "our stock is about to explode."Cryos' surplus includes 140,000 doses of redhead sperm, and that's more than enough for now. And by the way, they've got plenty of quintessential blond-haired, blue-eyed Scandinavian...

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Suicide of a Bullied Teenager, Who Promised 'It Gets Better'

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota "They'd taunt me in the hallways and I felt like I could never escape it."—JAMEY RODEMEYER, 14, a Buffalo junior high school student, describing the bullying he endured from peers, in a video for It Gets Better, a project created to give hope to bullied gay teens. "I just want to tell you that it does get better," he said in May, urging other gay teens, "Just love yourself and you're set." Earlier this week, Jamey was found dead outside his home of an apparent suicide. "Sometimes the damage done by hate and by haters is simply too great," wrote Dan...

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Could Taking Birth Control Pills Make Women's Memory More Like Men's?

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota A new study shows that taking birth control pills can affect women's memory.Shawn Nielsen, a graduate student in neurobiology and behavior at the University of California, Irvine, conducted a study with 66 female students, half of whom were taking oral contraception and half who were not.The participants were given a unique memory test. Some women were randomly assigned to view an emotionally charged video about a young boy who was hit by a car while walking with his mother and then rushed to the hospital, where doctors reattach his severed feet....

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First European Embryonic Stem Cell Trial Gets Green Light

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Health authorities in the U.K. approved on Thursday Europe's first clinical trial involving embryonic stem cells.Surgeons at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London will treat 12 patients with Stargardt's macular dystrophy, a major cause of blindness in young people. Patients with Stargardt's gradually lose retinal pigment epithelial cells, or RPE cells, which are essential for maintaining the proper environment that encourages retinal cells to grow.Patients in the U.K. trial will receive RPE cells grown from human embryonic stem cells. This is the second...

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Study: Traffic Pollution May Boost Your Risk of Heart Attack

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Exposure to high levels of traffic pollution may boost your risk of heart attack, according to a new study published on BMJ.com.But the study found that the risk was transient, lasting one to six hours, and that rather than increasing overall risk of heart attack, exposure to pollution appeared to precipitate cardiac events in people who were already at higher-than-average risk.Researchers in epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine analyzed data on 79,288 patients who had a heart attack between 2003 and 2006 in 15 urban...

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Too Good To Be True? Anti-Aging Proteins Not So Potent After All

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota New research suggests that the promising longevity gene may not lead to longer lives after all.In recent years, studies have led some scientists to believe that the genes that make sirtuins, proteins that affect cell metabolism, could yield new targets for drugs that would extend life.Early work in worms and fruit flies suggested that boosting sirtuins could extend life by up to 50%. Other experiments in lab animals also suggested that the proteins were responsible for the life-extending effects of calorie restriction. And even more encouraging for...

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Routine Rotavirus Vaccination Keeps Kids Out of the Hospital

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Savings in health care costs since the 2006 introduction of routine vaccination against rotavirus, a leading cause of diarrhea in infants and young children. A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that nearly 65,000 fewer American children have been hospitalized since routine vaccination was instituted. Compared with unvaccinated children, those who received the rotavirus vaccine had 89% fewer rotavirus-specific hospitalizations, 48% fewer ER visits and 12% fewer visits to the doctor's office. Before the vaccine was...

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Bisexual Squid? Not Exactly — Just Lonely

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota A female Octopoteuthis deletron observed by researchersCourtesy of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research InstituteMale deep-sea squid will get it on with just about anything with tentacles.A team of researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute observed nearly 20 years of mating behavior of Octopoteuthis deletron, recorded on video by remote-controlled vehicles up to half a mile below the surface of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California....

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A Software-Testing Company Relies on Employees' Asperger's Skills

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota The software testers at Aspiritech are a collection of characters. Katie Levin talks nonstop. Brian Tozzo hates driving. Jamie Specht is bothered by bright lights, vacuum cleaners and the feel of carpeting against her skin. Rider Hallenstein draws cartoons of himself as a DeLorean sports car. Rick Alexander finds it unnerving to sit near other people.This is the unusual workforce of a U.S. startup that specializes in finding software bugs by harnessing the talents of young adults with autism.Traits that make great software testers — intense focus,...

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Playing Favorites: Why Mom Likes You (or One of Your Siblings) Best

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota There aren't a lot of ironclad rules of family life, but here's one: No matter how much your parents deny it — and here's betting they deny it a lot — they have a favorite child. And if you're a parent, so do you.The golden child may be the oldest one, unless it's the youngest. It may be the toughest one, unless it's the most sensitive. It's not even necessary that Mom and Dad have the same favorite — and typically they don't.One oft-cited study showed that about 70% of fathers and 65% of mothers exhibit a preference for one child or another. For...

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Space Junk Will Fall To Earth This Week

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota Enlarge NASA This artist's conceptual image provided by NASA shows the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS. NASA This artist's conceptual image provided by NASA shows the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS.It looks like a giant piece of biscotti covered with gold foil and pipe cleaners. But it's really a decommissioned weather satellite the size of a bus that NASA says will probably fall to Earth by Friday, oh, give or take a day.Most...

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The Toughest Little Bird You've Never Heard Of

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota They're nothing to look at. They're not colorful. They seem so ordinary, in mottled brown, black and gray, if you noticed them at all, you'd think, "ah, just another shore bird, pecking at something in the water." But you'd be so wrong. Bar-tailed Godwits are special. So special, they deserve special attention. They are the only birds known to fly more than 7,000 miles nonstop, that means no food breaks, no water breaks, no sleep breaks, no pausing,...

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NASA Satellite Expected To Collide With Earth

AppId is over the quotaAppId is over the quota According to NASA, a retired U.S. research satellite the size of a school bus has been sucked into the Earth's gravitational pull. The space agency expects the satellite to break into pieces on entry to the atmosphere, and for some of those pieces — some as heavy as 300 pounds — to rain down later this week. Donald Kessler, who served as NASA's senior scientist for orbital debris research, tells Michele Norris that an event of this nature is highly unusual — and odds are slim that the debris will injure people or destroy property.Copyright © 2011...

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