Category Archives: Cell Medicine

Public release date: 16-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Anita Srikameswaran SrikamAV@upmc.edu 412-578-9193 University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences PITTSBURGH, March 16 Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have identified a cell-signaling pathway that plays a key role in increasing insulin secretion during pregnancy and, when blocked, leads to the development of gestational diabetes. Their findings are available online today in Diabetes, one of the journals of the American Diabetes Association. During pregnancy, pancreatic beta cells should expand and produce more insulin to adapt to the needs of the growing baby, explained senior investigator Adolfo Garcia-Ocana, Ph.D., associate professor of medicine, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Pitt School of Medicine. Newborns can suffer complications if the mother's blood glucose is abnormally high during pregnancy, a condition known as gestational diabetes. "Not much was known about the maternal mechanisms that lead to increased beta cell number and function during pregnancy," Dr. Garcia-Ocana said. "But research has shown that high blood glucose in pregnancy can have long-term health consequences for the child, as well as a greater risk of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol for the mother." His team began studying a protein … Continue reading →

By JIM SHELTON Journal Register News Service news@morningjournal.com Twitter: @morningjournal Hugh Taylor (Photo courtesy of Yale University) NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Yale University researchers say they may have found a link between cell phone use during pregnancy and behavioral problems in children such as hyperactivity. We cant extrapolate from this what level of exposure is bad, but it lays the groundwork for saying cell phone exposure can cause harm, says Hugh S. Taylor, a professor at the Yale School of Medicine and chief of the division of reproductive endocrinology and infertility in the schools department of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences. If youre pregnant, it makes sense to move your cell phone away from your abdomen when youre not on an active call. Putting it on a desk or a table might be better, Taylor says. The Yale study was conducted on pregnant mice, exposing them to radiation from a cell phone placed over their cage. Taylor says the findings, published in the March 15 issue of Scientific Reports, mirror those of previous epidemiological studies conducted with people. Those studies, Taylor explains, were sometimes dismissed by critics as being inconclusive, because other environmental factors in the pregnant womens lives might … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (Mar. 15, 2012) Exposure to radiation from cell phones during pregnancy affects the brain development of offspring, potentially leading to hyperactivity, Yale School of Medicine researchers have determined. The results, based on studies in mice, are published in the March 15 issue of Scientific Reports, a Nature publication. "This is the first experimental evidence that fetal exposure to radiofrequency radiation from cellular telephones does in fact affect adult behavior," said senior author Dr. Hugh S. Taylor, professor and chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences. Taylor and co-authors exposed pregnant mice to radiation from a muted and silenced cell phone positioned above the cage and placed on an active phone call for the duration of the trial. A control group of mice was kept under the same conditions but with the phone deactivated. The team measured the brain electrical activity of adult mice that were exposed to radiation as fetuses, and conducted a battery of psychological and behavioral tests. They found that the mice that were exposed to radiation tended to be more hyperactive and had reduced memory capacity. Taylor attributed the behavioral changes to an effect during … Continue reading →

Public release date: 15-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Karen N. Peart karen.peart@yale.edu 203-432-1326 Yale University New Haven, Conn. Exposure to radiation from cell phones during pregnancy affects the brain development of offspring, potentially leading to hyperactivity, Yale School of Medicine researchers have determined. The results, based on studies in mice, are published in the March 15 issue of Scientific Reports, a Nature publication. This is the first experimental evidence that fetal exposure to radiofrequency radiation from cellular telephones does in fact affect adult behavior, said senior author Hugh S. Taylor, M.D., professor and chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences. Taylor and co-authors exposed pregnant mice to radiation from a muted and silenced cell phone positioned above the cage and placed on an active phone call for the duration of the trial. A control group of mice was kept under the same conditions but with the phone deactivated. The team measured the brain electrical activity of adult mice that were exposed to radiation as fetuses, and conducted a battery of psychological and behavioral tests. They found that the mice that were exposed to radiation tended to … Continue reading →

SUNRISE, Fla., March 15, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bioheart, Inc. (BHRT.OB) announced today that it has successfully conducted a laboratory training course in partnership with the Ageless Regenerative Institute, an organization dedicated to the standardization of cell regenerative medicine. The attendees participated in hands on, in depth training in laboratory practices in stem cell science. "We had students from all over the world attend this first course including physicians, laboratory technicians and students," said Mike Tomas, Bioheart's President and CEO. "Bioheart is pleased to be able to share our 13 years of experience in stem cell research and help expand this growing life science field." The course included cell culture techniques and quality control testing such as flow cytometry and gram stain. In addition, participants learned how to work in a cleanroom operating according to FDA cGMP standards, regulations used in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, food and medical devices. Aseptic techniques were also taught as well as cleanroom gowning, environmental monitoring and maintenance. Future courses are open to physicians, laboratory technicians and students. After graduating the course, attendees are prepared to pursue research and careers in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine. For more information about the course, … Continue reading →

Researchers at the Yale School of Medicine have presented the first experimental evidence showing that exposure to cell phone radiation in the womb affects fetal brain development and could lead to hyperactivity. The study was done on mice and the results cant be directly applied to humans: gestation periods, fetal brain development, and relevant exposure levels are all very different. Nonetheless, Hugh Taylor, director of the Yale Center for Reproductive Biology, says that limiting cell phone use during pregnancy is warranted. Taylor and his colleagues published their findings today in the journal Scientific Reports. The researchers positioned a cell phone making a muted, but active, phone call above the cage of a group of pregnant mice. The control groups cage was kept under a deactivated phone. The researchers performed various behavioral and psychological tests on the mice born to both groups, and also measured brain electrical activity. They found that adult mice that were exposed to radiation as fetuses tended to be more hyperactive and anxious, and had less memory capacity. The behavioral changes could be attributed to the effect of RF radiation on neuron development in the brains prefrontal cortex, the same region thats associated with Attention Deficit Hyperactive … Continue reading →

A new study could re-ignite the debate over the potentially dangerous effects of cell phone radiation on children's behavior. Researchers from the Yale School of Medicine found that exposing pregnant mice to radiation from a cell phone affected the behavior of their offspring later. They found that the mice exposed to radiation as fetuses were more hyperactive, had more anxiety and poorer memory -- symptoms associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) -- than mice who were not exposed to radiation. Neurological tests revealed that the radiation exposure led to abnormal development of neurons in the part of the brain linked to ADHD, leading the authors to suggest that cell phone radiation exposure may play a role in the disorder. "During critical windows in neurogenesis, the brain is susceptible to numerous environmental insults; common medically relevant exposures include ionizing radiation, alcohol, tobacco, drugs and stress," wrote the authors, led by Dr. Hugh Taylor, professor and chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. They added that while their study provides "the first experimental evidence of neuropathology due to in-utero cellular telephone radiation," the data are not conclusive, and more research is needed to determine the effects of radiation on … Continue reading →

MARLBOROUGH, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. (ACT; OTCBB: ACTC), a leader in the field of regenerative medicine, announced today that on Monday, March 12 it filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission a proxy statement containing a shareholder proposal for a reverse split of its common stock. The annual meeting of stockholders will be held on Thursday, April 26, at the Hyatt Regency Suites, Palm Springs, 285 N. Palm Canyon Dr.,Palm Springs,Calif.,92262, on Thursday,April 26,2012, at 9 a.m. PDT, to consider the following proposals: election of five directors, ratifying the appointment of the companys public accounting firm, and a proposal to effect a reverse stock split of the companys common stock, at a ratio between one-for-twenty and one-for-eighty, and to reduce the number of authorized shares of the companys common stock in the same proportion as the reverse split, with the exact ratio to be determined by the board of directors. This reverse stock split, which should better align the companys capital structure with its stage of development, and an accompanying Nasdaq listing application, will represent a significant step toward creating long-term shareholder value and building ACT into a world-class player in the regenerative medicine space, said Gary Rabin, … Continue reading →

DALLAS and JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --U.S. Preventive Medicine today announced a new strategic development collaboration with Qualcomm Life Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, for functionality enhancements to Macaw, the company's award-winning mobile health & fitness app, as well as for accelerated integration with the numerous wireless devices, monitors and sensors that are part of Qualcomm Life's 2net Platform and wireless health ecosystem. Macaw powered by The Prevention Plan, was launched in December 2011 as a full-feature app combining calorie, nutrition and activity tracking, health assessment, education, and game theory to motivate healthy behaviors. Enabled by Qualcomm Life, Macaw is designed to become the ultimate digital health monitor, integrating with wireless devices, monitors and sensors, as well as other popular health and fitness apps, creating a dashboard of health metrics all in one convenient app. "The mobile health marketplace is exploding with health apps and wireless devices, all providing unprecedented data about a person's individual biometrics and health status. The challenge is that consumers can easily become overwhelmed with data. Through our collaboration with Qualcomm Life and integration with the 2net Platform, we are building Macaw to serve as the ultimate personal health monitor to … Continue reading →

WASHINGTON, March 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- TEDMED, http://www.TEDMED.com, the annual gathering where science, medical and technology leaders focus on "imagination, innovation and inspiration" to advance the art of health and medicine, today announced two new programs that will vastly increase the size and scope of its audience. TEDMED is the world's only TED-licensed event focused solely on innovation and breakthrough thinking across all of health and medicine. It will be held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., April 10 - 13. Speakers, attendee-Delegates and participants will range from biologists (Dr. E.O. Wilson) and writers (Ben Goldacre), to physicists (Albert-Laszlo Barabasi) and public health leaders like the director of the National Institutes of Health (Dr. Francis Collins). Topics to be explored by TEDMED speakers will include neuroscience, microbiology, surgery, oncology, stem cell therapy, bad science, Alzheimer's, robotics, game science, wearable tech, disease evolution, patient choice, virtual anatomy models, the nature of imagination, and dozens more. For the first time this year, TEDMED will offer a free simulcast, TEDMEDLive, to teaching hospitals, medical schools, research institutions, university life science departments, state and federal government agencies, health-oriented corporations and non-profits across the nation. Participants, forecasted at … Continue reading →