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ATS 2010, NEW ORLEANS— In non-sleepy patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events and hypertension, according to researchers from Spain.

The research will be presented at the ATS 2010 International Conference in New Orleans.

ATS 2010, NEW ORLEANS— Gene therapy has been shown to have positive effects in rat models of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), according to researchers at the University of Adelaide in Australia.

PAH is a life-threatening disease in which pressure in the blood vessels of the lungs increases, causing a back-pressure strain on the heart. In inherited forms of the disease, PAH is caused by a mutation in a receptor called bone morphogenetic protein receptor, type II (BMPR2). Even in some non-inherited forms of the disease, BMPR2 levels are low.

International experts are calling for all men experiencing impotence to undergo thorough medical assessments, after an extensive review showed that a significant proportion of men with erectile dysfunction (ED) exhibit early signs of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Fibrin, the primary ingredient of blood clots, creates a fibrous network that stems the loss of blood at an injury site. But beyond this essential work, fibrin can also cause heart attack, stroke and tissue damage by forming clots that block blood vessels.

DALLAS – May 19, 2010 – Heavy alcohol use and binge drinking could increase the risk of pancreatic cancer in men, research from UT Southwestern Medical Center suggests.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew's top propagation 'code-breaker', horticulturist Carlos Magdalena, has cracked the enigma of growing a rare species of African waterlily – believed to be the smallest waterlily in the world with pads than can be as little as 1cm in diameter – bringing it back from the brink of extinction; a fitting success story to celebrate International Day for Biological Diversity on 22 May 2010.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an enormous global public health problem. Migration and failure by governments and the public health community to adequately treat and prevent TB among migrants is an important barrier to TB control.

To reduce the incidence, spread and severity of tuberculosis, government policies must ensure that all patients have easy access to diagnosis and treatment, according to a commentary entitled "TB on the Move" in this month's The Lancet.

Despite laws to protect NHS workers who wish to raise concerns about patient care, a BMJ investigation reveals that some NHS trusts still make it hard for staff to speak out.

Patients prescribed antibiotics in primary care may develop a resistance that lasts up to 12 months, according to research published on bmj.com today.

It is widely recognised that resistance to antibiotics is a major threat to public health. However, according to the researchers, this is not seen by most clinicians or patients as a reason to refrain from using them, with many regarding the problem as minimal.

Young infants appear to have a gap in their protection against measles, from around two to three months old until they are vaccinated at 12 months of age, finds new research published on bmj.com today.

This is because the level of antibodies infants get from their mother drops over time, leaving them susceptible until they are vaccinated.

These findings underline the importance of measles vaccination at around 12 months of age and support ongoing research into earlier vaccination.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Research by a University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) professor shows an association between hearing loss and the use of the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra.

Findings published May 18 in Archives of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery indicate a potential for long-term hearing loss following use of Viagra, and possibly following use of other phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE-5i) drugs such as Cialis and Levitra, although results on those drugs are inconclusive.

'Dark matter' and 'dark energy' are something of a debate in physics circles, falling somewhere between mysticism and science. What about biology's secrets 'between the genes'?

A group of University of Toronto scientists have uncovered some of the secrets behind what these molecular biologists term "dark matter" transcripts, they write in PLoS Biology.

Containment measures introduced in Vietnam to prevent the spread of the 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza did not succeed in halting the virus, but may have bought health services and clinical researchers valuable time, according to research carried out at the Wellcome Trust Major Overseas Programme in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

The study also showed that patients with mild disease responded favourably in terms of viral clearance – and hence reduced transmission of the virus – to oseltamivir, the most commonly-used antiviral drug, when given in the first 3-4 days of illness.

Public health and international development experts at the University of British Columbia are calling for a "social offset" mechanism to set aside a portion of research funding slated for neglected tropical diseases (NTD) to address broader social determinants of disease.

Their comments are published today alongside other perspectives in the Debate section of the online journal PLoS Medicine.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — By examining expression of every human gene in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) compared to normal kidney cells, researchers at Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida have discovered gene signatures they say explain much of the biology of this common and difficult-to-treat kidney cancer.