Pharmacies take up drug disposal effort Big Pharma has fought

November 28, 2019 More than 550 medication disposal units across the country nation are now searchable on Google Maps using a computer or mobile device, Rite Aid announced in July.  Users can type or say “medication disposal near me,” and the software will show the closest locations.  “We are constantly looking for additional ways to … Read more

Reversing the risk of sudden cardiac death with gene therapy

November 21, 2019 In two (2) studies published in the journal Circulation, scientists at Boston Children’s built what could be the first human tissue model of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT), a potentially lethal form of arrhythmia that’s triggered by exercise or sudden emotional stress.  Using that model, they developed a gene therapy procedure that … Read more

The ‘hunger hormone’ shows potential in promoting memory

November 19, 2019 After the researchers blocked ghrelin signaling in rats, they observed that the animals showed signs of impaired memory, they reported at the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior.  That led the USC team to hypothesize that ghrelin may also help control memory. Ghrelin is produced mainly in the … Read more

FDA contributes to hunt for new heart failure endpoints

November 14, 2019 Working as part of the Yale University-Mayo Clinic Center of Excellence in Regulatory Science and Innovation (CERSI), the FDA has identified the need for alternative heart failure endpoints.  Improving mortality and reducing hospitalizations are gold-standard endpoints for clinical trials; however, attempts to demonstrate the efficacy of drugs against those yardsticks are confounded … Read more

With test, Merck takes temperature-controlled drug delivery by drone from remote idea to remote locations

November 13, 2019 Merck initiated the idea, and a collection of players coordinated by humanitarian aid organization Direct Relief have now moved to proof-of-concept missions.  They developed and flew a drone with a temperature-controlled payload over the waters around the Bahamas.  “This successful pilot demonstrates the potential of innovative unmanned aerial vehicles technology to aid … Read more

Amazon Executive: IT experts ‘should be embarrassed’ about data breaches

November 07, 2019 Wearing a T-shirt that said “Encrypt Everything,” Vogels urged companies to think of security as an enterprise-wide responsibility.  Yet, in the last year, there were 15,000 data breaches, he said.  “As technologists, we should be embarrassed and we need to take responsibility for this,” Vogels said.  “Security needs to become everyone’s job, … Read more