In a scientific feat that some scientists are calling a breakthrough that “defies the imagination, Canadian researchers report they have successfully turned human skin cells into blood cells, the first time one kind of mature human cell has been converted into another. The transformation, which was published in the journal Nature, was completed without first [Sign in to read the full article...]

The Food and Drug Administration will hold a three hour teleconference on Tuesday, December 14th from 3 to 6 p.m. The meeting is open to the public, with the exception of one portion that will be closed. The committee will meet in open session to hear updates of the research programs in the Tumor Vaccines [Sign in to read the full article...]

Chinese scientists announced they have bred the countries first genetically engineered rhesus monkey and predicted their success could speed up the development of cures for human diseases ranging from cancer to Alzheimer’s., according to the Xinhua News Agency. The research team used green fluorescent protein (GFP), a substance that was originally isolated from a jellyfish [Sign in to read the full article...]

Balamuthia mandrillaris, amoeba, a ameba found in the soil, caused Balamuthia granulomatous amebic encephalitis in 2 patients who received kidney transplants from the same donor, according to a report in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The findings were reported by Shirley Schlessinger, MD, and colleagues in the September 16 issue of Morbidity [Sign in to read the full article...]

Treating patients after being transplanted with antiviral therapy creates a sustained viral response (SVR) and protects them from liver-related deaths, according to a research team from the University of Bari in Italy. The purpose of the study was to determine the long-term clinical outcomes of patients posttransplant who underwent antiviral therapy for recurrent hepatitis C [Sign in to read the full article...]