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QIAGEN Launches Novel Product Enabling Non-Invasive Prenatal Diagnostics And Cancer Detection
QIAGEN announced the launch of a novel product for extraction of free circulating fragments of tumor- and fetal-derived nucleic acids as well as viral nucleic acids in human blood. Scientists consider these DNA and RNA fragments to have great potential for the highly sensitive and non-invasive diagnosis of a wide range of diseases, including congenital disorders, malignancies such as colon and lung cancer, and infections. The new QIAamp Circulating Nucleic Acid Kit is expected to significantly facilitate the corresponding biomarker research and the introduction of novel molecular tests in prenatal diagnostics which can replace risky, invasive procedures such as amniocentesis.
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What Is Puberty? What Is Early Puberty? What Is Late Puberty?
Puberty is the period in children"s lives when they experience physical changes by which their bodies eventually become adult bodies that are capable of reproducing. Puberty is triggered by hormone signals from the brain to the ovaries and testes (gonads). The ovaries (in girls) and testes (in boys) respond to hormone signals from the brain by producing a range of hormones that stimulate the growth, function and change in various parts of the body, including the reproductive organs, breasts, skin, muscles, bones, hair and the brain.
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Obama In Notre Dame Speech Calls For 'Open Hearts, Open Minds' In Abortion-Rights Debate
In his address at the University of Notre Dame"s commencement ceremony on Sunday, President Obama urged advocates on both sides of the abortion-rights debate to treat each other with civility and find ways to work together on common goals, such as reducing the number of unintended pregnancies, the New York Times reports. Obama, who also received an honorary degree from the Roman Catholic university, called for more "open hearts, open minds, fair-minded words" on an issue that has long polarized the U.S. Obama said that although not all will agree on abortion rights, people "can still agree that this heart-wrenching decision for any woman is not made casually" and "has both moral and spiritual dimension." He continued, "So let us work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions," by reducing unintended pregnancies, making "adoption more available," and providing "care and support" to women who carry pregnancies to term. Obama also said he supports a "sensible conscience clause" that would allow health care workers to withhold services they find morally or religiously objectionable, the New York Times reports. The president said that "[e]ach side will continue to make its case to the public with passion and conviction. But surely we can do so without reducing those with differing views to caricature" (Baker/Saulny, New York Times, 5/18).According to the Wall Street Journal, Notre Dame"s invitation to Obama "amplified longstanding tensions" between the Catholic Church"s position against abortion rights and Catholic universities" academic freedom. Several Catholic bishops and antiabortion-rights advocates argued that it was wrong to honor Obama because of his support for abortion rights, while the university"s leadership and others said it is necessary to communicate with people of opposing views (Meckler, Wall Street Journal, 5/18). Notre Dame"s president, the Rev. John Jenkins, in his introduction of Obama praised the president for agreeing to speak at the ceremony. He said that although some individuals "might have avoided this venue" because of the abortion issue, Obama "is not someone who stops talking to those who differ with him" (Evans, USA Today, 5/18). Jenkins also said, "If we want to extend courtesy, respect and love and enter into dialogue, then surely we can start by acknowledging what is honorable in others" (Dinan, Washington Times, 5/18).The New York Times reports that about 100 abortion-rights opponents protested on the edge of Notre Dame"s campus, and nearly 40 protesters were arrested trying to enter the campus (New York Times, 5/18). According to the Washington Post, more than 70 Catholic bishops criticized the university"s invitation, and more than 360,000 people signed a petition calling for the university to rescind the invite. The Post also reports that 26 of the 2,900 graduates chose to skip the commencement ceremony in protest of Obama"s speech (Shear, Washington Post, 5/18). However, the bulk of the audience at the ceremony "enthusiastically supported" the president, the New York Times reports. A few graduates pasted crosses and replicas of infants" feet on their mortarboards in protest of Obama"s visit, while some supporters displayed Obama"s campaign logo. Four protesters interrupted the speech with shouting and were removed by security guards; audience members responded to the shouting with Notre Dame chants and shouts of "Yes, we can," an Obama campaign slogan. The New York Times reports that while Obama has tried to avoid confrontation on the issue of abortion rights, the controversy over this Notre Dame speech and his pending nomination to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter have "pushed the issue to the forefront" (New York Times 5/18). Obama"s speech comes as his administration initiates its first meetings between advocates on both sides of the debate to discuss ways to reduce unintended pregnancies and the need for abortion. The meetings, which began at the beginning of May, are expected to continue for the next few
Sexual Health

Africa's 32 Cents Solution For HIV/AIDS: Delivering Effective And Low Cost NTD Treatment To School-Aged Children

Providing mass drug administration of praziquantel, at a cost of 32 cents per child, to school-aged children to prevent female genital schistosomiasis could also reduce and possibly interrupt HIV/AIDS transmission throughout many rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa, according to a new analysis published in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases. The analysis was authored by Professor Peter Hotez, President of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and Distinguished Research Professor at the George Washington University School of Medicine; Professor Alan Fenwick, founding Director of the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative and Professor of Tropical Parasitology at the Imperial College London; and Dr. Eryun Kjetland, a research fellow and attending physician in infectious diseases at the Oslo University Hospital of the Centre for Imported and Tropical Diseases, University of Oslo. More than 90 percent of the world"s 207 million cases of the neglected tropical disease schistosomiasis occur in sub-Saharan Africa, making it one of the most common neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in the region. Schistosomiasis, the most deadly of the NTDs, causes chronic anemia and inflammation associated with severe disability among children, adolescents and young adults. Approximately two-thirds of the cases of schistosomiasis in the region result from urinary tract infections. This is a significant problem for girls and women who can develop female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) which often produces genital lesions making girls and women more susceptible to HIV/AIDS. Once the lesions appear, the authors note that treatment with praziquantel, while killing the worms, may not reverse the female genital symptoms, leading the authors to conclude that treatment should target school-aged children before the FGS symptoms have developed, which is also before they reach an age where they become sexually active and HIV/AIDS transmission is of much greater risk. The authors emphasize that studies being conducted by the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI), demonstrate that a single mass treatment of praziquantel administered in Burkina Faso and Niger in West Africa can reduce the prevalence of schistosomiasis infection by 84 percent among girls. Similar results are being seen in other pilot countries. Mass drug administration (MDA) of praziquantel has proven to not only be effective, but also extremely lost cost. MDA of school-aged children in Burkina Faso was conducted for only 32 cents per child. With this low-cost solution, 70 million infected children could be treated for $22 million, which if repeated biannually for 10 years would cost around $112 million. For this relatively small investment, the reproductive health of young women would be improved, and there is a reasonable chance that HIV/AIDS transmission can be reduced. The authors conclude that the 32 cents solution could prevent the suffering from FGS and potentially reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, leading them to urge that a small amount of the PEPFAR (President"s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief ) funding be used for praziquantel administration in at least the PEPFAR countries of Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia to support SCI activities through the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases. "The 32 cents solution could have enormous benefits for young African women and a huge potential beneficial impact on Africa"s AIDS epidemic," stated Drs. Hotez, Fenwick and Kjetland. Dr. Hotez added, "President Obama has stated his commitment to building upon our nation"s strong record of fighting global health diseases through the continued infusion of res and creating efficiencies in the global health system. Investing in NTD control is not only a cost effective solution to ending the suffering from many NTDs, research is now demonstrating that NTD control can also reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS as well as malaria. Simply put, an investment in NTDs reaps significant dividends across the global health spectrum." Sabin Vaccine Institute


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