U.S Food and Drug Administration has granted approval for a new ethinyl estradiol – levonorgestrel combination drug Lybrel® | Wyeth Pharmaceuticals), the first contraceptive pill designed to eliminate periods in addition to birth control.

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A topical platelet gel derived from the patient’s own blood was found to hasten wound healing. In a report published in the May-June issue of the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery, Hom DB and colleagues compared the healing of full-thickness skin punch wounds treated with topical autologous platelet gel (APG) applied to one thigh and conventional therapy (antibiotic ointment and/or occlusive dressings) applied to the other thigh in 8 healthy volunteers (5 punch sites per leg).

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Topical retinol eases fine wrinkles associated with natural aging, according to a study published in the latest issue (May 2007) of Archives of Dermatology by Kafi R and colleagues.

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Chronic periodontal infection increases the risk of tongue cancer in men, according to a report in the May issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

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Researchers at Geron Corporation and the University of Alberta, in a collaborative effort, have successfully differentiated human embryonic stem (hES) cells into insulin producing islet-like clusters (ILCs).

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Researchers Soyka M et al in their study published in the latest issue of Schizophrenia Research report that 10.2% of a total of 1662 schizophrenic patients were convicted post-discharge, of which male schizophrenics (17.1%) surpassed females (5.3%) by a ratio of 3:1.

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A team of scientists headed by Yaakov “Kobi” Benenson from Harvard University and Ron Weiss from Princeton University working on the development ‘biological computers’, or devices that can be implanted into the human body to monitor changes in the normal function of the body, are reportedly making fast progress.

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Based on the genome sequencing data of bacteria and viruses, Adam Phillippy and colleagues from the University of Maryland, USA, have designed a computational program called ‘Insignia’ that can be used to identify DNA signatures of microbial pathogens, such as bacteria and viruses, present in a complex mixture of organic material.

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Vitamin D deficiency may play an important role in the etiopathogenesis of depression, especially in the older population, according to a review published by Berk M et al in the May 2007 issue of Medical Hypotheses.

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Men consuming heavy doses of multivitamins may be at a higher risk of developing advanced or fatal prostate cancers, according to a research article published in the May 2007 issue of the Journal Of The National Cancer Institute.

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