Here are some of the latest health and medical news
developments, compiled by the editors of
HealthDay:
Cockroaches, Locusts Eyed as New Source of Antibiotics
The brains and nervous systems of cockroaches and swarming
locusts contain powerful chemicals that could lead to new
treatments for different types of antibiotic-resistant bacteria,
say U.K. scientists.
They've identified nine different antibacterial molecules in the
insects' brains and nervous systems that do not damage human cells,
ABC News reported.
The findings were presented Tuesday at a meeting of the Society
for General Microbiology.
"We hope that these molecules could eventually be developed into new treatments for E. coli and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections that are increasingly resistant to current drugs," said Simon Lee, a postgraduate researcher at the School of Veterinary Medicine and Science at the University of Nottingham, ABC News reported.
Since cockroaches and locusts typically live in unsanitary
environments, it's not surprising they have developed germ killing
molecules, Lee said.
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Former Head of Salmonella-Linked Peanut Firm Now a
Consultant
Even though he's under investigation for his role in a
peanut-related salmonella outbreak that killed nine people and
sickened hundreds in the United States, Stewart Parnell is working
as a consultant to peanut companies, says the
Associated Press.
The federal government is conducting a criminal investigation
against Parnell, the former president of the now-bankrupt Peanut
Corp. of America. Filthy conditions, including mold and roaches, in
the company's processing plants were blamed for the salmonella
outbreak two years ago.
According to e-mails discovered by congressional investigators,
Parnell once told workers to "turn them loose" after samples of
peanuts initially tested positive for salmonella but were cleared
in a second test.
Parnell's continued work in the food industry is not illegal
because no charges have been brought against him or his associates,
the
AP reported. The Food and Drug Administration referred
questions about the matter to the Justice Department, which refused
comment.
Relatives of people who died in the outbreak were outraged when
they learned that Parnell is back in the peanut business.
"My God, when are we going to hold anyone responsible?" Jeff Almer, whose mother, Shirley Almer, was the first known death from the outbreak in Minnesota, told the AP. "So far to this day, nothing's happened to this man. I think every person in America who was affected by this, every family who lost someone, deserves to hear the truth from this guy."
"He's still walking the streets almost two years later, whereas my mother is lying 6 feet under," Randy Napier told the AP. His mother died after eating peanut butter linked to peanuts from Peanut Corp. of America.
"It's just not fair. If the (Food and Drug Administration) does not go after Stewart Parnell, the message they are sending to the industry is don't worry about it, ship it. He should not be anywhere near the food industry," Napier said.
For his part, Parnell told the
AP that he's been directed by his lawyers not to discuss his
case with family members of the nine people who died. "My lawyers
will not let me say anything or I'd be in front of every one of
them personally," he said.
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Judge Refuses To Lift Embryonic Stem Cell Funding Ban
A ban on federal funding for some types of stem cell research
will not be lifted, a U.S. federal judge ruled Tuesday.
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth refused a Justice Department
request for a temporary lift of his stay on funding for stem cell
research that requires the destruction of human embryos in order to
extract the stem cells, the
Associated Press reported.
Federal officials sought the temporary lift while they appeal to
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
Lamberth originally signed the federal funding restraining order
after he ruled that a lawsuit filed by two scientists was likely to
succeed, the
AP reported.
The scientists say that President Barack Obama's decision to
expand funding of research on embryonic stem cells threatens their
chance of winning government funding for research using adult stem
cells.
Brass Instruments May Be Linked to Lung Condition
People who play brass musical instruments such as the saxophone
may be at increased risk for an allergic lung condition called
hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP), according to researchers.
HP may develop when these musicians unknowingly inhale mold and
bacteria from their instruments. Shortness of breath and coughing
are symptoms of HP, which can develop into a more dangerous
fibrosis,
ABC News reported.
The American and European researchers looked at cases involving
a trombone player and two saxophone players who developed HP. Their
findings appear in the journal
Chest.
"This isn't shocking, nor do I think it's very common," Martin Blaser, chairman of medicine at New York University and a specialist in infectious diseases, told ABC News. "My guess is these are isolated events and somebody got unlucky."
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FDA Issues Warning Letters Over Green Tea Beverages
The makers of Canada Dry ginger ale and Lipton tea have been
issued warning letters for making unproven nutritional claims about
their green tea beverages, says the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration.
One letter was issued to Dr. Pepper Snapple Group about its
labeling of Canada Dry Sparkling Tea Ginger ale, while the other
was sent to Unilever Inc. over labeling and Web site information
about its Lipton Green Tea, the
Associated Press reported.
The FDA told Dr. Pepper Snapple Group that the ingredients in
Canada Dry Sparkling Green Tea Ginger Ale "are not nutrients with
recognized antioxidant activity" and the product does not meet
federal requirements to carry the claim that the it is "enhanced
with 200 mg of antioxidants from green tea and vitamin C."
In the warning letter to Unilever, the FDA said antioxidant
labeling claims on Lipton Green Tea do no follow federal
guidelines. The agency also challenged information on the company's
Web site, the
AP reported.
The companies were given 15 days to respond to the warning
letters and explain what action they will take to correct the
issues.
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