Goat cells can help cure liver disease, say doctors
Doctors at Owaisi Hospital and Research Institute (OHRI) in Hyderabad are carrying out experiments to find out if goat liver can be transplanted into humans. While doctors worldwide are looking upon pig as a potential organ donor, Ohri Director C M Habibullah says that preliminary studies at his institute have …
Cadilla leprosy vaccine project gets TDB aid
Ahmedabad-based Cadilla Pharmaceuticals Ltd. and Gujarat Oleochem Ltd. have got funding approval from the Technology Development Board (TDB) for the production of a therapeutic vaccine for leprosy and another for manufacture of undecenoic acid from castor seeds.Gujarat is the largest producer of castor oil and considerable quantities are presently exported.
Plea to bring gene therapy under licensing system
The medical scientist, Prof. V. Ramalingaswami, has made a passionate plea to bring gene therapy into the normal system of licensing of medicines under the Drugs Controller of India. Prof. Ramalingaswami's argument was that gene therapy, which essentially consists of introduction of a gene sequence into a cell so that …
Fungus to decontaminate waste water
Apart from inorganic compounds, bioagents like funguscan also help remove radioactive metals such as uranium and thorium, and hazardous heavy metals like iron, lead and cadmium from industrial effluents. Recently, Turkish researchers stumbled upon a new method to decontaminate wasted water by applying a fungus called Rhizopus arrhizus reports Process …
Govt says enough, gets cracking on patents
To make domestic industry better equipped to fight foreign competetion, the BJP Government has finalised a package of legal and administrative reforms which will make it easier for Indian individuals and companies protect their strengths.The BJP Government is ready with a slew of Bills which will make it easier for …
TN CM rules out talks with Karnataka on Cauvery
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi today ruled out any further talks with his Karnataka counterpart J.H. Patel to resolve the Cauvery river water dispute, asserting a solution could be found only through adjudication.
State to make more anti-rabies vaccines
Health Minister H C Mahadevappa today stated in the Legislative Assembly that production of anti-rabies vaccines would be increased at the State's only vaccine producing unit at Belgaum under the World Bank-assisted Karnataka Health Systems development Project.
Birth rate to level off by 2050
China's family planning programme is expected to successfully stabilize China's population growth by the middle of next century when they are expected to be 1.6 billion people, officials predicted. This would lead to a more rational balance between China's population and economic growth, while achieving a better social and environmental …
Protect groundwater
Natural resource managment has turned out to be a problem in Nepal, not because it doesn't have the means but because it lacks enough foresight and wisdom to ensure equity of distribution and proper management. Water resource management is a case in point. When it comes to sharing the benefits …
Dangerous questions
The figure of 140 million most recently given as Pakistan's population is only an estimate. Exactly where all these people live is also mostly guesswork. Karachi's population, for instance, is clearing growing faster than the assumed national rate of population growth of 3% year but no one knows by how …
Goa leads India's war against killer tobacco
Almost four centuries after the Portuguese popularised tobacco here, this former colony is leading India's battle against the noxious weed.Leading the charge is Goan surgeon, Dr Sharad Vaidya, chief of the National Organisation for Tobacco Eradication who runs a powerful awareness campaign aimed at exposing tobacco corporations.
Correctly prescribed drugs take heavy toll
More than 2 million Americans become seriously ill every year because of toxic reactions to correctly prescribed medicines taken properly, and 106,000 die from those reactions, a new study concludes. That surprisingly high number makes drug side effects at least the sixth, and perhaps even the fourth most common cause …
- Inferior anti-HIV drug being dumped in India
The Union Government may attempt to fortify India against dumping but such insulation will be hard to achieve given the avid interest of the Western corporates in India matched only by the enthusiasm of the self-seeking and negligent professionals in the country.
Cigar health warning mooted
The Federal Trade Commission Chairman, Mr. Robert Pitofsky, mindful of a new report on cancer risks, favours asking Congress to require health warnings on cigar packages.
Three million Indian HIV positive, says study
The number of HIV positive persons in India is currently estimated at three million, accroding to a paper presented on Tuesday at a meeting between representatives of the government and the Unicef.
Water everywhere, not a drop to drink
Cherrapunji known for receiving the highest rainfall in the world is ironicaly facing an acute shortage of potable water. The problem of drinking water is so pervasive in this cloud-soaked hill town that in the recently held Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, water scarcity was one of the main issues.
Ban order fails to stop trade in Indian blood
India's blood trade is a lucrative business, despite health dangers posed by contaminated supplies and recent attempts to stamp out professional donors. Until the law changed this year, pallid full-time donors used to however surround the back doors of Indian hospitals, eager to sell their blood to desperate relatives of …
How now virtual cow?
they may seem an illusion but their value is real enough. "Virtual cows' are heading Europe's farms. Diary farmers are confused
