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Articles on Medical research

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Biological differences mean that women and men often have different health outcomes. Freddycat1/Flickr

Equal but not the same: a male bias reigns in medical research

Despite significant gains in gender equity over the last few decades, a bias still reigns in one area of medicine. The lack of female representation in both preclinical studies and clinical trials has…
We’re in a protracted war against superbugs because we’ve overused existing antibiotics: a key weapon against disease. Nomadic Lass/Flickr

We need new antibiotics to beat superbugs, but why are they so hard to find?

We’ve heard a lot lately about superbugs – bacteria that are resistant to current antibiotics. But as the threat of superbugs continues to rise, the number of new treatments available has flatlined. This…
Pills ok during pregnancy? We can’t know if we don’t study them. Medications image via www.shutterstock.com

Pregnant women must be studied too

Imagine being pregnant while having a chronic health condition such as diabetes, hypertension, depression or asthma, or being diagnosed with an illness while pregnant. Amazingly, your doctor may not know…
Participants and guests at a Walk for Breast Cancer decked out in pink. Breast cancer walk image via www.shutterstock.com

Awash in pink, but breast cancer awareness isn’t a cure

Awareness efforts can focus public attention and help scientists raise funds for research. But the impact on eradicating the disease itself and helping patients today is much less clear.
Bats can harbour viruses such as Ebola and don’t display clinical signs of disease. Janelle Lugge

Bat’s immunity may hold key to preventing future Ebola outbreaks

Bats are the natural host species for Ebola and a variety of viruses, many of which can be fatal when transmitted to humans. More than 100 viruses have been identified in bats and this number is rising…
Scottish voters are still in the dark about key health and research issues. Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

Is Scottish independence bad for your health?

With September 18 drawing nearer, the people of Scotland still lack answers about how independence will affect a number of institutions, policies and their everyday lives. It is crucial to uncover what…
There’s no point giving money to research if there’s no-one to do the research. University of Denver/Flickr

$20 billion for medical research: but who will do the research?

Including $20 billion for medical research in the recent federal budget seemed like a win for research. At the same time, however, the government imposed fees on PhD and Masters research students. Paying…
The policy is imbalanced because it imposes burdens on the poor to provide benefits to the rich. flickr: mikeleary83

Proposed medical research fund is unfair and unethical

Medical research is a significant winner in the federal budget: we’re told, (probably falsely), that the government will establish the largest medical research fund in the world ($20 billion by 2023…
The budget calls for the creation of a medical research future fund from estimated savings in health expenditure. AAP/Lukas Coch

Better ways to spend the medical research future fund

One of the few real surprises in the budget was the creation of medical research future fund, to be partly funded by the introduction of a $7 GP co-payment. This injection of money provides an opportunity…
Same genes, different outfits. Spinal Research

Explainer: what is twin research?

Hugo and Ross Turner are a pair of intrepid twins currently on an expedition to Greenland. One of them, Ross, is using the same style of equipment and facilities used by Ernest Shackleton 100 years ago…
Ill health: some effervescent tablets contain enough sodium to raise the risk of stroke. akirsa

Sodium in medicines raises stroke and hypertension risk

A new study has found a link between the amount of sodium in certain medications and the risk of cardiovascular problems, including hypertension and stroke – and says normal use of some medicines can expose…
Nowhere to hide: HIV-1 on the surface of a white blood cell. Microbe World

HIV ‘invisibility cloak’ allows virus to evade immune system

HIV uses an “invisibility cloak” made up of a host body’s own cells, a team of researchers has found, in a discovery that represents a significant step forward in our understanding of the virus and could…
From street scourge to lab hero: rats have provided us with significant insights into human diseases and disorders. ressaure

Animals in research: rats

Our series, Animals in Research, profiles the top organisms used for science experimentation. In this instalment, we look at the original lab rats: Rattus norvegicus. Rats have a long history in medical…
Head for numbers: research into brain disorders is seriously underfunded. Pennstatenews

Burden of brain disorders ignored by government

According to various large-scale studies conducted by the World Health Organization, about a third of the adult worldwide population suffer from a mental disorder such as depression, anxiety and schizophrenia…
Some value may accrue from animal research – but is it enough? www.understandinganimalresearch.org.uk

Animals in research: do the costs outweigh the benefits?

Studies in non-human animals have led to “countless” treatments for various diseases, according to a recent article on The Conversation. But the author, Gavan McNally, provided no scientific references…
Breakthroughs such as the development of penicillin – first tested in mice – may not have occurred without animal testing. Novartis AG

Animals in research: benefits, ethics and assessment

“AUSTRALIANS SAY NO TO ANIMAL EXPERIMENTS,” rang the headline of a recent media release by the activist group Humane Research Australia, referring to an opinion poll it commissioned in May that found…

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