US Files 1st Response to Health Care Law Challenge
The Obama administration argues in its first court response to a challenge against the new health care law that Congress can require Americans to buy health insurance.
According to the Obama administration's filing late Tuesday, the minimum coverage mandate is a valid exercise of Congress' power to regulate interstate commerce.
In its lawsuit, the Thomas More Law Center says that the Health Care Reform Act imposes unprecedented governmental mandates that restrict the personal and economic freedoms of American citizens.
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Okla. Abortion Reporting Bill Could Head To Gov. By Week's End
An Oklahoma bill (HB 3284) requiring women to complete a survey about their personal situation prior to obtaining an abortion could be sent to Gov. Brad Henry (D) this week, after gaining approval from the state Senate and House, the Oklahoman reports. The state House voted 88-8 for the legislation on Monday. The state Senate voted 32-11 on Tuesday.
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Chinese Farmer Kills Official for Forcing Wife's Abortion
A farmer killed a family planning official in China's Jilin province and injured her two minor children, after she forced his wife to undergo an abortion. The farmer, identified as Zhang Xuezhong, killed Jiang Xiaoling May 1 because he was angry she forced his wife to abort their baby, officials said Monday. Jiang's husband, Zhao Guogui, also a farmer in Xinhua village, said Monday the alleged killer rushed to his home with a stick and beat his wife to death. He also beat his son, 15, and daughter, 11, both of whom are now in hospital. The girl is in a comatose state in the intensive care unit, hospital officials said.
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Using Leftovers for Adult Stem Cells to Treat Hearts
Doctors at the University of Bristol have shown that adult stem cells from "leftovers" of heart bypass operations could potentially be used to treat damaged hearts. Bypass operations involve transplanting a length of the saphenous vein from the leg into a coronary artery, bypassing a blocked or narrowed segment to restore blood flow and thus oxygen to the heart muscle. Surgeons often take longer segments of the leg vein than are used for the actual operation. The Bristol team showed that they could isolate adult stem cells from the leftover bits, and that the cells could stimulate blood vessel growth in mice.
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Healing Fractures Faster
Adult stem cells have shown the ability to stimulate healing of bone. Now Stanford scientists have used a protein that activates adult stem cells and progenitor cells to speed up the process of bone healing. A family of proteins called Wnt proteins are known to stimulate bone formation and tissue regeneration. Wnt proteins are difficult to isolate and hard to dissolve, so the scientists packaged the protein in liposomes, small lipid droplets similar to the membrane around cells. The Wnt proteins were planted like small flags in the outer surface of the liposome, so that when they contacted a cell they delivered their signal. The liposome technique allowed concentrated packaging of the proteins and easy delivery to target tissue. The Wnt-tagged liposomes were given to mice with damaged leg bones. Within three days, the treated mice showed 3 1/2-times more new bone growth than untreated animals, and had completely healed in four weeks, while untreated animals were still trying to heal.
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Kidneying Around with Adult Stem Cells
Scientists have shown that human adult stem cells can promote kidney repair. There are currently no therapies to repair kidney damage. Patients with severe kidney damage go on dialysis while waiting for an organ transplant. The results of this recent study showed that human adult bone marrow stem cells, injected into mice with induced kidney damage, could promote kidney repair and regeneration.
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