Latest news from Pacific Biomarkers on Newswise en-us Copyright 2024 Newswise 115 31 / /images/newswise-logo-rss.gif /articles/is-niaspan-necessary-new-study-raises-debate-over-use-of-cholesterol-drug/?sc=rsin /articles/is-niaspan-necessary-new-study-raises-debate-over-use-of-cholesterol-drug/?sc=rsin Thu, 09 Jun 2011 06:00:00 EST A recent National Institutes of Health study released in late May, called AIM-HIGH, showed that Niaspan failed to prevent heart attacks and slightly raised the risk of a stroke when combined with the cholesterol drug Zocor (simvastatin).. Pacific Biomarkers /articles/in-fight-against-heart-disease-cholesterol-efflux-capacity-may-be-the-key-measurement/?sc=rsin /articles/in-fight-against-heart-disease-cholesterol-efflux-capacity-may-be-the-key-measurement/?sc=rsin Thu, 03 Feb 2011 10:15:00 EST A study from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine shows that a different metric, a measure of HDL function called cholesterol efflux capacity, is more closely associated with protection against heart disease than HDL cholesterol levels themselves. Pacific Biomarkers /articles/more-studies-are-need-after-fda-issues-warning-about-bisphosphonates-therapy2/?sc=rsin /articles/more-studies-are-need-after-fda-issues-warning-about-bisphosphonates-therapy2/?sc=rsin Tue, 19 Oct 2010 06:00:00 EST The Food and Drug Administration recently published a warning to doctors and patients about an increased risk of thigh fractures with a widely used group of bone-strengthening drugs called bisphosphonates. Pacific Biomarkers /articles/higher-hdl-c-concentrations-may-not-always-be-a-good-measure-of-heart-risk/?sc=rsin /articles/higher-hdl-c-concentrations-may-not-always-be-a-good-measure-of-heart-risk/?sc=rsin Mon, 02 Aug 2010 06:00:00 EST Dr. Amar Sethi, VP of Science and Technology at Pacific Biomarkers, Inc, observed that in ischemic heart disease patients untreated with statins, there is a difference in the way bad cholesterol is removed from the body by the HDL particle. They found that a particle called pre-β1 HDL is increased, while LCAT--the enzyme that packs cholesterol into the core of the HDL particle--is reduced. Pacific Biomarkers /articles/leading-cholesterol-tests-may-not-be-accurate-in-all-situations-research-team-concludes/?sc=rsin /articles/leading-cholesterol-tests-may-not-be-accurate-in-all-situations-research-team-concludes/?sc=rsin Tue, 13 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EST A research team led by W. Greg Miller of Virginia Commonwealth University evaluated seven commercially available direct measurement reagents for quantifying HDL-C and LDL-C. In the non-diseased individuals, six of eight HDL-C and five of eight LDL-C direct methods met the National Cholesterol Education Program [guidelines]. However, all the methods failed to meet the NCEP's goals for diseased individuals, because of compromised specificity toward abnormal proteins. Pacific Biomarkers