(Press-News.org) Efforts to develop a safer form of acetaminophen — the pain and fever-reducer that is one of the most widely used drugs — have led to discovery of substances that may have less potentially toxic effects on the liver. A report on the research appears in ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters.
Roman Shchepin and colleagues explain that a link exists between acetaminophen and liver damage. The damage may be severe and can occur with intentional and accidental overdoses, as well as when susceptible individuals take the drug. Indeed, acetaminophen has been implicated in almost 50 percent of all acute liver failure cases in the United States alone. Scientists have known the biochemical basis of acetaminophen's liver toxicity, and Shchepin and colleagues set out to develop safer versions of acetaminophen.
They describe the design and testing of two compounds that have a similar architecture to acetaminophen, but aren't toxic to liver cells grown in the laboratory. The researchers say that, although further testing is needed, these compounds are promising candidates for acetaminophen replacements.
###
The authors acknowledge funding from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences Center for Clinical Pharmacology and Drug Toxicology.
The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 163,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.
To automatically receive news releases from the American Chemical Society, contact newsroom@acs.org.
Follow us: Twitter Facebook END
Toward a safer form of acetaminophen
2013-07-10
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Study tracks depression in seniors, ethnic groups
2013-07-10
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Major depression is a serious public health problem among older adults in the United States, but tends to affect ethnic groups differently, finds new research led by a Michigan State University scholar.
According to a survey of nearly 2,000 people aged 50 and older, whites and blacks of Caribbean descent experience much higher rates of major depression than African-Americans.
Amanda Toler Woodward, lead investigator on the study and MSU associate professor of social work, said the findings, taken as a whole, suggest major depression among older ...
Discovery of the 'Plastisphere' -- a new marine ecological community
2013-07-10
The masses of plastic debris that float over large areas of the world's oceans have become new ecological communities that scientists have named the "Plastisphere." Their report in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology suggests that these novel habitats in the North Atlantic Ocean may harbor potential disease-causing microbes.
Erik Zettler of the Sea Education Association, Tracy Mincer of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Linda Amaral-Zettler of the Marine Biological Laboratory explain that plastic has become the No. 1 form of ocean debris, causing ...
Unraveling the scientific basis of the infant feeding axiom 'breast is best'
2013-07-10
Scientists are making strides toward unraveling the surprisingly complex chemistry underpinning that axiom of infant feeding "breast is best," according to an article in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News. C&EN is the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.
Jyllian Kemsley, C&EN senior editor, points out that their findings reveal many intriguing and sometimes counterintuitive ways in which sugars, proteins and fat in milk interact with microbes in infants' intestines to nourish babies and protect their ...
Radioimmunotherapy deemed safe and effective for lymphoma patients
2013-07-10
Reston, Va. (July 10, 2013) – A new treatment option for patients with relapsing follicular, mantle cell and other indolent B-cell lymphomas has been determined safe and feasible by researchers exploring the potential of a low energy beta-emitter radiopharmaceutical. According to data published in the July issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine, the use of 177Lu-DOTA-rituximab as a radioimmunotherapy results in a high rate of tumor response while using less radiation than current therapies.
"Twelve years ago, when we started the study, it seemed that radioimmunotherapy ...
Nanoparticles, 'pH phoresis' could improve cancer drug delivery
2013-07-10
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Researchers have developed a concept to potentially improve delivery of drugs for cancer treatment using nanoparticles that concentrate and expand in the presence of higher acidity found in tumor cells.
The concept involves using nanoparticles made of "weak polybases," compounds that expand when transported into environments mimicking tumor cells, which have a higher acidity than surrounding tissues. The researchers used sophisticated modeling to show how the particles would accumulate in regions of higher acidity and remain there long enough to ...
Jealousy can drive us to view ourselves more like our rivals
2013-07-10
July 10, 2013 - If you see your partner flirt with someone else, you may feel hurt, angry, and jealous. The last thing you might expect is to start thinking of yourself more like your rival. New research suggests just that: that jealousy can prompt people to change how they view themselves relative to competitors for their partners' attention.
Previous research has shown that individuals often will change their self-views to be more similar to someone to whom they want to get closer, such as a romantic partner. "However, a rival isn't someone that individuals should ...
A fundamental problem for brain mapping
2013-07-10
Is there a brain area for mind-wandering? For religious experience? For reorienting attention? A recent study casts serious doubt on the evidence for these ideas, and rewrites the rules for neuroimaging.
Brain mapping experiments attempt to identify the cognitive functions associated with discrete cortical regions. They generally rely on a method known as "cognitive subtraction." However, recent research reveals a basic assumption underlying this approach—that brain activation is due to the additional processes triggered by the experimental task—is wrong
"It is such ...
Assessing impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
2013-07-10
WASHINGTON -- While numerous studies are under way to determine the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the Gulf of Mexico, the extent and severity of these impacts and the value of the resulting losses cannot fully be measured without considering the goods and services provided by the Gulf, says a new report from the National Research Council. The congressionally mandated report offers an approach that could establish a more comprehensive understanding of the impacts and help inform options for restoration activities.
Currently, state and federal resource ...
Emergency physicians use new tool to detect drug-seekers in the ER
2013-07-10
WASHINGTON — Emergency physicians and other emergency department staff were fairly accurate in assessing which patients were drug-seekers in the emergency department, changing their prescribing plans for less than 10 percent of patients after consulting an objective computerized state prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP). The analysis of emergency providers' prescribing patterns and clinical factors associated with suspecting drug-seeking in the ER were published online yesterday in Annals of Emergency Medicine ("Clinician Impression vs. Prescription Drug Monitoring ...
Factors influencing delay in breast cancer treatment differ for African-American and white women
2013-07-10
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Different factors influence delay between diagnosis and first course of treatment for breast cancer for African-American and White women.
The study used data from the Carolina Breast Cancer Study (CBCS) Phase III, a program of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. Scientists found that among White women, household size and losing a job due to one's diagnosis were reasons for delay in treatment, while among African-American women, the type of treatment received influenced delay. Both African-American and White women experienced delay if they underwent ...