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 MICROBIOLOGY: SARS Cellular Receptor Discovered
HMS researchers, working with scientists at other institutions, have identified a cellular receptor that enables the SARS virus to gain a foothold in the human body--a discovery that could open the door to drug and vaccine strategies for combating the infection. The receptor, ACE2, belongs to a well-known family of proteins, the angiotensin-converting enzymes, which already are well known for their roles in hypertension and inflammation. In their research, Michael Farzan and his colleagues found that they could slow SARS replication by exposing infected cells to anti-ACE2 antibodies, and in a pinch, these same reagents might be used to combat another SARS outbreak. The findings appear in the Nov. 27 Nature.
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 NEUROBIOLOGY: Mechanism Found for Migraine Med
For migraine patients, triptans are often the only drugs that provide relief from their throbbing headaches. Historically, however, the efficacy of triptans has been poor--in some patients they do not work at all, and in others they only work some of the time. All this may be about to change. Rami Burstein and colleagues (from left: Beth Collins, Esther Garcia-Nicas, Burstein, Moshe Jakubowski, and Dan Levy) report in the January Annals of Neurology that they have identified two distinct groups of patients, one that always responds to the drugs and one that will respond only if the drug is given early in the attack. This finding helps to increase the efficacy of triptans to over 90 percent and should provide welcome relief to many migraine sufferers.
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 OUTREACH: Experts Go Global with Telemedicine
Even doctors in small communities in the United States or in other countries around the world have access to specialists in the Harvard Medical community through Partners Telemedicine. The Partner's Online Specialty Consultations service, for example, has seen more than 5,000 cases since June 2001, according to Joseph Kvedar, director of the telemedicine program. This and related services make the Partners program a global provider of niche expertise.
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 HEALTH CARE POLICY: Patients May Stop Meds in Move to Tiered Formularies
Large increases in copayments in tiered prescription drug plans increase the likelihood that patients will stop buying prescribed drugs, including those for heart disease and acid reflux, according to findings in the Dec. 4 New England Journal of Medicine. Led by Haiden Huskamp, the study is one of the first to show how employees with chronic illnesses respond to cost changes in their drug coverage.
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Copyright 2003 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
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