First DataBank Europe (FDBE) in association with The Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists (GHP) and the UK Clinical Pharmacy Association (UKCPA) announced the 2009 FDBE/GHP/UKCPA Information Technology Award. The aim of the annual award, which is in its seventh year, is to encourage, support and promote information technology initiatives and best practice in the use of IT in hospital pharmacy.

The European Medicines Agency has reviewed the risks associated with the use of heparin medicinal products contaminated with oversulphated chondroitin sulphate (OSCS). Heparins are used to prevent and treat blood clots. They are used widely in patients who could have, or have had a heart attack, in patients who have undergone major surgery, or patients on dialysis.

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced efforts underway at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that will complement each other to improve patient safety and the quality of medical care. "This initiative will tremendously increase the FDA's capacity to monitor the use of medical products on the market," Secretary Leavitt said.

A new study conducted by a team of UK and US scientists has revealed the carcinogenic potential of certain carbon nanotubes. In a paper published in Nature Nanotechnology on 20 May, the researchers describe asbestos-like features in long, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), when they are inhaled in sufficient quantities.

The UK Parliament has voted to allow the creation of embryos containing both human and animal genetic material for research purposes. As apart of a two-date debate on amendments to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, members of parliament voted 342 to 163 against an amendment to outlaw so-called hybrid or admixed embryos.

New research conducted by a group of EU-funded researchers is shedding new light on the way blood vessels grow, overturning years of medical thought. The findings have important implications for the development of novel drugs to treat diseases such as cancer, many of which target the tumour's ability to grow its own blood vessels.

Scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden have identified a molecule which plays a key role in both the regulation of body fat and the release of insulin from the pancreas. Two papers presenting the results are published online by the journal the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).