Democratic presidential candidates former Sen. John Edwards (N.C.), Sens. Barack Obama (Ill.) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), and Rep. [click link for full article]

Capsules of insulin produced in genetically modified lettuce could hold the key to restoring the body’s ability to produce insulin and help millions of Americans who suffer from insulin-dependent diabetes, according to University of Central Florida biomedical researchers.Professor Henry Daniell’s research team genetically engineered tobacco plants with the insulin gene and then administered freeze-dried plant cells to five-week-old diabetic mice as a powder for eight weeks. [click link for full article]

The conclusion that “there is no evidence that abstinence-only programs reduce the rate of teen sexual activity,” recently reached by researchers of an eight-year Mathematica Policy Research report, is not a “particularly surprising conclusion,” a [click link for full article]

The hearing precision that lets common barn owls find prey is helping researchers fine tune their quest to diagnose a variety of problems rooted in the human brain, not only with hearing but also with behavior and potentially damaged areas. [click link for full article]

Abbott Laboratories this week enrolled the first patient in a clinical trial studying the safety and efficacy of its experimental drug-eluting stent Xience in women, the Chicago Tribune reports. Abbott applied for FDA approval for the device in June. [click link for full article]

Researchers at Johns Hopkins have found a way to overcome a major stumbling block to developing successful insulin-cell transplants for people with type I diabetes.Traditional transplant of the cells, accompanied by necessary immune-suppressing drugs, has had highly variable results, from well- to poorly tolerated. Part of the problem, the Hopkins researchers say, is an inability to track the cells — so-called pancreatic beta cells — once they’re inside the body. [click link for full article]

The Senate on Monday will begin debate on legislation (S 1893) to reauthorize and expand SCHIP, while the House is scheduled to begin debate later in the week on a separate bill (HR 3162) that would reauthorize the program and also make revisions to Medicare, the [click link for full article]

A report led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) helps explain the origins of cardiac fibrosis, a stiffening of the heart muscle that leads to a variety of cardiac diseases, most notably heart failure. [click link for full article]

Amnesty International is likely to affirm a policy adopted in May that supports a woman’s right to have an abortion under certain circumstances, despite opposition from Roman Catholic and conservative leaders worldwide, the AP/Guardian reports (Crary, AP/Guardian, 7/26). [click link for full article]