J&J, Lilly, Merck plan clinical trial site database

(Reuters) – Johnson & Johnson, Merck & Co Inc and Eli Lilly & Co, plan to launch a one-stop database of global clinical trial sites aimed at streamlining paperwork and speeding the process for testing new drugs.The partners have begun securing approval from as many as 100,000 clinical investigators to enter their details into the database,...

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TSX sinks to a 3-month low, led by mining, financials

TORONTO (Reuters) – Canada‘s main stock index tumbled to a three-month low on Thursday, dragged down by the materials and financial sectors, as soft U.S. and European economic data dampened sentiment.The Toronto Stock Exchange‘s S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> was down 143.03 points, or 1.20 percent, at 11,786.76 after the open. Earlier it...

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Beating tax cheats key to Italy’s recovery plan

ROME (AP) — Good plumbers may be worth their weight in gold, but when one was spotted zipping around in a bright red Ferrari, Italian tax police were fast on his trail.Stamping out entrenched tax evasion is crucial to Premier Mario Monti‘s quest to keep Italy from succumbing to the European debt crisis, and it is critical to fellow eurozone members in...

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Facebook stock up as lock-up expires on largest block of shares

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Shares of Facebook Inc jumped 10 percent in early trading on Wednesday, even as the biggest block of shares held by insiders became eligible for sale for the first time since the social media company’s disappointing debut in May.In heavy morning trading, Facebook gained $ 2.02 to $ 21.89. “While...

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Actor Channing Tatum dubbed People’s sexiest man alive

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Actor Channing Tatum, who set female hearts fluttering in the summer movie hit “Magic Mike”, was named the sexiest man alive by People magazine on Wednesday.“My first thought was, ‘Y’all are messing with me,” Tatum told the magazine after hearing the news. The 32-year-old actor, who is married to...

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New Hope For ‘Man on Fire Syndrome’

Pamela Costa has never known a day without agonizing pain in her legs and feet.At age 11, the Seattle native was diagnosed with inherited erythromelalgia, a genetic condition that causes such severe pain and redness some call it “Man on Fire Syndrome.” “Think of the feeling that you get when you come in from the cold...

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America’s Shadow Pharmacies

In October 2003, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions assembled for hearings on compounding pharmacies. These state-licensed retail businesses mix and sell medications, but without the federal safety approval required for mass-produced drugs. Then-Senator Christopher Bond (R-Mo.) convened the hearing by warning of “a significant...

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General investigated for emails to Petraeus friend

PERTH, Australia (AP) — In a new twist to the Gen. David Petraeus sex scandal, the Pentagon said Tuesday that the top American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, is under investigation for alleged “inappropriate communications” with a woman who is said to have received threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, the woman with whom Petraeus had an...

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Day-Lewis heeded inner ear to find Lincoln’s voice

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A towering figure such as Abraham Lincoln, who stood 6 feet 4 and was one of history’s master orators, must have had a booming voice to match, right? Not in Daniel Day-Lewis‘ interpretation.Day-Lewis, who plays the 16th president in Steven Spielberg‘s epic film biography “Lincoln,” which goes into wide release this weekend, settled on...

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War uproots 2.5 million Syrians, aid groups say

GENEVA (Reuters) – At least 2.5 million Syrians are believed to have fled their homes because of civil war, aid groups said on Tuesday, more than double previous estimates.The figure comes from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, whose volunteers are on the frontlines of the 20-month conflict, delivering aid supplies and evacuating wounded. “The...

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