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U.S. jury finds Immunosyn ex-CEO Ferrone guilty of fraud

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2011 had charged California-based Immunosyn with misleading investors about the regulatory status of the company’s sole product, a drug derived from goat blood called SF-1019, that was intended to treat a variety of ailments. “We are pleased with the jury’s finding that Stephen Ferrone defrauded Immunosyn’s investors with misleading statements in the company’s filings and press releases and his own speeches and interviews,” Andrew Ceresney, director of the SEC’S Division of Enforcement said in a statement.

In risks to bees, study finds not all neonicotinoids are equal

By Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) – A group of chemical insecticides known as neonicotinoids that have been banned in Europe due to fears about potential harm to bees have been found in new research to have very differential risks for bumblebees. Scientists who conducted the research said their findings showed that at least one neonicotinoid in the banned group – clothianidin – may have been unfairly named as among the offenders. This insecticide did not show the same detrimental effects on bee colonies as the others, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam, the researchers found.

White House urges Congress to move on Zika funding

By Timothy Gardner WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Two senior Obama administration officials wrote congressional leaders on Tuesday to urge legislation be passed to fund the fight against the Zika virus, as concerns mount the United States will soon face locally transmitted cases of the disease. U.S. health officials concluded this month that the virus, spreading rapidly in the Americas, was a cause of microcephaly, a rare birth defect defined by unusually small head size that can hamper development. Zika is also linked to other health problems.

Teens most drawn to e-cigarettes by online ads

To see which e-cigarette ad formats were most persuasive to teens, researchers analyzed data from a recent nationwide survey of about 22,000 middle school and high school students from grades 6 through 12, when youth are typically about 12 to 18 years old. When middle school kids said they routinely viewed e-cigarette ads online, they were almost three times more likely to use the devices than their peers who never saw ads. “E-cigarette ads use many of the same themes used to sell cigarettes and other conventional tobacco products, such as independence, rebellion and sex,” said lead study author Dr. Tushar Singh of the Office on Smoking and Health at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Teens most drawn to e-cigarettes by online ads

To see which e-cigarette ad formats were most persuasive to teens, researchers analyzed data from a recent nationwide survey of about 22,000 middle school and high school students from grades 6 through 12, when youth are typically about 12 to 18 years old. When middle school kids said they routinely viewed e-cigarette ads online, they were almost three times more likely to use the devices than their peers who never saw ads. “E-cigarette ads use many of the same themes used to sell cigarettes and other conventional tobacco products, such as independence, rebellion and sex,” said lead study author Dr. Tushar Singh of the Office on Smoking and Health at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Nearly 50 starving monkeys rescued in South Africa by animal rights group

Close to 50 starved and sick monkeys were rescued from filthy living conditions in a South African private zoo on Saturday, and were whisked away to a care facility, an international animal rights group said. International Primates Rescue (IPR) founder Sue Mousley said after failed attempts by the owner of Little Falls garden centre to improve the living conditions of the monkeys, the rescue team finally managed to get a court order allowing them to relocate the primates to IPR’s care facility.

Congo doctor Denis Mukwege named among TIME 100 most influential people

By Magdalena Mis LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Nobel-prize nominated Congolese gynaecologist Denis Mukwege, who treats war rape victims, was named by TIME magazine on Thursday as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. The 61-year-old doctor founded the Panzi Hospital in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in 1999 to help women and girls who had been raped during the conflict then raging in the country. “The people on the list, each in their own way, have lessons to teach,” TIME editor Nancy Gibbs said in a statement accompanying the release of the 2016 TIME 100.

Humanitarian evacuations under way from besieged Syrian towns

By Lisa Barrington BEIRUT (Reuters) – The humanitarian evacuation of 250 people from two Syrian towns besieged by pro-government forces and another 250 from two towns blocked off by rebels began on Wednesday, coordinated by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent. The towns blockaded by pro-government forces are Zabadani and Madaya, near the Lebanese border. Jan Egeland, chairman of a U.N. humanitarian task force on Syria, said last week he was disappointed by a slowdown in aid access, largely due to blockages by government-backed forces.

U.S. condemns ‘severe response’ to protests in tumultuous Gambia

The United States condemned on Sunday what it said was a “severe response to recent peaceful protests” in The Gambia, where a party youth leader has been killed and some senior opposition leaders arrested. One of the people arrested was Ousainu Darboe, leader of the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP), along with supporters and party officials who had gathered at his home. “The United States condemns the government of The Gambia’s severe response to recent peaceful protests. We call for an immediate end to violence and urge all Gambians to exercise restraint,” said John Kirby, a State Department spokesperson.  The Gambia is headed by President Yahya Jammeh, who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1994 and has made headlines for eccentric proclamations, including a claim to have invented a cure for HIV/AIDS.