Unfairly maligned
Increasing numbers of US schools are conducting random drug tests on their pupils, but such tests can be misleading, says a report in Pediatrics (DOI: 10.1542/peds.2006-3688). Of 710 drug tests performed on 110 young people over a three-year period, 85 gave incorrect results, for example by detecting prescription medicines.
Rights for reefs
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Corals may soon get their own bill of rights. ReefCheck, the world鈥檚 largest coral reef monitoring organisation, has launched the International Declaration of Reef Rights. It wants 1 million people to sign up to the declaration before presenting it to the heads of state of the 101 countries with coral reefs on 31 December 2008.
Constipation drug pulled
A popular constipation drug has been withdrawn from the US market after it was found to increase the risk of cardiovascular problems. Novartis withdrew Zelnorm, also marketed as Zelmac, after data from more than 18,000 patients showed it increased the risk of heart attack, stroke and unstable angina from 0.01 to 0.11 per cent.
Unsteely magnolias
Over half of the world鈥檚 magnolia species are close to extinction. Of the 245 wild species, 131 are at risk from over-harvesting and habitat degradation, according to a report released on Monday by Botanic Gardens Conservation International and Fauna and Flora International.
Boost for cancer vaccine
The first cancer vaccine designed to fight tumours by fortifying a patient鈥檚 own immune system could be approved by mid May, according to Dendreon, the Seattle-based company developing the treatment. The US Food and Drug Administration concluded on 29 March that 鈥淧rovenge鈥�, which is designed to destroy prostate cancer cells, is safe enough to be used in humans and works as planned.