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Source - EurekAlert - Biology:
Public Release: 29-Dec-2009
New research could advance research field critical to personalized medicine <http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/gumc-nrc122709.php>
It's the ultimate goal in the treatment of cancer: tailoring a person's therapy based on his or her genetic makeup. While a lofty goal, scientists are steadily moving forward, rapidly exploiting new technologies. Researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center report a significant advance in this field of research using a new chip that looks for hundreds of mutations in dozen of genes.
Contact: Karen Mallet
km463@georgetown.edu <mailto:km463@georgetown.edu>
215-514-9751
Georgetown University Medical Center <http://gumc.georgetown.edu/>
Public Release: 28-Dec-2009
There may be a 'party' in your genes <http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/sp-tmb122809.php>
Genetics play a pivotal role in shaping how individual's identify with political parties , according to an article in a recent issue of Political Research Quarterly, the official journal of the Western Political Science Association.
Contact: Jim Gilden
media.inquiries@sagepub.com <mailto:media.inquiries@sagepub.com>
SAGE Publications <http://www.online.sagepub.com/>
Public Release: 28-Dec-2009
A 'fountain of youth' for stem cells? <http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/ctco-ao122809.php>
Stems cells used for transplantation in the nervous system to provide neural regeneration are fragile, but can be kept "forever young" during implantation through the use of self-assembling nanofiber scaffolds (SAPNS), a nanotechnology application for implanting young cells. By manipulating cell density and SAPNS concentration, researchers used SAPNS as templates and guides to slow cell growth, differentiation and proliferation, thereby creating a protective nanoenvironment for a variety of neural cells destined for implantation.
Contact: Rutlege Ellis-Behnke
rutledge@hkucc.hku.hk <mailto:rutledge@hkucc.hku.hk>
Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair
Public Release: 28-Dec-2009
Small molecules found to protect cells in multiple models of Parkinson's disease <http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/wifb-smf122409.php>
Several structurally similar small molecules appear capable of protecting cells from alpha-synuclein toxicity, a hallmark of Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by tremors, muscle rigidity, and slowed movements. There is currently no cure for the disease, and current Parkinson's therapies only address disease symptoms, not the disease's cellular cause.
Contact: Nicole Giese
giese@wi.mit.edu <mailto:giese@wi.mit.edu>
617-258-6851
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research <http://www.wi.mit.edu/index.html>
Public Release: 28-Dec-2009
Drug-resistant urinary tract infections spreading worldwide <http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/fo1b-du122309.php>
A sudden worldwide increase in an antibiotic-resistant bacterium is cause for concern, according to a review in f1000 Medicine Reports Faculty of 1000 member Dr. Johann Pitout, of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Calgary, urges the medical community to monitor the spread of a multidrug resistant bacterium before it becomes necessary to use more powerful antibiotics as a first response.
Contact: Steve Pogonowski
press@f1000.com <mailto:press@f1000.com>
Faculty of 1000: Biology and Medicine <http://www.f1000medicine.com/home>
Source - Science Daily:
Please note: Due to the format restrictions of Science Daily articles, you must click on the URL (web address) below the article summary, rather than the article title.
'Fountain of Youth' for Stem Cells? <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228120153.htm>
December 29, 2009 — Stems cells used for transplantation in the nervous system to provide neural regeneration are fragile, but can be kept "forever young" during implantation through the use of self-assembling nanofiber ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228120153.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228120153.htm>
Enzyme Necessary for Development of Healthy Immune System <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091222105447.htm>
December 29, 2009 — Mice without the deoxycytidine kinase enzyme have defects in their adaptive immune system, producing very low levels of both T and B lymphocytes, the major players involved in immune response, ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091222105447.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091222105447.htm>
Divide and Conquer: Splitting Fluorescent Protein Helps Image Clusters in Live Cells
December 29, 2009 — Half a protein is better than none, and in this case, it's way better than a whole one. Researchers have discovered that dividing a particular fluorescent protein and using it as a tag is handy for ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228163306.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228163306.htm>
Alzheimer's Disease: Amyloid Precursor Protein Good, Bad Or Both? <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091018171806.htm>
December 29, 2009 — New data about amyloid precursor protein, or APP, a protein implicated in development of Alzheimer's disease, suggests it also may have a positive role -- directly affecting learning and memory ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091018171806.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091018171806.htm>
Researchers Design a Tool to Induce Controlled Suicide in Human Cells <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091217094901.htm>
December 29, 2009 — Researchers in Spain have designed a new tool to study rescue signaling pathways and cell suicide in ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091217094901.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091217094901.htm>
'Self-Seeding' of Cancer Cells May Play a Critical Role in Tumor Progression <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091227212402.htm>
December 28, 2009 — Cancer progression is commonly thought of as a process involving the growth of a primary tumor followed by metastasis, in which cancer cells leave the primary tumor and spread to distant organs. A ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091227212402.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091227212402.htm>
New Agent for Some Drug-Resistant Non-Small Cell Lung Cancers <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091223133345.htm>
December 28, 2009 — Scientists have discovered a compound capable of halting a common type of drug-resistant lung cancer. The researchers report that non-small cell lung cancers that had become invulnerable to the drugs ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091223133345.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091223133345.htm>
Modifying Neural Stem Cells Improves Their Therapeutic Efficacy <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102204425.htm>
December 28, 2009 — Stem cells isolated from the brain of adult mice (adult neural stem cells [aNSCs]) have shown very modest therapeutic effects in a mouse model of the chronic inflammatory neurodegenerative disease ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102204425.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102204425.htm>
Small Molecules Found to Protect Cells in Multiple Models of Parkinson's Disease <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228152344.htm>
December 28, 2009 — Several structurally similar small molecules appear capable of protecting cells from alpha-synuclein toxicity, a hallmark of Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228152344.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228152344.htm>
Genomic Toggle Switches Divide Autoimmune Diseases Into Distinct Clusters <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091223230700.htm>
December 26, 2009 — Genomic switches can predispose an individual to one set of autoimmune disorders but protect the same person against another set of them, scientists have ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091223230700.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091223230700.htm>
Who Gets Expensive Cancer Drugs? A Tale of Two Nations <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091214173700.htm>
December 26, 2009 — The well-worn notion that patients in the United States have unfettered access to the most expensive cancer drugs while the United Kingdom's nationalized health care system regularly denies access to ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091214173700.htm <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091214173700.htm>
Source - Health Day:
Health Highlights: Dec. 29, 2009 <http://www.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=634498>
- Moldy Smell Prompts Recall of Tylenol Arthritis Caplets
- Music Therapy May Help Tinnutis
- Beef Recalled Because of E. Coli Concerns
- Brain Blood Flow Controlled by Inner Ear: Study
Diabetics Less Prone Now to End-Stage Kidney Disease
Reversing decades-long trend, the rate has dropped nearly 4 percent a year since 1996, study finds
Clinical Trials Update: Dec. 29, 2009 <http://www.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=634500>
- Migraine
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease)
Clinical Trials Update: Dec. 28, 2009 <http://www.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=634463>
- Insomnia
- Healthy Volunteers
- Overactive Bladder
Source - Yahoo Biotech News:
Alnylam and Collaborators at MIT Report New Pre-clinical Research on Systemic Delivery of RNAi Therapeutics <http://us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/industry/news/mostpop/*http:/biz.yahoo.com/bw/091229/20091229005166.html?.v=1> - Business Wire - Tue 8:00 am ET
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.----Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , a leading RNAi therapeutics company, and collaborators from the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology today announced the publication of new data in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences describing further advancements in discovery and development of novel “lipidoid” formulations for the systemic delivery of RNAi therapeutics.
Enzyme developer Codexis files for $100M IPO <http://us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/industry/news/mostpop/*http:/biz.yahoo.com/ap/091229/us_codexis_ipo_filing.html?.v=2> - AP - 54 minutes ago
Industrial enzyme developer Codexis Inc. plans to raise up to $100 million in an initial public offering in 2010. The Redwood City, Calif., company has not yet set a date for the proposed IPO and did not say how many shares it would sell.
Source - Google Health News:
Stealthy Kala Pharmaceuticals lands $2M <http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.masshightech.com/stories/2009/12/21/daily38-Stealthy-Kala-Pharmaceuticals-lands-2M.html&ct=ga&cd=C6iNGPjbHY4&usg=AFQjCNEhb6YRlOW9d8PKN3Uqas2CBgCazQ>
Mass High Tech
Hanes' principal field of research is gene therapy, cancer immunotherapy and pulmonary drug delivery, according to the Johns Hopkins website. ...
Test uses stem cells as tool to repair hearts, revive hopes <http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/dec/26/stemming-fears/&ct=ga&cd=p4cCKdqzV78&usg=AFQjCNFYfghfcHz4btN5Yt9Jtotz-wC6JQ>
Memphis Commercial Appeal
He is taking part in a test of adult stem cells to repair damage from a heart attack. ''The benefits outweighed the risk," he says. ...
Source - Medical News Today:
Biotherapeutics Distributor BDI Pharma, Inc. Launches Online Ordering Site For Vaccines <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174392.php>
BDI Pharma, Inc. (BDI), the fastest growing national distributor of biotech therapies, announced today the introduction of SecuriVAX(SM) ( http://www.securivax.com <http://www.securivax.com/> ), an online supply solution providing the healthcare community a one-stop source for a wide variety of vaccines. As a result of its representation of multiple brands and indications, SecuriVAX allows customers the convenience of purchasing their vaccines in a single, easy-to-use location. "Ordering vaccines often requires placing numerous calls or orders with each manufacturer. We saw a need to create a single source where our customers could place one order for all of the vaccines, everything from Measles to Yellow Fever, they utilize on a daily basis -- and to do so from a reliable and trusted source," said Brad Davis, Director of Marketing. "The addition of SecuriVAX is the latest in our expanding line of supply solutions, as we look to offer our customers a more convenient way of doing business."
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174392.php <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174392.php>
Broken Genomes Behind Breast Cancers - Genome Rearrangements In 24 Breast Cancers <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174783.php>
The first detailed search of breast cancer <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/37136.php> genomes to uncover genomic rearrangements was published on Wednesday. The team characterised the ways in which the human genome is broken and put back together in 24 cases of breast cancer. Rearrangements involve reshuffling and reorganisation of the genome and include deletions, duplications and novel juxtaposition of DNA sequences. The study shows that breast cancer samples can differ greatly in the extent to which they are subject to genomic rearrangements: some are relatively undisturbed whereas others are fractured extensively and then reassembled with more than 200 rearrangements present.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174783.php <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174783.php>
