Pancreas News and Research

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The pancreas is a gland organ in the digestive and endocrine system of vertebrates. It is both an endocrine gland producing several important hormones, including insulin, glucagon, and somatostatin, as well as an exocrine gland, secreting pancreatic juice containing digestive enzymes that pass to the small intestine. These enzymes help in the further breakdown of the carbohydrates, protein, and fat in the chyme.

Rare genetic condition provides insight into how pancreas develops

A rare genetic disorder has given researchers at the University of Exeter a surprising insight into how the pancreas develops. The finding provides a clue to how it may be possible to 'programme' stem cells - master cells in the body that can develop into specialised cells - to become pancreatic cells.

12 Dec 2011

Pig iPSCs can safely incorporate into tissues without tumor formation

Pig stem cell research conducted by two animal scientists at the University of Georgia reveals a better way to determine the safety of future stem cell therapies than rodent-based models.

12 Dec 2011

People in Northern Ireland less likely to develop cancers

People in Northern Ireland have a lower risk of developing some cancers than those living in the Republic of Ireland, according to the All-Ireland Cancer Atlas - a collaborative publication by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry at Queen's University Belfast and the National Cancer Registry in Cork.

12 Dec 2011

Lawson researchers exploit hunger hormone to identify prostate cancer

Non-invasive imaging detects prostate cancer earlier than ever before, but can't accurately distinguish between malignant and benign disease. According to Lawson Health Research Institute's Drs. John Lewis and Len Luyt, a new molecular imaging probe could be the answer.

9 Dec 2011

Scientists discover clues to the pancreatic cysts' possible origins

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have surveyed the DNA in four common types of pancreatic cysts, and have determined that each type bears a distinct pattern of gene mutations. Pancreatic cysts are present in about two percent of U.S. adults, and can, in some cases, require surgical removal and microscopic analysis to determine their type and likelihood of turning cancerous.

8 Dec 2011

Mayo Clinic in Florida now offers kidney and pancreas transplants for HIV-positive patients

Mayo Clinic in Florida is now offering kidney and pancreas transplants to HIV positive patients with advanced kidney disease and diabetes. Evidence is now solid that HIV-positive patients have the same favorable outcome in terms of patient and allograft survival as non-HIV positive organ transplant recipients, says Mary Prendergast, M.D., a kidney specialist whose focus is the care of patients who receive kidney and pancreas transplants.

7 Dec 2011

Combination of metformin and exercise can prevent Type 2 diabetes

Kinesiology researcher Barry Braun of the University of Massachusetts Amherst and colleagues recently reported unexpected results of a study suggests that exercise and one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for diabetes, metformin, each improves insulin resistance when used alone, but when used together, metformin blunted the full effect of a 12-week exercise program in pre-diabetic men and women.

6 Dec 2011

CPEB4 protein plays a crucial role in cancer progression

A study by researchers Ra-l M-ndez, ICREA Research Professor at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) and Pilar Navarro at the IMIM (Institut de Recerca Hospital del Mar, Barcelona) describes a new reprogramming mechanism for the expression of genes responsible for turning a healthy cell into a tumor cell.

5 Dec 2011

FDA guides novel diabetes device manufacturers towards easier approval

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a rule book for scientists and device manufacturers who are working towards an artificial pancreas – a portable device to help people with type 1 diabetes control their blood sugar levels.

4 Dec 2011

La Jolla researchers create first cellular movies showing destruction underlying type 1 diabetes

A war is being waged in the pancreases of millions of people throughout the world. The siege leads to the development of type 1 diabetes and has been a battlefield largely hidden from view-- until now.

3 Dec 2011

New technique allows production of medically useful amounts of endoderm cells from human PSCs

Scientists in Canada have overcome a key research hurdle to developing regenerative treatments for diabetes and liver disease with a technique to produce medically useful amounts of endoderm cells from human pluripotent stem cells. The research, published in Biotechnology and Bioengineering, can be transferred to other areas of stem cell research helping scientists to navigate the route to clinical use known as the 'valley of death'.

3 Dec 2011

JDRF supports FDA's draft guidance on artificial pancreas technology

The JDRF today said it is encouraged that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a draft guidance which appears to lay a foundation for accelerating the development and availability of artificial pancreas technology (AP) that will improve the lives of millions of Americans living with type 1 diabetes.

2 Dec 2011

Scottsdale resident donates $1 million to TGen pancreatic cancer initiative

A son's passion to find a cure for the cancer that claimed the life of his mother has led to a new series of clinical trials under a Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) initiative to find a cure for pancreatic cancer.

2 Dec 2011

FDA issues draft guidance on artificial pancreas system

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued draft guidance designed to help investigators and manufacturers as they develop and seek approval for artificial pancreas device systems to treat type 1 diabetes.

2 Dec 2011

ACGME approves Cedars-Sinai's neurology residency training program

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education has approved a neurology residency training program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Recruitment of the first group of three residents is under way through the 2012 "match," a process in which an independent organization pairs applicants with programs to meet the preferences of each.

30 Nov 2011

European Commission approves ONGLYZA as combination therapy with insulin for type 2 diabetes

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and AstraZeneca today announced that the European Commission has approved ONGLYZA (saxagliptin) for use as a combination therapy with insulin (with or without metformin) to improve blood sugar (glycaemic) control in adult patients with type 2 diabetes.

28 Nov 2011

ABCC9 gene also influences duration of sleep in humans

A collaborative European study led by LMU researchers has shown that ABCC9, a known genetic factor in heart disease and diabetes, also influences the duration of sleep in humans.

24 Nov 2011

Takeda submits alogliptin plus metformin NDA to FDA for treatment of type 2 diabetes

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary Takeda Global Research & Development Center, Inc., U.S., submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the United States (U.S.) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the fixed-dose combination therapy alogliptin/metformin, which combines alogliptin with metformin in a single tablet.

24 Nov 2011

Dendritic cells play a novel protective role in pancreas

NYU Langone Medical Center researchers have discovered the novel protective role dendritic cells play in the pancreas. The new study, published in the November issue of journal Gastroenterology, shows dendritic cells can safeguard the pancreas against acute pancreatitis, a sudden dangerous swelling and inflammation of the pancreas gland.

23 Nov 2011

Treatment of Type 1 diabetes patients with DiaPep277- may have several medical benefits

The clinical trial was random, regulated, double-blinded and broad-based. The drug was tested on 457 patients, aged 16-45, who had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes a short time before joining the trial. The trial took place in around 40 medical centers in Europe, Israel and South Africa. The patients in the trial were randomly assigned to one of two groups: One received the trial drug (DiaPep277-) through a subcutaneous injection once every three months, for a period of two years, while the control group was given a placebo in the same way.

23 Nov 2011