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Scientists create synthetic cellular communications system that can respond to pain relief signals

Scientists from Manchester and Bristol have successfully created a synthetic cellular communications system - which has successfully recognised signals involved in pain relief.

From The University of Manchester 7 Mar 2017

New RNAi treatment safely blocks ocular inflammation in mice

Scientists have developed a new RNA interference therapeutic agent that safely blocked ocular inflammation in mice, potentially making it a new treatment for human uveitis and diabetic retinopathy.

14 Feb 2017

Researchers identify link between neuronal proteins and frontotemporal lobar degeneration

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration is a type of dementia characterized by personality changes, language dysfunction, and abnormal behavior. It has an earlier onset than Alzheimer's disease, and is associated with a buildup of the tau protein in affected nerve cells (neurons).

13 Feb 2017

Okayama University researchers uncover potential new therapeutic target for invasive bladder cancer

Researchers at Okayama University have uncovered a potential new therapeutic target for invasive bladder cancer. The GTP hydrolysing enzyme (GTPase), called Dynamin2, facilitates the rapid invasion of cancer into surrounding tissues; inhibiting its activity could limit the progression of bladder cancer.

10 Jan 2017

Mood stabilizers may decrease negative symptoms in psychiatric patients with specific genotype

A drug prescribed to many patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder may decrease negative symptoms for people with a certain variant of the COMT gene, suggests a new study from researchers at Columbia University Medical Center.

14 Sep 2016

Enzyme from oral bacteria could be potential therapy for celiac disease

Researchers have isolated an enzyme from bacteria present in human saliva that has potential as a therapy for celiac disease (CD), an autoimmune disorder that causes severe digestive and other health problems among sufferers when they consume gluten.

6 Sep 2016

Iron-containing catalysts can alter amino acids to help develop new drug candidates

For medicinal chemists, making tweaks to peptide structures is key to developing new drug candidates. Now, researchers have demonstrated that two iron-containing small-molecule catalysts can help turn certain types of amino acids -- the building blocks of peptides and proteins -- into an array of potential new forms, even when part of a larger peptide, while preserving a crucial aspect of their chemistry: chirality, or "handedness."

2 Aug 2016

Rare antibiotic compound detected in fungi for first time

Besides mushrooms such as truffles or morels, also many yeast and mould fungi, as well as other filamentous fungi belong to the Ascomycota phylum. They produce metabolic products which can act as natural antibiotics to combat bacteria and other pathogens. Penicillin, one of the oldest antibiotic agents, is probably the best known example.

18 Jul 2016

New GHz-class NMR magnet and probe technologies introduced by Bruker at ENC 2016

At the 57th Experimental Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Conference (www.enc-conference.org), Bruker announced new GHz-class NMR magnet and probe technologies to enable expanding frontiers in structural biology, membrane protein and intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) research.

From Bruker BioSpin Group 11 Apr 2016

P53 genetic variant heavily implicated in metabolism, new research finds

The study may also provide an evolutionary explanation for differences in populations living farther away from the Equator. Human ancestors may have undergone this change in R72 to promote energy storage in cold climates and during times of famine. However, in modern society, the need for this type of variant in our genes is unnecessary, leading instead to increased risk for obesity and type 2 diabetes. Obesity is also a risk factor for certain types of cancer, so these findings may also explain why the R72 variant of p53 might predispose certain people to cancer.

4 Mar 2016

PharmaEssentia to present results of P1101 + ribavirin phase II trial in HCV patients at APASL 2016

PharmaEssentia Corporation announces presentation of the results of the phase II trial for P1101 + ribavirin in patients with chronic HCV genotype 1 infection at the 25th Conference of the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver, taking place in Tokyo, Japan from February 20 to 24, 2016 (APASL 2016). Data will be presented by the study coordinating investigator Prof. Wan-Long Chuang (Taiwan) at the HCV parallel oral session on Feb 22nd (15:45-17:45).

22 Feb 2016

Scientists discover role of nucleocytoplasmic transport in specific forms of ALS and FTD

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are two devastating adult-onset neurodegenerative disorders.

15 Feb 2016

Researchers uncover new mechanism that p53 protein uses to trigger cell death

Researchers have identified a new mechanism that the tumor suppressor protein p53 uses to trigger cell death via apoptosis and have shown how the process could be harnessed to kill cancer cells. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists led the study, which appears today in the scientific journal Molecular Cell.

31 Jul 2015

Study points to potential treatment for thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura

A rare autoimmune disease creates sudden pain in the abdomen or the head, sending a patient to the emergency room with a potentially fatal condition. The pain comes from a multitude of blockages of tiny blood vessels, formed after the patient's own immune system somehow inhibits an enzyme that is vital to control clotting.

23 Jul 2015

Researchers gain new insight into how motor neurons in the brain die during ALS

Researchers look to understand the causes of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), in the hope of finding new ways to treat the disease. A new study published online today (December 17th) in the Cell Press journal Neuron shows that a common gene mutation in ALS generates a deadly protein that may cause the damage in the brain that leads to ALS.

17 Dec 2014

Research findings may lead to novel target for chemoresistant cancer cells

Dartmouth cancer researchers at Norris Cotton Cancer Center found a means of causing the elimination of a protein that maintains cancer cell viability; the results of the study appear in the August 8 issue of The Journal of Biological Chemistry.

17 Aug 2014

Study identifies novel gene that controls nerve conduction velocity linked with MS

A new study published in The American Journal of Pathology identifies a novel gene that controls nerve conduction velocity.

13 Aug 2014

Study could lead to better understanding of how Notch protein directs healthy development of organs

Johns Hopkins researchers report they have figured out how the aptly named protein Botch blocks the signaling protein called Notch, which helps regulate development. In a report on the discovery, to appear online April 24 in the journal Cell Reports, the scientists say they expect the work to lead to a better understanding of how a single protein, Notch, directs actions needed for the healthy development of organs as diverse as brains and kidneys.

26 Apr 2014

Arginine and proline supplementation favor wound healing in diabetic rats

Chronic wounds such as foot ulcers are a common problem for diabetics and are the cause of more than 80 percent of the lower leg amputations in these patients. There is currently no effective way to improve healing of these types of wounds, but new research offers hope.

16 Nov 2012

Codexis receives U.S. patent for enzymes utilized in HCV therapeutics

Codexis, Inc., a developer of cost-advantaged processes for the production of biofuels, bio-based chemicals, and pharmaceutical intermediates, today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted Codexis' patent covering the biocatalysts and biocatalytic processes used to make key pharmaceutical intermediates in the synthesis of leading hepatitis-C therapeutics.

16 May 2012