Apoptosis News and Research

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Apoptosis is programmed cell death, the body's normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.

Emerging cancer therapies and novel targets

What are the cancer drugs of tomorrow and how will they be developed? At the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics, researchers will present some answers to these and other pressing questions regarding emerging cancer therapeutics.

25 Oct 2007

New target for Hepatocellular carcinoma therapy

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major health problem worldwide. Currently, the only chance for obtaining a cure in patients with HCC is by either a surgical resection or liver transplantation.

25 Oct 2007

Combination targets offer new hope in fight against cancer

While some targeted therapies - drugs developed to attack specific molecules in the critical chemical pathways occurring within cancer cells - work well by themselves, increasingly researchers are finding that they work better when teamed with other targeted and conventional therapies.

24 Oct 2007

Potent inhibitor of Kinesin CENP-E demonstrates tumor cell inhibition

A first-in-class, targeted investigational therapy specifically designed to inhibit a single protein that functions only during cell division shows potent activity in a broad range of cancer cell lines, say researchers from GlaxoSmithKline.

24 Oct 2007

Experimental cancer pharmaceuticals under trial

A potent and selective inhibitor of the mitotic kinesin CENP-E (GSK923295A) demonstrates a novel mechanism of inhibiting tumor cell proliferation and shows activity against a broad panel of human tumor cell lines in vitro: Abstract A 111.

24 Oct 2007

Advances in drug screening

With the discovery of suitable molecular targets - cellular molecules along pathways crucial for sustaining the life of cancer cells - comes the perplexing dilemma of where to find the next therapeutics that will bind to and disable those targets.

23 Oct 2007

The accumulation of sugar in neurons may explain the origin of several neurodegenerative diseases

A phenomenon considered healthy for cells, such as the accumulation of long chains of glucose (glycogen), which tissues store for energy purposes, is harmful for neurons.

22 Oct 2007

Researcher identify specific cell that causes eye cancer, disproving long-held theory

Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have identified the cell that gives rise to the eye cancer retinoblastoma, disproving a long-standing principle of nerve growth and development.

19 Oct 2007

Baicalin shows promise for severe acute pancreatitis

¡°Qingyitang¡±, a representative prescription of Traditional Chinese Medicine for SAP was widely used in the orients countries.

18 Oct 2007

Important insights into blood vessel formation

Researchers have identified a molecular pathway that plays a critical role in the growth of blood vessels.

15 Oct 2007

Six years advance warning of Alzheimer's

One of the most distressing aspects of Alzheimer's disease is the difficulty in determining whether mild memory problems are the beginning of an inevitable mental decline.

15 Oct 2007

Inhaled ozone impairs the body's first line of defense

As policy makers debate what levels of ozone in the air are safe for humans to breathe, studies in mice are revealing that the inhaled pollutant impairs the body's first line of defense, making it more susceptible to subsequent foreign invaders, such as bacteria.

1 Oct 2007

DNA damage response confers a barrier for viral tumorigenesis

Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) is a human tumor virus and an etiological agent for Kaposi's sarcoma (KS).

27 Sep 2007

New AstraZeneca compound shows promoise for hormone resistant prostate cancer patients with bone metastases

New Phase II data suggests that ZD4054, a novel compound in development for the treatment of men with Hormone Resistant Prostate Cancer (HRPC), could offer a promising improvement in overall survival in men with metastatic HRPC who were asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic for pain.

26 Sep 2007

Mutation of the COX2 gene can double or treble a woman's risk of ovarian cancer

Researchers in Portugal have discovered that a specific mutation of the COX2 gene seems to play a role in the onset of ovarian cancer, increasing women's susceptibility to developing the disease.

26 Sep 2007

Molecular fingerprint of breast cancer drug resistance can predict response to treatment

A way of predicting which patients will respond well to treatment with a common chemotherapy drug used in breast cancer was unveiled at the European Cancer Conference (ECCO 14).

25 Sep 2007

Discovery of two new proteins associated with colorectal cancer

Researchers at the Zhejiang University, Hangzhou have discovered that mimecan and Thioredoxin Domain-Containing Protein 5 (TXNDC5) were differentially expressed in colorectal adenoma.

25 Sep 2007

Acute loss of intestinal CD4+ T cells is not predictive of SIV virulence

A sudden loss of T cells -- white blood cells crucial to the immune system -- is not the trigger for the onset of AIDS, according to a study published in the September 2007 issue of the Journal of Immunology by a team of researchers at Tulane National Primate Research Center.

24 Sep 2007

Genetic cause discovered for systemic lupus erythematosus

Mutations in a gene researchers call TREX1 is one cause for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a severe and incurable autoimmune disease.

24 Sep 2007

New cell death pathway involved in sperm development

Heavy and bulky sperm would not be good swimmers. To trim down, sperm rely on cell death proteins called caspases, which facilitate the removal of unwanted cellular material and radically remodel these cells into their sleek, light shape.

18 Sep 2007