Protein C News and Research

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ASM awards UTHealth student 3-year, $33,000 fellowship for study of molecular details of protein folding in cells

Jennifer Abrams, a graduate student at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth), has been awarded a three-year, $33,000 fellowship from the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) to support her innovative research into the molecular causes of protein misfolding diseases like Alzheimer's, Lou Gehrig's and Parkinson's.

21 Sep 2010

Prostate cancer - TRAIL is worth a trial

One of the human body's protective mechanisms initiated by the TRAIL protein is massively altered in prostate cancer cells - yet the same protein seems to improve the survival prospects of patients. These outstanding results of a cooperative venture between the Clinical Program on Urological Tumours at the Medical University of Vienna and Harvard Medical School, USA, have just been published. They show that the TRAIL protein opens up the prospect to a more accurate prediction of the disease's course, as well as the opportunity to identify a new intervention point for innovative therapies in advanced prostate cancer.

21 Sep 2010

Study reveals molecular steps for pneumonia therapy

A structural molecule and the cellular pump that regulates its levels influence the severity of pneumonia and could provide new ways of treating the lung infection, which is a leading cause of hospitalization and death, according to scientists at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Iowa. Their findings are available online in Nature Medicine.

21 Sep 2010

ProtAffin presents impressive efficacy data for PA401 in COPD

ProtAffin AG, a biotechnology company developing a novel class of biopharmaceutical products that act by targeting cell-surface glycan structures, today presents compelling preclinical data in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for its lead product PA401 at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Barcelona, Spain. This conference is the largest gathering of scientists and clinicians in the respiratory community in the world. The Oral Presentation will be made in the session "Pre-clinical models of airways disease".

21 Sep 2010

Alpha-synuclein protein in Parkinson's disease inhibits autophagy: Research

A protein linked to Parkinson's disease may cause neurodegeneration by inhibiting autophagy-the process in which cells digest some of their contents-according to a study in the September 20 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology

21 Sep 2010

FDA accepts IND application for vaccine candidate based on iBioLaunch technology platform

iBio, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application filed for a vaccine candidate made with the Company's proprietary transformative technology, the iBioLaunch technology platform. The candidate vaccine was manufactured by iBio's research collaborator, Fraunhofer Center for Molecular Biotechnology (FCMB), in its cGMP pilot manufacturing facility in Newark, Delaware.

21 Sep 2010

Discovery could lead to new treatment methods for toxoplasmosis

The parasite responsible for toxoplasmosis requires a stress response system that helps it survive the move to infect new cells, Indiana University School of Medicine scientists have reported, a discovery that could lead to new treatments to control the disease.

21 Sep 2010

Scientists identify new pathway to control immune balance

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have identified a new pathway that helps control the immune balance through reciprocal regulation of specialized T lymphocytes, which play very different inflammatory roles.

21 Sep 2010

Arrayit installs microarray platform at NIH

Arrayit Corporation has completed installation and technical training of its proprietary microarray platform at the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, in Rockville, Maryland. In 2010, the NIH will invest more than $31.2 billion in medical research for the American people through 50,000 competitive grants to 325,000 researchers at 3,000 universities, hospitals, companies, medical schools and scientific institutions in the United States and around the world.

21 Sep 2010

Talecris Biotherapeutics announces 2010 eALTA award recipients

Talecris Biotherapeutics GmbH announced yesterday the recipients of the 2010 European alpha1-antitrypsin Laurell's Training Awards (eALTA). The annual awards, sponsored by Talecris, provide two fellowships of 50,000 euros to young investigators whose research aims to enhance the understanding and treatment of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency (AAT deficiency).

21 Sep 2010

NIH awards grant to discover drug for alcoholism

With the ultimate goal to discover a drug that one day treats alcoholism, a University of Houston (UH) pharmacy professor is working on pinpointing the mechanisms in the brain that respond to alcohol.

21 Sep 2010

Six3 gene safeguards future retina

New research led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators adds to evidence that the Six3 gene functions like a doorman in the developing brain and visual system, safeguarding the future retina by keeping the region where the eye is forming free of a signaling protein capable of disrupting the process.

21 Sep 2010

Researchers identify protein essential for dendritic cell development

A protein called PU.1 is essential for the development of dendritic cells, the sentinels of the immune system, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers in Melbourne, Australia, have shown.

20 Sep 2010

NIAMS awards $684,000 SBIR grant to Signum Biosciences to develop GPCR modulating therapeutics

Signum Biosciences, Inc. was recently awarded two Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I grants by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), a division of the NIH, totaling over $684,000 for development of novel G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) modulating therapeutics designed to treat common skin disorders.

20 Sep 2010

Celldex commences CDX-011 Phase 2b trial in advanced breast cancer patients expressing GPNMB

Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that the first patient has been treated in a randomized Phase 2b study of the Company's CDX-011 (glembatumumab vedotin) antibody drug conjugate in glycoprotein NMB (GPNMB) expressing advanced, refractory breast cancer patients. CDX-011 targets the protein GPNMB, which is over expressed in a variety of cancers including breast cancer, melanoma, and brain tumors.

20 Sep 2010

APAF selects AB SCIEX TripleTOF 5600 System to help advance proteomics research

AB SCIEX, a global leader in life science analytical technologies, today announced that the Australian Proteome Analysis Facility has chosen the AB SCIEX TripleTOF 5600 System to help advance proteomics research by significantly expanding proteome coverage. The TripleTOF 5600 System is the life science industry's fastest and most sensitive high-resolution mass spectrometer for high-performance qualitative and quantitative analysis.

20 Sep 2010

Gene deletion may make you smarter: Study

A new study has shown that switching off a single gene in mice unlocks a part of their brain that is otherwise inactive, boosting learning and memory. Considering the fact that humans have a similar gene, this sparks hope for many especially those who suffer from dementia and Alzheimer’s.

20 Sep 2010

Improper biological clocks tend to develop diabetes, obesity: Research

Biologists have found that a key protein that regulates the biological clocks of mammals also regulates glucose production in the liver and that altering the levels of this protein can improve the health of diabetic mice.

20 Sep 2010

PNNL, 59th Medical Wing collaborate to improve drug tests for illicit usage

A new collaboration between the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Air Force's 59th Medical Wing hopes to improve on drug tests for illicit drug use and abuse. Not only are the researchers looking for a better indicator of current or past use, but they'd like to be able to identify people prone to abusing drugs in the first place.

18 Sep 2010

Tips to keep students healthy, from brain to body

With kids back in school, good health starts with clean hands. Now that the new school year has begun, many moms are looking for an extra hand to help keep their kids healthy and reduce sick days. In fact, elementary school students who do not use proper hand hygiene will miss more school than those that do employ good hand-washing habits, according to an American Journal of Infection Control study.

18 Sep 2010