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Researchers examine how diabetes drug can benefit cancer patients

For several years, a class of anti-diabetic drugs known as biguanides, has been associated with anti-cancer properties. A number of retrospective studies have shown that the widely used diabetes drug metformin can benefit some cancer patients.

18 Mar 2014

Levels of bisphenol A in men's urine could be marker of prostate cancer

Findings by Cincinnati Cancer Center researchers show that levels of bisphenol A (BPA) in men's urine could be a marker of prostate cancer and that low levels of BPA exposure can cause cellular changes in both non-malignant and malignant prostate cells.

4 Mar 2014

Scientists carry out first studies of living biological cells using high-energy X-rays

G-ttingen-based scientists working at DESY's PETRA III research light source have carried out the first studies of living biological cells using high-energy X-rays. The new method shows clear differences in the internal cellular structure between living and dead, chemically fixed cells that are often analysed.

28 Feb 2014

Researchers create new probe that freezes cells to "see" at greater detail without damaging

It's an odd twist. For scientists to determine if a cell is functioning properly, they must destroy it. This is what happens in X-ray fluorescence microscopy when biological specimens are exposed to ionizing radiation, which provides images with a level of detail that conventional microscopes just can't match.

26 Feb 2014

Engineers place tiny synthetic motors inside live human cells

For the first time, a team of chemists and engineers at Penn State University have placed tiny synthetic motors inside live human cells, propelled them with ultrasonic waves and steered them magnetically. It's not exactly "Fantastic Voyage," but it's close. The nanomotors, which are rocket-shaped metal particles, move around inside the cells, spinning and battering against the cell membrane.

11 Feb 2014

CU receives cooperative agreement to develop technological system to determine effects chemical agents

The University of Colorado Boulder has been awarded a cooperative agreement worth up to $14.6 million from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a new technological system to rapidly determine how drugs and biological or chemical agents exert their effects on human cells.

29 Jan 2014

CUMC researchers identify gene that appears to play major role in motor neuron degeneration in ALS

Columbia University Medical Center researchers have identified a gene, called matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), that appears to play a major role in motor neuron degeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The findings, made in mice, explain why most but not all motor neurons are affected by the disease and identify a potential therapeutic target for this still-incurable neurodegenerative disease. The study was published today in the online edition of the journal Neuron.

23 Jan 2014

UT Southwestern' faculty receives Stanley J. Korsmeyer Award for contributions to understanding of autophagy

Dr. Beth Levine, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Director of the Center for Autophagy Research at UT Southwestern Medical Center, has received the 2014 Stanley J. Korsmeyer Award from the American Society for Clinical Investigation.

22 Jan 2014

Parkin and PINK1 function in vesicular trafficking pathway regulates mitochon-drial quality control

Scientists from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital in Canada have discovered that two genes linked to hereditary Parkinson's disease are involved in the early-stage quality control of mitochondria.

22 Jan 2014

Uneven distribution of cellular organelles during cell division may enhance bacterial population's survival

Although a population of bacteria may be genetically identical, individual bacteria within that population can act in radically different ways.

3 Jan 2014

Spaceflights cause cellular-level damage and may lead to long-term vision problems

Those who travel to space are rewarded with a beautiful sight - planet Earth. But the effects of space travel on the human sense of sight aren't so beautiful. More than 30 percent of astronauts who returned from two-week space shuttle missions and 60 percent who spent six months aboard the International Space Station were diagnosed with eye problems. Two recent investigations examined mechanisms that may explain eye changes in spaceflight, help find ways to minimize this health risk to astronauts and eventually prevent and treat eye diseases on Earth.

13 Dec 2013

Mitochondrial enzyme SIRT5 regulates proteins involved in metabolism

The Sirtuin family of protein deacylases has received considerable attention in recent years due to its links to longevity, diabetes, cancer, and metabolic regulation.

12 Dec 2013

Shifts in zinc's location could be exploited for early diagnosis of prostate cancer

Zinc, an essential nutrient, is found in every tissue in the body. The vast majority of the metal ion is tightly bound to proteins, helping them to perform biological reactions. Tiny amounts of zinc, however, are only loosely bound, or "mobile," and thought to be critical for proper function in organs such as the brain, pancreas, and prostate gland. Yet the exact roles the ion plays in biological systems are unknown.

9 Dec 2013

BIDMC study shows carbon monoxide may have a role to play in treating cancer

In recent years, research has suggested that carbon monoxide, the highly toxic gas emitted from auto exhausts and faulty heating systems, can be used to treat certain inflammatory medical conditions. Now a study led by a research team at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) shows for the first time that carbon monoxide may also have a role to play in treating cancer.

4 Dec 2013

Findings highlight possible new approach to combat malaria

An international team of scientists, including researchers at Columbia University Medical Center, has identified a key metabolic enzyme that common malaria parasites require for survival at each stage of infection in humans. The findings raise the possibility of a new approach to combating malaria, one of the world's deadliest diseases. The study was published today in the online edition of the journal Nature.

27 Nov 2013

Research: Motor proteins transport mRNA to get where it is needed, prevent diseases

Scientists have found that mRNA may travel one way down a cell, then board another, aptly named motor protein, and head in the opposite direction to get where it ultimately needs to be.

27 Nov 2013

Brain & Behavior Research Foundation announces recipients of NARSAD Investigator Grants

The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (formerly known as NARSAD, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression), under the direction of Dr. Jeffrey Borenstein, President & CEO, has announced the latest recipients of its NARSAD Distinguished Investigator Grants.

8 Nov 2013

Linkam Scientific Instruments report the use of CMS196 for the imaging of mammalian cells at the London Research Institute, Cancer Research UK

Market leaders in temperature controlled microscopy, Linkam Scientific Instruments report on the use of their innovative CMS196 cryo stage for the study of mammalian cells at the London Research Institute, Cancer Research UK.

From Linkam Scientific Instruments 5 Nov 2013

Meclizine drug has the potential to treat certain infectious diseases and cancer

Meclizine, an over-the-counter drug used for decades to treat nausea and motion sickness, has the potential for new uses to treat certain infectious diseases and some forms of cancer, according to Dr. Vishal M. Gohil, Texas A&M AgriLife Research biochemist.

31 Oct 2013

Research findings may lead to new ways to combat cancer

The way cells divide to form new cells - to support growth, to repair damaged tissues, or simply to maintain our healthy adult functioning - is controlled in previously unsuspected ways UC San Francisco researchers have discovered.

12 Oct 2013