Protein News and Research

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Proteins are complex molecules that are made up of amino acids. They can be found in every cell in the body, and carry out vital processes that keep human beings alive. Mutations in proteins can lead to a multitude of diseases, the most common being cancer.

Research suggests that immunity is stronger at night

The immune system's battle against invading bacteria reaches its peak activity at night and is lowest during the day.

14 Dec 2008

Exciting cancer discovery

Metastasis is the ability of cancer cells to spread from a primary site, to form tumours at distant sites.

14 Dec 2008

Early-stage breast cancer patients with HER2 positive tumors at increased risk of recurrence

Early-stage breast cancer patients with HER2 positive tumors one centimeter or smaller are at significant risk of recurrence of their disease, compared to those with early-stage disease who do not express the aggressive protein, according to a study led by researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

14 Dec 2008

Overactive brain enzyme may play role in preventing weight gain and obesity

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that overactivity of a brain enzyme may play a role in preventing weight gain and obesity.

14 Dec 2008

Possible new therapeutic target for pancreatic cancer

A possible new therapeutic target for pancreatic cancer, the most lethal form of human cancer, has been identified in the proteins whose DNA recipe comes from gene, "Seven-In-Absentia," according to researchers at the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) 48th Annual Meeting, Dec. 13-17, 2008 in San Francisco.

14 Dec 2008

Discovery of gene mutation that appears to help prevent heart disease

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore have discovered a novel gene mutation among the Old Order Amish population that significantly reduces the level of triglycerides in the blood and appears to help prevent cardiovascular disease.

12 Dec 2008

Numbing drugs can have profound and long-term negative effects

A large proteomics study on the brains of newborn mice provides more evidence that numbing drugs often used in obstetric or pediatric medicine can have profound and long-term negative effects, even after minimal exposure.

12 Dec 2008

Novavax announces positive results in trial of seasonal influenza VLP (trivalent) vaccine candidate

Novavax, Inc. has announced favorable results from a Phase IIa human clinical trial of its seasonal influenza VLP (trivalent) vaccine candidate.

12 Dec 2008

New cause of atrial fibrillation found

A new study shows that atrial fibrillation--the most common form of sustained heart arrhythmia--can be caused in an unexpected way.

12 Dec 2008

Food you eat can immediately impact cognitive behavior

A new study from the psychology department at Tufts University shows that when dieters eliminate carbohydrates from their meals, they performed more poorly on memory-based tasks than when they reduce calories, but maintain carbohydrates.

12 Dec 2008

Heart regenerates after infarction

Up until today scientists assumed that the adult heart is unable to regenerate. Now, researchers and cardiologists from the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch and the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Germany) have been able to show that this dogma no longer holds true.

12 Dec 2008

Entomologists look for Lyme disease answers in tick saliva

In research that could mitigate the spread of Lyme disease, Kansas State University entomologists are looking for answers in tick saliva.

12 Dec 2008

Researchers capture never before seen undulations of "dancing chromosomes"

The rhythm of life may beat far deeper than anyone previously thought. And it may gyrate and pulse in a way that rivals the sensuous choreography of "Dirty Dancing."

12 Dec 2008

Researchers create tiny, implantable device that captures and kills cancer cells in the bloodstream

In a new tactic in the fight against cancer, Cornell University researcher Michael King has developed what he calls a lethal "lint brush" for the blood -- a tiny, implantable device that captures and kills cancer cells in the bloodstream before they spread through the body.

12 Dec 2008

Scientists show that HIV's evolution in the body does not occur at a constant rate

HIV is so deadly largely because it evolves so rapidly. With a single virus as the origin of an infection, most patients will quickly come to harbor thousands of different versions of HIV, all a little bit different and all competing with one another to most efficiently infect that person's cells. Its rapid and unique evolution in every patient is what allows HIV to evade the body's defenses and gives the virus great skill at developing resistance to a pantheon of antiviral drugs.

12 Dec 2008

Vaxfectin-formulated H5N1 pandemic influenza achieves T-cell responses and cross-clade reactivity in humans

Vical Incorporated has announced that the company's Vaxfectin-formulated H5N1 pandemic influenza DNA vaccines induced T-cell responses against a matching strain of influenza virus and demonstrated cross-clade antibody responses against a different strain in a Phase 1 clinical trial.

11 Dec 2008