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Research examines link between metabolic syndrome and cognitive disorders

No effective treatments are currently available for the prevention or cure of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most frequent form of dementia in the elderly. The most recognized risk factors, advancing age and having the apolipoprotein E Ɛ4 gene, cannot be modified or treated. Increasingly, scientists are looking toward other risk factors to identify preventive and therapeutic strategies.

15 Jun 2012

New U-M hESC lines now available for federally-funded research

Six new human embryonic stem cell lines derived at the University of Michigan have just been placed on the U.S. National Institutes of Health's registry, making the cells available for federally-funded research.

15 Jun 2012

LFA announces 2012 Gina M. Finzi Memorial Student Fellowship Program grantees

The Lupus Foundation of America (LFA) is pleased to announce the 2012 Gina M. Finzi Memorial Student Fellowship Program grantees. This unique program, established more than 25 years ago by former LFA President Dr. Sergio Finzi in honor of his daughter Gina who passed away from lupus, seeks to cultivate an interest in lupus research among young scientists by funding basic, clinical, translational, epidemiological, and behavioral research studies under the supervision of an established investigator.

15 Jun 2012

ISCO develops new TTF-based stem cell technology

International Stem Cell Corporation announced that scientists in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Lifeline Cell Technology (LCT), have developed a technology to modify human stem cells by using engineered proteins, called "transducible transcription factors" or "TTFs."

15 Jun 2012

Osiris receives consent from NZ to market Prochymal for GvHD

Osiris Therapeutics, Inc., announced today it has received consent from New Zealand to market its first-in-class stem cell therapy Prochymal (remestemcel-L), for the treatment of acute graft-vs-host disease (GvHD) in children.

15 Jun 2012

Transplantation of tissue-engineered vein is a success and offers hope for patients who lack suitable veins for dialysis or bypass surgery

The first biologically tissue-engineered vein grown from a patient’s own stem cells has been successfully transplanted into a 10-year-old girl with portal vein obstruction, dramatically enhancing her quality of life.

15 Jun 2012

Unifying theory on causes of cancer metastases

A unifying theory on the causes of cancer metastases has been proposed by Alexander R.A. Anderson, Ph.D., chair of Integrated Mathematical Oncology at Moffitt Cancer Center, and Jacob Scott, M.D., a Moffitt Radiation Oncology Program resident that is studying for his Ph.D. at the University of Oxford Centre for Mathematical Biology.

15 Jun 2012

NIH awards $9 million grant to study aging and immunity to infections

The Trudeau Institute today announced that faculty member Laura Haynes, Ph.D., was awarded a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study how aging impacts the immune system's response to influenza infection and vaccination.

15 Jun 2012

TGen, Scottsdale Healthcare open INNO-206 Phase 2 trial for pancreatic cancer

An investigational drug that acts like a Trojan Horse to deliver cancer killing agents for pancreatic cancer is being studied at the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center Clinical Trials, a partnership between Scottsdale Healthcare and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) that treats cancer patients with promising new drugs.

15 Jun 2012

Study reveals molecular link between aging and cancer

It has long been known that cancer is a disease of aging, but a molecular link between the two has remained elusive.

15 Jun 2012

AMPK enzyme promotes survival of cancer cells: Research

A molecule thought to limit cell proliferation also helps cancer cells survive during initial tumor formation and when the wayward cells spread to other organs in the body, researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine have found.

15 Jun 2012

Third Rock Ventures announces formation of Global Blood Therapeutics

Third Rock Ventures, LLC today announced the formation of Global Blood Therapeutics, Inc. and its $40.7 million Series A financing of the company.

15 Jun 2012

Skin cancer does not discriminate between skin colors

Do you have darker skin? If so, skin cancer might not be top of mind as a significant health threat, but beware – just because your skin is darker does not mean you are immune to skin cancer.

15 Jun 2012

High doses of tiny milk vitamin produces numerous health benefits in mice

A novel form of vitamin B3 found in milk in small quantities produces remarkable health benefits in mice when high doses are administered, according to a new study conducted by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College and the Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland.

15 Jun 2012

MRF announces achievement of myelin repair Phase 1 trial for MS

The Myelin Repair Foundation (MRF) today announced the achievement of a myelin repair Phase 1 clinical trial for multiple sclerosis earlier than the foundation's goal set for 2014. By establishing its Accelerated Research Collaboration (ARC) Model to advance myelin repair treatments forward into clinical trial Phase 1 within a decade, the Myelin Repair Foundation achieved this critical milestone ahead of its goal, validating the efficiency of the ARC model to speed drug development.

15 Jun 2012

Study strengthens link between HHV-6B and mesial temporal lobe epilepsy

A ten-year NIH-funded study has determined that a third of infants with prolonged seizures and fever suffer from either a new or reactivated roseola virus infection. Roseola viruses are the cause of the common childhood rash, but can also cause limbic encephalitis, a condition that frequently progresses to epilepsy. Investigators discovered one of the roseola viruses, human herpesvirus-6B (HHV-6B) in the blood of 32% of 169 infants with prolonged seizures, a condition known as status epilepticus.

15 Jun 2012

Quest receives FDA clearance to initiate oregovomab Phase II trial in ovarian cancer

Quest PharmaTech Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing and commercializing products for the treatment of cancer, announces that it has received clearance from the United States Food and Drug Administration to initiate U.S. sites for an ongoing international Phase II clinical trial for oregovomab in advanced ovarian cancer patients.

15 Jun 2012

Hay fever vaccine shows efficacy in phase IIa trial

A novel vaccine for grass pollen allergy has shown significant improvements for patients in a Phase IIa trial. The vaccine BM32 is based on an innovative recombinant peptide carrier technology that allows for fewer injections and shows fewer side effects compared with other immunotherapy treatments for allergy sufferers. BM32 has been developed by Biomay AG, an Austrian biopharmaceutical company specialized in the discovery and development of innovative allergy therapeutics. The company has already initiated a Phase IIb trial for BM32 with 180 allergic patients.

14 Jun 2012

Antibody that blocks programmed cell death benefits cancer patients

A national research collaboration of senior researchers, including a researcher from Moffitt Cancer Center, has found that 20 to 25 percent of "heavily pre-treated" patients with a variety of cancers who enrolled in a clinical trial had "objective and durable" responses to a treatment with BMS-936558, an antibody that specifically blocks programmed cell death 1 (PD-1).

14 Jun 2012

Single protein determines persistence of viral infection

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute have shown a single protein can make the difference between an infection clearing out of the body or persisting for life. The results also show where the defects occur in the immune system without the protein and offer the possibility that targeting this signaling pathway could be beneficial for treatment of persistent viral infections in humans.

14 Jun 2012