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Insight into how neural circuit forms motor plan

The voluntary movements we make must be "prepared" in our brain before they are executed. However, be it perfect timing, a false-start, or a delayed reaction, the neural circuitry underlying movement preparation is not well understood.

11 Aug 2011

New research uncovers role of p38alpha in mood disorders, addiction

Stressful experiences increase addictive drug consumption and can precipitate bouts of anxiety or depression in vulnerable people. Although the mechanisms linking stress and human behaviors are not well understood, animal models of some aspects of these behaviors have been developed and have been used to define some of the molecular events that may be responsible for stress vulnerability in people.

11 Aug 2011

Paper outlines anticancer drug curaxins' mechanism of action

A paper published today by Science Translational Medicine outlines the process by which a category of anticancer drugs called curaxins inhibit tumor cell growth and division.

11 Aug 2011

New treatment uses lasers to stimulate stem cells and reduce heart scarring

After a heart attack or stroke, heart scarring can lead to dangerously paper-thin heart walls and a decreased ability to pump blood through the body. Although the heart is unable to completely heal itself, a new treatment developed at Tel Aviv University uses laser-treated bone marrow stem cells to help restore heart function and health.

11 Aug 2011

Scientists identify 29 new genetic variants linked to multiple sclerosis

Scientists have identified 29 new genetic variants linked to multiple sclerosis, providing key insights into the biology of a very debilitating neurological disease. Many of the genes -implicated in the study are relevant to the immune system, shedding light onto the immunological pathways that underlie the development of multiple sclerosis.

11 Aug 2011

Researchers identify novel sensory pathway that modulates pro-inflammatory cells

New research led by Derya Unutmaz, MD associate professor, the Departments of Pathology, Medicine, and Microbiology at NYU School of Medicine and Mark Sundrud, PhD, of Tempero Pharmaceuticals, Inc., has identified a novel sensory pathway that modulates the potency of Th17 cell responses.

11 Aug 2011

Genetic culprit behind ovarian cancer discovered

A study has revealed that a single fault in a gene that normally helps the body to repair its DNA increases a woman's risk of ovarian cancer six-fold. One in every 11 women who carry the faulty gene is likely to develop ovarian cancer at some point in her life compared with a typical risk of about one in 70 for women in the general population, scientists said.

11 Aug 2011

Gene therapy to combat leukemia

In a medical breakthrough scientists have found that gene therapy could be used to cure leukemia. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania engineered patients' own pathogen-fighting T-cells to target a molecule found on the surface of leukemia cells. These genetically modified T-cells were grown outside of the body and infused back into patients suffering from late-stage chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), which affects the blood and bone marrow and is the most common form of leukemia.

11 Aug 2011

Neoprobe seeks FDA marketing approval of Lymphoseek for use in ILM oncology procedure

Neoprobe Corporation, a diversified developer of innovative oncology surgical and diagnostic products, today announced it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) for Lymphoseek to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

11 Aug 2011

Researchers helps explain how the adult brain cleans out dead brain cells and produces new ones

Adult brains generate thousands of new brain cells called neurons each day; however only a small fraction of them survive. The rest die and are consumed by scavenger cells called phagocytes. Until now, scientists have not fully understood how this process works, which phagocytes are unique in the brain, and how the removal of dead neurons influences the production of new neurons.

10 Aug 2011

FDA acceptance of peginesatide NDA triggers $10M milestone payment to Affymax

Affymax, Inc. today announced that it has received a $10 million development milestone payment from Takeda Pharmaceutical Company as part of the companies' exclusive global agreement to develop and commercialize peginesatide (formerly known as Hematide™), Affymax's investigational drug for the treatment of anemia in chronic renal failure patients.

10 Aug 2011

NCI, Genesis Biopharma sign CRADA agreement to develop cancer immunotherapies

Genesis Biopharma, Inc., a biotechnology company developing targeted cancer immunotherapies, today announced it has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the National Cancer Institute.

10 Aug 2011

Cancer-causing fusion protein works by silencing tumor suppressor gene IL-2Rγ

Mariusz A. Wasik, MD, professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and Qian Zhang, MD, PhD, research assistant professor, both from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and their colleagues, found that a cancer-causing fusion protein works by silencing the tumor suppressor gene IL-2R common gamma-chain.

10 Aug 2011

TrovaGene regains ownership of worldwide rights to transrenal technology

TrovaGene, Inc., a developer of transrenal molecular diagnostics, confirmed today that it regained ownership of its worldwide rights and control over its patent estate for transrenal technology for non-invasive prenatal applications and cancer through the termination of a license agreement between TrovaGene and Sequenom, Inc.

10 Aug 2011

New technique can help scientists rapidly map myelination

Like explorers mapping a new planet, scientists probing the brain need every type of landmark they can get. Each mountain, river or forest helps scientists find their way through the intricacies of the human brain.

10 Aug 2011

Noninvasive prenatal DNA test can detect fetus at risk for sex-linked disorders

As a noninvasive method of determining the sex of a fetus, tests using cell-free fetal DNA obtained from the mother's blood after 7 weeks gestation performed well, while urine-based tests appear to be unreliable, according to a review and analysis of previous studies, reported in the August 10 issue of JAMA.

10 Aug 2011

NCI, Pharmacyclics sign CRADA to develop PCI-32765 for blood cancers

Pharmacyclics, Inc. today announced the signing of a five-year Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to collaborate on the development of PCI-32765, a first-in-class, small molecule inhibitor of Bruton's tyrosine kinase (Btk) for the treatment of hematologic malignancies.

10 Aug 2011

Transaxillary thyroid robotic surgery removes nodules with no visible scar

As the rate of thyroid cancer continues to climb, doctors are urging patients to be more cautious about thyroid nodules, a common disorder that is responsible for a small but growing number of thyroid cancer cases.

10 Aug 2011

Scientists reveal why human heart has little regenerative capacity

Stem cell researchers at UCLA have uncovered for the first time why adult human cardiac myocytes have lost their ability to proliferate, perhaps explaining why the human heart has little regenerative capacity.

10 Aug 2011

Researchers demonstrate contribution of Immunoglobulin E to atherogenesis

There is an observed correlation between Immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels atherosclerosis, with twice amount of IgE present in patients with acute myocardial infarction as in patients with stable angina or without coronary heart disease (CHD). Guo-Ping Shi, DSc, Jing Wang, MD, PhD, and colleagues in the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), have demonstrated the direct participation of IgE in atherogenesis in a mouse model.

10 Aug 2011