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World Cell Race pulls 70 entries for title of world's fastest cell

A "team" of fast-moving, bone marrow stem cells from a research laboratory in Singapore has run away with the first World Cell Race, finishing first with a cellular speed record of 5.2 microns per minute (or 0.000204 inches per minute) in results announced today at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB).

3 Dec 2011

Study identifies sulfomucins as potential targets for therapies to treat chronic intestinal inflammatory disorders

In a paper published in the December 2011 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, a team of scientists at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign led by Rex Gaskins, PhD have demonstrated that both microbial and host inflammatory factors modulate sulfomucin production in a human cell line, LS174T, that models intestinal goblet cells.

3 Dec 2011

New technique allows production of medically useful amounts of endoderm cells from human PSCs

Scientists in Canada have overcome a key research hurdle to developing regenerative treatments for diabetes and liver disease with a technique to produce medically useful amounts of endoderm cells from human pluripotent stem cells. The research, published in Biotechnology and Bioengineering, can be transferred to other areas of stem cell research helping scientists to navigate the route to clinical use known as the 'valley of death'.

3 Dec 2011

Implantable replacement cartilages hold promise for damaged knees, shoulders, ears and noses

A lab discovery is a step toward implantable replacement cartilage, holding promise for knees, shoulders, ears and noses damaged by osteoarthritis, sports injuries and accidents.

3 Dec 2011

Researchers identify critical steps leading to myelin destruction in neuromyelitis optica

Mayo Clinic researchers have identified critical steps leading to myelin destruction in neuromyelitis optica (NMO), a debilitating neurological disease that is commonly misdiagnosed as multiple sclerosis (MS). The findings could lead to better care for the thousands of patients around the world with NMO. The paper was published in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA.

3 Dec 2011

Promising new agent against sarcomas affecting children

MK 1775, a small, selective inhibitor molecule, has been found to be active against many sarcomas when tested by researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla. Their findings, recently appearing in Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, published by the American Association for Cancer Research, suggest that a badly needed new agent against sarcomas - especially sarcomas affecting children - may be at hand.

3 Dec 2011

NIAAA awards Rutgers $10M grant to explore genetic links to alcoholism

Rutgers University Cell and DNA Repository (RUCDR) has received a $10 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) to provide DNA extraction, basic genetic testing, and repository services for more than 46,000 saliva samples, in support of national research efforts to determine the genetic and environmental factors that lead to alcoholism.

3 Dec 2011

University of Illinois Hospital prescribes Tumor Treating Fields therapy for recurrent GBM

The University of Illinois Hospital is the first center in North America to prescribe a new FDA-approved treatment for patients with the most common and aggressive type of brain tumor, glioblastoma multiforme, or GBM.

3 Dec 2011

MK 1775 shows promise against sarcomas

MK 1775, a small, selective inhibitor molecule, has been found to be active against many sarcomas when tested by researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla.

3 Dec 2011

Treatments for lymphoma with no side effects

Larry Conrad went in for his annual physical on his 50th birthday. During his exam, his doctor found swollen lymph nodes in his armpits and groin. Conrad had a cough and said he'd lost weight because he 'felt full all the time'. His doctor ordered a series of tests, and Conrad was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, the most common type.

2 Dec 2011

Blocking telomerase increases cancer cells' sensitivity to radiation treatment

Shortening end caps on chromosomes in human cervical cancer cells disrupts DNA repair signaling, increases the cells' sensitivity to radiation treatment and kills them more quickly, according to a study in Cancer Prevention Research.

2 Dec 2011

ASH recognizes abstract presenters at 53rd annual meeting in San Diego

The American Society of Hematology (ASH) recognizes the following abstract presenters at the 53rd ASH annual meeting in San Diego, CA, with the highest scoring abstracts in the categories of undergraduate student, medical student, graduate student, resident physician, and postdoctoral fellow.

2 Dec 2011

UA researchers receive NSF grant to develop terahertz spectral imager

Researchers at the University of Arizona College of Engineering have been awarded $530,000 to develop a unique piece of scientific equipment that will further spectral imaging research.

2 Dec 2011

John Theurer Cancer Center to present results of 31 studies at ASH 2011 meeting

The John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center, one of the nation's top 50 best hospitals for cancer, will present research updates and clinical trial results of 31 cutting-edge studies at the 2011 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting in San Diego from December 10-13.

2 Dec 2011

Scottsdale resident donates $1 million to TGen pancreatic cancer initiative

A son's passion to find a cure for the cancer that claimed the life of his mother has led to a new series of clinical trials under a Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) initiative to find a cure for pancreatic cancer.

2 Dec 2011

Corning acquires Mediatech

Great Point Partners today announced that Great Point Partners I portfolio company, Mediatech, Inc., was acquired by Corning Incorporated in an all-cash transaction. Mediatech is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Corning and will be integrated into Corning's Life Science segment.

2 Dec 2011

Researchers discover why men more likely than women to develop squamous cell skin cancer

Men are three times more likely than women to develop a common form of skin cancer but medical science doesn't know why. A new study may provide part of the answer.

2 Dec 2011

Established human embryonic cell lines vary from newly derived stem cell lines

Established human embryonic cell lines, including those approved for federal research funding under former President George W. Bush, are different than newly derived human embryonic stem cell lines, according to a study by UCLA stem cell researchers.

2 Dec 2011

New method reveals complete set of aberrant signaling pathways that give rise to cancers

One major obstacle in the fight against cancer is that anticancer drugs often affect normal cells in addition to tumor cells, resulting in significant side effects. Yet research into development of less harmful treatments geared toward the targeting of specific cancer-causing mechanisms is hampered by lack of knowledge of the molecular pathways that drive cancers in individual patients.

2 Dec 2011

Specific electromagnetic fields can block cancer cell growth

New evidence by University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers that specific electromagnetic fields can safely block the proliferation of cancer cells and tumor growth may help refine a new, targeted therapy without any collateral damage.

2 Dec 2011