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Researchers identify new mechanism that could help develop effective chemotherapy drug

Information on proteins is critical for understanding how cells function in health and disease. But while regular proteins are easy to extract and study, it is far more difficult to gather information about membrane proteins, which are responsible for exchanging elements essential to our health, like copper, between a cell and its surrounding tissues.

19 Oct 2010

Novel bioelectric signals can cause stem cells to trigger melanoma-like growth in pigment cells

Biologists at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences have discovered that a change in membrane voltage in newly identified "instructor cells" can cause stem cells' descendants to trigger melanoma-like growth in pigment cells. The Tufts team also found that this metastatic transformation is due to changes in serotonin transport. The discovery could aid in the prevention and treatment of diseases like cancer and vitiligo as well as birth defects.

19 Oct 2010

Vertex commences VX-770 and VX-809 combination Phase 2a clinical trial for cystic fibrosis

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced the initiation of a Phase 2a clinical trial that will evaluate multiple combinations of VX-770 and VX-809, investigational oral cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) modulators for the treatment of cystic fibrosis (CF). The trial is designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of VX-809 dosed alone for 14 days followed by dosing of VX-809 in combination with VX-770 for 7 days.

18 Oct 2010

New insights into HIV infection process may allow antiviral drug development

New insights into the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection process, which leads to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), may now be possible through a research method recently developed in part at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where scientists have glimpsed an important protein molecule's behavior with unprecedented clarity.

15 Oct 2010

ACS awards Research Scholar Grant to Rensselaer researcher for breast cancer study

A recent Research Scholar Grant from the American Cancer Society acknowledges the potential of Rensselaer researcher Lee Ligon's work on breast cancer. Ligon is investigating interactions between cells as breast cancer spreads within the body.

15 Oct 2010

Top citations for scientific paper on Inovio's SynCon DNA vaccines and ID DNA delivery technology

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leader in the development of therapeutic and preventive vaccines against cancers and infectious diseases, announced today that a scientific paper demonstrating strong and protective immune responses from candidate SynCon™ DNA vaccines in preclinical studies using Inovio's intradermal (ID) DNA delivery technology was one of the top cited scientific articles in the past three years in the journal Vaccine.

14 Oct 2010

Research may pave way to cure cystic fibrosis

A University of Missouri researcher believes his latest work moves scientists closer to a cure for cystic fibrosis, one of the world's most common fatal genetic diseases.

13 Oct 2010

DoD awards $1.5 million grant to study nanoemulsion-based therapies for preventing burn wound infections

Researchers from NanoBio Corporation and the University of Michigan Medical School today announced the receipt of a $1.5 million grant from the Department of Defense (DoD) to study the use of nanoemulsion-based therapies for protection against burn and wound infections.

13 Oct 2010

Biologists determine three-dimensional structure of molecule involved in HIV, cancer

In a technical tour de force, structural biologists funded by the National Institutes of Health have determined the three-dimensional structure of a molecule involved in HIV infection and in many forms of cancer. The high-resolution structure sheds light on how the molecule functions and could point to ways to control its activity, potentially locking out HIV and stalling cancer's spread.

8 Oct 2010

Study on B-cell receptors may help develop new treatment strategies for leukaemia

In order to track down pathogens and render them harmless, the immune system must be able to recognize myriad different foreign substances and react to them. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and the Centre for Biological Signalling Studies BIOSS at the University of Freiburg have discovered how the immune system's B-cells can be activated by numerous substances from our environment.

7 Oct 2010

Anticancer drug Cisplatin induces side effects

Cisplatin, an anticancer drug widely used for treating various types of tumor, can induce side effects in the short term. A team of scientists, mostly from CNRS and the Université de Nice has provided first in vitro evidence that this antitumor agent modifies the sensitivity of cellular pressure sensors. This completely novel mechanism could help to elucidate certain neurological side effects of cisplatin hitherto unexplained.

6 Oct 2010

Scientists use directed light to cause arrhythmia in genetically modified mice

Scientists at the University of Bonn have altered cardiac muscle cells to make them controllable with light. They were thus able to use directed light to cause conditions such as arrhythmia in genetically modified mice. The method opens up completely new possibilities for researching the development of such arrhythmias. The study will be published in the upcoming edition of "Nature Methods".

5 Oct 2010

Gen-Probe submits 510(k) application to FDA for APTIMA Trichomonas vaginalis assay on TIGRIS system

Gen-Probe Incorporated announced today that the Company has submitted a 510(k) application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its APTIMA® Trichomonas vaginalis assay on the fully automated TIGRIS® system.

5 Oct 2010

NIH to award $64M under Transformative Research Projects program

The National Institutes of Health will award up to $64 million over five years to encourage exploration of exceptionally innovative and original research ideas that have the potential for extraordinary impact.

4 Oct 2010

NIH awards Scripps Research grants to study the mechanisms of protein complex

For Immediate Release -Scripps Research Institute scientists have been awarded approximately $65 million in four five-year grants as part of the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) latest round of structural biology funding. The projects will focus on determining the shapes and functions of proteins and protein complexes that are important in biology and medicine.

4 Oct 2010

Scientists find new replicating mechanism of Salmonella bacteria

New findings by National Institutes of Health scientists could explain how Salmonella bacteria, a common cause of food poisoning, efficiently spread in people. In a study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers describe finding a reservoir of rapidly replicating Salmonella inside epithelial cells. These bacteria are primed to infect other cells and are pushed from the epithelial layer by a new mechanism that frees the Salmonella to infect other cells or be shed into the intestine.

3 Oct 2010

Collagen Matrix's new Collagen Dental Membrane granted FDA 510(k) clearance

Collagen Matrix, Inc., the leader in collagen- and mineral-based matrix engineering, announced today that it has received FDA's 510(k) clearance of a new Collagen Dental Membrane derived from porcine dermis indicated for use in oral surgical procedures involving guided tissue and bone regeneration.

1 Oct 2010

New caproKits enable investigation of small molecule–protein interactions

caprotec bioanalytics GmbH announced today the commercial launch of three new caproKits, enabling the discovery, identification and characterization of proteins for applications in functional proteomics and drug development.

30 Sep 2010

ASU receives grant to unravel membrane proteins in host-pathogen interaction

Arizona State University has been awarded a $7.7 million grant for the next five years from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health, to unravel the structures of membrane proteins that play a key role in protection against infectious diseases.