Biomarker News and Research

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A biomarker is a biological molecule found in blood, other body fluids, or tissues that is a sign of a normal or abnormal process, or of a condition or disease. A biomarker may be used to see how well the body responds to a treatment for a disease or condition. Also called molecular marker and signature molecule.

Hypoxia may be a primary cause of uncontrollable tumor growth in cancers

Low oxygen levels in cells may be a primary cause of uncontrollable tumor growth in some cancers, according to a new University of Georgia study. The authors' findings run counter to widely accepted beliefs that genetic mutations are responsible for cancer growth.

4 May 2012

Non-invasive imaging technique measures specific brain chemical changes

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a major neurodegenerative disorder that affects millions of people worldwide. New and accurate techniques for early diagnosis are critical. Pravat K. Mandal, PhD, and his colleagues have developed a completely non-invasive brain imaging technique to measure specific brain chemical changes. This provides a signature of the early stages of AD from the hippocampal region of the brain.

3 May 2012

JAD honors Norwegian scientist with 2012 Alzheimer Award

Anders L-nneborg, PhD, has been chosen as the recipient of the 2012 Alzheimer Award presented by the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease in recognition of his outstanding work on the detection of early Alzheimer's disease.

3 May 2012

Almac acquires high-speed blister line for new Audubon packaging facility

Almac, a leading provider of contract services to the global pharmaceutical and biotech industries, is pleased to announce the acquisition of a state-of-the-art, high-speed blister line for their new 100,000ft2 US commercial packaging facility in Audubon, PA.

2 May 2012

Lixte submits IND with FDA to conduct LB-100 Phase I trial for cancer

John S. Kovach, M.D., Chair, Board of Directors and CEO of Lixte Biotechnology Holdings, Inc., announced the submission of an IND application to the Food and Drug Administration to conduct a Phase I trial of its lead, anti-cancer compound, LB-100.

2 May 2012

Teenage risky behaviors can be traced to special brain wiring: Study

New research suggests that there is a complex networks of neurons in some youngsters’ brains that make them more likely to begin smoking, experimenting with cannabis or consuming large amounts of alcohol.

30 Apr 2012

Teens with high levels of uric acid at increased risk for high blood pressure

Teens with high levels of uric acid appear to be at increased risk for high blood pressure, according to results of research from scientists at the Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

30 Apr 2012

Trovagene completes PCR assay development for detection of K-RAS mutations

Trovagene, Inc., a developer of trans-renal molecular diagnostics, announced today that the Company has successfully completed the analytical development of digital PCR assays for the detection of the most prevalent K-RAS mutations, which are, according to recent estimates, observed in more than 90% of pancreatic cancers, and in 23% of all solid tumors.

30 Apr 2012

JCO publishes Syndax erlotinib-entinostat Phase 2 study for advanced non-small cell lung cancer

Syndax Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a late-stage oncology company focused on the clinical development of epigenetic therapies in solid tumors, announced that previously reported results from ENCORE 401, a randomized, placebo controlled Phase 2 study of erlotinib with or without entinostat in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (JCO).

30 Apr 2012

Scientists discover number of unknown brain networks linked with teen drug abuse

Why do some teenagers start smoking or experimenting with drugs-while others don't? In the largest imaging study of the human brain ever conducted-involving 1,896 14-year-olds-scientists have discovered a number of previously unknown networks that go a long way toward an answer.

30 Apr 2012

A melanoma cloaking protein

Johns Hopkins and Yale scientists have found that melanoma cells use a cloaking protein to hide from immune cells poised to attack the cancer. Nearly 40 percent of their sampling of melanoma tissues contained the B7-H1 protein, also called PD-L1, and scientists say it could be used as a target for new therapies.

26 Apr 2012

IMPAKT 2012 breast cancer conference to focus on four major areas

"Basic science and clinical medicine move at different pace because they follow different paths. Both however aim at improving strategies to manage cancer patients. We need to efficiently translate the good things from basic science and efficiently implement them in the clinic."

26 Apr 2012

Melanomas express B7-H1 protein to hide from T-cells

26 Apr 2012

Severe fibrosis increases early atherosclerosis risk in patients with chronic HCV-1 infection

Italian researchers report that severe fibrosis increases the early atherosclerosis risk in patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. A second study found that fatty liver disease also increases risk of developing atherosclerosis at an earlier period. Both studies appear in the May issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

25 Apr 2012

Neuron-killing pathology of AD requires presence of a-beta and elevated p-tau levels

According to a new study, the neuron-killing pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), which begins before clinical symptoms appear, requires the presence of both amyloid-beta (a-beta) plaque deposits and elevated levels of an altered protein called p-tau.

24 Apr 2012

HDAC6 protein may provide novel target for stress-linked disorders

A cellular protein called HDAC6, newly characterized as a gatekeeper of steroid biology in the brain, may provide a novel target for treating and preventing stress-linked disorders, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

24 Apr 2012

Health Discovery launches MelApp for melanoma risk assessment

Health Discovery Corporation, the molecular diagnostics company that launched MelApp, the first SVM-based image analysis iPhone app for melanoma risk assessment is featured in this month's Men's Health Magazine.

21 Apr 2012

VeriStrat test may be useful for NSCLC clinical decision-making

Results from the combined analysis of two European Phase II trials were presented today at the 3rd European Lung Cancer Conference in Geneva, Switzerland. The VeriStrat retrospective analysis was performed on serum samples from advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients treated with the combination therapy bevacizumab plus erlotinib.

21 Apr 2012

Penn researchers continue efforts to differentiate Alzheimer's from FTLD

Teasing out the exact type or types of dementia someone suffers from is no easy task; neurodegenerative brain diseases share common pathology and often co-occur. Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania are continuing efforts to differentiate diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) from frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), as FTLD is often clinically difficult to distinguish from atypical presentations of AD.

21 Apr 2012

Scientists discover tumor-targeting neural stem cells

Could engineered human stem cells hold the key to cancer survival? Scientists at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), the world's first bioengineering and nanotechnology research institute, have discovered that neural stem cells possess the innate ability to target tumor cells outside the central nervous system. This finding, which was demonstrated successfully on breast cancer cells, was recently published in leading peer reviewed journal, Stem Cells.

21 Apr 2012