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.

Personalized medicine to improve the outcome for breast cancer patients

As cancer remains a leading cause of death in the United States, early detection and treatment are critical keys to improving the survival rate. Yet, an individual's response to treatment varies considerably, even among cancers of the same histological type.

12 Oct 2005

Novel therapies for pleural mesothelioma

Researchers at New York University School of Medicine and Wayne State University have found a molecule that reveals the early stages of pleural mesothelioma, a chest cancer caused by asbestos. The finding opens the way to a blood test for the disease, according to a new study published in the Oct. 13 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

12 Oct 2005

New way to measure the impact of AIDS on the living brain

A new University of California - Los Angeles/University of Pittsburgh imaging study for the first time shows the selective pattern of destruction inflicted by AIDS on brain regions that control motor, language and sensory functions. High-resolution 3-D color scans created from magnetic resonance images (MRI) vividly illustrate the damage.

10 Oct 2005

New technique to produce large numbers of antibodies quickly

Faster method to create antibodies for disease research British scientists are pioneering a new technique to produce large numbers of antibodies quickly and reliably to help the study of dangerous bacteria.

9 Oct 2005

20 percent of people with chronic hepatitis C who receive a liver transplant will develop advanced cirrhosis

A new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine may have found a way to identify those at greatest risk, thereby allowing doctors to decide who should receive treatment that could save the transplanted organ. The new findings appear in the October issue of the journal Liver Transplantation.

9 Oct 2005

GRK5 protein plays important role in hypertension

Researchers at Jefferson Medical College have implicated a protein called GRK5 as having an important role behind essential hypertension, which affects more than 65 million Americans.

5 Oct 2005

Common cancer susceptibility gene appears to be frequently acquired in metastatic lesions from colorectal cancer

A relatively common cancer susceptibility gene appears to be frequently acquired in metastatic lesions from colorectal cancer, and give cancer cells a growth advantage, according to a study in the October 5 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

4 Oct 2005

Potential biomarker that could be used to predict who might develop hepatic fibrosis

Two new studies on Hepatitis C (HCV) patients who underwent liver transplants examined a potential biomarker that could be used to predict who might develop hepatic fibrosis, a formation of scar-like tissue that can lead to cirrhosis.

3 Oct 2005

Presence of environmental chemicals in human milk does not necessarily indicate health risks for infants

"We strongly emphasize that the mere presence of an environmental chemical in human milk does not indicate that a health risk exists for breast-fed infants," said Cheston M. Berlin, Jr., M.D., Penn State University professor of pediatrics and pharmacology.

22 Sep 2005

22 biomarkers that provide a more accurate screening for prostate

Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified a panel of 22 biomarkers that together provide a more accurate screening for prostate cancer than the current prostate specific antigen, or PSA, test.

22 Sep 2005

Eating lots of fruits and vegetables greatly reduces risk of developing pancreatic cancer

In one of the largest studies of its kind, University of California - San Francisco (UCSF) researchers have found that eating lots of fruits and vegetables - particularly vegetables - is associated with about a 50 percent reduction in the risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer is difficult to diagnose and remains largely untreatable.

21 Sep 2005

MRC call for proposals in experimental medicine

The Medical Research Council (MRC) has launched a Call for Proposals in experimental medicine today as part of its £15 million commitment to promote the translation of laboratory research into clinical practice for the benefit of patients.

7 Sep 2005

New tool to help unravel the function of an elusive DNA structure

A Rensselaer researcher has developed a new tool to help unravel the function of an elusive DNA structure. The findings, which were presented today at the 230th national meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in Washington, D.C., could lead to a better understanding of diseases such as cancer and diabetes.

29 Aug 2005

Enzyme in the blood that could be a potential marker for heart failure

A team of scientists led by Walter Koch, Ph.D., director of the Center for Translational Medicine in the Department of Medicine in Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, previously showed that an enzyme called GRK2 or beta-adrenergic kinase (ßARK1) is critically important in heart function.

22 Aug 2005

Cancer Research Technology licenses novel cancer diagnostic markers

Cancer Research Technology Limited announced today that they have entered into a worldwide license agreement with TriPath Imaging, Inc.

22 Aug 2005

Gene expression levels may reveal stage of Huntington's disease

A survey of the genome of patients with Huntington's Disease (HD) has identified potential markers of the progression of this devastating neurological disorder.

16 Aug 2005

Analytical tool to help detect cancer

Scientists have long used ultra-fine glass tubes known as capillaries to analyze the chemical makeup of substances. Called capillary electrophoresis, or CE, the method applies high voltage to the capillaries, and by measuring the rate that the various materials move through the capillaries, researchers are able to identify individual compounds.

16 Aug 2005

Activated Stat5 protein in prostate cancer can predict outcome, may help target treatment

Researchers from Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University found that testing for an activated Stat5 protein in prostate tumor tissue effectively predicts which men have a form of prostate cancer that may become more aggressive and life threatening.

15 Aug 2005

Researchers identify protein called EMP-1 that is present in the tumors of patients who fail to respond to treatment with gefitinib

By the time the human genome was mapped, cancer researchers had already begun investigating the proteins that were encoded by these newly identified genes.

9 Aug 2005

Power3 converts provisional patent applications

Power3 Medical Products announced today that it has converted two provisional patent applications by the filing of two utility patent applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the Company's disease specific biomarker discovery and disease specific immuno- diagnostic test designs.

4 Aug 2005