Cell Signaling News and Research

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Cell signaling is vital for cells to communicate and coordinate their activities, not just in the human body, but in all organisms. There are thousands of signaling pathways, ranging from protein homeostasis to carcinogenesis and biofilm formation.

Alpha arrestins may play a role in cell signaling that is crucial to new drug development

A newly found understanding of receptor signaling may have revealed a better way to design drugs. A study from Nationwide Children's Hospital suggests that a newly identified group of proteins, alpha arrestins, may play a role in cell signaling that is crucial to new drug development.

11 Dec 2012

Pfizer joins WIN Consortium to improve personalized cancer care

Worldwide Innovative Network (WIN) in personalized cancer medicine consortium today proudly announced that Pfizer, Inc (NYSE:PFE) is the first pharmaceutical company to become a member of the consortium. Founded on the recognition that greater success can be achieved through collaboration than any organization can achieve alone, the WIN Consortium is a global network of leading academic, industry, and patient advocacy organizations working to make personalized cancer care a reality for patients worldwide.

10 Dec 2012

Tyk2 enzyme helps regulate obesity through differentiation of brown adipose tissue

Approximately 68 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, according to the National Cancer Institute, which puts them at greater risk for developing cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and a host of other chronic illnesses. But an international team of scientists led by Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center researcher Andrew Larner, M.D., Ph.D., has successfully reversed obesity in mice by manipulating the production of an enzyme known as tyrosine-protein kinase-2 (Tyk2).

6 Dec 2012

Paper reveals how 'kinase' is distributed across membranes

Using a super-resolution fluorescent microscope, Australian medical scientists are a step closer to understanding why and how human immune cells decide to activate or not, thus enabling or preventing disease taking hold in the body.

5 Dec 2012

Research examines tumor-initiating events that lead to pancreatic cancer

A diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is particularly devastating since the prognosis for recovery is usually poor, with the cancer most often not detected until late stages.

30 Nov 2012

Cleveland Clinic researcher names American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow

Cleveland Clinic researcher Jun Qin, Ph.D., has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). As part of the Molecular Cardiology Department in the Lerner Research Institute, Qin was elected as an AAAS Fellow for exemplary contributions to the field of cell signaling.

30 Nov 2012

Disabling ItpkB enzyme improves function of Natural Killer cells

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute (TRSI) are fueling the future of cancer treatment by improving a powerful tool in disease defense: the body's immune system. By revealing a novel but widespread cell signaling process, the scientists may have found a way to manipulate an important component of the immune system into more effectively fighting disease.

29 Nov 2012

Kinexus releases new antibody microarray kit

Kinexus Bioinformatics Corporation, a world leader in functional proteomics research, announced today the release of its first Kinex antibody microarray kit with its latest generation KAM-850 chip.

27 Nov 2012

Specific combination of two pharmaceutical substances show promise against multiple sclerosis

A new substance class for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and other neurodegenerative diseases now promises increased efficacy paired with fewer side effects. To achieve this, a team of scientists under the leadership of Prof. Gunter Fischer and Dr. Frank Striggow have combined two already approved pharmaceutical substances with each other using a chemical linker structure.

27 Nov 2012

Researchers discover new cause of hydrocephalus

Researchers at the University of Iowa have discovered a new cause of hydrocephalus, a devastating neurological disorder that affects between one and three of every 1,000 babies born. Working in mice, the researchers identified a cell signaling defect, which disrupts immature brain cells involved in normal brain development.

20 Nov 2012

Biomolecular imaging: an interview with Professor Roger Reddel

The reason Children’s Medical Research Institute (CMRI) exists is to find ways to treat or prevent childhood disease. Our research programs are focussed on the areas of cancer cell growth, nerve cell signalling, embryology and gene therapy. These four programs have a shared aim of translating novel findings into new treatments for the benefit of families everywhere.

19 Nov 2012

Tug of war between Hsp70 and 90 determines how much the body makes of superoxide

Two proteins are in a tug of war that determines how much the body makes of superoxide, a highly reactive and potentially destructive product of oxygen that's dramatically elevated in cardiovascular disease, researchers report.

16 Nov 2012

Scientists find new way to unlock cells' destinies

Scientists have discovered that breaking a biological signaling system in an embryo allows them to change the destiny of a cell.

3 Nov 2012

Dysfunction in SRGAP3 protein causes developmental brain disorders

A new research discovery has the potential to revolutionize the biological understanding of some childhood psychiatric disorders. Specifically, scientists have found that when a single protein involved in brain development, called "SRGAP3," is malformed, it causes problems in the brain functioning of mice that cause symptoms that are similar to some mental health and neurological disorders in children.

1 Nov 2012

VEGF produced by NPCs plays a strong role in influencing microglial behavior

The brain's key "breeder" cells, it turns out, do more than that. They secrete substances that boost the numbers and strength of critical brain-based immune cells believed to play a vital role in brain health. This finding adds a new dimension to our understanding of how resident stem cells and stem cell transplants may improve brain function.

22 Oct 2012

NIH honors Scripps Florida postdoctoral fellow with Pathway to Independence Award

The career of Antonio (Tony) Amelio, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Cancer Biology at The Scripps Research Institute, has gotten a boost from the National Institutes of Health in the form of a Howard Temin Pathway to Independence Award in Cancer Research.

17 Oct 2012

Experts blaze TRAIL for pulmonary arterial hypertension therapy

Researchers have shown that the cell signaling molecule tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand may be a potential therapeutic target for pulmonary arterial hypertension.

16 Oct 2012

Regulatory B cells may provide effective treatment for severe autoimmune diseases

Reproducing a rare type of B cell in the laboratory and infusing it back into the body may provide an effective treatment for severe autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis or rheumatoid arthritis, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center.

15 Oct 2012

Abertay lecture to reveal how computer games can help discover new drugs for cancer

How can computer games technology help discover new drugs to treat cancer? This surprising step forward for science will be revealed at a free public lecture at the University of Abertay Dundee this Wednesday at 6pm.

15 Oct 2012

High-fat Western diet could lead to development of atherosclerosis

Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have found that a diet high in saturated fat raises levels of endothelial lipase (EL), an enzyme associated with the development of atherosclerosis, and, conversely, that a diet high in omega-3 polyunsaturated fat lowers levels of this enzyme.

10 Oct 2012