Nucleotides News and Research

RSS

Researchers determine structure of concentrative nucleoside transporter

A team of researchers at Duke University has determined the structure of a key molecule that can carry chemotherapy and anti-viral drugs into cells, which could help to create more effective drugs with fewer effects to healthy tissue.

12 Mar 2012

First 'theranostic' agent for treatment of ALL

A team of researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has developed the first "theranostic" agent for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

8 Mar 2012

New, freely available Web-based program helps predict effect of mutations on mRNA splicing

In a brief paper in the journal Bioinformatics, Brown University researchers describe a new, freely available Web-based program called Spliceman for predicting whether genetic mutations are likely to disrupt the splicing of messenger RNA, potentially leading to disease.

6 Mar 2012

Study shows how hydra respond to light in the absence of eyes

In the absence of eyes, the fresh water polyp, Hydra magnipapillata, nevertheless reacts to light. They are diurnal, hunting during the day, and are known to move, looping end over end, or contract, in response to light.

4 Mar 2012

Brain mitochondria are dysfunctional in early-stage Alzheimer's

Mitochondria -- subunits inside cells that produce energy -- have long been thought to play a role in Alzheimer's disease. Now Mayo Clinic researchers using genetic mouse models have discovered that mitochondria in the brain are dysfunctional early in the disease.

1 Mar 2012

New RNA interference method holds promise for cancer, other diseases

For the past decade, scientists have been pursuing cancer treatments based on RNA interference - a phenomenon that offers a way to shut off malfunctioning genes with short snippets of RNA. However, one huge challenge remains: finding a way to efficiently deliver the RNA.

27 Feb 2012

Study finds genetic variants that elevate risk for skin lesions in people exposed to arsenic

One of the first large-scale genomic studies conducted in a developing country has discovered genetic variants that elevate the risk for skin lesions in people chronically exposed to arsenic. Genetic changes found near the enzyme for metabolizing the chemical into a less toxic form can significantly increase an individual's risk for developing arsenic-related disease.

26 Feb 2012

Medivir reports net sales of SEK 698.6M for fiscal 2011

Today, Medivir AB, a research-based specialty pharmaceutical company focused on infectious diseases, is publishing its Interim Report for the period 1 January - 31 December and its operational report for the fourth quarter of 2011.

23 Feb 2012

Scientists design compounds that act against myotonic dystrophy type 1 RNA

While RNA is an appealing drug target, small molecules that can actually affect its function have rarely been found. But now scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have for the first time designed a series of small molecules that act against an RNA defect directly responsible for the most common form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy.

23 Feb 2012

PNAS selects six papers to receive 2011 Cozzarelli Prize

The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) Editorial Board has selected six papers published by PNAS in 2011 to receive the Cozzarelli Prize, an award that recognizes outstanding contributions to the scientific disciplines represented by the National Academy of Sciences.

22 Feb 2012

Genomic instability allows malignant cells to acquire more deadly characteristics

Genomic instability caused by an erosion of the protective caps on chromosomes, followed by activation of an enzyme that reinforces those aps, allows malignant cells to evade destruction and acquire more deadly characteristics, researchers report in an Online Now article at the journal Cell.

21 Feb 2012

Telomerase reactivation in malignant cells after genomic instability causes cancer progression

Inhibiting telomerase, an enzyme that rescues malignant cells from destruction by extending the protective caps on the ends of chromosomes, kills tumor cells but also triggers resistance pathways that allow cancer to survive and spread, scientists report in the Feb. 17 issue of Cell.

21 Feb 2012

Study reveals potential strength of different anti-HIV combination drugs

Using a mathematical formula that carefully measures the degree to which HIV infection of immune system cells is stalled by antiretroviral therapy, AIDS experts at Johns Hopkins have calculated precisely how well dozens of such anti-HIV drugs work, alone or in any of 857 likely combinations, in suppressing the virus. Results of the team's latest research reveal how some combinations work better than others at impeding viral replication, and keeping the disease in check.

19 Feb 2012

Researchers obtain sequence of 168 complete genomes of fruit fly

Discovering the relation between genetic variation and observable characteristics of individuals belonging to a species, such as a person's height or the manifestation of a hereditary disease is one of today's challenges in biology. Until now only a small part of the variation of these traits - which biologists name phenotypes - were attributed to genetic variations.

17 Feb 2012

Pyromaker can rapidly sequence cancer-driving mutations

Using precise information about an individual's genetic makeup is becoming increasingly routine for developing tailored treatments for breast, lung, colon and other cancers. But techniques used to identify meaningful gene mutations depend on analyzing sequences of both normal and mutant DNA in tumor samples, a process that can yield ambiguous results. Now, a team of Johns Hopkins researchers says it has developed an easy-to-use online computer software application that can clear up any confusion faster and cheaper than other methods currently used to do the job.

16 Feb 2012

mRNA sequencing reveals transcriptomic landscape of breast cancer

GW Cancer Research Team in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, published a study that is the first of its kind to use mRNA sequencing to look at the expression of genome, at a unprecedented resolution at the current time, in three types of breast cancer.

15 Feb 2012

Stress protein effectively activates replication of HBV in liver cells

People who have received a donor organ need lifelong immunosuppressant drugs to keep their immune system from attacking the foreign tissue. However, with a suppressed immune system, many infectious agents turn into a threat. Infections such as with human cytomegalovirus and a certain type of human polyomavirus frequently cause complications in transplant recipients.

14 Feb 2012

Study reveals how SAMHD1 works to protect dendritic cells from HIV virus

A novel discovery by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and colleagues reveals a mechanism by which the immune system tries to halt the spread of HIV. Harnessing this mechanism may open up new paths for therapeutic research aimed at slowing the virus' progression to AIDS. The study appears online ahead of print today in Nature Immunology.

12 Feb 2012

UC Riverside uncovers new insight into colon cancer

An international research team led by cell biologists at the University of California, Riverside has uncovered a new insight into colon cancer, the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. The research provides potential new avenues for diagnosing and treating the disease.

10 Feb 2012

Link between inflammation-related genes and risk of ovarian cancer

In a study conducted by researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues from 11 other institutions in the Unites States and the United Kingdom, genes that are known to be involved in inflammation were found to be related to risk of ovarian cancer.

7 Feb 2012