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Erlotinib phase III study results on lung cancer presented at IASLC conference

In the first phase III study to include Western lung cancer patients, first-line treatment with erlotinib (Tarceva) nearly doubled progression-free survival compared with chemotherapy, according to research presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.

5 Jul 2011

Fruit flies with poor posture help scientists understand human intellectual disability

Clumsy fruit flies with poor posture are helping an international team of scientists understand inherited intellectual disability in humans - and vice versa.

5 Jul 2011

Shared environment influences susceptibility to autism more than previously thought

The largest and most rigorous twin study of its kind to date has found that shared environment influences susceptibility to autism more than previously thought.

5 Jul 2011

Women can have successful pregnancy after recurrent miscarriage

In a subset of the ALIFE study, which investigated the effect of aspirin alone or combined with low-molecular-weight heparin, compared to placebo, on the live birth rate in women with unexplained RM, the researchers looked at the length of time between the moment of randomisation to the moment of the first day of last menstruation before the subsequent pregnancy.

4 Jul 2011

Amyloid peptide Aβ43 may serve as biomarker for diagnosis of Alzheimer's

Researchers at the RIKEN Brain Science Institute (BSI) and their collaborators have shed light on the function of a little-studied amyloid peptide in promoting Alzheimer's disease.

4 Jul 2011

Virus-tested sweetpotato foundation seeds proven to increase yields

Sweetpotato is gaining popularity in the United States, where health-conscious consumers have created increased demand for the tasty, versatile food. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, per capita consumption of the crop increased over 24% from 1998-2008 and the value of the U.S. sweetpotato crop in 2009 exceeded $400 million.

2 Jul 2011

Scientists use statistical approach to assess order of genetic abnormalities in cancers

Zeroing in on the early cell mutations that enable a cancer to grow is one of the best ways to find a personalized therapy to stop it. Scientists were able to use a statistical approach for the first time to map out the order in which these abnormalities form to analyze the pattern of DNA changes in advanced skin and ovarian tumors.

2 Jul 2011

U-M researchers a step closer to developing treatments for aging and chronic diseases

As our bodies first form, developing cells are a lot like children put on the school bus with their names and addresses pinned to their shirts. The notes identify one as a future heart cell, another as a liver cell, a third as a neuron. And that's what they each grow up to be. But once those cells reach adulthood, changes to those original marching orders caused by aging, disease and other stressors like smoking can precipitate a kind of identity crisis, researchers at the University of Michigan Health System have found.

2 Jul 2011

Small molecule treatment holds promise for Usher syndrome

New treatment approach shall soon be ready for use in Usher syndrome patients / Publication in "Human Gene Therapy".

1 Jul 2011

Autism Speaks Weatherstone fellows publish new mouse model findings in Cell journal

Autism Speaks Weatherstone Pre-Doctoral Fellows M. Ali Bangash, a 2009 fellow, and Mehreen Kouser, a 2010 fellow, recently published new findings in the journal Cell that shed light on the biology of autism.

1 Jul 2011

Potential new treatment for rare, inherited metabolic disease

The rare disorder alpha-mannosidosis can cause serious damage to the nervous system and other organ systems. In Tromsø, Norway, researchers have been studying the disease for 20 years - and a treatment may soon be available.

1 Jul 2011

Two defective genes may cause telomere elongations in cancer cells: Study

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have provided more clues to one of the least understood phenomena in some cancers: why the "ends caps" of cellular DNA, called telomeres, lengthen instead of shorten.

1 Jul 2011

Genetic mutations in abnormal bone marrow can predict mortality of MDS patients

For patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), choosing the appropriate treatment depends heavily on the prognosis. Those patients at the highest risk of dying from their disease are typically offered the most aggressive therapies, while patients at lower risk could live several years with MDS, needing only supportive care or other relatively side-effect free treatments.

1 Jul 2011

New analytical approach can organize large amounts of varied cancer genetic data

The technology that allows scientists to profile the entire genome of individual tumors offers new hope for discovering ways to select the best treatment for each patient's particular type of cancer. However, these profiles produce huge amounts of data, and the volume alone creates unique analytical problems.

1 Jul 2011

Ovarian cancer molecular updates

In a new study a genetic mutation was found in the most common form of ovarian cancer. This according to the US scientists could pave the way for a more effective treatment of the disease. The detailed genetic map already helped scientists identify existing drugs with the potential for treating the mutations found in ovarian cancer tumors and also identified mutations that could respond to new drugs.

1 Jul 2011

Lotus Tissue Repair to develop DEB protein replacement therapy with $26 million Series A financing

Lotus Tissue Repair, Inc. today announced the closing of a $26 million Series A financing led by Third Rock Ventures. Proceeds of the financing will be used to advance the company's proprietary recombinant collagen type VII (rC7) technology as the first and only protein replacement therapy in development for the treatment of dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB), an orphan disease that causes devastating skin blisters, morbidity and early mortality.

30 Jun 2011

Glia plays key role in preventing progression of Rett Syndrome symptoms

A paper published online today in Nature reveals that glia play a key role in preventing the progression of the most prominent Rett Syndrome symptoms displayed by mouse models of the disease: lethality, irregular breathing and apneas, hypoactivity and decreased dendritic complexity.

30 Jun 2011

TCGA examines ovarian serous adenocarcinoma tumors from 500 patients

An analysis of genomic changes in ovarian cancer has provided the most comprehensive and integrated view of cancer genes for any cancer type to date. Ovarian serous adenocarcinoma tumors from 500 patients were examined by The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network and analyses are reported in the June 30, 2011, issue of Nature.

30 Jun 2011

STSI joins JAX consortium to develop targeted cancer therapies

The Scripps Translational Science Institute (STSI) of San Diego, Calif., has joined a national consortium of research institutions headed by The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) that is building a library of primary human tumors with the goal of developing highly targeted cancer therapies.

30 Jun 2011

Researchers develop way to uncover evolution of human cancer cells

A team of researchers led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco has developed a way to uncover the evolution of human cancer cells, determining the order in which mutations emerge in them as they wend their way from a normal, healthy state into invasive, malignant masses.

30 Jun 2011