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Scientists study Legionella's reprogramming on cells for survival, propagation

When it infects the lungs, the Legionnaire's bacterium Legionella pneumophila causes acute pneumonia. The pathogen's modus operandi is particularly ingenious: it infiltrates deliberately into cells of the human immune system and injects a host of proteins which then interfere in the normal cellular processes. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund have now discovered how Legionella reprogrammes the cells to ensure its own survival and to propagate. They examined a protein used by the pathogen to divert the material transport within the cells for its own purposes.

26 Jul 2010

New biophotonic imaging method monitors transformations of cellular macromolecules during apoptosis in real-time

Apoptosis, programmed cell death, is essential to normal development, healthy immune system function, and cancer prevention. The process dramatically transforms cellular structures but the limitations of conventional microscopy methods have kept much about this structural reorganization a mystery.

23 Jul 2010

Study identifies infection mechanism of disease-causing microbes

A study published in the July 23 issue of Cell identifies the mechanism used by several types of common, virulent microbes to infect plants and cause devastating blights. Microbes using this infection mechanism include fungi that are currently causing wheat rust epidemics in Africa and Asia, and a class of parasitic algae, called oomycetes, that resulted in the Irish potato blight of the 19th Century. These microbes remain an agricultural scourge today.

23 Jul 2010

Researchers discover fundamental entry mechanism of fungal microbes into plant and human host cells

A research team led by scientists at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech has discovered a fundamental entry mechanism that allows dangerous fungal microbes to infect plants and cause disease. The discovery paves the way for the development of new intervention strategies to protect plant, and even some animal cells, from deadly fungal infections. The findings are published in the July 23 edition of the journal Cell.

23 Jul 2010

Osteocalcin hormone can regulate glucose levels: Research

Researchers led by Columbia University Medical Center have discovered that the skeleton plays an important role in regulating blood sugar and have further illuminated how bone controls this process. The finding, published in Cell, is important because it may lead to more targeted drugs for type 2 diabetes.

23 Jul 2010

Euthymics Bioscience completes $24 million Series A financing

Euthymics Bioscience, Inc., a clinical-stage company developing next-generation antidepressants, today announced the completion of a Series A financing -- led by Novartis Venture Funds and Venture Investors - for a total investment commitment of $24 million in milestone-conditioned tranches. Hambrecht & Quist Capital Management, LLC, GBS Venture Partners and the State of Wisconsin Investment Board also participated in the financing.

22 Jul 2010

Super hemoglobin allows moles to grow underground

'Super hemoglobin' allows moles to thrive underground. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Evolutionary Biology have made the first identification of an adaptation in the blood of Eastern moles which allows more efficient transport of carbon dioxide, facilitating the moles' burrowing behavior.

22 Jul 2010

Valproic acid halts vision loss in patients with retinitis pigmentosa

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School believe they may have found a new treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, a severe neurodegenerative disease of the retina that ultimately results in blindness. One of the more common retinal degenerative diseases, RP is caused by the death of photoreceptor cells and affects 1 in 4,000 people in the United States. RP typically manifests in young adulthood as night blindness or a loss of peripheral vision and in many cases progresses to legal blindness by age 40.

22 Jul 2010

New insights on early pathogenic events, strategies for preventing HIV infection

In a plenary lecture at the 18th International AIDS conference in Vienna, Austria, Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., will present new insights on the early and complex pathogenic events that occur rapidly-within hours to days-following sexual exposure to HIV.

21 Jul 2010

La Jolla Institute forms partnership to investigate potential new therapy for sickle cell disease

Researchers from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have joined forces with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and Washington University in St. Louis to investigate a potential new therapy for sickle cell disease, a severe and chronic illness affecting more than 70,000 Americans and several million people worldwide.

21 Jul 2010

University of Texas scientist creates promising HIV vaccine candidate

The Abzyme Research Foundation announces today that Dr. Sudhir Paul, a scientist at University of Texas Houston Medical School, has identified an important immunological deficiency in HIV-infected patients and has created a promising HIV vaccine candidate that rectifies the deficiency. The discoveries were presented on July 19th and 20th, 2010 at the XVII International AIDS Society Conference in Vienna, Austria.

21 Jul 2010

Johnson & Johnson second-quarter sales increase 0.6% to $15.3 billion

Johnson & Johnson today announced sales of $15.3 billion for the second quarter of 2010, an increase of 0.6% as compared to the second quarter of 2009. Operational results increased 0.1% and the positive impact of currency was 0.5%. Domestic sales declined 2.8%, while international sales increased 4.1%, reflecting operational growth of 3.0% and a positive currency impact of 1.1%.

20 Jul 2010

Quantitative capabilities of Helicos' single-molecule sequencing technology demonstrated

Helicos BioSciences Corporation today announced a publication entitled "Amplification-free digital gene expression profiling from minute cell quantities" appearing on line in Nature Methods co-authored by Dr. Daniel A. Haber and colleagues from Massachusetts General Hospital. The paper demonstrates the quantitative capabilities of Helicos' single-molecule sequencing technology and its potential to reveal important genomic differences when minimal numbers of cells are available for analysis.

20 Jul 2010

Researchers identify a substance that protects farm children from allergies, allergic asthma

Researchers from Bochum have isolated the substance in cowshed dust that possibly protects farm children from developing allergies and allergic asthma, namely the plant sugar molecule arabinogalactan. If high concentrations thereof are inhaled during the first year of life it inhibits the immune system from excessive defense reactions.

20 Jul 2010

Researchers identify a mechanism that explains different phases of CML progression

Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have identified a mechanism that could explain how patients move into the worst phase of chronic myelogenous leukemia.

20 Jul 2010

Researchers develop new method for producing image of individual DNA molecules' genetic make-up

A completely new method for producing an image of individual DNA molecules' genetic make-up has been developed by researchers in Sweden and Denmark. The results are published in the latest issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA (PNAS).

19 Jul 2010

ViroStatics to present VS411 Phase II dose-ranging trial data at International AIDS Conference in Vienna

ViroStatics, a US/Italian biopharmaceutical company developing innovative immunotherapies for HIV/AIDS and other chronic diseases, is releasing Phase II data from a randomized, dose-ranging trial of VS411, the Company's novel combination product for treating HIV/AIDS, during the XVII International AIDS Conference this week in Vienna, Austria.

19 Jul 2010

Epizyme publishes two new review papers on epigenetics

Epizyme, Inc., a company leading the discovery and development of first-in-class, targeted cancer therapeutics against epigenetic targets, announced today the publication of two new review papers in the area of epigenetics. Together, the articles provide an overview of the major epigenetic enzyme classes, as well as chemical biology approaches for discovering small molecule inhibitors of these epigenetic enzymes, and demonstrate Epizyme's scientific leadership in the area of epigenetics.

17 Jul 2010

ArmaGen uses BBB molecular Trojan horse platform technology to create brain penetrating form of human EPO

Human erythropoietin (EPO) is a potent neuroprotective agent for multiple brain disorders, including stroke, brain and spinal cord injury, and Parkinson's disease. However, EPO drug development for the brain is limited, because EPO does not cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). In acute stroke or brain injury, the BBB is intact in the early hours after the insult when neuroprotection is still possible. Therefore, large molecule biopharmaceuticals such as EPO must be re-engineered to enable BBB transport.

17 Jul 2010

Researchers discover potential way to stop tumor growth

Washington State University researchers have discovered a way to help cancer cells age and die, creating a promising avenue for slowing and even stopping the growth of tumors. "Hopefully, we can make cancer cells die like normal cells," says Weihang Chai, an assistant professor in the WSU School of Molecular Biosciences and WWAMI medical education program in Spokane. "Basically, you make the cancer cell go from immortal to mortal."

17 Jul 2010

Molecule News and Research

Scientists study Legionella's reprogramming on cells for survival, propagation

New biophotonic imaging method monitors transformations of cellular macromolecules during apoptosis in real-time

Study identifies infection mechanism of disease-causing microbes

Researchers discover fundamental entry mechanism of fungal microbes into plant and human host cells

Osteocalcin hormone can regulate glucose levels: Research

Euthymics Bioscience completes $24 million Series A financing

Super hemoglobin allows moles to grow underground

Valproic acid halts vision loss in patients with retinitis pigmentosa

New insights on early pathogenic events, strategies for preventing HIV infection

La Jolla Institute forms partnership to investigate potential new therapy for sickle cell disease

University of Texas scientist creates promising HIV vaccine candidate

Johnson & Johnson second-quarter sales increase 0.6% to $15.3 billion

Quantitative capabilities of Helicos' single-molecule sequencing technology demonstrated

Researchers identify a substance that protects farm children from allergies, allergic asthma

Researchers identify a mechanism that explains different phases of CML progression

Researchers develop new method for producing image of individual DNA molecules' genetic make-up

ViroStatics to present VS411 Phase II dose-ranging trial data at International AIDS Conference in Vienna

Epizyme publishes two new review papers on epigenetics

ArmaGen uses BBB molecular Trojan horse platform technology to create brain penetrating form of human EPO

Researchers discover potential way to stop tumor growth

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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