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KSU, St. Michael's receive U.S. patent to use BRCA1 gene for cardiovascular disease

St. Michael's Hospital and King Saud University have received their first joint U.S. patent to use the BRCA1 gene as a therapy for cardiovascular disease.

13 Feb 2012

Sofie to receive U.S. patent for novel PET probes

Sofie Biosciences, Inc., offering a comprehensive range of products from pre-clinical PET imaging systems to new PET molecular imaging probes to better understand human disease, has been told that a U.S. Patent (8,101,740) will be granted by the United States Patent Office on technology that has been exclusively licensed to Sofie. The patent covers a family of novel PET probes, known as [18F]FAC.

25 Jan 2012

Researchers uncover 13 novel genetic loci linked with onset of menopause

An international team of researchers from the Boston University Schools of Public Health and Medicine and other institutions has uncovered 13 genetic loci, linked to immune function and DNA repair, that are factors in the age of onset of menopause.

24 Jan 2012

Researchers discover 13 new regions of genome associated with timing of menopause

An international team of researchers has discovered 13 new regions of the genome associated with the timing of menopause. These genes shed light on the biological pathways involved in reproductive lifespan and will provide insights into conditions connected to menopause, such as breast cancer and heart disease.

23 Jan 2012

Minuscule amounts of ethanol can double C. elegans' life span

Minuscule amounts of ethanol, the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, can more than double the life span of a tiny worm known as Caenorhabditis elegans, which is used frequently as a model in aging studies, UCLA biochemists report. The scientists said they find their discovery difficult to explain.

21 Jan 2012

Inherited mutation links exploding chromosomes to cancer

An inherited mutation in a gene known as the guardian of the genome is likely the link between exploding chromosomes and some particularly aggressive types of cancer, scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), the German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ) and the University Hospital, all in Heidelberg, Germany, have discovered.

20 Jan 2012

Researchers reveal role of micronuclei in cancer process

They are the Robinson Crusoes of the intracellular world -- lone chromosomes, whole and hardy, stranded outside the nucleus where their fellow chromosomes reside. Such castaways, each confined to its own "micronucleus," are often found in cancer cells, but scientists haven't known what role, if any, they play in the cancer process.

20 Jan 2012

Exposure to metformin may decrease risk of cancer

In 2005, news first broke that researchers in Scotland found unexpectedly low rates of cancer among diabetics taking metformin, a drug commonly prescribed to patients with Type II diabetes. Many follow-up studies reported similar findings, some suggesting as much as a 50-per-cent reduction in risk.

19 Jan 2012

Study identifies mechanism that AML cells use to evade chemotherapy

A study published this week in the journal Leukemia identifies a mechanism that acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells use to evade chemotherapy - and details how to close this escape route.

19 Jan 2012

Scientists use gold-filled silicon wafers to target and burn breast cancer cells

By shining infrared light on specially designed, gold-filled silicon wafers, scientists at The Methodist Hospital Research Institute have successfully targeted and burned breast cancer cells. If the technology is shown to work in human clinical trials, it could provide patients a non-invasive alternative to surgical ablation, and could be used in conjunction with traditional cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, to make those treatments more effective.

18 Jan 2012

Chemotherapy drugs can lead to relapse of leukemia

The chemotherapy drugs required to push a common form of adult leukemia into remission may contribute to DNA damage that can lead to a relapse of the disease in some patients, findings of a new study suggest.

12 Jan 2012

Inherited breast and ovarian cancer drug trial re-launched in tablet form

Cancer Research UK's Drug Development Office has re-launched a trial of a promising drug to treat inherited breast and ovarian cancer - but this time taken as a tablet by outpatients.

11 Jan 2012

Shorter Chk1 protein neutralizes longer sibling to potentially benefit cancer patients

Scientists have found at least one instance when the smaller sibling gets to call the shots and cancer patients may one day benefit.

4 Jan 2012

Biologists develop radar to track ADAR's RNA editing activity in neurons

To track what they can't see, pilots look to the green glow of the radar screen. Now biologists monitoring gene expression, individual variation, and disease have a glowing green indicator of their own: Brown University biologists have developed a "radar" for tracking ADAR, a crucial enzyme for editing RNA in the nervous system.

26 Dec 2011

D12-PGJ3 compound can cure leukemia

A compound produced from fish oil that appears to target leukemia stem cells could lead to a cure for the disease, according to Penn State researchers. The compound -- delta-12-protaglandin J3, or D12-PGJ3 -- targeted and killed the stem cells of chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML, in mice, said Sandeep Prabhu, associate professor of immunology and molecular toxicology in the Department of Veterinary and Medical Sciences.

23 Dec 2011

Newgen acquires novel oncology development programs from Kanion

NewGen Therapeutics, Inc. today announced the acquisition of three novel oncology development programs from Kanion USA, Inc. and Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd..

19 Dec 2011

Chemical disruption to key interaction shown to limit metastasis in test mice

Finding ways to counteract or disrupt the invasive nature of cancer cells, called "metastasis," has been a long-term goal of cancer researchers. Now, researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., have identified an interactive pathway that regulates metastases in some cancers that may be vulnerable to chemical targeting in order to prevent cancer cell proliferation and tumor growth.

14 Dec 2011

NYUCI experts present latest research findings about hematologic cancers at 53rd ASH meeting

Experts from the NYU Cancer Institute, an NCI-designated cancer center at NYU Langone Medical Center, presented their latest research findings about hematologic cancers at the 53rd ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition held December 10-13, 2011 in San Diego, California.

14 Dec 2011

Researchers identify interactive pathway that regulates cancer metastasis

14 Dec 2011

DNA sequencing identifies new altered genes that drive CLL

The most comprehensive search to date of DNA abnormalities in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) has unearthed several new altered genes that drive this common blood cancer, a finding that could potentially help doctors predict whether an individual patient's disease will progress rapidly or remain indolent for years, say scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Broad Institute.

13 Dec 2011