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DISC1 linked to proper development and migration of neurons in the brain

Scientists now have a better understanding of a perplexing gene that is associated with susceptibility for a wide spectrum of severely debilitating mental illnesses. Two independent research studies published by Cell Press in the September 24th issue of the journal Neuron provide fascinating insight into the molecular mechanisms that link disrupted-in-schizophrenia 1 (DISC1) with the proper development and migration of neurons in the hippocampus, a brain area involved in learning and memory and associated with the pathology of schizophrenia.

24 Sep 2009

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles catalyze brain tumor death

Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago Medical Center's Brain Tumor Center have developed a way to target brain cancer cells using inorganic titanium dioxide nanoparticles bonded to antibodies.

23 Sep 2009

Researchers discover HIV Nef protein's role in cell mobility inhibition

In order to be able to ward off disease pathogens, immune cells must be mobile and be able to establish contact with each other. The working group around Professor Dr. Oliver Fackler in the Virology Department of the Hygiene Institute of the Heidelberg University Hospital has discovered a mechanism in an animal model revealing how HIV, the AIDS pathogen, cripples immune cells: Cell mobility is inhibited by the HIV Nef protein.

17 Sep 2009

Disruption of the spectrin-actin network leads to lens cell in the eye to lose their shape: Study

A network of proteins underlying the plasma membrane keeps epithelial cells in shape and maintains their orderly hexagonal packing in the mouse lens, say Nowak et al. The study will appear in the September 21, 2009 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology (online September 14).

15 Sep 2009

Scientists to get funding from The European Research Council

The European Research Council (ERC) expects to fund some 240 top researchers in its second prestigious ERC Starting Grant competition. This new wave of grantees follows the 299 researchers who received grants in the first Starting Grant competition in 2007.

11 Sep 2009

Cellular mechanosensory system may yield new insights for cancer therapy

Every moment, millions of a body's cells flawlessly divvy up their genes and pinch perfectly in half to form two identical progeny for the replenishment of tissues and organs - even as they collide, get stuck, and squeeze through infinitesimally small spaces that distort their shapes.

11 Sep 2009

ERC funds DiaDrug project to study the link between insulin resistance and albuminuria

11 Sep 2009

RegeneRx announces the receipt of a Notice of Allowance in Europe for its patent application

REGENERX BIOPHARMACEUTICALS, INC. (the “Company” or “RegeneRx”) announced today that it received a “Notice of Allowance” in Europe for its patent application: Inhibition or Reversal of Skin Aging by Actin-Sequestering Peptides.

25 Aug 2009

Scientists develop new technique to target brain cancer cells

Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago's Brain Tumor Center have developed a way to target brain cancer cells using inorganic titanium dioxide nanoparticles bonded to soft biological material.

20 Aug 2009

Nano-bio material kills cancer cells, leaves healthy cells in unharmed

19 Aug 2009

Living cells controlled with light; potential for stem cell research

University of Central Florida researchers have shown for the first time that light energy can gently guide and change the orientation of living cells within lab cultures. That ability to optically steer cells could be a major step in harnessing the healing power of stem cells and guiding them to areas of the body that need help.

12 Aug 2009

Migrant neuron: New imaging studies reveal mechanics of neuron migration

The development of the brain proceeds a little like the European settlement of North America. The earliest pioneers settled on the east coast with subsequent waves of settlers forming communities further and further westward. In cortical regions of the developing brain, generations of young neurons undergo a staged migration as well, with the earliest-born cells staying relatively close to their birthplace and subsequent generations traveling further, ultimately stratifying into six neuronal layers in the mature brain. Now, for the first time, imaging studies have identified the "motors" that propel a unique form of cell migration that creates these layers that

22 Jul 2009

Discovery of new mechanism controlling neuronal migration

The molecular machinery that helps brain cells migrate to their correct place in the developing brain has been identified by scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

15 Jul 2009

Cells use import machinery to export their goods as well

In the bustling economy of the cell, little bubbles called vesicles serve as container ships, ferrying cargo to and from the port - the cell membrane. Some of these vesicles, called post-Golgi vesicles, export cargo made by the cell's protein factory.

9 Jul 2009

New understanding of how cells cover gaps

Researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, came a step closer to understanding how cells close gaps not only during embryonic development but also during wound healing. Their study, published this week in the journal Cell, uncovers a fundamental misconception in the previous explanation for a developmental process called dorsal closure.

28 Jun 2009

Oligophrenin-1 signaling protein linked to mental retardation controls synapse maturation, plasticity

A team of neuroscientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has demonstrated the mechanism by which a signaling protein found throughout the brain controls the maturation and strength of excitatory synapses, the tiny gaps across which the majority of neurons communicate.

1 Jun 2009

Scientists cure mice of muscle disease that causes a Floppy Baby Syndrome

In a world first, West Australian scientists have cured mice of a devastating muscle disease that causes a Floppy Baby Syndrome - a breakthrough that could ultimately help thousands of families across the globe.

25 May 2009

Heart protein saves muscle

A heart muscle protein can replace its missing skeletal muscle counterpart to give mice with myopathy a long and active life, show Nowak et al. The findings will be published online on Monday, May 25, 2009 and will appear in the June 1, 2009 print issue of the Journal of Cell Biology.

25 May 2009

Is transforming growth factor-beta involved in intestinal wound healing?

Migration of colonic lamina propria fibroblasts (CLPF) plays an important role during the progression of fibrosis and fistulae in Crohn's disease.

30 Mar 2009

Possible new way to stop cancer from spreading

Based on research that reveals new insight into mechanisms that allow invasive tumor cells to move, researchers at the Mayo Clinic campus in Florida have a new understanding about how to stop cancer from spreading.

30 Mar 2009