Animal Model News and Research

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Painful surgical adhesions may be preventable by taking the COX-2 inhibitor Celebrex

Adhesions – bands of scar tissue that bind together two internal body surfaces – develop in 55 percent to more than 90 percent of patients undergoing surgery, depending on the type of operation. They are part of normal healing, but when surfaces fuse together that shouldn't, serious pain and complications can result.

26 Jan 2005

Distraction osteogenesis procedure may be a feasible and effective method to repair cleft palate in the future

Results from a Mayo Clinic laboratory study in animals suggest that using distraction osteogenesis, a procedure that uses the mechanical force of an appliance to lengthen soft tissue and bone, may be a feasible and effective method to repair cleft palate in the future.

24 Jan 2005

Discovery of gene related to p53 called Bnip3L that can also cause cell death

Researchers have known for a decade that the p53 tumor suppressor gene is important for killing cells as they proliferate under low-oxygen conditions inside tumors.

5 Jan 2005

Paclitaxel may benefit Alzheimer's and Parkinson's movement disorders

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals have announced that a preclinical study published in today's early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences highlights the positive effects of Paxceed on movement disorders commonly seen in diseases known as taupathies, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

27 Dec 2004

Bcl-6 oncogene - genetic target for lymphoma treatment

Results from a pre-clinical study show that the gene designated Bcl-6 is an oncogene -- that is, one with the potential to cause a normal cell to become cancerous -- but that certain peptide inhibitors can in effect inactivate it, according to a study to be presented today during the 46th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH).

5 Dec 2004

Animal model helps explain how AIDS virus spreads throughout the body following oral exposure

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have utilized an animal model to trace how the virus that causes AIDS in humans may enter and spread throughout the body following an oral exposure.

3 Dec 2004

New research may lead to new treatments for spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis

For the first time, researchers have used human embryonic stem cells to create new insulating tissue for nerve fibers in a live animal model – a finding that has potentially important implications for treatment of spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis.

23 Nov 2004

New findings have implications for chronic use of COX-2 Inhibitors in pre-menopausal women

Heart disease is less pronounced in women than in men as humans age, but this difference narrows after menopause. Some studies have shown that estrogen slows heart disease in mouse models, but the mechanism is largely unknown.

18 Nov 2004

After stopping drinking, the brain grows back - significant implications for treatment of alcoholism during recovery

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scientists have reported - for the first time - a burst in new brain cell development during abstinence from chronic alcohol consumption.

8 Nov 2004

Novel health food composition proves highly effective

A more than 50 % increase in the life span of Zucker rats, a commonly used animal model for human obesity, was seen by enrichment of unhealthy food with a novel combination of plant sterols and mineral nutrients.

4 Nov 2004

New clues about how brain cells are damaged by Alzheimer's disease

University of Kentucky chemistry professor Allan Butterfield has uncovered new clues about how brain cells are damaged by Alzheimer's disease, evidence suggesting vitamin E may help prevent the debilitating illness.

1 Nov 2004

Marijuana-like compounds may aid Parkinson's disease, pain and obesity

No longer a pipe dream, new animal research now indicates that marijuana-like compounds can aid a bevy of debilitating conditions, ranging from brain disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson's disease, to pain and obesity.

28 Oct 2004

Researchers investigate whether simian foamy virus can be transmitted through blood transfusion

Using an animal model, researchers demonstrated that simian foamy virus can be transmitted through blood from one non-human primate to another. Although this virus is not known to cause disease or health conditions in people or animals, this new research identifies an emerging issue related to the safety and adequacy of Canada's blood supply.

25 Oct 2004

Exercise protects brain cells affected by Parkinson's

In an animal model of Parkinson's, exercise prevents degeneration of nerve cells that are normally impaired or destroyed by the disease, according to University of Pittsburgh researchers.

24 Oct 2004

Genetic research offers insight into Sjögren's syndrome and the general developmental machinery of the immune system

By knocking out a single gene in mice, immunologists at Duke University Medical Center have mimicked a little-understood autoimmune disorder in humans.

21 Oct 2004

Scientists have devised a novel way to repair one of the genetic mutations that causes ataxia-telangiectasia

UCLA scientists have devised a novel way to repair one of the genetic mutations that causes ataxia-telangiectasia, (A-T), a life-shortening disorder that devastates the neurological and immune systems of one in 40,000 young children.

19 Oct 2004

Energy blocker can eradicate large liver tumors

Building on their earlier work, Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered that an apparently nontoxic cellular "energy blocker" can eradicate large liver tumors grown in rats. Six months to more than a year after treatment was stopped, the rats are still cancer free.

18 Oct 2004

Study links possible role of ephedrine in sudden cardiac arrests

Each year 80,000 - 100,000 people in the U.S die suddenly from heart attacks without ever having had any symptoms of heart disease. In some cases, the victims of these unheralded sudden cardiac deaths had been taking dietary supplements containing ephedrine.

16 Oct 2004

Significant progress in development of an animal model of smallpox that closely resembles human disease

Scientists have made significant progress in developing an animal model of smallpox that closely resembles human disease, which will be necessary for testing of future vaccines and potential treatments.

5 Oct 2004

Stem cells from umbilical cord blood, given intravenously with mannitol drug reduce stroke size and damage

Researchers first gave the drug, mannitol, to provide temporary passage through the blood-brain barrier then transfused human umbilical cord blood cells into a stroke animal model. When used in the first hours and days following a stroke, stroke size decreased by 40 percent and resulting disability was significantly reduced.

26 Sep 2004