Biochemistry News and Research

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Patent issued for jellyfish protein for therapeutic application

Quincy Bioscience, a research-based biotechnology company, announced the issuance of United States patent No.7,671,015. The patent covers the use of aequorin-containing compounds for the purpose of preventing and alleviating symptoms and disorders related to calcium imbalance.

7 Jul 2010

Map of herpes virus "cell-entry machinery" provides new target for antiviral drugs

The mechanism by which a herpes virus invades cells has remained a mystery to scientists seeking to thwart this family of viruses. New research funded by the National Institutes of Health and published online in advance of print in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology reveals the unusual structure of the protein complex that allows a herpes virus to invade cells. This detailed map of a key piece of the herpes virus "cell-entry machinery" gives scientists a new target for antiviral drugs.

7 Jul 2010

Study finds additional targets for new therapies to treat advanced prostate cancer patients

In its early stages, prostate cancer requires androgens (hormones that promote the development and maintenance of male sex characteristics) for growth, and current first-line therapies target the receptor for these hormones to slow cancer's development and spread.

7 Jul 2010

Antioxidant supplements increase artery elasticity in patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors

Long-term supplementation with dietary antioxidants has beneficial effects on sugar and fat metabolism, blood pressure and arterial flexibility in patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Nutrition and Metabolism report these positive results in a randomized controlled trial of combined vitamin C, vitamin E, coenzyme Q10 and selenium capsules.

6 Jul 2010

Lensless cell phone microscope

Cell phones are accumulating a Swiss Army Knife-esqe assortment of capabilities; substituting as cameras, providing internet access, and soon operating as medical labs if Aydogan Ozcan's plans come to fruition. This month's cover article of the journal Lab on a Chip features the latest creation by the Ozcan group, a functioning prototype of a cell phone microscope.

1 Jul 2010

FnBP is central to bacteria's ability to invade organs: Researchers

Scientists studying the so-called "superbug" MRSA have identified one of the components responsible for making it so deadly. Staphylococcus aureus is a type of bacteria commonly found on the skin that is relatively harmless unless it gets into the bloodstream, where it can cause blood poisoning and create abscesses in organs such as the heart and brain.

1 Jul 2010

Studies link anti-cholesterol statin drugs to increased risk of anxiety and depression

Scientists are reporting a possible explanation for the symptoms of anxiety and depression that occur in some patients taking the popular statin family of anti-cholesterol drugs, and reported by some individuals on low-cholesterol diets. These symptoms could result from long-term, low levels of cholesterol in the brain, the report suggests. It appears in ACS' weekly journal Biochemistry.

1 Jul 2010

Bortezomib may offer hope for treating inflammatory diseases: New research

Those looking for a new treatment for a range of inflammatory diseases like arthritis, multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, and lupus may need to look no further than a drug already available for treating cancer. In a research report published in the July 2010 print issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, Japanese scientists use mice to show that bortezomib, currently used to treat cancers that affect white blood cells, induces cell death only in harmful (active and proliferating) T cells, leaving the rest unharmed.

1 Jul 2010

New chemical method for drug design, agrichemicals

University of Delaware scientist Donald Watson is part of a research team that has discovered an easier method for incorporating fluorine into organic molecules, giving chemists an important new tool in developing materials ranging from new medicines to agricultural chemicals.

30 Jun 2010

Tel Aviv University develops method for tracking progression of adult stem cells

It's a new technology that uses molecular therapy to coax adult cells to revert to an embryonic stem cell-like state, allowing scientists to later re-differentiate these cells into specific types with the potential to treat heart attacks or diseases such as Parkinson's.

30 Jun 2010

FDA grants IND regulatory clearance for Phase I/II clinical trial of AAT in type 1 diabetics

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Investigational New Drug (IND) regulatory clearance to initiate a Phase I/II clinical trial evaluating Alpha-1 Antitrypsin (AAT) in type 1 diabetics, based on research by Dr. Eli Lewis of Israel's Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.

30 Jun 2010

Marine organisms may hold key to fight malaria

University of Central Florida scientist Debopam Chakrabarti is analyzing more than 2,500 samples from marine organisms collected off deep sea near Florida's coast. Some of them could hold the key to developing drugs to fight malaria, a mosquito-borne illness that kills more than 1 million people worldwide annually.

29 Jun 2010

UCSB, Sansum achieve milestone in JDRF funded Artificial Pancreas Project

The University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) and Sansum Diabetes Research Institute (Sansum) announced today the achievement of a milestone in the Artificial Pancreas Project funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

28 Jun 2010

Engineered allosteric regulation provides precise control of kinase activity in living cells

Cancer occurs when human cells move and multiply inappropriately. Within cells, a process called phosphorylation serves as an on/off switch for a number of cellular processes that can be involved in cancer, including metabolism, transcription, configuration, movement, cell death and differentiation. This process is controlled by a group of enzymes called protein kinases that - working together and separately - modify the structure of proteins, changing them and allowing them to control cellular processes.

28 Jun 2010

Transposons create genomic instability and are implicated in cancer and other diseases: Research

Transposons, or "jumping genes," make up roughly half of the human genome. Geneticists previously estimated that they replicate and insert themselves into new locations roughly one in every 20 live births.

28 Jun 2010

TRL commences operations at San Diego facility with focus on biological drugs for autoimmune diseases

Tanabe Research Labs USA, Inc. (TRL) today announced commencement of its new operations at the TRL facility in San Diego with a focus on biological drugs for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. TRL began its new activities in May with the appointment of three new senior executives: Masaki Yamada, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer; Toshihiro Hosaka, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, and Roland Newman, Ph.D., VP and Chief Scientific Officer.

28 Jun 2010

Researchers identify a key player in dramatic loss of neurons in mice and fly models

A team of researchers, led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego, have identified a key player in the dramatic loss of neurons in mice and fly models, a discovery that could help illuminate the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in human neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson's disease.

25 Jun 2010

UH researchers analyze 'wireless connections' in brain to prevent neurological diseases

Many diseases of brain function, such as epilepsy and schizophrenia, are caused by problems in how neurons communicate with each other. A University of Houston researcher and his team are analyzing these commands and connections in an attempt to prevent those diseases.

25 Jun 2010

First anniversary of Tobacco Control Act: AACR calls for more research to combat tobacco epidemic

The American Association for Cancer Research recognizes the first anniversary of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which was signed into law by President Obama on June 22, 2009.

23 Jun 2010

Student receives two-year $46,000 fellowship to research on a parasite that causes Chagas' disease

Michelle Oppenheimer of Charlotte, N.C., a Ph.D. student in biochemistry in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech, has received a two-year $46,000 fellowship from the American Heart Association to advance her research on a parasite that causes Chagas' disease, which can lead to swelling and inflammation of the heart.

23 Jun 2010

Biochemistry News and Research

Patent issued for jellyfish protein for therapeutic application

Map of herpes virus "cell-entry machinery" provides new target for antiviral drugs

Study finds additional targets for new therapies to treat advanced prostate cancer patients

Antioxidant supplements increase artery elasticity in patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors

Lensless cell phone microscope

FnBP is central to bacteria's ability to invade organs: Researchers

Studies link anti-cholesterol statin drugs to increased risk of anxiety and depression

Bortezomib may offer hope for treating inflammatory diseases: New research

New chemical method for drug design, agrichemicals

Tel Aviv University develops method for tracking progression of adult stem cells

FDA grants IND regulatory clearance for Phase I/II clinical trial of AAT in type 1 diabetics

Marine organisms may hold key to fight malaria

UCSB, Sansum achieve milestone in JDRF funded Artificial Pancreas Project

Engineered allosteric regulation provides precise control of kinase activity in living cells

Transposons create genomic instability and are implicated in cancer and other diseases: Research

TRL commences operations at San Diego facility with focus on biological drugs for autoimmune diseases

Researchers identify a key player in dramatic loss of neurons in mice and fly models

UH researchers analyze 'wireless connections' in brain to prevent neurological diseases

First anniversary of Tobacco Control Act: AACR calls for more research to combat tobacco epidemic

Student receives two-year $46,000 fellowship to research on a parasite that causes Chagas' disease

Biochemistry eBook

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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