Cell Signaling News and Research

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Cell signaling is vital for cells to communicate and coordinate their activities, not just in the human body, but in all organisms. There are thousands of signaling pathways, ranging from protein homeostasis to carcinogenesis and biofilm formation.

Blocking interaction of JNK enzyme may counteract neuron destruction

Oxidative stress is a primary villain in a host of diseases that range from cancer and heart failure to Alzheimer's disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Parkinson's disease.

11 Jan 2013

Fingolimod could potentially eliminate or reduce progression of colitis-associated cancer

After uncovering a mechanism that promotes chronic intestinal inflammation and the development of colorectal cancer, scientists from Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center have found that fingolimod, a drug currently approved for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, could potentially eliminate or reduce the progression of colitis-associated cancer (CAC).

10 Jan 2013

Scientists define structure of α-catenin protein

Scientists know that cells in all higher organisms cells need to bind to each other for the development, architecture, maintenance and function of tissues. Mysteries have remained, however, about exactly how cells manage this feat.

9 Jan 2013

Cholesterol plays a key role in regulating proteins involved in cell signaling

Cholesterol plays a key role in regulating proteins involved in cell signaling and may be important to many other cell processes, an international team of researchers has found.

19 Dec 2012

Scientists isolate cancer stem cells that lead to growth of Wilms' tumours

Scientists have isolated cancer stem cells that lead to the growth of Wilms' tumours, a type of cancer typically found in the kidneys of young children. The researchers have used these cancer stem cells to test a new therapeutic approach that one day might be used to treat some of the more aggressive types of this disease.

13 Dec 2012

U-M devises new system to capture and study circulating tumor cells

A glass plate with a nanoscale roughness could be a simple way for scientists to capture and study the circulating tumor cells that carry cancer around the body through the bloodstream.

12 Dec 2012

Autism associated with reductions in cellular adhesion molecules in the blood

A new study published in Biological Psychiatry suggests that autism is associated with reductions in the level of cellular adhesion molecules in the blood, where they play a role in immune function.

12 Dec 2012

Pfizer's PD0325901 experimental drug blocks untreatable NF1 tumors

Researchers conducting a preclinical study in mice successfully used targeted molecular therapy to block mostly untreatable nerve tumors that develop in people with the genetic disorder Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1).

11 Dec 2012

Alpha arrestins may play a role in cell signaling that is crucial to new drug development

A newly found understanding of receptor signaling may have revealed a better way to design drugs. A study from Nationwide Children's Hospital suggests that a newly identified group of proteins, alpha arrestins, may play a role in cell signaling that is crucial to new drug development.

11 Dec 2012

Pfizer joins WIN Consortium to improve personalized cancer care

Worldwide Innovative Network (WIN) in personalized cancer medicine consortium today proudly announced that Pfizer, Inc (NYSE:PFE) is the first pharmaceutical company to become a member of the consortium. Founded on the recognition that greater success can be achieved through collaboration than any organization can achieve alone, the WIN Consortium is a global network of leading academic, industry, and patient advocacy organizations working to make personalized cancer care a reality for patients worldwide.

10 Dec 2012

Tyk2 enzyme helps regulate obesity through differentiation of brown adipose tissue

Approximately 68 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, according to the National Cancer Institute, which puts them at greater risk for developing cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and a host of other chronic illnesses. But an international team of scientists led by Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center researcher Andrew Larner, M.D., Ph.D., has successfully reversed obesity in mice by manipulating the production of an enzyme known as tyrosine-protein kinase-2 (Tyk2).

6 Dec 2012

Paper reveals how 'kinase' is distributed across membranes

Using a super-resolution fluorescent microscope, Australian medical scientists are a step closer to understanding why and how human immune cells decide to activate or not, thus enabling or preventing disease taking hold in the body.

5 Dec 2012

Research examines tumor-initiating events that lead to pancreatic cancer

A diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is particularly devastating since the prognosis for recovery is usually poor, with the cancer most often not detected until late stages.

30 Nov 2012

Cleveland Clinic researcher names American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow

Cleveland Clinic researcher Jun Qin, Ph.D., has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). As part of the Molecular Cardiology Department in the Lerner Research Institute, Qin was elected as an AAAS Fellow for exemplary contributions to the field of cell signaling.

30 Nov 2012

Disabling ItpkB enzyme improves function of Natural Killer cells

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute (TRSI) are fueling the future of cancer treatment by improving a powerful tool in disease defense: the body's immune system. By revealing a novel but widespread cell signaling process, the scientists may have found a way to manipulate an important component of the immune system into more effectively fighting disease.

29 Nov 2012

Kinexus releases new antibody microarray kit

Kinexus Bioinformatics Corporation, a world leader in functional proteomics research, announced today the release of its first Kinex antibody microarray kit with its latest generation KAM-850 chip.

27 Nov 2012

Specific combination of two pharmaceutical substances show promise against multiple sclerosis

A new substance class for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and other neurodegenerative diseases now promises increased efficacy paired with fewer side effects. To achieve this, a team of scientists under the leadership of Prof. Gunter Fischer and Dr. Frank Striggow have combined two already approved pharmaceutical substances with each other using a chemical linker structure.

27 Nov 2012

Researchers discover new cause of hydrocephalus

Researchers at the University of Iowa have discovered a new cause of hydrocephalus, a devastating neurological disorder that affects between one and three of every 1,000 babies born. Working in mice, the researchers identified a cell signaling defect, which disrupts immature brain cells involved in normal brain development.

20 Nov 2012

Biomolecular imaging: an interview with Professor Roger Reddel

The reason Children’s Medical Research Institute (CMRI) exists is to find ways to treat or prevent childhood disease. Our research programs are focussed on the areas of cancer cell growth, nerve cell signalling, embryology and gene therapy. These four programs have a shared aim of translating novel findings into new treatments for the benefit of families everywhere.

19 Nov 2012

Tug of war between Hsp70 and 90 determines how much the body makes of superoxide

Two proteins are in a tug of war that determines how much the body makes of superoxide, a highly reactive and potentially destructive product of oxygen that's dramatically elevated in cardiovascular disease, researchers report.

16 Nov 2012