Histones News and Research

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Histone modifications associated with pancreatic cancer development and progression

Specific chemical modifications to proteins called histones, which are found in the nucleus of cells and act as spools around which DNA is wound, can be used to predict prognosis and response to treatment in subsets patients with pancreatic cancer, a study by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has found.

12 Feb 2010

Mutations in genome regulation machinery identified in clear cell renal cell carcinoma

In a new study, scientists have searched for mutations in the gene regions of more than 100 kidney cancer samples, the largest number of samples from a single tumour type to be sequenced to date.

7 Jan 2010

New study reveals choline plays a critical role in fetal brain development

If you're pregnant and looking for an excuse to eat bacon and eggs, now you've got one: a new research study published in the January 2010 print issue of the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) by a team of University of North Carolina researchers shows that choline plays a critical role in helping fetal brains develop regions associated with memory. Choline is found in meats, including pork, as well as chicken eggs.

5 Jan 2010

Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine identify a critical component, Jarid2

Like a child awaiting the arrival of Christmas, embryonic stem cells exist in a state of permanent anticipation. They must balance the ability to quickly become more specialized cell types with the cellular chaos that could occur should they act too early (stop shaking those presents, kids!).

28 Dec 2009

Researchers determine structures of two enzymes that customize histones

Researchers at Emory University School of Medicine have determined the structures of two enzymes that customize histones, the spool-like proteins around which DNA coils inside the cell.

20 Dec 2009

AACR-NCI-EORTC conference highlights major expansion in cancer drug pipeline

To highlight results of more recent research, the AACR-NCI-EORTC Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics International Conference will host a press briefing on "Drugs in the Pipeline." Sara A. Courtneidge, Ph.D., D.Sc., professor and director of the Tumor Microenvironment Program, and director of academic affairs at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research, will moderate this press briefing.

17 Nov 2009

Potential link exists between histone mRNA formation and apoptosis

A study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has identified a key player in a molecular process essential for DNA replication within cells.

26 Oct 2009

Scientists discover new way to help save lives threatened by traumatic injuries

A discovery by scientists at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation could help save lives threatened by traumatic injuries like those sustained in car crashes or on the battlefield. The work also holds potential for treating severe infectious diseases and diabetes.

26 Oct 2009

Enzo Biochem to release a new catalog dealing with epigenetics and chromatin modification

Enzo Biochem, Inc. today said that its Life Sciences subsidiary will release a new catalog dealing with “Epigenetics & Chromatin Modification” at the Society for Neuroscience’s, Neuroscience 2009 conference, beginning October 17, 2009, in Chicago, Illinois.

15 Oct 2009

Proteins play vital role in transferring human genetic code from one cell to another

A Florida State University College of Medicine researcher has solved a century-old mystery about proteins that play a vital role in the transfer of the human genetic code from one cell to another. The discovery could lead to finding new ways to help the body fight a variety of diseases, including cancer.

8 Oct 2009

Brdt protein in developing sperm cells direct tight re-packaging of sperm DNA

In the quest for speed, olympic swimmers shave themselves or squeeze into high-tech super-suits. In the body, sperm are the only cells that swim and, as speed is crucial to fertility, have developed their own ways to become exceptionally streamlined. Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg and Grenoble, the Institut de Biologie Structurale (IBS) and the Institut Albert Bonniot, both also in Grenoble, have been studying the secrets of speedy sperm.

1 Oct 2009

UK scientists discover new route by which leukaemia develops

CANCER RESEARCH UK SCIENTISTS have discovered a completely new route by which leukaemia develops, according to research published in Nature.

28 Sep 2009

Gloucester’s romidepsin recommended for approval by the FDA Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee

Gloucester Pharmaceuticals announced today that the Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee (ODAC) appointed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted 10 in favor with one abstention to recommend approval of romidepsin to treat patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). CTCL is a type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, which is a cancer of the immune system.

3 Sep 2009

Gloucester Pharma announces FDA Advisory Committee Meeting to discuss Romidepsin NDA

Gloucester Pharmaceuticals will discuss the New Drug Application for romidepsin to treat patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) at the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) meeting on September 2, 2009.

18 Aug 2009

Protein plays unexpected role protecting chromosome tips

A protein specialist that opens the genomic door for DNA repair and gene expression also turns out to be a multi-tasking workhorse that protects the tips of chromosomes and dabbles in a protein-destruction complex, a team lead by researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports in the Aug. 13 edition of Molecular Cell.

13 Aug 2009

Gene expression patterns in cancer could aid early screening and prevention

Distinctive patterns of genes turned off - or left on - in healthy versus cancerous cells could enable early screening for many common cancers and maybe help avoid them, Medical College of Georgia scientists say.

28 Jul 2009

“Misreading” of histone code linked to human cancer

The development of blood from stem cell to fully formed blood cell follows a genetically determined program. When it works properly, blood formation stops when it reaches maturity. But when it doesn't, genetic mutations can prevent the stop signal and cause the developing cells to turn cancerous. In research published in Nature, Rockefeller University scientists show for the first time that a misreading of the blood cells' histone code is responsible for acute myeloid leukemia, a rare form of the deadly blood cancer.

1 Jun 2009

Scientists develop tool to study a deadly parasite’s histone code

In the Japanese art of paper folding, a series of folds can make the same sheet of paper into a ballerina or baby elephant. But try unfolding the baby elephant and making it into a ballerina. It's like trying to make a neuron from a kidney cell. Epigenetics, it turns out, isn't much different from this old Japanese art: Each fold, or epigenetic crease, both limits and permits further potential folds in a way that mirrors how epigenetic changes seal a cell's fate.

13 May 2009

Promising new targets for medications to treat cocaine addiction

Repeated use of addictive drugs such as cocaine causes long-lasting changes in parts of the brain involved in motivation and reward, among others, yet the precise mechanisms by which these changes are maintained are poorly understood.

13 May 2009

Discovery of gene key to Alzheimer's-like reversal

A team led by researchers at MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory has now pinpointed the exact gene responsible for a 2007 breakthrough in which mice with symptoms of Alzheimer's disease regained long-term memories and the ability to learn

6 May 2009