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New understanding of sperm capacitation may improve IVF success rates

Two new papers from reproductive biologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, with international partners, report advances in understanding the basic processes of sperm capacitation that may one day improve success rates of in vitro fertilization (IVF) by providing a shortcut to bypass problems, and may eventually lead to a male contraceptive.

29 Oct 2013

Current drugs may harbor small-cell lung cancer promise

Scientists have identified several existing non-oncology drug classes that may have potential as a treatment for small-cell lung cancer, especially for patients with chemoresistant and metastatic disease.

28 Oct 2013

Verastem presents positive results from VS-6063 clinical and preclinical studies at 2013 AACR-NCI-EORTC meeting

Verastem, Inc., focused on discovering and developing drugs to treat cancer by the targeted killing of cancer stem cells, announced positive results from the Phase 1 portion of its Phase 1/1b study of defactinib (VS-6063) in combination with paclitaxel in patients with ovarian cancer that were presented at the 2013 AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Boston.

21 Oct 2013

Genetic mutation found to restore translational balance in mice

In a biological quirk that promises to provide researchers with a new approach for studying and potentially treating Fragile X syndrome, scientists at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) have shown that knocking out a gene important for messenger RNA (mRNA) translation in neurons restores memory deficits and reduces behavioral symptoms in a mouse model of a prevalent human neurological disease.

21 Oct 2013

UC researchers receive $2.1M grant from NIH to study molecular mechanisms of muscle fatigue

University of Cincinnati (UC) researchers have been awarded a five-year, $2.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study an isoform that plays a critical role in human resistance to fatigue.

16 Oct 2013

Researchers discover how the body's muscles accidentally fall asleep while awake

Normally muscles contract in order to support the body, but in a rare condition known as cataplexy the body's muscles "fall asleep" and become involuntarily paralyzed. Cataplexy is incapacitating because it leaves the affected individual awake, but either fully or partially paralyzed. It is one of the bizarre symptoms of the sleep disorder called narcolepsy.

11 Oct 2013

Thwarting Greatwall May Trigger Mitotic Collapse And Suppress Tumor Development

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9 Oct 2013

Research on bone-derived hormone could lead to new treatments for memory loss, depression

Researchers from Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) have found that the skeleton, acting through the bone-derived hormone osteocalcin, exerts a powerful influence on prenatal brain development and cognitive functions such as learning, memory, anxiety, and depression in adult mice.

27 Sep 2013

Understanding genetic, physiological basis for metabolic diseases related to circadian function

A new study by a team of University of Notre Dame researchers, which appears in the Sept. 2 edition of the journal PLoS ONE, is a significant step in understanding the molecular genetic and physiological basis for a spectrum of metabolic diseases related to circadian function.

24 Sep 2013

Discovery of gene essential for memory extinction could lead to new PTSD treatments

If you got beat up by a bully on your walk home from school every day, you would probably become very afraid of the spot where you usually met him. However, if the bully moved out of town, you would gradually cease to fear that area.

19 Sep 2013

Ferritin protects kidneys against damage by controlling iron

A protein, ferritin, protects kidneys against a damaging after-effect of injury, heart failure or hardened arteries by controlling levels of iron, according to a study published today by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

10 Sep 2013

Researchers define role of vinculin protein in enabling cell mobility

Researchers at the University of North Carolina and the National Institutes for Health have defined the role of the protein vinculin in enabling cell movement.

16 Aug 2013

Research findings offer clues to the origin of retinal disorders later in life

Scientists are developing a clearer picture of how visual systems develop in mammals. The findings offer important clues to the origin of retinal disorders later in life.

9 Aug 2013

Study brings new hope for patients with metastatic prostate cancer

A study of a new radiotherapeutic drug published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine brings fresh hope for a particular group of cancer patients that otherwise suffer and ultimately die from the disease -- those with prostate cancer that has spread to their bones and has failed to be controlled by hormone deprivation drugs.

18 Jul 2013

USC study shows missing brain protein may be responsible for severe over-worry and fear

A little bit of learned fear is a good thing, keeping us from making risky, stupid decisions or falling over and over again into the same trap. But new research from neuroscientists and molecular biologists at USC shows that a missing brain protein may be the culprit in cases of severe over-worry, where the fear perseveres even when there's nothing of which to be afraid.

16 Jul 2013

VBL Therapeutics publishes VB-201 pre-clinical data in journal of Atherosclerosis

VBL Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company committed to the development of novel treatments for immune-inflammatory diseases and cancer, announced today the publication of pre-clinical data for VB-201 in the journal of Atherosclerosis.

8 Jul 2013

Tiny RNA molecules work as powerful regulators of immune response in mammals

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has identified a family of tiny RNA molecules that work as powerful regulators of the immune response in mammals. Mice who lack these RNA molecules lose their normal infection-fighting ability, whereas mice that overproduce them develop a fatal autoimmune syndrome.

1 Jul 2013

Chemical hormone released due to stress can trigger mechanism for late onset of Alzheimer's disease

A chemical hormone released in the body as a reaction to stress could be a key trigger of the mechanism for the late onset of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study by researchers at Temple University.

20 Jun 2013

FGF21 endocrine hormone which reduces glucose levels also protects against cardiac diseases in mice

A research group has found that FGF21, an endocrine factor which reduces glucose levels, protects against cardiac diseases in mice. The research, published online on the journal Nature Communications, was led by Francesc Villarroya, professor from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the UB and Director of the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), affiliated centre with the campus of international excellence BKC.

18 Jun 2013

Missing brain enzyme increases concentrations of protein related to pain-killer addiction

A missing brain enzyme increases concentrations of a protein related to pain-killer addiction, according to an animal study. The results will be presented Monday at The Endocrine Society's 95th Annual Meeting in San Francisco.