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Research shows exon-skipping drug may prove effective for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy

An exon skipping PPMO has demonstrated dramatic effects in the prevention and treatment of severely affected, dystrophin and utrophin-deficient mice, preventing severe deterioration of the treated animals and extending their lifespan.

21 Oct 2009

Sigma-Aldrich launches SAGEspeed, a program for developing human disease models in rodents

Sigma-Aldrich® (Nasdaq: SIAL) today announced the launch of SAGEspeed(TM), a program to develop human disease models in rodents using its proprietary novel CompoZr(TM) Zinc Finger Nuclease (ZFN) gene editing technology (http://www.compozrzfn.com).

19 Oct 2009

CHEO researchers identify protein that inhibits insulin production

One of the biggest mysteries about diabetes is why specialized cells in the pancreas stop secreting insulin, which the body needs in order to store glucose from food. A team from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute has identified a protein that inhibits insulin production in mice - work that offers a new way of understanding, and perhaps of one day treating, both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

8 Oct 2009

Researchers discover that Merkel cells originate in the skin

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine assistant professor of pediatrics, neurosciences and otolaryngology, Stephen M. Maricich, M.D., Ph.D., and his team found that Merkel cells originate in the skin, not the neural crest lineage, as previously speculated.

3 Oct 2009

NEDD9 protein stimulates aggressive metastatic breast cancer

Researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center have demonstrated that a protein called NEDD9 may be required for some of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer to grow. Their findings, based on the study of a mouse model of breast cancer, are presented in a recent issue of Cancer Research, available on-line now.

3 Oct 2009

Therapeutic target for acute respiratory distress syndrome identified

Research led by Dr. Jay Kolls, Professor and Chairman of Genetics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, has identified a therapeutic target for acute lung injury resulting in acute respiratory distress syndrome, a highly fatal complication of influenza infection.

30 Sep 2009

Second-quarter 2009 unaudited results announced by Deltagen

Deltagen, Inc. (Pink Sheets: DGEN), a leading provider of drug discovery tools to the biopharmaceutical industry, today reported unaudited consolidated financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2009.

19 Sep 2009

Players’ fencing response yields visual clues on brain injury

Brain injury researchers at the University of Kentucky have spent hundreds of hours watching YouTube videos of people getting smacked, punched and knocked in the head during sporting events and recreational activities. But those researchers weren't goofing off on the Internet; they were doing hard science.

3 Sep 2009

Amateur boxing leads to increased levels of brain damage markers in spinal fluid

A blood test can now be used to detect brain damage in amateur boxers. Deterioration of nerve cells seems to occur even after a two-month break from boxing. This is shown in a new study from the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

27 Aug 2009

Sigma-Aldrich scientists to leverage proprietary gene editing technology to develop genetically-engineered rodent research models

Sigma-Aldrich(R) (Nasdaq: SIAL) announced today that scientists at its new Sigma Advanced Genetic Engineering (SAGE(TM)) Labs in St. Louis will leverage its exclusive CompoZr(TM) Zinc Finger Nuclease (ZFN) gene editing technology (www.compozrzfn.com) to define, develop and offer a new generation of genetically-engineered rodent research models. Such models are commonly used to study disease states in humans and play a key role in the drug discovery process.

24 Aug 2009

Study reveals that brain damage in amateur boxers can be detected by a blood test

21 Aug 2009

New understanding of role hyaluronic acid in skeletal growth

Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) and the University of Connecticut Health Center (U.C.H.C.) have gained new understanding of the role hyaluronic acid (HA) plays in skeletal growth, chondrocyte maturation and joint formation in developing limbs.

12 Aug 2009

Researchers expose the biology of Clostridium difficile transmission in mice

New research suggests that antibiotic treatment could be asymptomatically inducing the transmission of the healthcare-acquired infection, C. difficile, contributing to the outbreaks that have recently been widely reported in hospitals and other settings. A team of scientists have successfully mirrored the infection cycle of C. difficile by generating a 'mouse hospital' with conditions mimicking the human environment in which C. difficile is transmitted.

20 Jul 2009

Newly identified gene regulates immune cells' ability to harm the body

A recently identified gene allows immune cells to start the self-destructive processes thought to underlie autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and rheumatoid arthritis, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found.

17 Jul 2009

Handle with care: Telomeres resemble DNA fragile sites

Telomeres, the repetitive sequences of DNA at the ends of linear chromosomes, have an important function: They protect vulnerable chromosome ends from molecular attack.

9 Jul 2009

Research may hold key to maintaining embryonic stem cells in lab

In a new study that could transform embryonic stem cell (ES cell) research, scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered why mouse ES cells can be easily grown in a laboratory while other mammalian ES cells are difficult, if not impossible, to maintain.

9 Jul 2009

Potential genetic cause of congenital defect colonic atresia

In a finding that helps resolve a long-standing question in developmental biology, Klaus H. Kaestner, PhD, Professor of Genetics, and colleagues report in the journal Developmental Cell this week about how the mammalian gut forms. Mice were genetically engineered to lack the protein Cdx2 in the cells that normally go on to form the stomach and intestine.

22 Apr 2009