Oncogene News and Research

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An oncogene is a gene that, when mutated or expressed at high levels, helps turn a normal cell into a tumor cell.

Discovery of novel form of regulation of the GLI1 gene

The Quaking gene, first described as a mutation in mice that causes rapid tremor, is thought to suppress tumor formation and protect humans from cancer.

14 Nov 2005

Substance found in evening primrose oil inhibits breast cancer gene

Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), a substance in evening primrose oil and several other plant oils used in herbal medicine, inhibits action of Her-2/neu, a cancer gene that is responsible for almost 30 percent of all breast cancers, Northwestern University researchers report.

3 Nov 2005

Scientists find key step in a signaling pathway that helps orchestrate embryonic development

The study, reported in Nature (Oct. 13, 2005), focuses on the Hedgehog family of signaling molecules, which play a central role in directing development of the early embryo's growth and spatial plan, as well as its later organ and limb development. Defects in Hedgehog signaling are a significant cause of some birth defects and cancers.

25 Oct 2005

Researchers find gene that is important for the control of fundamental rhythms in nematode worms

University of Utah biologists found a gene that controls rhythmic events in a worm's life: swallowing food, laying eggs and pooping.

9 Oct 2005

Snail, a molecule normally important in embryonic development, can promote breast cancer recurrence

Using a recently developed mouse model of breast cancer, a team from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine has shown that Snail, a molecule normally important in embryonic development, can promote breast cancer recurrence.

20 Sep 2005

Study points to importance of MYC gene in cancer progression

The cancer gene MYC is among the most commonly overexpressed oncogenes in human cancers. Most human cancers demonstrate high levels of MYC or its biological partners, including those of the breast, ovaries, lung, prostate, and skin, as well as leukemias and lymphomas.

19 Sep 2005

Translation elongation factor eEF1A2 is is a potential oncogene that is overexpressed in two-thirds of breast tumors

The tissue-specific elongation factor eEF1A2 might be an oncoprotein involved in breast cancer.

12 Sep 2005

Discovery of a potential oncogene in ovarian cancer

Researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report they have discovered a potential oncogene in ovarian cancer, which is the leading cause of gynecological cancer death in U.S. women.

22 Aug 2005

Enzyme called matriptase, when left to its own devices, can cause cance

Scientists at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) and colleagues report in animal studies that a single, scissor-like enzyme called matriptase, when left to its own devices, can cause cancer.

16 Aug 2005

Protein that protects the body from tissue damage also increases the risk of tumors

You win some, you lose some. A protein that protects the body from tissue damage also increases the risk of tumors, according to a study conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Moderate reduction of the protein level protects against tumor formation but increases susceptibility to tissue injury.

11 Aug 2005

Study results reaffirm cyclin D1 as a candidate target for molecular therapeutic control of breast tumor development

For about a decade, scientists have recognized that many cases of hereditary breast cancer result from a mutation of a specific gene called BRCA1, which, in its normal state, helps keep tumor formation in check. About five to 10 percent of breast cancer cases arise from these genetic miscues, about half of which are linked to the abnormal functioning of BRCA1.

9 Aug 2005

New breast cancer genes detected using cutting edge technology

Scientists in the UK say they have detected four new genes believed to be involved in the development of breast cancer.

4 Aug 2005

Protein called cyclin D1 disrupts BRCA1's normal role as a cancer inhibitor

For about a decade, scientists have recognized that many cases of hereditary breast cancer result from a mutation of a specific gene called BRCA1, which, in its normal state, helps keep tumor formation in check. About five to 10 percent of breast cancer cases are linked to genetic miscues, about half of which are linked to BRCA1.

2 Aug 2005

$4.7million grant for research on neuroblastoma

Significant funding from Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council will enable researchers at Children’s Cancer Institute Australia (CCIA) for Medical Research to make progress on the treatment of one the most aggressive, drug-resistant childhood cancers - neuroblastoma - over the next five years.

28 Jul 2005

Expression profiles and functional analyses of Wnt-related genes in human joint disorders

The cellular signaling protein Wnt, which is involved in embryonic development and cancer, contributes to disease progression of both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.

26 Jun 2005

Researchers develop method that can help doctors choose the best combination of drugs for fighting cancer

The method is based on a mathematical model that determines when a cancer becomes drug-resistant during therapy. It does this by estimating the probability of finding drug-resistant mutant cells at different stages of cancer progression and examining the fate of individual mutant colonies during therapy.

21 Jun 2005

Most common form of lung cancer may begin in a group of newly isolated lung stem cells

Working in a mouse model, the researchers isolated a novel type of lung cell that can divide into fresh copies of itself and into the two more specialized kinds of cells deep in the lung.

16 Jun 2005

Chemotherapy for brain tumors is boosted after vaccine targets resistance-related TRP-2 antigen

In the August issue of the journal Oncogene, researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute describe a molecular mechanism that appears to make malignant brain tumors more vulnerable to chemotherapy after they have been treated with the dendritic cell vaccine.

13 Jun 2005

Bio-engineered skin provides clues to melanoma development

When it comes to the deadly skin cancer melanoma, studying functional tissue rather than cell lines may better provide insight into the disease's development, according to new research from a Howard Hughes Medical Institute predoctoral fellow at Stanford University School of Medicine.

12 Jun 2005

Finding could provide targets for diagnosis, prognosis, therapy of prostate cancer

Researchers led by Dr. Shiv Srivastava from the Center for Prostate Disease Research (CPDR), Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), report the groundbreaking discovery of the ETS-Related Gene (ERG) as one of the frequent proto-oncogene overexpressions in prostate cancer cells.

10 Jun 2005