Protein News and Research

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Proteins are complex molecules that are made up of amino acids. They can be found in every cell in the body, and carry out vital processes that keep human beings alive. Mutations in proteins can lead to a multitude of diseases, the most common being cancer.

UI Hospital surgeons perform first robotic-assisted kidney transplant and sleeve gastrectomy

Surgeons at the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System are developing new treatment options for obese kidney patients.

1 Sep 2012

Study shows how NCAN gene results in manic symptoms of bipolar disorder

Flying high, or down in the dumps - individuals suffering from bipolar disorder alternate between depressive and manic episodes. Researchers from the University of Bonn and the Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim have now discovered, based on patient data and animal models, how the NCAN gene results in the manic symptoms of bipolar disorder. The results have been published in the current issue of "The American Journal of Psychiatry."

1 Sep 2012

NFAT protein plays a part in development of acute pancreatitis

It is likely that the protein is also highly significant for other inflammatory diseases. The research results have been published in the American journal Gastroenterology.

1 Sep 2012

Boosting immune system can help reduce asthma attacks due to viral infections

Details of a treatment that could help asthmatics fight infections that trigger 80% of asthma attacks, developed by University of Southampton spin-out company Synairgen, will be presented to European respiratory experts on Sunday 2 September.

1 Sep 2012

New intriguing knowledge on blood haemoglobin

Scientists at the research centre MEMBRANES at Aarhus University, Denmark, have completed an old puzzle, which since the 60s from many sides has been regarded as impossible to complete. The challenge was to solve the structure of the protecting protein complex that forms when haemoglobin is released from red cells and becomes toxic. This toxic release of haemoglobin occurs in many diseases affecting red cell stability, e.g. malaria.

1 Sep 2012

Dysfunctional RyRs play a role in stress-induced cognitive dysfunction

ARMGO Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing innovative small molecule drugs known as "Rycals™," which act on the ryanodine receptor calcium-release channel (RyR), announced that a study published today in the prestigious scientific journal Cell reveals the underlying role of calcium leak through the RyR as an important contributor to stress-induced cognitive dysfunction.

1 Sep 2012

Concentration increase of HUWE1 protein leads to intellectual disability

2 to 3 % of the children are born with an intellectual disability. Possibly by a genetic defect, but in 80% of these cases, we do not know - yet - which genes are responsible. VIB researchers at KU Leuven show that increased production of the HUWE1 protein is the cause in some patients.

31 Aug 2012

Well-known protein plays central role in development of acute pancreatitis

There is now a clear target for the treatment of acute pancreatitis, according to researchers at Lund University in Sweden, who have discovered that a well-known protein plays a central role in the development of the disease. It is likely that the protein is also highly significant for other inflammatory diseases.

31 Aug 2012

Scientists identify specific role of RESA protein in modulating blood circulation

When the parasite responsible for malaria infects human red blood cells, it launches a 48-hour remodeling of the host cells. During the first 24 hours of this cycle, a protein called RESA undertakes the first step of renovation: enhancing the stiffness of the cell membranes.

31 Aug 2012

Researchers identify several genetic factors linked to C-reactive protein

African Americans have higher blood levels of a protein associated with increased heart-disease risk than European Americans, despite higher "good" HDL cholesterol and lower "bad" triglyceride levels. This contradictory observation now may be explained, in part, by a genetic variant identified in the first large-scale, genome-wide association study of this protein involving 12,000 African American and Hispanic American women.

31 Aug 2012

Glaucoma and cell death: an interview with Dr. Vivek Gupta

Glaucoma is normally caused by increased pressure of aqueous humour fluid in the eye. A defining feature of this disease is destruction of a particular type of cells in the retina called retinal ganglion cells and excavation of the optic disc region.

31 Aug 2012

Type 2 diabetics with normoalbuminuria more likely to develop heart problems

In individuals with type 2 diabetes, any degree of measurable urinary protein excretion—even in what is considered the normal range—increases their risk of experiencing heart problems, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of new study in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN).

31 Aug 2012

Soligenix’s RiVax induces greater ricin neutralizing antibody levels in humans

Soligenix, Inc., a development stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today the results of a Phase 1B clinical trial of an aluminum hydroxide (Alum) adjuvanted formulation of RiVax, designed to improve the immunogenicity of the vaccine.

31 Aug 2012

FDA approves Ironwood’s LINZESS to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Forest Laboratories, Inc. announced today that LINZESS (linaclotide) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a once-daily treatment for adult men and women suffering from irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) or chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC).

31 Aug 2012

Researchers discover new immune response mechanism during infection

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have discovered a new "first response" mechanism that the immune system uses to respond to infection. The findings challenge the current understanding of immunity and could lead to new strategies for boosting effectiveness of all vaccines. The study, conducted in mice, published online today in the journal Immunity.

31 Aug 2012

Studies examine how PML gene regulates the fatty acid oxidation pathway

Two papers led by scientific teams from the Cancer Genetics Program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) shed new light on the genetic mechanisms underlying cellular energy and metabolism and, at the same time, highlight both the challenges and opportunities of genetic approaches to cancer treatment.

31 Aug 2012

Researchers discover how tamoxifen-resistant breast-cancer cells grow and proliferate

A study by researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC - James) has discovered how tamoxifen-resistant breast-cancer cells grow and proliferate.

31 Aug 2012

Grb10 plays a crucial role in increasing muscle mass during development

Scientists have moved closer toward helping people grow big, strong muscles without needing to hit the weight room. Australian researchers have found that by blocking the function of a protein called Grb10 while mice were in the womb, they were considerably stronger and more muscular than their normal counterparts.

31 Aug 2012

Closing in on neurologic biomarker diagnosis

A panel of five cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers may help doctors to accurately diagnose patients with various forms of dementia and parkinsonian disorders, research published in the Archives of Neurology suggests.

30 Aug 2012