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Rhythm commences RM-493 Phase 2 trial in obesity

Rhythm announced today the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical trial with RM-493, the company's novel melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) agonist, for the treatment of obesity.

7 Jan 2013

Researchers create killer T lymphocytes from iPS cells

Researchers from the RIKEN Research Centre for Allergy and Immunology in Japan report today that they have succeeded for the first time in creating cancer-specific, immune system cells called killer T lymphocytes, from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells).

4 Jan 2013

New insight into 22q11.2 deletion syndrome

Research out of the George Washington University (GW), published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), reveals another piece of the puzzle in a genetic developmental disorder that causes behavioral diseases such as autism.

4 Jan 2013

Mayo Clinic researchers identify new target to improve treatment of pancreatic cancer

Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida have identified a new target to improve treatment of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cancer, which accounts for more than 95 percent of pancreatic cancer cases. This fast-growing, often lethal cancer is resistant to conventional chemotherapy.

4 Jan 2013

New technique can precisely add or delete genes in living cells

Researchers at MIT, the Broad Institute and Rockefeller University have developed a new technique for precisely altering the genomes of living cells by adding or deleting genes.

4 Jan 2013

DRD4 7R allele can contribute to longevity

A variant of a gene associated with active personality traits in humans seems to also be involved with living a longer life, UC Irvine and other researchers have found.

4 Jan 2013

Itch-specific nerve cells in skin discovered by John Hopkins scientists

Johns Hopkins researchers have uncovered strong evidence that mice have a specific set of nerve cells that signal itch but not pain, a finding that may settle a decades-long debate about these sensations, and, if confirmed in humans, help in developing treatments for chronic itch, including itch caused by life-saving medications.

3 Jan 2013

Electroconvulsive therapy releases opiate-like substances

Researchers used electricity on certain regions in the brain of a patient with chronic, severe facial pain to release an opiate-like substance that's considered one of the body's most powerful painkillers.

3 Jan 2013

Johns Hopkins scientists uncover itch-specific nerve cells in skin

3 Jan 2013

Uncharacterized TLR plays key role in Toxoplasma gondii response

A previously uncharacterized toll-like receptor appears to play a crucial role in the innate immune response to Toxoplasma gondii infection and may promote host resistance, potentially leading to anti-parasite vaccines, say US researchers.

28 Dec 2012

Scientists identify molecular mechanism central to development of osteoarthritis pain

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center, in collaboration with researchers at Northwestern University, have identified a molecular mechanism central to the development of osteoarthritis (OA) pain, a finding that could have major implications for future treatment of this often-debilitating condition.

28 Dec 2012

Manipulating transcription factor can change subtype of breast cancer

Australian scientists have shown how a 'transcription factor' causes breast cancer to develop an aggressive subtype that lacks sensitivity to oestrogen and does not respond to anti-oestrogen therapies such as Tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors.

28 Dec 2012

Genetic differences in enzyme CYP2D6 play a key role in effectiveness of tamoxifen for breast cancer

For nearly a decade, breast cancer researchers studying the hormone therapy tamoxifen have been divided as to whether genetic differences in a liver enzyme affect the drug's effectiveness and the likelihood breast cancer will recur.

27 Dec 2012

Study suggests genetic component in pain response among children

At least two common gene variants are linked to "clinically meaningful" differences in pain scores in children after major surgery, reports a study in the January issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).

25 Dec 2012

Antibody type prognostic for myasthenia gravis patients

Patients who have myasthenia gravis are more likely to have a severe form of the disease and more difficulty achieving remission if they are seropositive for antibodies to muscle-specific kinase, report researchers.

24 Dec 2012

OncoMed commences dosing in OMP-52M51 Phase 1 clinical trial for hematologic cancers

OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage company developing novel therapeutics that target cancer stem cells (CSCs), or tumor-initiating cells, today announced that patient dosing has begun in a Phase 1 clinical trial of OMP-52M51 in patients with hematologic cancers.

21 Dec 2012

Molecule imitating a virus may trigger inappropriate immune response

Why would our immune system turn against our own cells? This is the question that the combined Inserm/CNRS/ Pierre and Marie Curie University/Association Institut de Myologie have strived to answer in their "Therapies for diseases of striated muscle", concentrating in particular on the auto-immune disease known as myasthenia gravis.

21 Dec 2012

Researchers create first ever atlas of immune cells in the human body

By analyzing tissues harvested from organ donors, Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have created the first ever "atlas" of immune cells in the human body.

21 Dec 2012

Androgen deprivation therapies may have adverse effects in men with precancers

The use of androgen deprivation therapies to prevent precancerous prostate abnormalities developing into aggressive prostate cancer may have adverse effects in men with precancers with specific genetic alterations, according to data from a preclinical study recently published in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

21 Dec 2012

Combination of diet and exercise may prevent breast cancer in obese, postmenopausal women

Obese, postmenopausal women are at greater risk for developing breast cancer and their cancers tend to be more aggressive than those in lean counterparts.

20 Dec 2012