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Could the mTOR pathway be used to protect against cancer?

The mTOR pathway is probably the main pathway in humans and other animals that drives growth. That is, the accumulation of mass and adding mass to make an organism bigger by both making more cells, and making cells grow and become bigger.

22 Jun 2017

Discovery of signaling pathway offers new functional framework for treating schizophrenia

Neuroscientists at Tufts University School of Medicine have discovered a new signaling pathway that directly connects two major receptors in the brain associated with learning and memory – the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) and the alpha 7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (a7nAChR) – which has significance for current efforts to develop drugs to treat schizophrenia.

4 May 2017

Restricting amino acids in diet slows tumor growth, prolongs survival in mice

Cutting out certain amino acids – the building blocks of proteins – from the diet of mice slows tumour growth and prolongs survival, according to new research published in Nature today (Wednesday).

21 Apr 2017

Transmembrane protein complexes shed light on antibiotic resistance in bacteria

An international team including researchers from MIPT’s Laboratory for Advanced Studies of Membrane Proteins have proposed an explanation of the way bacteria process external signals.

12 Apr 2017

Study may provide insight into how R-LA promotes death of hepatoma cells

A new study that measured metabolite levels over time in starved rat liver cancer cells showed that treatment with a form of alpha-lipoic acid (LA) inhibited glucose uptake and glycolysis, and led to decreased cellular glucose production from non-carbohydrate sources, which may help explain how the naturally occurring R enantiomeric form of LA (R-LA) promotes the death of hepatoma cells.

12 Apr 2017

Scientists find new drug target to improve cardiac output in heart failure patients

Researchers led by Julian E. Stelzer, PhD, associate professor in the department of physiology and biophysics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, have found a new target for drug developers seeking straightforward ways to improve cardiac output in heart failure patients.

4 Apr 2017

Australian scientists discover genetic clues for degenerative eye disease that leads to blindness

Australian scientists have discovered the first evidence of genes that cause Macular Telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel), a degenerative eye disease which leads to blindness and is currently incurable and untreatable.

28 Feb 2017

Cocaine use by fathers may negatively impact cognitive development in male offspring

Fathers who use cocaine at the time of conceiving a child may be putting their sons at risk of learning disabilities and memory loss.

24 Feb 2017

Scientists uncover new way to starve tumor cells to death

For decades, scientists have tried to halt cancer by blocking nutrients from reaching tumor cells, in essence starving tumor cells of the fuel needed to grow and proliferate. Such attempts often have disappointed because cancer cells are nimble, relying on numerous backup routes to continue growing.

24 Jan 2017

Researchers develop E. coli cell line that produces large quantities of compound serine

If you had a company that manufactured valuable ingredients for chemicals like detergens or paint, you would probably like to produce the ingredients in large quantities, sustainably, and at a low cost. That's what researchers from The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability -- DTU Biosustain -- at DTU can now do.

11 Jan 2017

Auditory deficits in people with schizophrenia linked to dysfunctional brain receptors

The inability to hear subtle changes in pitch, a common and debilitating problem for people with schizophrenia, is due to dysfunctional N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) brain receptors, according to a study by Columbia University Medical Center researchers.

2 Dec 2016

New study to examine effectiveness of old antibiotic drug for treating gonorrhea infections

A new clinical research study seeks to determine whether a rapid molecular diagnostic test can reliably identify gonorrhea infections that may be successfully treated with a single dose of an older antibiotic, ciprofloxacin.

18 Nov 2016

Breakthrough research links sphingolipid-mediated cell junctions and tumorigenesis

Almost all cell types exhibit some sort of polarity, which enables them to carry out specialized functions. Adherens junctions, which consist of the transmembrane protein cadherin and the intracellular components beta-catenin, alpha-catenin, and actin filaments, initiate cell-cell contacts and maintenance of cell polarity.

18 Oct 2016

NAC improves effectiveness of adoptive cell therapy for treating melanoma

A collaborative team of investigators at the Medical University of South Carolina and Loyola University have demonstrated for the first time that culturing T cells in N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) before they are infused as immunotherapy improves effectiveness and outcomes in a preclinical model of melanoma. These findings were reported in the October 15, 2016 issue of Cancer Research.

17 Oct 2016

New study looks to saliva of humans and primates to gain insights into evolution

There's no need to reinvent the genetic wheel. That's one lesson of a new study that looks to the saliva of humans, gorillas, orangutans, macaques and African green monkeys for insights into evolution.

25 Aug 2016

Salk researchers identify new mechanism for Alzheimer's risk gene

For decades, scientists have known that people with two copies of a gene called apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) are much more likely to have Alzheimer's disease at age 65 than the rest of the population.

18 Aug 2016

Researchers identify biomarkers to improve prognosis of CKD

Currently, there is no effective method to predict the prognosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients.

27 Jul 2016

Researchers develop antibody with potential therapeutic effects against multiple sclerosis

Inserm Unit U919, directed by Prof. Denis Vivien has developed an antibody with potential therapeutic effects against multiple sclerosis.

20 Jul 2016

Researchers discover mechanism of gene silencing in hormone-dependent breast cancer cells

Sometimes, the silencing of a gene is as important as its activation. Nonetheless, up to now, most studies on hormone-mediated gene regulation have focused on researching the factors that influence the activation of certain genes. Little attention has been paid to gene silencing.

8 Jul 2016

Unique attributes of zebrafish may help study human blood disorders

Genetic regulation of the various types of blood cells in zebrafish and humans is highly similar, making it relatively easy and cost-effective to perform genetic, chemical, imaging and other molecular studies on this invaluable model organism to study normal hematopoetic development in humans as well as blood disorders and malignancies, as described in a Review article in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

9 May 2016