Toxin News and Research

RSS

Four companies receive NIAID contracts to develop broad-spectrum therapeutics

Four companies are to develop broad-spectrum therapeutics-antibiotics, antivirals and an antitoxin-to prevent or treat diseases caused by multiple types of bacteria or viruses, under contracts awarded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

14 Oct 2011

Researchers gain insight on how roundworm's brain operates as it moves

Using new optical equipment, a team of 11 researchers put roundworms into a world of virtual reality, monitored both their behavior and brain activity and gained unexpected information on how the organism's brain operates as it moves.

4 Oct 2011

Researchers discover cell receptor for CDT toxin of C. difficile bacterium

A research group led by Freiburg pharmacologist Prof. Dr. Klaus Aktories and their American colleagues have discovered the cell receptor for the toxin CDT of the bacterium Clostridium difficile.

27 Sep 2011

Breast cancer drug combination could stop cancer “in its tracks”

The results of a new study revealed that treatment for women with HER2-positive breast cancer – an aggressive form of the disease which is diagnosed in 10,000 British women each year – slowed the progression of tumors by 40 per cent compared with conventional drugs. Tests on 137 women showed that the new therapy – called T-DM1 – which combines the drug Herceptin with an antibody drug, instead of with standard chemotherapy, appeared to stop the cancer “in its tracks”.

26 Sep 2011

Neogen develops quick and easy new test for aflatoxin

Neogen Corporation has developed a quick and easy new test for aflatoxin, a toxin considered by many to be the most potent, naturally-occurring carcinogen. The toxin is a by-product of mold growth in a wide range of commodities, including corn.

22 Sep 2011

NIH to honor IGB faculty member with innovator award

Douglas A. Mitchell, IGB faculty member in the Mining Microbial Genomes for Novel Antibiotics research theme and assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry, is a recipient of the 2011 National Institutes of Health Director's New Innovator Award. The award recognizes bold ideas from some of the nation's most promising new scientists.

22 Sep 2011

Elusys receives federal contract to develop prophylactic treatment against anthrax

Elusys Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing biodefense countermeasures, announced today that it has been awarded the first U.S. Government contract to develop an anti-toxin for pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) use via intramuscular injection.

9 Sep 2011

Pancreatic mesenchyme plays central role in the formation of mature beta cells

A somewhat mysterious soft tissue found in the fetus during early development in the womb plays a pivotal role in the formation of mature beta cells the sole source of the body's insulin. This discovery, made by scientists at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Texas A&M University, may lead to new ways of addressing Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

7 Sep 2011

Scientists sequence ten variants of E. coli O104:H4 outbreak strain across the world

Ten variants of the deadly Escherichia coli strain that hit Germany in May 2011 have been sequenced across the world. The unprecedented level of collaboration across the scientific community should give insight into how the outbreak arose, says a scientist at the Society for General Microbiology's Autumn Conference 2011.

5 Sep 2011

Researchers modify toxic chemical of marine cycyanobacteria to treat colon cancer

University of Florida researchers have modified a toxic chemical produced by tiny marine microbes and successfully deployed it against laboratory models of colon cancer.

2 Sep 2011

Dendritic cells play central role in regulation of acetaminophen's toxicity

NYU School of Medicine researchers have discovered that dendritic cells in the liver have a protective role against the toxicity of acetaminophen, the widely used over-the-counter pain reliever and fever reducer for adults and children.

2 Sep 2011

Insight into how bacterial toxins cause human diseases may help improve treatment

A better understanding of how bacterial toxins cause common human diseases may lead to their improved treatment and prevention according to a paper just published by Irish and US scientists in Nature Reviews Microbiology.

25 Aug 2011

Researchers discover NPC1 protein as crucial for Ebola virus to enter host cells

Although outbreaks are rare, Ebola virus, the cause of Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF), is one of the deadliest known viruses affecting humans. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 1,850 EHF cases with more than 1,200 deaths have been documented since the virus was identified in 1976.

25 Aug 2011

Hospital acquired Clostridium difficile bug defense system identified

American researchers have discovered the process by which the cells in the gut fight off toxins produced by a hospital bug - Clostridium difficile. Writing in Nature Medicine, they showed how a chemical - GSNO - deactivated a toxin from Clostridium difficile which causes inflammation and diarrhea. They hope to use their findings to develop a treatment for C. difficile.

23 Aug 2011

Research uncovers natural defense mechanism that inactivates C. diff toxins

Groundbreaking research encompassing Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals Case Medical Center, has uncovered a natural defense mechanism that is capable of inactivating the toxin that spreads Clostridium difficile, or C. diff, an increasingly common bacterial infection in hospitals and long-term care settings.

22 Aug 2011

Scientists discover key defense mechanism against C. difficile infection

Researchers have discovered a key mechanism used by intestinal cells to defend themselves against one of the world's most common hospital-acquired bacterial infections - a mechanism they think they can exploit to produce a therapy to protect against the effects of the antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

22 Aug 2011

Harmless bacteria re-engineered to fight a deadly strain

Scientists in Singapore have re-engineered a harmless strain of bacteria to fight another common, drug-resistant microbe that spreads in hospitals and is deadly to patients with weak immune systems.

17 Aug 2011

Amorfix provides update on cancer therapeutic antibody programs

Amorfix Life Sciences Ltd., a product development company focused on diagnostics and therapeutics for misfolded protein diseases, provides an update on its cancer therapeutic antibody programs.

12 Aug 2011

Study shows how certain woodrats put themselves on diet to avoid poisoning

Life is tough for woodrats in deserts of the U.S. Southwest. There are few plants for food, and those plants produce poison to deter rodents, insects and other animals. A new University of Utah study shows how certain woodrats put themselves on a diet to avoid poisoning: They sample a smorgasbord of toxic plants, eat smaller meals, increase time between meals and drink more water if it is available.

9 Aug 2011

Allergan receives positive opinion from Irish Medicines Board for BOTOX

Allergan is pleased to announce that BOTOX has received a positive opinion from the Irish Medicines Board for the management of urinary incontinence in adults with neurogenic detrusor overactivity (NDO) resulting from neurogenic bladder due to stable sub-cervical spinal cord injury, or multiple sclerosis.

8 Aug 2011