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Scientists publish structural and functional keys that distinguish two similar transcription factors

Scientists at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine, in collaboration with the Sloan Kettering Institute (New York, US), have published the structural and functional keys that distinguish two very similar transcription factors, namely SMAD2 and SMAD3.

12 Nov 2019

Preclinical data on new drug combination to treat neuroblastoma published

Neuroblastoma is the most common cancer outside of the brain in infants and young children and often fails to respond to therapy. Though it can appear in several areas of the body, it commonly develops as a solid tumor most frequently found in or adjacent to the adrenal glands, which sit atop the kidneys.

10 Nov 2019

Finding ways to stop cancer at its roots

Why do some cancers come back? Sometimes, a treatment can effectively eliminate cancer cells to undetectable levels, but, if the treatment stops, cancer may return.

7 Nov 2019

Study sheds light on potential strategy for treating Charcot-Marie-Tooth

An unexpected finding from the Scripps Research laboratory of Xiang-Lei Yang, PhD, has illuminated a potential strategy for treating the inherited neurological disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT), for which there is no approved medicine today.

7 Nov 2019

Study uncovers how cells 'forget their past' while developing into a specific cell

All cells in the body contain the same genetic material. The difference between cells therefore depends solely on which genes are expressed or ‘turned on’.

7 Nov 2019

Researchers find genes from 'fossil' virus in human DNA to be active

Genes from a virus that was stitched into the human genome thousands of years ago are active, producing proteins in the human brain and other tissues, according to researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine and the Laval University School of Medicine in Quebec, Canada.

5 Nov 2019

Scientists capture elusive cancer-related protein in action

Scientists have for the first time seen how the MYC protein, which plays a central role in cancer, binds to a key protein and controls important functions in the cell.

4 Nov 2019

Study identifies a kinase as potential target to treat heart failure

An unexplored kinase in heart muscle cells may be a good target to treat heart failure, a disease that is only incrementally delayed by existing therapies.

31 Oct 2019

Novel, cost-effective method successfully identifies aggressive tumors

Researchers have developed a novel, cost-effective genomic method that can identify highly heterogenous tumors that are typically aggressive in nature.

30 Oct 2019

Femtogenix announces new data on ADCs containing reduced potency payloads in solid tumor models

Femtogenix Ltd, a UK biotechnology company developing the next generation of DNA-interactive Antibody Drug Conjugate payloads, today announced data demonstrating the potent efficacy and favorable toxicity profile of a reduced potency analogue from its Pyridinobenzodiazepine ADC payload platform in solid tumor models.

From Pheon Therapeutics 29 Oct 2019

How the SETD1A gene produces schizophrenia in mice

A new study published in the journal Neuron on October 9, 2019 reports that scientists have unlocked part of the secrets of the SETD1A gene – how mutations in the gene put the individual at risk for the condition.

26 Oct 2019

Study finds molecular key to formation of mature and fully functioning T cells

In a finding that could help lead to new therapies for immune diseases like multiple sclerosis and IBD, scientists report in the Journal of Experimental Medicine identifying a gene and family of proteins critical to the formation of mature and fully functioning T cells in the immune system.

25 Oct 2019

Researchers discover new details about several proteins implicated in cancer

Researchers from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research have uncovered new details about several proteins implicated in tumor growth and metastasis, opening a potential avenue for the development of treatments for diseases such as breast cancer.

23 Oct 2019

Rice system helps bioscientists learn how ectoderm cells begin to differentiate

During embryonic development, the entire nervous system, the skin and the sensory organs emerge from a single sheet of cells known as the ectoderm. While there have been extensive studies of how this sheet forms all these derivatives, it hasn't been possible to study the process in humans - until now.

17 Oct 2019

Genes remember having low social status in the past

A new study in monkeys, published on October 14, 2019, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that organisms at the bottom of the social hierarchy live shorter lives. Moreover, they experience more sickness, and may continue to experience health problems despite moving up later. Adverse experiences of social life continue to reflect in their genes much longer than the actual experience, in the form of changes in gene expression via altered gene regulation.

16 Oct 2019

Brain's neural activity plays a role in human aging, life span

The brain's neural activity-;long implicated in disorders ranging from dementia to epilepsy-;also plays a role in human aging and life span, according to research led by scientists in the Blavatnik Institute at Harvard Medical School.

16 Oct 2019

Researchers identify circuit that links cigarette smoking and risk of developing diabetes

Researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have discovered a circuit in rats that links cigarette smoking and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a study featured on the cover of the October 17 issue of Nature.

16 Oct 2019

Koalas protect their germline cells against retroviral attack

In a new study published in the journal Cell, scientists have found that koala DNA is protected against attack by retroviruses by a special type of immune response, which distinguishes foreign DNA from the host genome and destroys it before it can proliferate. This finding could help us understand both how koalas survive these infections, and the mechanics of adaptive gene change.

15 Oct 2019

New Penn Medicine study unravels the early makings of an exhausted T cell

The immune system struggles to defeat cancer or chronic infections because many of the T cells that leap into action end up "exhausted," rendering them ineffective against disease.

14 Oct 2019