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Study: Charcoal lessens atherosclerotic lesions in mice with kidney damage

Charcoal may provide a new approach to managing the high rate of heart disease in patients with advanced kidney disease, according to preliminary research being presented at the American Society of Nephrology's 42nd Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition in San Diego, CA.

2 Nov 2009

Bacteria use a well-studied communication system to resist antibiotics

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and the Technical University of Denmark along with other collaborators in Denmark and the US found that the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa can 'switch on' production of molecules that kill white blood cells - preventing the bacteria being eliminated by the body's immune system.

1 Nov 2009

Stress-evoked changes can precipitate low mood and re-ignite drug-seeking behaviors

Stress-evoked changes in circuits that regulate serotonin in certain parts of the brain can precipitate a low mood and a relapse in cocaine-seeking, based on mouse studies published online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

31 Oct 2009

Lipid may be vital to learning

Saturated fats have a deservedly bad reputation, but Johns Hopkins scientists have discovered that a sticky lipid occurring naturally at high levels in the brain may help us memorize grandma's recipe for cinnamon buns, as well as recall how, decades ago, she served them up steaming from the oven.

31 Oct 2009

Johns Hopkins researchers find life in blood-starved retinas; shed light on vision loss

Like all tissues in the body, the eye needs a healthy blood supply to function properly. Poorly developed blood vessels can lead to visual impairment or even blindness. While many of the molecules involved in guiding the development of the intricate blood vessel architecture are known, only now are we learning how these molecules work and how they might affect sight.

31 Oct 2009

Immunotherapy, a new therapeutic area to destroy tumor cells

Targeted immunotherapy has been an attractive new therapeutic area for a number of cancers because it has the potential to destroy tumor cells without damaging surrounding normal tissue. New study results demonstrate high success rates using specialized white blood cells to prevent or treat lymphoma associated with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV-lymphoma) in patients who have received a hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).

31 Oct 2009

Study: Gene therapy can reduce symptoms of Huntington's disease

Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have shown that a highly specific intrabody (an antibody fragment that works against a target inside a cell) is capable of stalling the development of Huntington's disease in a variety of mouse models.

31 Oct 2009

Geron plans to advance clinical program for spinal cord injury

Geron Corporation today announced the company’s plan to advance clinical development of its human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-based product, GRNOPC1, for the treatment of spinal cord injury.

31 Oct 2009

Genetic susceptibility study for Barrett's esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma awarded $7.9M grant

Thomas Vaughan, M.D., head of the Epidemiology Program in the Public Health Sciences Division of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, has received a three-year, $7.9 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to study genetic susceptibility for Barrett's esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma, a rapidly fatal cancer whose incidence has increased more than 500 percent in the past 30 years, faster than any other cancer in the United States.

31 Oct 2009

NCI awards $4.8M for project to measure all the proteins in the human body

An expert in cancer proteomics at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center has received $4.8 million in federal stimulus funding from the National Cancer Institute to co-lead a pilot study to assess the feasibility and scalability of a project that aims to measure all of the proteins in the human body.

31 Oct 2009

IGR Genomic Center awarded ISO 9001 certification

The Institut de cancérologie Gustave Roussy (IGR) France announced today that its Genomic Center has been awarded ISO 9001 certification for quality management and compliance to the highest standards of quality by Association Française de Normalisation (AFNOR), France’s national organization for standardization and certification.

30 Oct 2009

Scientists present new perspective on antigenic drift of flu viruses

Influenza viruses evade infection-fighting antibodies by constantly changing the shape of their major surface protein. This shape-shifting, called antigenic drift, is why influenza vaccines-which are designed to elicit antibodies matched to each year's circulating virus strains-must be reformulated annually.

30 Oct 2009

GPC establishes grants to expand knowledge about probiotics

Today, the success of the Young Investigator Grant for Probiotics Research (YIGPRO) program was confirmed with the announcement of two $50,000 grants that are available to rising young investigators in the field of probiotics. 2010 marks the third consecutive year for the grants. The grants were established by The Global Probiotics Council (GPC), a committee formed by DANONE and Yakult Honsha Co., Ltd., and are designed to contribute to the advancement of probiotics and gastrointestinal microbiota research in the United States.

30 Oct 2009

Viral protein could be a major player in SARS virulence

Ever since the previously unknown SARS virus emerged from southern China in 2003, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston virologists have focused on finding the source of the pathogen's virulence - its ability to cause disease. In the 2003 epidemic, for example, between 5 and 10 percent of those who fell sick from the SARS virus died, adding up to more than 900 fatalities worldwide.

30 Oct 2009

Genetists identify gene signature expressed in skin associated with the occurrence of lung disease

At its most benign, the autoimmune disease scleroderma can discolor parts of the skin of its sufferers. At its most pernicious, it can thicken and harden their skin, their blood vessels, and their internal organs before, in many cases, killing them.

30 Oct 2009

Helper T cell's effect raises possibility of cellular therapy and vaccine development

A specific type of T helper cell awakens the immune system to the stealthy threat of cancer and triggers an attack of killer T cells custom-made to destroy the tumors, scientists from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the early online edition of the journal Immunity.

30 Oct 2009

Research team reports advances in development of an effective therapy against the Nipah and Hendra virus

A collaborative research team from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), the Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL), and the National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH) reports a major step forward in the development of an effective therapy against two deadly viruses, Nipah virus and the related Hendra virus.

30 Oct 2009

UT Southwestern ophthalmologist receives 2009 Castroviejo Medal

Dr. H. Dwight Cavanagh, vice chairman of ophthalmology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, has been named the 2009 recipient of the prestigious Castroviejo Medal, one of the top ophthalmology prizes in the world.

30 Oct 2009

Monash University physiologist honored with Life Scientist of the Year award

A Monash University physiologist, whose research into weight management, obesity and diabetes has led to significant medical breakthroughs and drug design, has been awarded one of the nation's top research honours.

30 Oct 2009

Antioxidants may hold the key in preventing severe flu-related lung damage

As the nation copes with a shortage of vaccines for H1N1 influenza, a team of Alabama researchers have raised hopes that they have found an Achilles' heel for all strains of the flu-antioxidants. In an article appearing in the November 2009 print issue of the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) they show that antioxidants-the same substances found in plant-based foods-might hold the key in preventing the flu virus from wreaking havoc on our lungs.

30 Oct 2009