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Slow-wriggling alpha-synuclein proteins cause Parkinson's disease

Imagine if doctors could spot Parkinson's disease at its inception and treat the protein that triggers it before the disease can sicken the patient.

18 Jan 2012

Memory retraining using mSMT increases cerebral activation in MS patients

Neuroscientists at Kessler Foundation have documented increased cerebral activation in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) following memory retraining using the modified Story Memory Technique (mSMT).

18 Jan 2012

Converted umbilical cord stem cells hold hope for spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis

For the first time ever, stem cells from umbilical cords have been converted into other types of cells, which may eventually lead to new treatment options for spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis, among other nervous system diseases.

18 Jan 2012

Researchers identify critical cellular, molecular events that lead to esophageal adenocarcinoma

Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) have identified the critical early cellular and molecular events that give rise to a type of esophageal cancer called esophageal adenocarcinoma, the fastest-rising solid tumor in the United States.

18 Jan 2012

Defects in mitochondria lead to devastating neurodegenerative disease

A devastating neurodegenerative disease that first appears in toddlers just as they are beginning to walk has been traced to defects in mitochondria, the 'batteries' or energy-producing power plants of cells. This finding by a team of researchers, led by investigators from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro- at McGill University, was published in this week's issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.

18 Jan 2012

Scientists identify pathway that activates hepsin on the surface of breast tumor cells

Scientists from the University of Helsinki and from UCSF have exposed a cell pathway that breast tumor cells use to destruct local tissue neighborhood. Cancer cells may use this pathway to free themselves from mammary epithelial tissue architecture, to spread to surrounding tissues. The cell pathway, the researchers found, is a biochemical chain of events leading to activation of a protein-cleaving enzyme on the surface of the tumor cells.

18 Jan 2012

Researchers discover changes that cause tumor progression and metastasis

Researchers at the Centro de Gen-mica e Investigaci-n Oncol-gica (GENYO) -of which the University of Granada, Pfizer and the Andalusian Regional Government are members- have identified the genetic and phenotypic changes that cause tumor progression and metastasis.

18 Jan 2012

Alpha-1-antitrypsin may reduce effects of GVHD

A natural enzyme derived from human blood plasma showed potential in significantly reducing the effects of graft-vs.-host disease, a common and deadly side effect of lifesaving bone marrow transplants.

18 Jan 2012

Scientists use gold-filled silicon wafers to target and burn breast cancer cells

By shining infrared light on specially designed, gold-filled silicon wafers, scientists at The Methodist Hospital Research Institute have successfully targeted and burned breast cancer cells. If the technology is shown to work in human clinical trials, it could provide patients a non-invasive alternative to surgical ablation, and could be used in conjunction with traditional cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, to make those treatments more effective.

18 Jan 2012

LEITAT, JPT and IUCT partner to develop enhanced anticancer therapy

JPT Peptide Technologies GmbH (JPT), a wholly-owned subsidiary of BioNTech AG, IUCT and LEITAT announced today their collaboration on the joint development of an enhanced anticancer therapy based on the biofocused targeting of nucleoside analogs linked to small cyclic peptidomimetics.

18 Jan 2012

Study explains how cells regulate their bonds during new blood vessel development

New research explains how cells regulate their bonds during the development of new blood vessels. For the first time, the role of the protein Raf-1 in determining the strength of the bond between cells has been shown.

18 Jan 2012

SERI researchers receive NEI grant to understand origins of eye allergies

The National Eye Institute has awarded researchers at the Schepens Eye Research Institute, a subsidiary of Mass. Eye and Ear, a five year-grant totaling more than $2.4 million to understand the origins of eye allergies.

18 Jan 2012

Georgia Tech findings advance glaucoma research

Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness. Nearly 4 million Americans have the disorder, which affects 70 million worldwide. There is no cure and no early symptoms. Once vision is lost, it's permanent. New findings at Georgia Tech, published in January during Glaucoma Awareness Month, explore one of the many molecular origins of glaucoma and advance research dedicated to fighting the disease.

18 Jan 2012

Two new studies focus on causes of arrhythmia and SCD

Researchers in Rhode Island Hospital's Cardiovascular Research Center have published two new studies focusing on the causes of arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death (SCD) when a genetic disorder is present.

18 Jan 2012

Neuronal energy deficits may contribute to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Turning off a protein that helps cells balance energy increases animal mobility and reduces the death of nerve cells that control movement in animal models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a study in the January 18 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The findings may one day guide new directions for the treatment of the progressive neurodegenerative disorder, for which there is currently no cure.

18 Jan 2012

Study shows how to stop brain cancer cell proliferation and migration

Brain cancer is hard to treat: it's not only strong enough to resist most chemotherapies, but also nimble enough to migrate away from radiation or surgery to regrow elsewhere. New research at the University of Colorado Cancer Center shows how to stop both.

18 Jan 2012

Connection between Musashi1 and HuR proteins can lead to glioblastoma

Most research on glioblastoma development, a complicated tumor of the brain with a poor prognosis, has focused on the gene transcription level, but scientists suggest that post-transcriptional regulation could be equally or even more important.

18 Jan 2012

Research aims to develop physiologically-inspired algorithms

New research is hoping to understand how the human brain hears sound to help develop improved hearing aids and automatic speech recognition systems.

18 Jan 2012

Sleep strongly 'protects' negative emotional response

A recent study by sleep researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is the first to suggest that a person's emotional response after witnessing an unsettling picture or traumatic event is greatly reduced if the person stays awake afterward, and that sleep strongly "protects" the negative emotional response.

18 Jan 2012

New path for individually tailored cancer therapy

The Institute of Translational Oncology (TRON) together with BioNTech AG today announced the publication of a joint paper in the international journal Cancer Research that describes a new path for individually tailored cancer therapy.

18 Jan 2012