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DFG to establish eight new CRCs as of 1 January 2012

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) will establish eight Collaborative Research Centres (CRC) as of 1 January 2012. This was agreed by the responsible Grants Committee at its autumn meeting in Bonn.

5 Dec 2011

Genetic variation predicts survival chances of ovarian cancer

Yale Cancer Center researchers have shown that a tiny genetic variation predicts chances of survival and response to treatment for patients with ovarian cancer.

5 Dec 2011

Growth hormone PDGF-BB and blood protein EPO implicated in development of cancer

Researchers at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have demonstrated that a growth hormone, PDGF-BB, and the blood protein EPO are involved in the development of cancer tumours and that they combine to help the tumours proliferate in the body.

5 Dec 2011

The head plays key role in tiring endurance performances

Researchers from the University of Zurich have now studied in detail what sportsmen and women know from experience: The head plays a key role in tiring endurance performances.

5 Dec 2011

Plasma can inactivate and prevent replication of adenoviruses

Life-threatening viruses such as HIV, SARS, hepatitis and influenza, could soon be combatted in an unusual manner as researchers have demonstrated the effectiveness of plasma for inactivating and preventing the replication of adenoviruses.

5 Dec 2011

Low vitamin D levels associated with higher degrees of insulin resistance

A recent study of obese and non-obese children found that low vitamin D levels are significantly more prevalent in obese children and are associated with risk factors for type 2 diabetes. This study was accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

5 Dec 2011

Study reveals how wide brain networks are activated during music listening

Finnish researchers have developed a groundbreaking new method that allows to study how the brain processes different aspects of music, such as rhythm, tonality and timbre (sound color) in a realistic listening situation.

5 Dec 2011

P-Rex1 gene plays a key role in the spread of malignant melanoma

SCIENTISTS in Glasgow have made an important discovery in the fight against malignant melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer.

5 Dec 2011

Study shows new biochemical disturbances in the brains of children with ADHD

A new study at örebro University in Sweden shows that children with ADHD have nearly 50 percent less of a protein that is important for attention and learning. The finding may mean that there are other biochemical disturbances in the brains of individuals with ADHD than was previously believed.

5 Dec 2011

Scientists discover new candidate gene for Dravet syndrome

Dravet syndrome is a severe genetic epilepsy that appears early in life. About 75 percent of cases can be attributed to mutations in the SCN1A gene encoding the sodium channel NaV1.1. The remaining patients with this syndrome are without a definitive molecular genetic diagnosis. Research presented today at the American Epilepsy Society's 65th Annual Meeting has found a non-SCN1A candidate gene and suggests that Dravet syndrome may be caused by any one of a number of yet unidentified genes.

5 Dec 2011

CPEB4 protein plays a crucial role in cancer progression

A study by researchers Ra-l M-ndez, ICREA Research Professor at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) and Pilar Navarro at the IMIM (Institut de Recerca Hospital del Mar, Barcelona) describes a new reprogramming mechanism for the expression of genes responsible for turning a healthy cell into a tumor cell.

5 Dec 2011

Cancer cells can 'bag up and bin' a toxic protein to cheat death

Cancer Research UK scientists have discovered that cancer cells can 'bag up and bin' a toxic protein to cheat death - revealing a new Achilles heel in cancer cells that could be targeted for treatment, reveals research in Nature Cell Biology today.

5 Dec 2011

Researchers identify ADHD gene variants involved in glutamate signaling

Pediatric researchers analyzing genetic influences in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have found alterations in specific genes involved in important brain signaling pathways. The study raises the possibility that drugs acting on those pathways might offer a new treatment option for patients with ADHD who have those gene variants—potentially, half a million U.S. children.

5 Dec 2011

Hypothalamus may be involved in generating laughter

Anecdotal evidence suggests that the hypothalamus, a structure lying deep within the brain may be involved in generating laughter. Gelastic epilepsy, a rare condition characterized by laughing seizures, is commonly the result of a congenital brain lesion within the hypothalamus.

5 Dec 2011

Researchers uncover binding pocket of 'functional significance' in Ras oncoprotein

A drug discovery team at Genentech, Inc., has uncovered a chink in the molecular armor of Ras, the most commonly occurring oncogene, which is a gene that when mutated has the potential of causing cancer in humans.

5 Dec 2011

U-M scientists generate Dravet-derived neurons

Scientists investigating the fundamental cause of Dravet syndrome, a severe childhood epilepsy, have reprogrammed fibroblasts, a type of skin cell, from Dravet patients and generated patient-specific neurons.

5 Dec 2011

Bromide shows promise against SCN1A-associated Dravet syndrome with intractable seizures

In the mid-nineteenth century Charles Locock, physician to Queen Victoria, introduced bromide as the first effective treatment for epilepsy. The drug was little used in treating the disorder until 1868, however, when its efficacy against seizures was first demonstrated in a clinical trial. Bromide was the sole anticonvulsant available until 1912 and the introduction of phenobarbital.

5 Dec 2011