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Cedars-Sinai receives National Eye Institute grant to develop gene therapy for corneal disease

Cedars-Sinai stem cell researchers investigating ways to prevent eye problems in diabetic patients have been awarded a $3 million grant from the National Eye Institute to develop gene therapy in corneal stem cells to alleviate damage to corneas that can cause vision loss.

17 Jun 2011

First genetic, biochemical tests for Idiopathic Infantile Hypercalcemia

A breakthrough in genetic research has uncovered the defect behind a rare hereditary children's disease that inhibits the body's ability to break down vitamin D. This discovery has led researchers to develop the first genetic and biochemical tests that positively identify the disease.

17 Jun 2011

Transgenomic introduces Nuclear Mitome Test for diagnosis of mitochondrial disorders

Transgenomic, Inc. today announced the launch of the Nuclear Mitome Test, a genetic test to aid physicians in the diagnosis of mitochondrial disorders.

17 Jun 2011

USPTO issues patent for Predictive Biosciences' multiple biomarker assay

Predictive Biosciences, a provider of novel molecular diagnostic tests, announced that on June 7, 2011 the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued Patent Number 7,955,822 for "Detection of Nucleic Acids and Proteins".

17 Jun 2011

Boosting immune response could increase inflammation

People often talk about "boosting" their immunity to prevent and fight colds. Nutritional supplements, cold remedies and fortified foods claim to stave off colds by augmenting the immune system.

16 Jun 2011

Study provides insight into how humans and other vertebrates generate sounds

Cornell researchers have identified regions of a fish brain that reveal the basic circuitry for how humans and other vertebrates generate sound used for social communication.

16 Jun 2011

Researchers reveal why anti-androgen therapy may fail in men with prostate cancer

Cancer is crafty. When one avenue driving its growth is blocked by drugs targeting that path, the malignancy often creates a detour, finding an alternative route to get around the roadblock.

16 Jun 2011

ADDF, AFTD invite scientists to apply for Frontotemporal Dementia-specific biomarker grants

The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation and The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration invite scientists from academia and the biotechnology industry worldwide to apply for research grants to develop Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD)-specific biomarkers that reflect pathological and clinical differences so that appropriate patients can be selected for clinical trials and responses to investigational treatments can be monitored.

16 Jun 2011

Cancer Research UK to launch genetic testing programme

Cancer Research UK's chief executive Harpal Kumar today spoke of a 'golden era' for cancer research as the UK is poised to lead the world in individualising the practice of medicine by understanding which treatments are best suited to an individual patient's particular genetic type of cancer.

16 Jun 2011

University of Houston chemist develops two different materials against E. coli

A University of Houston (UH) chemist who is developing materials for detecting and repelling E. coli has published papers in two high-impact journals this month.

16 Jun 2011

UCLA researchers find new potential therapeutic target for preventing HIV

Specific types of "helper" T cells that are crucial to maintaining functioning immune systems contain an enzyme called PDI. This enzyme affects how proteins fold into specific shapes, which in turn influences how the T cells behave.

16 Jun 2011

'Cell membrane capsules' made from real living cells improve functional drug delivery

The quest for better ways of encapsulating medicine so that it can reach diseased parts of the body has led scientists to harness - for the first time - living human cells to produce natural capsules with channels for releasing drugs and diagnostic agents.

16 Jun 2011

Stem cell technology corrects genetic defect in rare blinding disorder

Researchers have used cutting-edge stem cell technology to correct a genetic defect present in a rare blinding disorder, another step on a promising path that may one day lead to therapies to reverse blindness caused by common retinal diseases such as macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa which affect millions of individuals.

16 Jun 2011

Study establishes potential genetic link to human REM sleep behaviour disorder

Researchers at the University of Toronto are the first to indentify a potential cause for a severe sleep disorder that has been closely linked to Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases.

16 Jun 2011

Phosphate regulating hormone associated with increased risk of kidney failure and death among CKD patients

A high level of a hormone that regulates phosphate is associated with an increased risk of kidney failure and death among chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients, according to a recent study led by researchers at the University of Miami and funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Diseases and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health.

16 Jun 2011

DiagnoCure receives new U.S. patent for PCA3 prostate cancer biomarker portfolio

DiagnoCure, Inc., a life sciences company commercializing high‐value cancer diagnostic tests and delivering laboratory services, today reported the issuance of a new U.S. patent, which represents a significant addition to DiagnoCure's PCA3 prostate cancer biomarker portfolio.

16 Jun 2011

Platelet Derived Growth Factor Receptor-beta plays key role in onset of obesity

A new study from Mount Sinai School of Medicine has found that a cellular signaling pathway governs the differentiation of cells into fat tissue or smooth muscle, which lines the vascular system. Engaging this signaling pathway and its capacity to govern cell differentiation has important implications in preventing obesity and cardiovascular disease.

16 Jun 2011