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Researchers discover gene that contributes to depression

Yale University researchers have found a gene that seems to be a key contributor to the onset of depression and is a promising target for a new class of antidepressants, they report Oct. 17 in the journal Nature Medicine.

18 Oct 2010

Neogenix to present NPC-1C antibody data at ASCO Annual Meeting

Neogenix Oncology, Inc. announced today that it will present data from its new serum biomarker ELISA utilizing its NPC-1C antibody for patients with colorectal and pancreatic cancers. Results from the study will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)-NCI-EORTC Annual Meeting on Molecular Makers in Cancer, to be held in Hollywood, Florida from October 18-20, 2010.

18 Oct 2010

Biogen, Elan announce clinical utility data of two-step ELISA to detect anti-JCV antibodies

Biogen Idec and Elan Corporation, plc today announced data further supporting the potential clinical utility of an investigational assay that detects anti-JC virus (JCV) antibodies in human plasma or serum.

18 Oct 2010

Researchers report progress on two eye disease challenges at AAO-MEACO 2010 Joint Meeting

At the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Middle East-Africa Council of Ophthalmology (MEACO) Joint Meeting today, researchers report progress on two top eye disease challenges treating advanced "dry" age-related macular degeneration, and preventing blindness in people with diabetes.

18 Oct 2010

Researchers discover blocking beta-arrestin 1 protein can reduce severity of heart failure

A Nova Southeastern University (NSU) researcher has announced a breakthrough discovery to block a protein that can contribute to heart failure. His discovery will appear in an upcoming issue of the prestigious medical journal, the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

18 Oct 2010

Scientists find unexpected function of cell's protein-making machinery

When cells make the proteins that carry out virtually every function of life, it's vital that the right things happen at the right times, and maybe more importantly that wrong things are stopped from happening at the wrong times.

18 Oct 2010

Tocotrienols can help reduce triglyceride levels

Scientists from Singapore found that tocotrienols, which are members of the Vitamin E family, are effective in lowering the levels of triglyceride, a form of fat in the blood. High levels of triglyceride are closely linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

18 Oct 2010

Researchers identify genes that predict early menopause

The first research from the Breakthrough Generations Study could lead to a test to predict a woman's reproductive lifespan. The findings, published today in Human Molecular Genetics, could have considerable impact on women in the UK and other western countries, where many start having children at a later age. Early menopause affects one in 20 UK women.

18 Oct 2010

2010 AAO-MEACO meeting focuses on genetic medicine

Genetic medicine is the focus of two presentations at today's Scientific Program of the 2010 American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Middle East-Africa Council of Ophthalmology (MEACO) Joint Meeting. The AAO-MEACO meeting is in session October 16 through 19 at McCormick Place, Chicago. It is the largest, most comprehensive ophthalmic education conference in the world.

18 Oct 2010

Royal Cornwall Hospital receives grant to study Hepatitis E

Researchers from the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro have received a grant of -337,000 to carry out a two-year study with partners in Glasgow and Norwich into a rare form of Hepatitis - Hepatitis E. The grant has come from the Chief Scientist's Office for Scotland and will be divided between the three centres taking part in the study.

18 Oct 2010

Silver studded bacteria could help treat common cold and flu

Finally scientists may have found a potential cure for common cold. They have found “silver bullets” in yogurt that could destroy viruses and provide a cure for the flu and common cold.

18 Oct 2010

Births in Italy and Germany from eggs tested by CGH

Two women taking part in the world's first controlled study of a comprehensive genetic screening test before IVF have given birth to healthy babies. The babies, twin girls born in Germany in June and a singleton boy born in Italy in September, are the first deliveries in a pilot study of comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH) by microarray, a new method of screening oocytes for IVF for a full range of chromosomal disorders.

15 Oct 2010

Novel approach to automated detection of bacterial pathogens in food

Researchers from the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) and the Bindley Bioscience Center at Purdue University have developed a novel approach to automated detection and classification of harmful bacteria in food. The investigators have designed and implemented a sophisticated statistical approach that allows computers to improve their ability to detect the presence of bacterial contamination in tested samples.

15 Oct 2010

Neuroprotective properties of laquinimod for RRMS presented at 26th ECTRIMS Congress

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and Active Biotech announced today that data providing further evidence of the neuroprotective properties of laquinimod in animal studies were presented at the 26th Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) in Gothenburg, Sweden.

15 Oct 2010

Pericytes regulate blood-brain barrier

While the blood-brain barrier (BBB) protects the brain from harmful chemicals occurring naturally in the blood, it also obstructs the transport of drugs to the brain. In an article in Nature scientists at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet now present a potential solution to the problem. The key to the BBB is a cell-type in the blood vessel walls called pericytes, and the researchers hope that their findings will one day contribute to new therapies for diseases like Alzheimer's and stroke.

15 Oct 2010

New development of genetic tool to speed discovery of novel genes involved in cancer

Researchers have developed a genetic tool in mice to speed the discovery of novel genes involved in cancer. The system - called PiggyBac - has already been used by the team to identify novel candidate cancer-causing genes.

15 Oct 2010

Fluctuations in internal body temperature regulate body's circadian rhythm: Research

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found that fluctuations in internal body temperature regulate the body's circadian rhythm, the 24-hour cycle that controls metabolism, sleep and other bodily functions.

15 Oct 2010

Research team creates first 'lipidome' of human plasma

Human blood is famously fraught with fats; now researchers have a specific idea of just how numerous and diverse these lipids actually are. A national research team, led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, has created the first "lipidome" of human plasma, identifying and quantifying almost 600 distinct fat species circulating in human blood.

15 Oct 2010

UCLA study sheds light on roots of schizophrenia, autism

UCLA scientists have discovered that exposing fetal neurons to higher than normal levels of a common immune protein leads to abnormal brain development in mice.

15 Oct 2010

EpiMark Analysis Kit simplifies DNA methylation analysis for epigenetics researchers

New England Biolabs (NEB) has launched a suite of new and validated products designed to simplify DNA methylation analysis for epigenetics researchers. These enzyme-based solutions address some of the challenges of the current methods, including the lack of a reproducible method for the analysis and quantitation of 5-hydroxymethlcytosine (5-hmC) in the epigenome.

15 Oct 2010