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Researchers shed new light about long non-coding RNA molecules

Despite progress in decoding the genome, scientists estimate that fully 95 percent of our DNA represents dark, unknown territory. In the October 1 issue of the journal Cell researchers at The Wistar Institute shed new light on the genetic unknown with the discovery of the ability of long non-coding RNA (ncRNA) to promote gene expression.

7 Oct 2010

Myrexis to present MPI-0485520 preclinical data at Annual Scientific Meeting

Myrexis, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing novel treatments for cancer, today announced it will present a poster at the 74th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology/Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ACR/ARHP), to be held November 7-11, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia.

7 Oct 2010

Elevated levels of iron in brain enhance brain-destroying plaque production in Alzheimer's patients: Research

Massachusetts General Hospital researchers say they have determined how iron contributes to the production of brain-destroying plaques found in Alzheimer's patients.

7 Oct 2010

Study reveals fine-tuning mechanism of angiotensinogen in pre-eclampsia

An exciting collaboration between the Universities of Cambridge and Nottingham has resulted in new insights into the hypertension that frequently blights pregnancy.

7 Oct 2010

Hizentra therapy effective for primary immunodeficiency patients

Hizentra (IgPro20) provides primary immunodeficiency (PI) patients with a safe and effective alternative to other immunoglobulin therapies when given in equivalent doses, according to Phase III pivotal trial data presented today at the XIVth Meeting of the European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID).

7 Oct 2010

Role of TGF-ß in cancer diseases

During this year's BIOTECHNICA exhibition, the international biotech news magazine „GEN - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News yesterday on 5 October 2010, held an information event with subsequent panel discussion featuring the topic TGF-ß an important target in cancer diseases.

7 Oct 2010

Blind people can use visual cortex to refine sensation: Study

People who have been blind from birth make use of the visual parts of their brain to refine their sensation of sound and touch, according to an international team of researchers led by neuroscientists at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC).

7 Oct 2010

Soy germ-based nutritional supplement helps to manage menopausal symptoms

A new women-s health, whole soy germ-based nutritional supplement containing Natural S-equol reduced the frequency of moderate to severe hot flashes and reduced muscle and joint pain in the first study of its kind among postmenopausal U.S. women, according to peer-reviewed data presented as a poster presentation at the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) Annual Meeting.

7 Oct 2010

Core Dynamics receives USD grant to develop Freeze Dried blood unit

CORE DYNAMICS announced today that it has recently received a 2 Million USD grant from the US Army. The US Army Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Telemedicine & Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC), has selected Core Dynamics to lead its effort on the development of a Freeze Dried blood unit for future use in the battle field.

7 Oct 2010

Surgeons create novel matrix to control insulin dependent diabetes

Surgeons from Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, are reporting on a whole new strategy for controlling insulin dependent diabetes without daily injections of insulin. The surgeons have bio-engineered a novel matrix that serves as a scaffold for seeding supportive stem cells as well as pancreatic islets (the cells that produce insulin in the pancreas).

7 Oct 2010

Study on B-cell receptors may help develop new treatment strategies for leukaemia

In order to track down pathogens and render them harmless, the immune system must be able to recognize myriad different foreign substances and react to them. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and the Centre for Biological Signalling Studies BIOSS at the University of Freiburg have discovered how the immune system's B-cells can be activated by numerous substances from our environment.

7 Oct 2010

New reference material to standardize gene therapy protocols in clinical trials

The introduction of a new, fully characterized viral vector for use as reference material to help standardize gene therapy protocols in research applications and human clinical trials is described in an article in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. (www.liebertpub.com). The article, which is published online ahead of print, is available free online at www.liebertpub.com/hum

7 Oct 2010

Endocrine Society urges physicians to apply new insights into the role of beta-cells in type 2 diabetes

A new consensus statement published in the September, 2010, issue of The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) finds that the increasing recognition that beta-cell failure occurs much earlier and severely than commonly believed suggests that regular glycemia screening, early identification of patients at metabolic risk and prompt and aggressive intervention deserves greater emphasis.

7 Oct 2010

Immune reaction to dystrophin may contribute to muscle disease: Study

An immune reaction to dystrophin, the muscle protein that is defective in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, may pose a new challenge to strengthening muscles of patients with this disease, suggests a new study appearing in the October 7, 2010, issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

7 Oct 2010

Gymnemic acid nanocrystals could help develop soluble drug compounds

Researchers in India have demonstrated that producing nanoscopic crystals of a pharmaceutical product can allow the medication to be absorbed by the gut even if the drug is not soluble in water.

7 Oct 2010

Vitamin D deficiency may impact orthopaedic procedure outcomes

Forty-three percent of patients scheduled to undergo orthopaedic surgery have insufficient levels of vitamin D and two out of five of those patients had levels low enough to place them at risk for metabolic bone disease, according to a study published this month in the October 6th issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS).

7 Oct 2010

Microglial inflammation promotes MAPT pathologies

Cells that help to protect the central nervous system may also contribute to pathological changes in the brain. New research, published by Cell Press in the October 7th issue of the journal Neuron, provides mechanistic insight into a link between the immune system and neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease that are associated with abnormal accumulation of tau protein.

7 Oct 2010

'The Pittsburgh Protocol' enables reduction of multiple anti-rejection drugs after transplantation

The Pittsburgh Protocol is unique in utilizing bone marrow cells to enable reduction of the need for multiple anti-rejection drugs after transplantation. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is currently the only transplantation center in the world to offer it. An early report of the initial experience with the "Pittsburgh Protocol" in three recipients of upper extremity transplants was presented during the 2010 Annual Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons.

7 Oct 2010

Herbal supplements can treat anxiety disorders

A systematic review of research into the use of nutritional supplements for the treatment of anxiety disorders has found strong evidence for the use of extracts of passionflower or kava and combinations of L-lysine and L-arginine. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access Nutrition Journal pooled the results of 24 studies involving a total of more than 2000 participants, showing that some nutritional and herbal supplements can be effective, without the risk of serious side effects.

7 Oct 2010

Patients with muscular dystrophy mount immune response to dystophin protein prior to gene therapy: Study

A clinical trial designed to replace the genetic defect causing the most common form of muscular dystrophy has uncovered an unexpected aspect of the disease. The trial, based on therapy designed by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, showed that some patients mount an immune response to the dystrophin protein even before they have received the gene therapy.

7 Oct 2010