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LUMC purchases Fluidigm Access Array system

Fluidigm Corporation and BIOKÉ, distributor of Fluidigm systems in the Benelux, today announced that Leiden University Medical Center’s (LUMC) Human Genetics Department has purchased a Fluidigm Access Array™ system. The Access Array system enables users to automatically prepare sequencing-ready libraries from up to 48 individual samples at a time, for as little as €7 (EUR) per sample.

16 Mar 2010

Blocking RhoA enzyme increases survival in SMA mouse model

Scientists from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) and the University of Ottawa have identified a promising new approach for developing drugs to treat Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), the leading inherited cause of death in infants and toddlers. Dr. Rashmi Kothary and his doctoral student Melissa Bowerman have found that an enzyme called RhoA is overly active in a mouse model of the disease and blocking this enzyme can greatly increase survival. The study is published in Human Molecular Genetics.

16 Mar 2010

Viron Therapeutics' VT-346 anti-TNF protein exhibits positive results in transgenic mouse model for arthritis

Viron Therapeutics Inc. announced that VT-346, an anti-TNF protein therapeutic, demonstrated positive results in a pivotal proof of concept study in the gold standard transgenic mouse model for arthritis. VT-346 achieved a statistically significant, dose dependent impact in this preclinical model of arthritis and prevented deterioration due to disease in terms of weight gain, arthritic score and pathology parameters. VT-346 had particularly strong protective effects on therapeutically-important bone and cartilage damage in this model.

16 Mar 2010

Cytheris study: rhIL-7 treatment restores T cell trafficking and improves survival in animal model of sepsis

Cytheris SA, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on research and development of new therapies for immune modulation, today announced publication of data from a preclinical study in a clinically relevant animal model of sepsis showing that recombinant human Interleukin-7 (rhIL-7) treatment not only restores T cell trafficking and function, but also translates into improved survival.

16 Mar 2010

Aging and Alzheimer's disease: Novel brain imaging technologies help create new insights

The emergence of multiple new brain imaging technologies and the combined application of these new approaches is helping to create new insights into aging and Alzheimer's disease. One of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease is the deposition of amyloid beta protein in clumps or "plaques" within the brain. These plaques can be measured in humans with PET scans that use a chemical marker or radiotracer called 11C-PIB.

16 Mar 2010

'Molecular band-aid' may help protect hearts of Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School have discovered a chemical that may, over the long term, protect the hearts of Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients - a fatal and most common form of muscular dystrophy in children.

16 Mar 2010

Workings of IGFs on muscle cells

The muscle-building abilities of hormones known as insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) are legendary. Just do an online search and you'll find not only scientific papers discussing the effects of IGFs on the cells that give rise to muscle tissue, but also scores of ads touting the purported benefits of IGF supplements for bodybuilding.

16 Mar 2010

Mathematical model may promote medical research on how to grow new organs

Each cusp of our teeth is regulated by genes which carefully control the development. A similar genetic puzzle also regulates the differentiation of our other organs and of all living organisms.

16 Mar 2010

Illumina announces enhancement to OmniExpress BeadChip

Illumina, Inc. today unveiled its new HumanOmniExpress+ Custom BeadChip (OmniExpress+), an enhancement to the recently announced OmniExpress BeadChip that allows for the addition of up to 200,000 custom variants for a total of >900k variants per sample. OmniExpress+ leverages the proven iSelect custom genotyping infrastructure to provide researchers with unlimited flexibility in adding custom content for disease or pathway-specific markers, rare variants from the 1,000 Genomes Project, or panels for fine-mapping onto the industry’s most optimal set of SNPs.

From Illumina, Inc. 16 Mar 2010

New method may shed light on the mechanism behind folding and misfolding of proteins

Researchers at the Department of Chemistry at the Technische Universit-t M-nchen (TUM) have developed a method that allows the observation of local movements in proteins on a time scale of nanoseconds to microseconds.

16 Mar 2010

Dual role of Notch signalling pathway

Scientists headed by ICREA researcher Marco Mil-n, at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona), reveal a surprising new function of Notch protein that contrasts with the one known to date. Found in the cell membrane, this protein activates a signalling pathway that regulates the expression of genes that make the cell divide, grow, migrate, specialise or die.

16 Mar 2010

Keynote speakers to discuss regenerative medicine therapies at upcoming forum

What regenerative medicine therapies are being applied to patients today? What hurdles stand between stem cell therapies and real treatments in the clinic? Keynote speakers at the upcoming inaugural Translational Regenerative Medicine Forum will discuss these topics as well as provide an update on various national and regional stem cell initiatives.

16 Mar 2010

FDA approves Irvine Scientific's Vit Kit-Freeze and Vit Kit-Thaw for cryopreservation of all stages of embryos

Irvine Scientific, a pioneer in developing products specifically for the Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) community, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved their products intended for vitrification of pronuclear (PN) zygotes through day 3 cleavage and blastocyst stage embryos within the fertility area.

16 Mar 2010

Banana lectin discovery may lead to potential new treatments for preventing sexual transmission of HIV

A potent new inhibitor of HIV, derived from bananas, may open the door to new treatments to prevent sexual transmission of HIV, according to a University of Michigan Medical School study published this week.

16 Mar 2010

Study suggests HuR gene plays a critical role in inducing cells' inflammatory response

To understand the role of inflammation in cardiovascular and other diseases, it is essential to identify and characterize genes that induce an inflammatory response in the body -- and the genes that regulate them.

16 Mar 2010

Long-term tobacco dependence may affect memory and thinking in women

Men and women with a history of alcohol abuse may not see long-term negative effects on their memory and thinking, but female smokers do, a new study suggests.

16 Mar 2010

Childhood stress and trauma may accelerate cellular aging

Children who suffer physical or emotional abuse could be faced with accelerated cellular aging as adults, according to new research published by Elsevier in Biological Psychiatry.

16 Mar 2010

MIT biochemist joins Thomson Reuters’ annual ‘Top 12’ list

The world's "hottest" researcher is biochemist Rudolf Jaenisch from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is joined by scientists scattered from Ann Arbor to Osaka on the annual Thomson Reuters list of the world's 12 hottest researchers.

16 Mar 2010

MMG effectively locates nerves during minimally invasive spine surgery

An electronic device is an accurate technique for locating and avoiding nerves during spinal procedures, suggests a study by Henry Ford Hospital researchers.

16 Mar 2010

Human brain processes predictable sensory input more efficiently

The human brain processes predictable sensory input more efficiently. Alink and colleagues based this conclusion on the characteristics of responses in the primary visual cortex. It is known that the primary visual cortex is critical for vision and that responses in this brain area create a map of what we are currently looking at.

16 Mar 2010

Medical Science News

LUMC purchases Fluidigm Access Array system

Blocking RhoA enzyme increases survival in SMA mouse model

Viron Therapeutics' VT-346 anti-TNF protein exhibits positive results in transgenic mouse model for arthritis

Cytheris study: rhIL-7 treatment restores T cell trafficking and improves survival in animal model of sepsis

Aging and Alzheimer's disease: Novel brain imaging technologies help create new insights

'Molecular band-aid' may help protect hearts of Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients

Workings of IGFs on muscle cells

Mathematical model may promote medical research on how to grow new organs

Illumina announces enhancement to OmniExpress BeadChip

New method may shed light on the mechanism behind folding and misfolding of proteins

Dual role of Notch signalling pathway

Keynote speakers to discuss regenerative medicine therapies at upcoming forum

FDA approves Irvine Scientific's Vit Kit-Freeze and Vit Kit-Thaw for cryopreservation of all stages of embryos

Banana lectin discovery may lead to potential new treatments for preventing sexual transmission of HIV

Study suggests HuR gene plays a critical role in inducing cells' inflammatory response

Long-term tobacco dependence may affect memory and thinking in women

Childhood stress and trauma may accelerate cellular aging

MIT biochemist joins Thomson Reuters’ annual ‘Top 12’ list

MMG effectively locates nerves during minimally invasive spine surgery

Human brain processes predictable sensory input more efficiently

Decoding Cannabis: Differentiating Hemp and Marijuana

Deciphering the Microbiome with The Microsetta Initiative

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

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