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ASNM inaugral conference to discuss the latest in nanomedicine

Nanomedicine - the science and technology of diagnosing, treating and preventing disease to improve human health using nanotechnology - has the potential to revolutionize healthcare. Current and future products range from miniaturized "smart pills" that precision-target certain cancers to nanosensors that are capable of navigating through the body for early detection of disorders.

5 Sep 2009

Olympic gold medalist Shannon Miller to campaign for Stemcyte

StemCyte, Inc., one of the world's preeminent cord blood banks, today announced that Shannon Miller, a 7-time Olympic Medalist and 9-time World Medalist, has signed an endorsement partnership agreement and will appear in a series of advertising and public awareness campaigns for the company.

5 Sep 2009

microRNAs analysis could detect pancreatic cancer

A blood test for small molecules abnormally expressed in pancreatic cancer may be a promising route to early detection of the disease, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the September edition of the journal Cancer Prevention Research.

5 Sep 2009

Brain protein srGAP2 capable of forming filopodia

When the process goes awry, neurodevelopmental disorders such as mental retardation, dyslexia or autism may result. Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have now discovered that establishing the neural wiring necessary to function normally depends on the ability of neurons to make finger-like projections of their membrane called filopodia.

5 Sep 2009

New approach for understanding how drug resistance occurs in leukemia

UCSF researchers have developed a new approach to identify specific genes that influence how cancer cells respond to drugs and how they become resistant. This strategy, which involves producing diverse genetic mutations that result in leukemia and associating specific mutations with treatment outcomes, will enable researchers to better understand how drug resistance occurs in leukemia and other cancers, and has important long-term implications for the development of more effective therapies.

5 Sep 2009

Researchers study the brain's posterior cingulate cortex

Using brain scans in monkeys, Duke University Medical Center researchers are now able to predict when monkeys will switch from exploiting a known resource to exploring their options.

5 Sep 2009

New role discovered for sphingosine-1-phosphate

Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine researchers have discovered a new role for the bioactive lipid messenger, sphingosine-1-phosphate, or S1P, that is abundant in our blood - a finding that could lead to a new generation of drugs to fight cancer and inflammatory disease.

5 Sep 2009

nSR100 protein plays a key role in neuron development

Researchers at the University of Toronto have identified a protein which plays a key role in the development of neurons, which could enhance our understanding of how the brain works, and how diseases such as Alzheimer's occur.

5 Sep 2009

American mayapple contains anticancer compounds: Study

A common weed called American mayapple may soon offer an alternative to an Asian cousin that's been harvested almost to extinction because of its anti-cancer properties.

5 Sep 2009

Study reveals elevated cTnT levels in post-CABG patients

Levels of a biomarker used in the diagnosis of heart attacks are almost universally elevated in patients who have undergone coronary-artery bypass grafting (CABG) and, when markedly elevated, are powerfully prognostic, a team of researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Heart Center has found.

5 Sep 2009

New protein fragments identified for anthrax vaccine development

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have identified two small protein fragments that could be developed into an anthrax vaccine that may cause fewer side effects than the current vaccine.

4 Sep 2009

Finance is the only hurdle for replication of the human brain, says researcher

A model that replicates the functions of the human brain is feasible in 10 years according to neuroscientist Professor Henry Markram of the Brain Mind Institute in Switzerland. 'I absolutely believe it is technically and biologically possible. The only uncertainty is financial. It is an extremely expensive project and not all is yet secured.'

4 Sep 2009

rPA anthrax vaccine and its Valortim anthrax anti-toxin program data presented

PharmAthene, Inc., a biodefense company developing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, announced today that data from the Company's third generation recombinant protective antigen (rPA) anthrax vaccine program and its Valortim((R)) anthrax anti-toxin program were presented at the Bacillus - ACT 2009 meeting, August 30 - September 3, 2009, organized by the American Society for Microbiology.

4 Sep 2009

Dr Lluis Quintana-Murci from the Institut Pasteur in France honoured with the Debiopharm Life Sciences Award

Debiopharm Group, SA (Debiopharm), a Swiss-based global biopharmaceutical group of companies with a focus on the development of prescription drugs that target unmet medical needs, today presented the 'Debiopharm Life Sciences Award' to Dr Lluis Quintana-Murci from the Institut Pasteur in France, for his outstanding innovative research in the emerging field of evolutionary genetics of infection.

4 Sep 2009

No performance enhancing effect of quercetin seen, according to a study

The antioxidant quercetin is increasingly being marketed as a supplement that boosts athletic performance, but a new University of Georgia study finds that it is no better than a placebo.

4 Sep 2009

NAS selected for the CAAT Recognition Award for 2009

The Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has selected the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the authors of the groundbreaking report, Toxicity Testing in the 21st Century: A Vision and a Strategy, to receive the CAAT Recognition Award for 2009. The award was presented on September 3 at the 7th World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences in Rome.

4 Sep 2009

StemCells’ novel neuroprotective approach for treating neurodegenerative diseases

StemCells, Inc. today announced the publication of preclinical data demonstrating for the first time that transplantation of its proprietary, purified human neural stem cells delays the loss of motor function in a mouse model of infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL).

4 Sep 2009

Insects may guide in building better artificial tissues and organs

Insects are about to be analyzed in a new way by a host of Virginia Tech engineering faculty. They will be using some fancy state-of-the-art equipment, such as a kilometer-long synchrotron x-ray light source, which might be enough to scare any bug. And first up will be beetles, grasshoppers and silk moths because they have some endearing characteristics.

4 Sep 2009

BF STEM tomography allows to visualize fine details of cell structure

Scientists in the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) Laboratory of Bioengineering and Physical Science have developed a new technique that allows researchers to visualize fine details of cell structure three-dimensionally in thick sections, thus providing greater insight into how cells are organized and how they function. The work is described in a report published online this week in Nature Methods.

4 Sep 2009

Systematic method for improving the stability of antibodies

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have developed a systematic method to improve the stability of antibodies. The technique could lead to better biosensors, disease therapeutics and diagnostic reagents and non-laboratory applications, including environmental remediation.

4 Sep 2009