Scientists turn a new leaf to discover a compound in daffodils that targets brain cancer

New research in the FASEB Journal suggests that narciclagsine, a natural compound found in daffodil bulbs, markedly reduces cancer cell proliferation and migration

When looking for new ways to treat aggressive brain cancers, an international team of scientists turned a new leaf and “discovered” the lowly daffodil. A new research study published in the November 2010 print issue of The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) offers hope that a natural compound found in daffodil bulbs, called narciclasine, may be a powerful therapeutic against biologically aggressive forms of human brain cancers.

Read more

New data from Phase 3 studies showed superior SVR (viral cure) rates achieved with telaprevir-based combination therapy in people with hepatitis C, regardless of race or stage of liver disease

-75% of people treated in the Phase 3 ADVANCE study achieved a viral cure with telaprevir; majority of people treated for a total of 24 weeks-
-62% of African-Americans/Blacks in the ADVANCE study achieved a viral cure with telaprevir-
-Low discontinuation rates of all drugs due to adverse events-

Read more

A discovery could be important for the therapy of lymphoma and leukemia

The IRCM’s Dr. Javier M. Di Noia identifies a mechanism regulating activation-induced deaminase

A recent scientific discovery made by researchers at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM) led by Dr. Javier Marcelo Di Noia, Director of the Mechanisms and Genetic Diversity research unit, was published online today by The Journal of Experimental Medicine. The team identified a mechanism regulating activation-induced deaminase (AID), which could be important for the therapy of some types of lymphoma and leukemia.

Read more

Scientists uncover a genetic switch that turns immune responses on and off

New research in yhe FASEB Journal suggests that a novel negative regulator called eye transformer impacts JAK/STAT-signaling pathway response with microbial challenge in fruit flies

Read more

Antibiotics have long-term impacts on gut flora

Short courses of antibiotics can leave normal gut bacteria harbouring antibiotic resistance genes for up to two years after treatment, say scientists writing in the latest issue of Microbiology, published on 3 November.

Read more

New potential drug combination for most common form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Although 60% of patients can be cured with a currently available combination therapy, this leaves a substantial number of patients without a cure. However, a team of researchers, led by Ari Melnick, at Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, has now identified a potential new combinatorial therapy for DLBCL. Specifically, the team found that combining an inhibitor of the protein BCL6 with either an inhibitor of HDAC proteins or an inhibitor of the Hsp90 protein enhanced killing of primary human DLBCL cells in vitro relative to the use of the BCL6 inhibitor alone. Both drug combinations also potently suppressed the growth of established human DLBCL xenografts in mice or even eradicated the tumors completely. These data provide a rational basis for designing combination therapy clinical trials in patients with DLBCL. Read more

Arthritis drugs could help prevent memory loss after surgery

Anti-inflammatory drugs currently used to treat diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis may also help prevent cognitive decline after surgery, according to a new study led by researchers at UCSF and colleagues at Imperial College, London.

Read more

Of 50,000 small molecules tested to fight cancer, 2 show promise

BOSTON (3:00 p.m. ET, November 1, 2010) — A class of compounds that interferes with cell signaling pathways may provide a new approach to cancer treatment, according to a study published online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) Early Edition. The compounds, called PITs (non-phosphoinositide PIP3 inhibitors), limited tumor growth in mice by inducing cell death.

Read more

Immune system’s bare essentials used to speedily detect drug targets

New approach could speed better tests for earliest appearance of cancer cells and help develop vaccines

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have taken a less-is-more approach to designing effective drug treatments that are precisely tailored to disease-causing pathogens, such as viruses and bacteria, and cancer cells, any of which can trigger the body’s immune system defenses.

Read more

Researchers engineer miniature human livers in the lab

Researchers at the Institute for Regenerative Medicine at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center have reached an early, but important, milestone in the quest to grow replacement livers in the lab. They are the first to use human liver cells to successfully engineer miniature livers that function – at least in a laboratory setting – like human livers. The next step is to see if the livers will continue to function after transplantation in an animal model.

Read more

Next Page »