Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have determined how a substance derived from the bark of the South American lapacho tree kills certain kinds of cancer cells, findings that also suggest a novel treatment for the most common type of lung cancer.
Levels of a small non-coding RNA molecule called let-7 appear to define different stages of cancer better than some of the “classical” markers for tumor progression, researchers from the University of Chicago report in the June 25, 2007, early online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The first-ever phase 1 clinical trial using gene therapy to battle Parkinson’s disease is completed by a team led by physician-scientists at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
A two-year fight against the decision to restrict access to the only drug treatments for Alzheimer’s disease has arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice, UK.
Echinacea, a medicinal herb, and other herbal echinacea supplements can reduce the risk of catching a coomon cold by 58 percent and the duration of colds by a day-and-a-half, confirmed by researchers.
It has long been known that eating potatoes is good for bowel health, but new research suggests that they may also have a beneficial effect on the whole immune system. Especially if eaten cold or in a potato salad, Anne Pichon reports in Chemistry & Industry, the magazine of the SCI.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have identified proteins in the rod and cones of the eye that could lead to the discovery of the genetic causes of a host of inherited eye diseases. The investigators hope to gain a clearer understanding of what goes wrong at the most basic level in these diseases that cause blindness and other disorders.
Research led by scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College has uncovered two new potential points of vulnerability on a key cancer-promoting protein, called XIAP. Drugs that target either of these activities could help push cancer cells back into a more regular programmed cell death and thereby reduce or eliminate tumors.
The cell labels the proteins it wants to dispose with Ubiquitin (Ub). Malfunctions in the ubiquitin-proteasome system can be fatal for the organism, resulting in cancer and immunological disorders. The knowledge about the ubiquitination reaction has led to the development of highly promising drugs. Biochemists at the University of Frankfurt now describe a novel Ub conjugation reaction that might allow a more efficient manipulation of key proteins in the treatment of cancer and other diseases.
Childhood cancers are fortunately rare, but among them, neuroblastoma is a special case, accounting for 7 percent of all childhood cancers, but 15 percent of childhood cancer deaths. It typically occurs as a solid tumor in the abdomen, but also in the neck, chest, and pelvis, developing in the network of the body’s sympathetic nervous system.