Mouse work: New insights on a fundamental DNA repair mechanism
March 3, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Michael Baum
michael.baum@nist.gov
301-975-2763
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
Adding a new link to our understanding of the complex chain of chemistry that keeps living cells alive, a team of researchers from the University of Vermont (UVM), the University of Utah, Vanderbilt University and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has demonstrated for the first time the specific activity of the protein NEIL3, one of a group responsible for maintaining the integrity of DNA in humans and other mammals. Their work reported last week* sheds new light on a potentially important source of harmful DNA mutations.
Drug dramatically reduces nausea and vomiting in bone marrow transplant patients
February 28, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Jim Ritter
jritter@lumc.edu
708-216-2445
Loyola University Health System
Bone marrow transplant patients say two of the most debilitating side effects of the treatment are nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy and radiation.
Bone marrow cell transplants to benefit those with heart disease
February 23, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: David Eve
celltransplantation@gmail.com
Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair
Tampa, Fla. (February 24, 2010) Two studies published in the latest issue of Cell Transplantation (18:12) may lead to new treatments for the treatment of heart diseases. The first study, carried out by a team of Brazilian researchers, found that cell transplantation of bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) directly into the heart benefited patients suffering from refractory angina. A separate study carried out by researchers in the Peoples’ Republic of China found that apelin, a newly described inotropic peptide, improves heart function following transplantation of BMMCs.
Biologists use mathematics to advance our understanding of health and disease
February 20, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Susan Trulove
strulove@vt.edu
540-231-5646
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Va. — Math-based computer models are a powerful tool for discovering the details of complex living systems. John Tyson, professor of biology at Virginia Tech, is creating such models to discover how cells process information and make decisions.
How nerve cells grow
February 18, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Hiroshi Kawabe
kawabe@em.mpg.de
49-551-389-9720
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Read more
Hopkins scientists discover how protein trips up germs
February 16, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Maryalice Yakutchik
myakutc1@jhmi.edu
410-614-5105
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions
If bad bacteria lurk in your system, chances are they will bump into the immune system’s protective cells whose job is gobbling germs. The catch is that these do-gooders, known as macrophages, ingest and destroy only those infectious invaders that they can securely hook and reel in.
New material mimics bone to create better biomedical implants
February 15, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Matt Shipman
matt_shipman@ncsu.edu
919-515-6386
North Carolina State University
A “metal foam” that has a similar elasticity to bone could mean a new generation of biomedical implants that would avoid bone rejection that often results from more rigid implant materials, such as titanium. Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed the metal foam, which is even lighter than solid aluminum and can be made of 100 percent steel or a combination of steel and aluminum.
Scientists synthesize unique family of anti-cancer compounds
February 11, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Suzanne Taylor Muzzin
suzanne.taylormuzzin@yale.edu
203-432-8555
Yale University
New Haven, Conn.Yale University scientists have streamlined the process for synthesizing a family of compounds with the potential to kill cancer and other diseased cells, and have found that they represent a unique category of anti-cancer agents. Their discovery appears in this week’s online edition of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
Researchers create drug to keep tumor growth switched off
February 10, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Steve Benowitz
sbenowitz@ucsd.edu
619-543-6163
University of California - San Diego
A novel and rapid anti-cancer drug development strategy has resulted in a new drug that stops kidney and pancreatic tumors from growing in mice. Researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, have found a drug that binds to a molecular “switch” found in cancer cells and cancer-associated blood vessels to keep it in the “off” position.
SIDS linked to low levels of serotonin
February 1, 2010 by admin · Leave a Comment
Contact: Robert Bock
bockr@mail.nih.gov
301-496-5133
NIH/National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Read more
