Novel Inflammatory Protein Function Described
8/08/2012
A UNC-led team of scientists describes the function of a previously uncharacterized protein that dramatically influences inflammation. A majority of the NLR family of proteins function as activators of inflammation. However, scientists at UNC report that a newly identified NLR protein, NLRC3, was able to inhibit a major inflammatory pathway that is controlled by a protein called NF-Kappa B...
New Approach For Detecting Prostate Cancer Shows Promise
8/07/2012
Prostate cancer tests may soon be simpler and more accurate due to Casey Burton, a senior chemistry major at Missouri University of Science and Technology, who developed a new technique that detects certain metabolites in urine samples...
Strawberries Can Help Protect Skin From UVA Rays
8/07/2012
A team of Spanish and Italian researchers has discovered that skin cell cultures added with an extract from strawberries protects against ultraviolet radiation, increasing its viability and reducing DNA damage. The findings, featured in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry pave the way for the development of new photopretective creams made from strawberries...
Individuals with mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have a significantly higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers. Families at risk have been seeking genetic testing and counseling based on their mutation carrier status, but the standard method of direct sequencing is labor-intensive, costly, and it only targets a part of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes...
News From The Journal Of Clinical Investigation: Aug. 6, 2012
8/07/2012
ONCOLOGY Understanding colon cancer metastasis and invasion Chemokines are signals in the body that act as beacons, calling out to migrating cells, such as white blood cells, guiding them to where they are needed...
The Genetic Map Of The Jewish Diasporas Defined By New Genetic Study
8/07/2012
A new genetic analysis focusing on Jews from North Africa has provided an overall genetic map of the Jewish Diasporas. The findings support the historical record of Middle Eastern Jews settling in North Africa during Classical Antiquity, proselytizing and marrying local populations, and, in the process, forming distinct populations that stayed largely intact for more than 2,000 years...
More Accurate Drug Testing In Heterogeneous ER+ Breast Cancer Models
8/07/2012
Cell cultures are homogeneous. Human tumors are not. A University of Colorado Cancer Center study recently published in the journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment reports the development of human-derived estrogen-positive (ER+) breast cancer models that retain their heterogeneity, allowing researchers to more accurately test drugs for this disease...
Developing resistance to chemotherapy is a nearly universal, ultimately lethal consequence for cancer patients with solid tumors - such as those of the breast, prostate, lung and colon - that have metastasized, or spread, throughout the body...
Individuals with mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have a significantly higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers. Families at risk have been seeking genetic testing and counseling based on their mutation carrier status, but the standard method of direct sequencing is labor-intensive, costly, and it only targets a part of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes...
Chemotherapy Can Inadvertently Encourage Cancer Growth
8/07/2012
A new study from the US finds that in the process of targeting and killing off cancer cells, chemotherapy may also spur healthy cells in the neighbourhood to release a compound that stimulates cancer growth, eventually leading to treatment resistance. They hope their finding will lead to better therapies for cancer and buy precious time for patients with advanced cancer...