Gut Instinct: Salmonella Bacteria's Molecular Tactics To Cause Illness Dec 20, 2008
At the same time, another system, SPI-2 is activated and will respond to the altered environment of the internalized Salmonella ... Salmonella uses an RNA Mg2+ riboswitch to ensure downregulation of Mg2+ transporters without shutting down bacterial resistance to antimicrobial peptides ... Discovering competitive analogs of ppGpp, for instance, could provide an alternate approach, curtailing SlyA's function. (Science Daily)
TGen, Scottsdale Healthcare, Mayo Clinic study new drug to stimulate immune system of cancer victims Dec 20, 2008
-- The innate arm senses infectious agents as they infect the body by recognizing structures they have in common, such as lipids, proteins, sugars, and nucleic acids (DNA and RNA). This is an initial rapid response, which is not precise but potent. (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
Evolutionary Roots Of Ancient Bacteria May Open New Line Of Attack On Cystic Fibrosis Dec 19, 2008
Newman and Dietrich looked at phenazines from an evolutionary perspective, and using RNA arrays to probe all of the small molecules' actions, they discovered that phenazines are not mere redox-active weapons but are molecules that activate the transcription factor SoxR.. In Escherichia coli and other closely related bacteria, SoxR regulates the response to superoxide stress and appears to be utilized to regulate a handful of genes that might be involved in the transport and modification of... (Science Daily)
Ovarian cancer survival linked to two key proteins Dec 18, 2008
6 years, according to a study published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine ... They are key players in RNA interference (RNAi), a naturally occurring system that turns genes on and off ... The study is the largest to link RNAi with cancer survival rates, and the researchers also found that high Dicer levels are linked to survival in breast and lung cancer. (CNN -- Health)
Why A Virus With Unusual Properties Injects Unusual Substance Into E. Coli Bacteria Dec 18, 2008
17, 2008) A team of researchers from Penn State University and the University of Chicago has uncovered clues that may explain how and why a particular virus, called N4, injects an unusual substance -- an RNA polymerase protein -- into an E. coli bacterial cell ... The results, which are published in the current issue of the journal Molecular Cell, contribute to improved understanding of the infection strategies used by viruses that attack bacterial cells ... "These phages then use the host... (Science Daily)
Alternative Splicing Proteins Prompt Heart Development Dec 18, 2008
17, 2008) Just as the emotions it represents are dynamic, the heart's development requires dynamic shifts in proteins that prompt alternative spicing, a mechanism that allows a given gene to program the cell to make several proteins, said a group of researchers at Baylor College of Medicine in a report that appears online Dec 8 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ... Using a technique called splicing sensitive microarrays or gene chips that help identify genes, the... (Science Daily)
Scientists identify proteins that could increase ovarian cancer survival rate Dec 18, 2008
Led by researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, the discovery marks a significant advance for an emerging area of basic science called RNA interference, which one day may transform medicine ... The results are reported in Thursday's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine ... What's important is that Dicer and Drosha are critical to the process of RNA interference,'' said the study's senior author, Dr. Anil Sood, an M.D. Anderson professor. (KHOU.com, TX)
Dicer, Drosha, and Outcomes in Ovarian Cancer Dec 18, 2008
William M. Merritt, M.D., Yvonne G. Lin, M.D., Liz Y. Han, M.D., Aparna A. Kamat, M.D., Whitney A. Spannuth, M.D., Rosemarie Schmandt, Ph ... Background We studied Dicer and Drosha, components of the RNA-interference machinery, in ovarian cancer ... Methods We measured messenger RNA (mRNA) levels of Dicer and Drosha in specimens of invasive epithelial ovarian cancer from 111 patients, using a quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase-chain-reaction assay, and compared the results with... (New England Journal of Medicine)
Amino Acids: Protein Synthesis & Ot... Dec 17, 2008
It can produce energy, is a precursor to asparagine (a non essential amino acid) and DNA and RNA and an active part in a number of enzyme systems ... Glycine is needed for the synthesis of the proteins RNA and DNA, pigments in haemoglobin and cytochromes, and for liver detoxification ... It is an important precursor to RNA, DNA and the energy molecule ATP.. (Suite101.com)
Virus Discovery Could Lead To Vaccine For West Nile Virus And Dengue Fever Dec 17, 2008
This molecule, called a subgenomic noncoding ribonucleic acid (sfRNA), is a part of the virus genome. "To develop new and effective antiviral strategies, we have to know as much as possible about the virus, or virus family, that we are fighting," Dr Khromykh said. (Science Daily)
Key Mechanism That Occurs At Inception Point Of Many Human Lymphomas Identified Dec 17, 2008
3, 2003) The application of RNA interference (RNAi) to the study of mammalian biology and disease has the potential to revolutionize biomedical research and speed the development of novel therapeutic. (Mar. (Science Daily)
Shedding light on neurogenesis in Alzheimer's disease Dec 17, 2008
Data were validated by real-time PCR and a functional validation was carried out using RNA interference. Results. (BioMed Central)
D. C. Gajdusek, 85; won Nobel for work on brain diseases Dec 16, 2008
The idea that disease could be transmitted by a mere twisted protein - something that lacks DNA and RNA and therefore cannot be said to be alive, is not killed by boiling, and is not recognized as foreign by the immune system - turned the scientific world on its ear. Such proteins are now suspected as the causes of dementias and possibly as triggers for cancer. (Boston Globe)
Meiosis: Cueing Up At The Meiotic Starting Line Dec 16, 2008
In 2006,the Page lab showed that an external signal of retinoic acid (RA), a derivative of vitamin A, starts the expression of the Stra8 gene, which is seen at the very beginning of meiosis ... Coincidentally, more than 10 years before the work on RA, Page's lab had been studying the effects of a few genes on human male fertility, noting at the time that one such gene, known as Dazl, codes for a germ cell-specific protein that binds to RNA. But at the time, no one knew that the Dazl gene is an... (Science Daily)
How Mutations Are Transmitted From One Generation To The Next Dec 16, 2008
One very common mutation in Quebec causes maternally inherited blindness which has now been traced back to a Fille du Roi sent by the king of France in the 1600s to rectify the imbalance of gender in the newly colonized country ... Therefore knowing how mtDNA is transmitted is essential for the understanding and treatment of a range of maternally inherited diseases, and provides an opportunity for genetic counselling and treatment ... Eric Shoubridge is an International Scholar of the Howard... (Science Daily)
Key Step In Maturation Pathway Of Telomerase Identified Dec 16, 2008
Telomerase uses part of an RNA subunit as a template to add telomeric DNA to the ends of chromosomes. The Baumann Lab found that this RNA subunit is first made as a longer inactive form that must be processed into a shorter mature form for telomerase to function ... We discovered a new pathway of RNA 3 end (tail end) processing, said Jeremy Bunch, Research Technician III and co-equal first author on the paper. (Science Daily)
A coat of many proteins may be this parasite's downfall Dec 16, 2008
A coat of many proteins may be this parasite's downfall - International Herald Tribune ... Instead, it seems to leave them all turned on, allowing each to generate a messenger RNA copy of itself ... Usually the messenger RNAs would direct the synthesis of proteins, but giardia then destroys all but one of the messengers, and the survivor makes the coat of the day. (International Herald Tribune)
New Roche Dual Target HIV-1 Test Approved for Use in European Union Dec 15, 2008
The test uses Roche's proprietary fully automated real-time PCR technology to quantify the amount of HIV-1 RNA in a patient's blood ... The test is highly sensitive and can detect the World Health Organization HIV-1 RNA Standard in EDTA plasma as low as 20 copies per milliliter of patient sample. (PR Newswire)
Exiqon Announces Launch of First Molecular Diagnostic Test for Colon Cancer Dec 15, 2008
Exiqon A/S, NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen (``EXQ''), today announced the launch of its first molecular diagnostic test based on miRNA. The miRNA-based prognostic test will help identify stage II colon cancer patients who may be at significantly higher risk for recurrence and for whom adjuvant chemotherapy may be warranted ... The new miRNA test identifies patients who are at increased risk for recurrence and thus helps guide physicians in making critical treatment decisions ... The test will be marketed... (Primezone Releases)
Scientists show that HIV's evolution in the body does not occur at ... Dec 15, 2008
The team focused its attention on 600 nucleotides of the RNA that make up HIV's env gene, which codes for the protein's outer envelope that the virus uses to bind onto the cells of the host. In the team's study, on average, slightly less than one mutation per month occurred per patient in this swath of the HIV genome during the time when CD4+ levels were relatively high and the rate of change was constant. (News-Medical.net)
Genomic Health Announces Study Establishing the Utility of Oncotype DX(R) in Node-Negative and Node-Positive Breast Cancer Patients Treated with Aromatase Inhibitors Dec 14, 2008
Of the 30 ER-positive breast cancer tumor samples that were identified, 90 percent had sufficient RNA for Oncotype DX analysis, after separating the DCIS and IDC tissues ... Oncotype DX has been extensively evaluated in eleven clinical studies involving more than 4,000 breast cancer patients, including a large validation study published in The New England Journal of Medicine and a chemotherapy benefit study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. (PR Newswire)
Technique To Count Messages Made By Single Genes Developed Dec 13, 2008
12, 2008) Researchers from Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have described a technique for looking more precisely at a fundamental step of a cell's life a gene, DNA, being read into a message, mRNA. The technique could provide a window into the process by which genes are switched on inappropriately, causing disease ... The more detailed view of DNA being made into RNA in a single cell will help answer questions about how much of a gene is made over time and how much that... (Science Daily)
RNA Interference Can Facilitate Vaccine Development Dec 13, 2008
12, 2008) Pharmaceutical companies and universities are racing to develop drugs that use the gene silencing mechanism known as RNA interference to treat a host of diseases. Now, a new study opens up an entirely new possibility for this powerful tool: Researchers at the University of Georgia have demonstrated for the first time that RNA interference can be used as a tool in the development of vaccines ... "Our data suggest that, at least in an animal model system, an RNAi prophylactic treatment... (Science Daily)
Model Unravels Rules That Govern How Genes Are Switched On And Off Dec 12, 2008
"They are read mostly by the simple binding of transcription factors to DNA. This binding either recruits the enzyme RNA polymerase, which begins the process of copying and transferring information stored in the genes, or blocks it." ... 9, 2007) Scientists may have discovered a new way of killing tumours in what they hope could one day lead to alternative forms of cancer treatments. (Science Daily)
Apoptosis Inhibitors Prevent Not Only Cell Death, But Also Play A Role In Cell Migration Dec 11, 2008
"If we reduce the expression of some IAPs by RNA interference technique, C-RAF kinase increases in both the healthy and the cancerous human cells. As a consequence, the cells alter their form and start to move faster." Co-author Prof. Ulf R. Rapp from the University of W. (Science Daily)
Harnessing MiRNA Natural Gene Repressors For Anticancer Therapy Dec 9, 2008
Their study is published online, Dec. 1, 2008, in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. Small, noncoding RNA molecules known as miRNAs are powerful natural repressors of gene expression ... In the study, the miRNA miR-181a was harnessed to segregate expression of genes in immune cells known as T cells at different stages of their development. (Science Daily)
Large-scale Gene Silencing Mystery Solved Dec 9, 2008
D., Washington University in St. Louis professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, has made a breakthrough in understanding the phenomenon of nucleolar dominance, the silencing of an entire parental set of ribosomal RNA genes in a hybrid plant or animal ... Nucleolar dominance occurs when nucleoli, protein-rich, dense regions of RNA within the nucleus, form on the chromosomes inherited from one parent, but not on the chromosomes inherited from the other parent ... Expression of ribosomal RNA genes... (Science Daily)
Alfacell Provides ONCONASE(R) NDA Submission Update Dec 6, 2008
ONCONASE is a first-in-class therapeutic product candidate based on Alfacell's proprietary ribonuclease (RNase) technology ... Alfacell Corporation is the first company to advance a biopharmaceutical product candidate that works in a manner similar to RNA interference (RNAi) through late-stage clinical trials ... The product candidate, ONCONASE, is an RNase that overcomes the challenges of targeting RNA for therapeutic purposes while enabling the development of a new class of targeted therapies... (PR Newswire)
Hologic to Present at the J.P. Morgan 27th Annual Healthcare Conference Dec 6, 2008
Hologic provides a comprehensive suite of technologies with products for mammography and breast biopsy, radiation treatment for early-stage breast cancer, cervical cancer screening, treatment for menorrhagia, osteoporosis assessment, preterm birth risk assessment, mini C-arm for extremity imaging and molecular diagnostic products including reagents for a variety of DNA and RNA analysis applications. Contact: Deborah Gordon Frances Doria Vice President, Investor Relations Director, Investor... (PR Newswire)
This era of black women and HIV/AIDS - Rev. Irene Monroe Dec 6, 2008
At the Women and Response to AIDS panel at the 16th International AIDS Conference in Toronto in 2006, Sheila Johnson, founder of the in Washington D.C., pointed out that another at-risk population in the African-American community is teenage girls ... Gwen Ifill, an African-American female journalist with PBS Washington Week and moderator of the vice presidential debate, brought the issue of AIDS in the U.S. front and center when she asked the men to comment on its devastating impact on... (Flesh and Stone)
Local Tech Pioneers Named Dec 5, 2008
one of the biomedical companies trying to harness a gene-silencing mechanism called RNA interference to fight disease, and Etsy Inc. of Brooklyn, N.Y., an online bazaar where independent designers can sell handcrafted wares ... E-mail Bernadette Tansey at. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Business)
Radiation Sickness Dec 4, 2008
Radiation injury occurs when ionizing radiation directly damages cellular RNA, DNA, or proteins, or when highly reactive free radicals are generated within cells and tissues. Large doses of ionizing radiation cause cell death, while lower doses interfere with cellular proliferation. (Suite101.com)
Function Of Helical Band In Heart Detailed Dec 4, 2008
26, 2006) Doctors at the University of Virginia Health System have shown for the first time that getting rid of poisonous RNA (ribonucleic acid) in muscle cells can reverse myotonic dystrophy, the most common. (Oct. (Science Daily)
Prolonged Therapy of Advanced Chronic Hepatitis C with Low-Dose Peginterferon Dec 4, 2008
The level of serum aminotransferases, the level of serum hepatitis C virus RNA, and histologic necroinflammatory scores all decreased significantly (P<0 ... Address reprint requests to Dr. Di Bisceglie at the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 3635 Vista Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110, or at dibiscam{at}slu. (New England Journal of Medicine)
Antibiotics Largest Cause of Drug-Induced Liver Damage Dec 3, 2008
The study was published in the journal Gastroenterology ... They emphasized that in patients with suspected DILI, acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection should be carefully ruled out through the use of HCV RNA testing. (MEDLINEplus)
New RNA Processing Mechanism And New Class Of Small RNAs Dec 3, 2008
This 2% of human DNA is converted into intermediary molecules called RNAs, which in turn carry instructions within cells for protein manufacture ... Now, however, scientists are discovering that the vast bulk of the DNA in our genomes, while it does not "code" for the specific RNA molecules that serve as templates for protein synthesis, do nevertheless perform various kinds of work ... Given its relative abundance, non-coding DNA and RNA present inviting targets for experimentation. (Science Daily)
Triple Helix: Designing a New Molecule of Life Dec 2, 2008
Drugs based on PNA would achieve therapeutic effects by binding to specific base sequences of DNA or RNA, repressing or promoting the corresponding gene ... All these organisms are based on nucleic acids DNA and RNA and proteins, working together more or less as described by the so-called central dogma of : DNA stores information that is transcribed into RNA, which then serves as a template for producing a protein ... A molecule that some researchers study in pursuit of this vision is peptide... (Scientific American)
Discovery Of Virus In Lemur Could Shed Light On AIDS Dec 2, 2008
A type of retrovirus, lentiviruses replicate by inserting their RNA into a cell's DNA. Some retroviruses have been known to infect cells that mature into sperm or eggs, incorporating viral DNA into the genome of the host ... In a study published today in the open access journal BMC Evolutionary. (Science Daily)
Antibiotics: Single largest class of drugs causing liver injury Dec 1, 2008
1, 2008) Antibiotics are the single largest class of agents that cause idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (DILI), reports a new study in Gastroenterology, an official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute ... DILI remains a diagnosis of exclusion and thus detailed testing should be performed to exclude competing causes of liver disease; importantly, acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection should be carefully excluded in patients with suspected DILI by HCV... (EurekAlert!)
Experimental Drug Blocks Heart Disease in Mice Dec 1, 2008
The researchers used a treatment from Regulus Therapeutics -- a joint venture between U.S. biotech companies Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc and Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc -- to block or "silence" tiny strands of ribonucleic acid called microRNA.. These genetic fragments regulate the making of genes into proteins, and in this case the researchers discovered how a failing heart had three- to five-times more of a particular microRNA called miR-21. (Newsmax)
Hemispherx Biopharma Introduces Expense Reduction Program Nov 29, 2008
Ampligen(r) and Oragens represent experimental RNA nucleic acids being developed for globally important debilitating diseases and disorders of the immune system. Hemispherx's platform technology includes large and small agent components for potential treatment of various severely debilitating and life threatening diseases. (Primezone Releases)
European Committee for Human Medicinal Products (CHMP) Issues Positive Opinion for Once-Daily PREZISTA(R) (Darunavir) as Part of Combination Therapy for Treatment-Naive Adults With HIV-1 Nov 28, 2008
The CHMP's positive opinion is based on 48-week analyses of plasma HIV RNA levels and CD4+ cell counts from the ongoing, randomised, controlled, open-label phase III trial ARTEMIS in antiretroviral treatment-naive HIV-1-infected adults. Patients received 800 mg darunavir once daily with 100 mg ritonavir as part of combination therapy. (PR Newswire)
Scientists Identify 13 New Tumor-suppressor Genes In Liver Cancer Nov 28, 2008
The team used a method honed by Dr. Hannon of introducing stable mutations into mouse cells via RNA interference, or RNAi, a technique in which small RNA molecules are introduced into cells to shut off specific genes. RNA sequences that corresponded to all the 300 or so deleted genes were obtained from an RNAi library compiled by the Hannon lab ... Lowe s team introduced these RNAi tools (known as short-hairpin RNAs, or shRNAs) into progenitor cells that develop into mature liver cells, albeit... (Science Daily)
SARS Virus Recreated: Opens Door For Potential Defenses Against Future Strains Nov 28, 2008
3, 2005) The genome of the SARS virus is a single strand of RNA that folds into regular repeating patterns to form secondary structures such as helices. These then fold and bend in three dimensions to form. (Science Daily)
Key Advance Toward Treatment For Most Common Adult Form Of Muscular Dystrophy Nov 27, 2008
Using a drug-discovery technique in which molecules compete against each other for access to the target the strand of toxic RNA that causes the most common form of muscular dystrophy in adults a team at the University of Rochester Medical Center has identified several compounds that, in the laboratory, block the unwanted coupling of two molecules that is at the root of the disease. The work was published online November 7 by the Journal of the American Chemical Society ... "This discovery gives... (Science Daily)
Misfolded Proteins Accelerate Yeast Evolution Nov 27, 2008
In yeast, the [PSI+] prion is a misfolded version of the Sup35 protein, which plays a key role in how cells translate their messenger RNA molecules into proteins. Earlier studies showed that [PSI+] changes how messenger RNA translation ends, thus uncovering hidden genetic variations by creating altered proteins that change the cell. (Science Daily)
Peginterferon-Induced Depression Is Reversible Nov 26, 2008
Pre-existing depression and potential biomarkers of depression, such as blood levels of cortisol and the neurotransmitter serotonin, were associated with neurological or psychiatric side effects, the group reports in the American Journal of Gastroenterology ... The 74 patients who had undetectable hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA at week 20 continued at the same doses to complete 48 weeks of antiviral treatment ... SOURCE: American Journal of Gastroenterology, November 2008. (MEDLINEplus)
Controlling Bad Cholesterol: Finding May Herald Scientific Breakthrough Nov 26, 2008
11, 2008) Small, specially designed bits of ribonucleic acid (RNA) can interfere with cholesterol metabolism, reducing harmful cholesterol by two-thirds in pre-clinical tests, according to a new study by. . (Science Daily)
Folic Acid Deficiency Nov 22, 2008
RNA continues to form and build up producing excess haemoglobin. The RBC becomes an immature enlarged non-functioning cell often containing excess haemoglobin. (Suite101.com)
Dangerous 'Two-faced' Protein Crucial To Breast Cancer Spread And Growth Identified Nov 22, 2008
This is potentially good news, say the researchers, who published their study in the Nov. 17 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology ... " Dr. Anastasiadis adds that while the discovery was made in breast cancer cells, it has relevance to a number of cancers, including those of the lung, kidneys, and skin, in which p120 plays a role. "These findings have significant implications for our understanding of tumor biology and for improving cancer treatment," he says. This study expands upon a body of... (Science Daily)
Mechanisms of cardiovascular disease and cancer give clues to new therapies Nov 22, 2008
There is also overlap between cardiovascular disease and cancer at the level of gene expression and regulation within cells, and in particular the role of small RNA molecules called micro RNAs. These molecules do not perform the role of RNA as traditionally understood in carrying genetic information from the DNA of genes to the protein factories called ribosomes ... "The future direction is to investigate whether and how the different gene networks regulated by micro RNAs are organized as a... (EurekAlert!)
New Gene-silencing Pathway Found In Plants Nov 21, 2008
RNA polymerases, the enzymes responsible for making RNA from DNA templates, are key players in determining which genes get switched on and which get left off ... D., WUSTL professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, has been investigating the role of two plant-specific RNA polymerases since playing a leading role in their discovery in 2005 ... In a paper published Nov. 14 in Cell, Pikaard and his colleagues explain how these RNA polymerases work together to use the non-coding region of DNA to... (Science Daily)
Misreading of damaged DNA may spur tumor formation Nov 21, 2008
All cells, including non-dividing cells that are not replicating their DNA, continue to transcribe, or make RNA, from some of their genes in order to produce proteins and carry out their normal functions ... By reading the RNA the cells make from the Ras DNA, Saxowsky found that even normal mouse cells misread the damaged DNA about three percent of the time ... It appears that bacterial enzymes that make RNA from DNA are more susceptible to transcriptional mutagenesis than those from mammals,... (EurekAlert!)
American Chemical Society's Weekly PressPac -- Nov. 19, 2008 Nov 20, 2008
Here is the latest American Chemical Society (ACS) News Service Weekly PressPac with news from ACS' 36 peer-reviewed journals and Chemical eering News. Please credit the individual journal or the American Chemical Society as the source for this information ... Their study went online November 24 in the premiere issue of ACS Applied Materials faces,a new monthly journal. (EurekAlert!)
Mexican Department of Public Health to Launch Screening for Human Papillomavirus (HPV), Cause of Cervical Cancer Nov 19, 2008
A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that about one-third of invasive cervical cancers developed in women whose smears had appeared normal ... Sample technologies are used to isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from biological samples such as blood or tissue ... Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations and risks of... (PR Newswire)
Finding Points to Possible Blood Test for Brain Tumors Nov 18, 2008
When Skog analyzed the protein and RNA content of these microvesicles (also called exosomes) in the blood samples of glioblastoma patients, he found that he could obtain a sort of molecular snapshot of the tumor. "By analyzing the RNA in these serum exosomes, we could determine the mutational profile in the tumor without doing a biopsy," explained Skog. (Washington Post)
Tackling A Hard-to-treat Childhood Cancer By Targeting Epigenetic Changes Nov 18, 2008
A pharmaceutical DOT1L inhibitor hasn't yet been found, but when the researchers suppressed DOT1L indirectly through RNA interference techniques, the abnormally activated genes were turned off. "Based on these data, we are searching for small molecules or drugs that inhibit DOT1L," says Armstrong. (Science Daily)
Conference report highlights new research into drug delivery to treat eye disease Nov 18, 2008
Group explores alternatives to surgery and intravitreous injection ... His group is focused on using a family of acid-sensitive polymers to help deliver one of the latest drugs, silencing RNA (siRNA) ... A safer alternative to direct intravitreous injections might be transscleral delivery into the vitreous using subconjunctival injections, said Michael Robinson, MD, adding that researchers needed a clear understanding of the dynamic barriers for the technique to work in treating retinal... (EurekAlert!)
Blood test could help track cancer Nov 17, 2008
Inside, they found fragments of ribonucleic acid, or RNA, including messengers related to cell growth and immune response. When they exposed these exosomes to normal cells in the lab, the tumor RNA delivered its genetic message into the cells. (Boston Globe)
No Clear Answer On Why HIV Vaccine Candidates Did Not Lower Risk Of Acquiring HIV Nov 17, 2008
HIV RNA levels approximately 8 to 12 weeks after diagnosis of infection were generally similar in the vaccine and the placebo groups. The geometric means of the HIV RNA levels in the blood of infected individuals, the standard measure of ongoing HIV replication, were approximately 40,000 copies/mL in the 24 volunteers in the vaccine group who developed HIV infection and approximately 26,000 copies/mL in the 21 volunteers in the placebo group who developed infection ... The HVTN is an... (Science Daily)
Tiny sacs released by brain tumor cells carry information that may guide treatment Nov 17, 2008
In their report in the December 2008 Nature Cell Biology, which is receiving early online release, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers describe finding tumor-associated RNA and proteins in membrane microvesicles called exosomes in blood samples from glioblastoma patients ... "Glioblastomas release exosomes in sufficient quantities to pass the blood-brain barrier. We were able to isolate them, analyze the RNA transcripts and show how they might be used as biomarkers to guide targeted... (EurekAlert!)
Eat less, live longer Nov 16, 2008
One shows that cutting calorie intake by 20 percent cut damage in DNA and RNA caused by oxidation in half compared to control groups ... "It may be unlikely that it will extend human lifespan significantly," said Jan Vijg, a scientist at the Buck Institute for Age Research who recently co-authored an overview article on ageing in the London-based journal Nature. (iAfrica.com)
Key contributor to Alzheimer's disease Nov 16, 2008
They revealed that a fragment of ribonucleic acid (RNA), once thought to be no more than a by-product, plays a crucial role in regulating inflammation and the development of Alzheimer's disease. The tiny piece of RNA, or microRNA, called miRNA-146a was found in increased amounts in stressed human brain cells and Alzheimer's disease. (India Times, India)
By Combining Technologies, Researchers Rapidly Hunt Down And Find New Genes That Lead To Cancer Nov 15, 2008
Twelve of those genes had never been linked to cancer before, according to the report published online in the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, on November 13th ... They then identified mouse versions of 301 of those human genes and obtained so-called short hairpin RNAs (shRNA) corresponding to each of those ... shRNA is a sequence of RNA that makes a tight hairpin turn and that can be used to silence genes in a process known as RNA interference. (Science Daily)
Researchers Say Identification of Women With HPV Types 16, 18 and 45 Could Improve Early Intervention to Stop Cervical Cancer Nov 14, 2008
Sample technologies are used to isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from biological samples such as blood or tissue, and assays make these isolated molecules visible to facilitate such vital activities as biological research and detection of disease. QIAGEN has developed and markets more than 500 products as well as instruments that make their use more efficient and accurate. (PR Newswire)
