al compounds called polyketides, small but complex molecules produced in bacteria and fungi in tiny amounts. Limited yields from natural sources and the difficulty of making them synthetically has limited their supply and slowed their development. Now, researchers at Stanford University are trying to engineer certain bacteria to overproduce these drug products. The development could lead to increased commercial yields and faster drug development to combat growing antibiotic resistance and high cancer rates, they say. The presentation is part of a two-day symposium, "Polyketides: Biosynthesis, Biological Activity and Genetic Engineering," held March 13-14. (AGFD 19, Sunday, March 13, 2:35 p.m., Horton Grand, Regal B)

Apples may provide a dual protection against heart disease, researchers find In a new study that provides further evidence that eating apples may help reduce the risk of heart disease, researchers at Cornell University in New York have found that the popular fruit may have a dual benefit on blood cholesterol. In a study using human liver cells, they showed that antioxidants found in apple extracts could potentially lower "bad" cholesterol (low density lipoprotein, or LDL) by stimulating the production of LDL receptors in the liver, which help remove cholesterol from the blood. This mechanism is similar to that of statin drugs, they say. The study also showed that apple extracts prevent the bad (LDL) cholesterol from turning into oxidized LDL, a potentially more deadly form of bad cholesterol that is associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. Another study by the same researcher found that eating apples may help prevent breast cancer in animals. That study was recently published in the online version of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a peer-reviewed ACS publication, and can be obtained by contacting the person listed at the top of this release. (AGFD 27'"/>


17-Mar-2005

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