Renegade RNA -- Clues to cancer and normal growth
...ands of RNA that carry instructions for making the proteins that do all the cell's work. They are, says Joshua Mendell, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor in the McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine at Hopkins, like "molecular rheostats that fine-tune how much protein is being made from each gene."...NIAID DNA vaccine for H5N1 avian influenza enters human trial
...de the body, the DNA instructs human cells to make proteins that act as a vaccine against the virus. VRC Director Gary Nabel, M.D., Ph.D., together with a team of scientists from the VRC recognized the potential for employing new vaccine technology against influenza, a disease for which effective vaccines ...Study offers window into human behavior, brain disease
...erited forms of the disease and major misprocessed proteins have been identified but "discoveries at the genetic and molecular level do not yet explain why specific populations of neurons are dying," he says. "This observation gives us a new window into the early and cell-specific degenerative process, and...New imaging compound might 'see' Alzheimer's earlier
...low us to see how drugs affect the accumulation of proteins in the brain that cause Alzheimer's plaques and tangles, possibly preventing or delaying the progression of Alzheimer's." In a separate but related project, NIA also leads the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a federal government...New imaging technique identifies people-at-risk for Alzheimer's disease
...lecule invented at UCLA that binds to the abnormal proteins amyloid plaques and tangles that may cause the disease. Previously only an autopsy could determine these deposits and confirm a definitive diagnosis. Study results found that the new method was able to track disease progression over a two-year p...Effective HIV control may depend on viral protein targeted by immune cells
...nsively mapped the CD8 responses against all viral proteins and also investigated whether the versions of HLA ...t, those with stronger responses against other HIV proteins including Env, a protein that is the focus of several vaccine studies had higher viral levels indi...'Clumping' protein linked to return of ovarian cancer
...site. In the modified cells, N130 capped off NAC-1 proteins disrupting their ability to bind with each other. This action can prevent tumor formation and kill cancer cells in experimental mice. Shih says that in the future, drugs that mimic N130 can be used to treat cancer....Researchers show surprising interaction between genes, gender and hypertension
...r polymorphisms, on 35 different genes that encode proteins involved in blood pressure regulation. Thirty-three of the genes were on autosomes (chromosomes found in both sexes), and two were on the "X-linked" or sex chromosomes. "Of the 35 genes, we found six genes that were quite different in the frequency...Two central mysteries in genome inheritance solved at UCSD
...ences Program at UCSD, identified a complex of two proteins that bridges chromosomes and spindle microtubules ...otein kinase transfers a phosphate group to target proteins in order to modify their properties. One of the targets of activated Aurora kinase is the protein g...Protein 'fingerprint' in spinal fluid could spot Alzheimer's disease
...o simultaneously compare 2,000 cerebrospinal fluid proteins from 34 patients with autopsy-proven Alzheimer's d...possesses, the proteome' is the vast collection of proteins expressed by those genes," said Lee. "Essentially we used high-tech methods to contrast the proteome...Pioneers in field of functional genomics work toward gene therapy for vision defects
..., and the structure/functional relationships among proteins involved in signal transduction, may lead to development of new methods for early diagnosis of retinal disorders, and ultimately extend our knowledge of the role genes play in construction of the nervous system," she says....Mayo Clinic Cancer Center collaborating to find new tools to fight leukemia
...sease progression), CD38 and ZAP-70 (overexpressed proteins found in CLL cells), IgVH (mutational status of the immunoglobulin gene occurring in CLL patients), and FISH panel assessments (fluorescent probes on the chromosomes to determine common recurring genetic mutations in CLL). The majority of the patien...Mayo Clinic Cancer Center -- individualizing treatment for multiple myeloma patients
...nts that inhibit the proteasome cause a buildup of proteins that affect many signaling cascades (various necessary biological processes). Bortezomib was initially thought to exert its activity by disrupting one of two known NF-B (Nuclear Factor kappa B) pathways which keep cancer cells from self destructing t...Cancer immunoresistance linked to loss of tumor suppressor gene
... system, including the common strategies of hiding proteins that are normally expressed on the cell surface or making proteins that act to suppress immune responses, according to Parsa. Some researchers believe that immunoresi...Breastfeeding overcomes a genetic tendency toward ear infections, scientists discover
...sk." The two identified genes generate the immune proteins known as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin 6 (IL-6). SNPs in each individual gene were enough, the researchers found, to create increased risk for childhood ear infections, and simultaneous SNPs in both genes created even more r...Researchers make progress against lung disease attacking women in childbearing years
...der which causes tumors to form in organs) complex proteins - and furthermore, Krymskaya then discovered that growth can potentially be controlled by a drug (FDA-approved Rapamycin), which mimics the function of the missing proteins. Krymskaya made the link between similar basic research found in flies and ap...Structure essential for brain remodeling identified
...res called recycling endosomes, which recycle used proteins within the cell, play an important role in control...e recycling endosomes deposited pieces of recycled proteins that grew new spines or changed the shape and size of existing spines, Ehlers said. The finding s...A great honor for Professor Metcalf
... discovered the Colony Stimulating Factors (CSFs), proteins that control white blood cell formation and that are responsible for a persons resistance to infection. One of the unfortunate side effects of cancer therapy can be the near destruction of the white blood cells, which leaves recuperating patients ...BIDMC's Terry Strom, M.D., honored by American Society of Nephrology
...mmunity and on investigation of a family of T-cell proteins known as TIM (T-cell immunoglobulin Mucin domain), which serve as "checkpoints" for the survival or activation of T-cell subsets. To date, these findings have been published in the journals Nature, Nature Immunology and the Journal of Experimental Me......ubes, whose biocompatible coating was displaced by proteins in the blood, continued to fluoresce in the animals. "I still remember how excited we were when we confirmed that the tubes were fluorescing," said Paul Cherukuri, a doctoral degree candidate in Chemistry. The researchers used this fluorescence to ...