The opening plenary abstract session at the 2020 annual meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) began with the definition of a new disease, identified through a new approach, and possibly leading to a new way to think about rheumatic diseases.

BioWorld looks at translational medicine, including: Macrophages metabolically support muscle; Cutting off AML’s metabolic escape route.

Under the right circumstances, a single mouse can be as good as a group of eight or 10 animals in predicting whether a tumor will respond to a drug, researchers reported at the 2020 EORTC-NCI-AACR (ENA) Molecular Targets meeting on Saturday. The single-animal approach “allows incorporation of more tumor models within the same resource constraints,” Peter Houghton told reporters at a press conference previewing ENA highlights.

Mirati Therapeutics Inc.’s update on the phase I/II Krystal trial of the KRAS-G12C-targeting adagrasib (MRTX-849) was arguably the most eagerly awaited news, and certainly the most eagerly awaited KRAS-targeting news, to come out of the 2020 EORTC-NCI-AACR (ENA) Molecular Targets meeting. KRAS is one of the most frequently mutated oncogenes across a wide swath of solid tumors, and has been one of the toughest nuts to crack as far as druggability is concerned.

A new tool for mobile devices can diagnose stroke as accurately as an emergency medicine specialist in just minutes, enabling patients to get brain-saving therapies in time for maximum benefit. According to researchers from Pennsylvania State University and Houston Methodist Hospital, the artificial intelligence (AI)-based tool could counterbalance physician biases, reducing both overuse of CT scans and underdiagnosis of mild and moderate stroke.

Researchers at Ontario’s University of Waterloo have developed a palm-sized device that uses radio waves to read blood glucose levels, as well as artificial intelligence (AI) software to get near instantaneous results.