A study published this week presents evidence that – through mechanisms unknown at this point – antibodies appear to be able to enter cancer cells, bind to intracellular proteins and, ultimately, kill the cells.
By looking at how single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) relate to the level of key metabolites in the blood, a multinational team of scientists identified nearly 40 variants that are associated with various metabolic traits.
Scientists reported this week that they have developed a novel way to drive cancer cells to suicide: by delivering what they termed a "gene circuit" that sensed the levels of half a dozen miRNAs and, if they matched the expected profile for cancer cells, induced expression of a protein that drove the cells to apoptosis.
Results from a Phase I trial of Jennerex Inc.'s experimental cancer drug JX-594, which is based on the pox virus, demonstrated that after intravenous administration of a single dose of the drug, JX-594 was able to specifically replicate in metastatic tumors. At the highest doses tested, the drug led to tumor stabilization or regression in six out of eight patients.
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have discovered an unexpected role for Parkin, a protein that plays a role in many cases of early onset Alzheimer's: it plays a role in regulating fat uptake, partly through stabilizing a surface molecule that helps cells take up fat.
In experiments that could ultimately bear practical fruit for the treatment of both cancer and autoimmune disorders, scientists have discovered that hypoxia inducible factor, or HIF-1, plays a major role in determining whether T cells develop into pro-inflammatory TH17 cells or regulatory T cells, which inhibit the actions of other T cells and prevent the immune response from going out of control.
There is no dengue vaccine for humans. But in two papers published in the Aug. 25, 2011, edition of Nature, Australian scientists reported that they can essentially vaccinate mosquitoes against the dengue virus by infecting them with another microbe: the bacterium Wolbachia.
Long-term follow-up of 16 boys treated with gene therapy to correct the immune deficiencies ADA-SCID and X-SCID in a British study has shown that despite some heartbreaking setbacks along the way, overall, the procedure can be considered a success.
The road to developing Alzheimer's drugs has been littered with disappointments. But this week, researchers from Washington University in St. Louis published data suggesting that another class of drugs may be useful in preventing the formation of amyloid plaques: antidepressants that work via selective serotonin reuptake inhibition (SSRI).
