Archive for the 'Research Reports' Category
April 27th, 2011 by admin
Thalidomide was introduced as a sedative drug in the late 1950s. In 1961, it was withdrawn due to teratogenicity and neuropathy. There is now a growing clinical interest in thalidomide, and it is introduced as an immunomodulatory agent used primarily, combined with dexamethasone, to treat multiple myeloma. The drug is a potent teratogen in zebrafish, chickens, rabbits and primates including humans: severe birth defects may result if the drug is taken during pregnancy.
Continue reading ‘Researchers Gain More Insight on How Thalidomide Leads to Birth Defects’
January 21st, 2011 by admin
It was Max Wicha of the University of Michigan who first identified breast cancer stem cells back in 2003. Now, Wicha and colleagues have identified a possible way to attack these cells, which are responsible for a tumor’s growth and spread.
Continue reading ‘New Plan of Attack Against Breast Cancer Stem Cells’
January 10th, 2011 by admin
Big upfront fees are out. Milestones are in. Partnerships will stay hot. The IPO window will stay open, despite a lackluster record in 2010. And investor confidence will grow, helping public biotech companies outperform the general market.
Continue reading ‘Burrill Predicts Big Surge in Biotech Buyouts for 2011′
January 6th, 2011 by admin
Remarkable progress in understanding how stem cell biology works has been reported by a team of leading scientists, directed by experts at UC Santa Barbara. Stem cell biology is making waves around the world with great hope for the eventual repair of parts of the body. While many scientists see these breakthroughs as viable, there are hurdles that must be overcome, including the worrisome potential for introducing cancer when making a repair to an organ.
Continue reading ‘Scientists Peer into the Future of Stem Cell Biology’
January 4th, 2011 by admin
Studying how bacteria incorporate foreign DNA from invading viruses into their own regulatory processes, Thomas Wood, professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University, is uncovering the secrets of one of nature’s most primitive immune systems.
Continue reading ‘Bacteria Provide Example of One of Nature’s First Immune Systems’
December 28th, 2010 by admin
The UK’s ReNeuron has been given a regulatory green light to launch the world’s first human trial of a stem cell therapy for strokes. Beginning in the second quarter of this year, researchers for the biotech will begin to see exactly how stroke victims respond to the neural stem cell therapy, which researchers say could help significantly repair brain damage. The UK Gene Therapy Advisory Committee granted approval of the trial–five years after ReNeuron first approached officials in Europe. The Financial Times notes that the company later tried to get the FDA on board to test the therapy, but regulators in the U.S. repeatedly delayed the process.
Continue reading ‘World’s First Stem Cell Trial for Strokes’
December 22nd, 2010 by admin
In a rare victory against AIDS, German scientists say that three years after a unique stem cell transplant was tried on a patient, “cure of HIV has been achieved in this” man. This is the first time anyone has been pronounced cured of the disease. But as New Scientist notes, their radical therapy strategy offers no hope for the tens of millions of people around the world with the lethal virus.
Continue reading ‘First HIV “Cure” Comes with a Very Big Catch’
December 17th, 2010 by admin
A fledgling biotech company is pursuing some of the research into cancer stem cells undertaken by Robert Weinberg at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. Verastem raised $16 million a few weeks ago with an eye on developing new treatments tailored for fighting the unique stem cells, which are often left untouched by the current generation of chemotherapies.
Continue reading ‘Biotech start-Up Tackles Cancer Stem Cells’
November 29th, 2010 by admin
A $145-million U.S. Federal Government effort to harness the power of nanotechnology to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer is producing innovations that will radically improve care for the disease. That’s the conclusion of an update on the status of the program, called the National Cancer Institute Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer. It appears in a monthly journal published by the American Chemical Society.
Continue reading ‘Nanotechnology Promises Big Benefits for Cancer Patients’
November 22nd, 2010 by admin
A protein known to exist in the brain for more than 30 years, called 5-lipoxygenase, has been found to play a regulatory role in the formation of the amyloid beta in the brain, the major component of plaques implicated in the development of Alzheimer’s disease, according to researchers at Temple University’s School of Medicine.
Continue reading ‘Modulating Protein Could Help Control Alzheimer’s Disease’
