in order to specifically knock out the growth factors required by individual cancer types s
#Cell structure discovery advances understanding of cancer development A cell structure has been discovered that could help scientists understand why some cancers develop.
For the first time, a structure called'the mesh'has been identified which helps to hold together cells. This discovery changes our understanding of the cell's internal scaffolding.
which is found to change in certain cancers, such as those of the breast and bladder.
associate professor and senior Cancer Research UK Fellow at the division of biomedical cell biology at Warwick Medical school.
and support from Cancer Research UK and North West Cancer Research. Dr Royle said:""We had been looking in 2d
TACC3, is overproduced in certain cancers. When this situation was mimicked in the lab, the mesh and microtubules were altered
Dr Emma Smith, senior science communications officer at Cancer Research UK, said:""Problems in cell division are common in cancer-cells frequently end up with the wrong number of chromosomes.
and it might be a crucial insight into why this process becomes faulty in cancer
"North West Cancer Research (NWCR) has funded the research as part of a collaborative project between the University of Warwick and the University of Liverpool,
which could potentially better inform future cancer therapies.""As a charity we fund only the highest standard of research,
#Gene therapy advance thwarts brain cancer in rats Researchers funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging
and Bioengineering have designed a nanoparticle transport system for gene delivery that destroys deadly brain gliomas in a rat model,
The nanoparticles are filled with genes for an enzyme that converts a prodrug called ganciclovir into a potent destroyer of the glioma cells.
Glioma is one of the most lethal human cancers, with a five year survival rate of just 12,
Advances in the understanding of the molecular processes that cause these tumors has resulted in therapies aimed at delivering specific genes into tumors--genes that make proteins to kill
or suppress the growth of the tumor. Currently this approach relies heavily on using viruses to deliver the anti-tumor genes into the target cancer cells.
Unfortunately, viral delivery poses significant safety risks including toxicity, activation of the patient's immune system against the virus,
and the possibility of the virus itself encouraging tumors to develop.""Efforts to treat glioma with traditional drug
and radiation therapies have not been very successful, "says Jessica Tucker, Ph d.,NIBIB Director for the Program in Gene and Drug Delivery Systems and Devices."
rather than potentially harmful viruses, is a significant step that reinvigorates the potential for gene therapy to treat deadly gliomas as well as other cancers."
The collaborators include colleagues from the Johns hopkins university School of medicine Departments of Neurosurgery, Oncology, Ophthalmology, and Pathology,
as well as Tang Du Hospital in China, University of the Negevin, Israel, and the Instituto Neurologico C. Besta in Italy.
Biodegradable nanoparticles have shown recently promise as a method to deliver genes into cells. Their use for delivery avoids many of the problems associated with viral gene delivery.
A number of polymer structures were tested for their ability to deliver DNA into two rat glioma cell lines.
Among the many polymers tried, the one known as PBAE 447 was found to be the most efficient in delivering the HSVTK gene into the cultured rat glioma cells.
the HSVTK-encoding nanoparticles were 100%effective in killing both of the glioma cell lines grown in the laboratory.
Next, the gene therapy system was tested in live rats with brain gliomas. Because it is important that the nanoparticles spread throughout the entire tumor,
they were infused into the rat gliomas using convection-enhanced delivery (CED). The method involves injection into the tumor and the application of a pressure gradient,
which efficiently disperses the nanoparticles throughout the tumors. To test the tumor-killing ability of the system,
the tumor-bearing rats were given systemic administration of ganciclovir for two days, then CED was used to infuse the HSVTK-encoding nanoparticles into the rat gliomas,
and systemic ganciclovir treatment continued for eight more days. The treatment resulted in shrinkage of the tumors
and a significant increase in survival when compared with control glioma-bearing animals that did not receive the combination treatment."
"The results provide the first demonstration of a successful non-viral nanomedicine method for HSVTK/ganciclovir treatment of brain cancer,"stated Green."
"Next steps will include enhancing the efficiency of this nanoparticle delivery system and evaluating the technology in additional brain cancer animal models."
"In the future, the investigators envision that doctors would administer this therapy during the surgery commonly used to treat glioma in humans.
They are interested also in testing the ability to deliver other cancer-killing genes and whether the nanoparticles could be administered successfully systemically
--which could broaden the use of the therapy for a wide range of solid tumors and systemic cancers s
#Ultrasound accelerates skin healing, especially for diabetics and the elderly Researchers from the University of Sheffield's Department of Biomedical science discovered the ultrasound transmits a vibration through the skin
and wakes up cells in wounds helping to stimulate and accelerate the healing process. More than 200,000 patients in the UK suffer with chronic wounds every year at a cost of over £3. 1 billion to the NHS.
The ultrasound treatment, which also reduces the chance of wounds getting infected, is particularly effective
when treating diabetics and the elderly. There are 11 million over-65s three million diabetics, and 10 million smokers in the UK--all of whom are likely to suffer problems with healing wounds.
A quarter of diabetics suffer from skin ulcers, particularly foot ulcers, due to the loss of sensation and circulation in the legs.
Lead author of the study Dr Mark Bass, from the University's Centre for Membrane Interactions and Dynamics (CMIAD), said:"
"Skin ulcers are excruciatingly painful for patients and in many cases can only be resolved by amputation of the limb."
"Using ultrasound wakes up the cells and stimulates a normal healing process. Because it is just speeding up the normal processes,
the treatment doesn't carry the risk of side effects that are associated often with drug treatments."
"Arraydr Bass added:""Now that we have proven the effectiveness of ultrasound we need to explore the signal further.
We have found that the ultrasound signal we currently use is effective, but it is possible that by refining the treatment we could improve the effects even further."
"Because ultrasound is relatively risk free we could expect to see it in broad clinical use within three or four years. s
#New cell division mechanism discovered Canadian and British researchers have discovered that chromosomes play an active role in animal cell division.
It was observed by a team of researchers including Gilles Hickson, an assistant professor at the University of Montreal's Department of Pathology and Cell biology and researcher at the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Centre, his assistant Silvana Jananji, in collaboration with Nelio
it can be a source for triggering cancer, for example,"said Hickson. It is well known that microscopic cable-like structures,
and to certain diseases,"said Hickson, who has devoted the last 15 years of his research life to cell biology.
In fact, all cancers are unchecked characterised by cell division, and the underpinning processes are potential targets for therapeutic interventions that prevent cancer onset and spread."
"But before we get there, we must continue to expand our knowledge about the basic processes
Ultimately, this could help the rational design of more specific therapies to inhibit the division of cancer cells,
#Lynchpin molecule for the spread of cancer found Cancer is a disease of cell growth,
but most tumors only become lethal once they metastasize or spread from their first location to sites throughout the body.
For the first time, researchers at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia report a single molecule that appears to be the central regulator driving metastasis in prostate cancer.
The study, published online July 13th in Cancer cell, offers a target for the development of a drug that could prevent metastasis in prostate cancer,
and possibly other cancers as well.""Finding a way to halt or prevent cancer metastasis has proven elusive.
We discovered that a molecule called DNA-PKCS could give us a means of knocking out major pathways that control metastasis before it begins,
"says Karen Knudsen, Ph d.,Director of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University, the Hilary Koprowski Professor and Chair of Cancer Biology, Professor of Urology, Radiation Oncology,
and Medical Oncology at Jefferson. Metastasis is thought of as the last stage of cancer. The tumor undergoes a number of changes to its DNA--mutations--that make the cells more mobile
able to enter the bloodstream, and then also sticky enough to anchor down in a new location,
such as the bone, the lungs, the liver or other organs, where new tumors start to grow.
Although these processes are characterized fairly well, there appeared to be many non-overlapping pathways that ultimately lead to these traits.
Now, Dr. Knudsen and colleagues have shown that one molecule appears to be central to many of the processes required for a cancer to spread.
In fact, previous studies had shown that DNA-PKCS was linked to treatment resistance in prostate cancer, in part because it would repair the usually lethal damage to tumors caused by radiation therapy and other treatments.
Importantly, Dr. Knudsen's work showed that DNA-PKCS has other, far-reaching roles in cancer.
The researchers showed that DNA-PKCS also appears act as a master regulator of signaling networks that turn on the entire program of metastatic processes.
In addition to experiments in prostate cancer cell lines, Dr. Knudsen and colleagues also showed that in mice carrying human models of prostate cancer,
And in mice with aggressive human tumors, an inhibitor of DNA-PKCS reduced overall tumor burden in metastatic sites.
In a final analysis that demonstrated the importance of DNA-PKCS in human disease the researchers analyzed 232 samples from prostate cancer patients for the amount of DNA-PKCS those cells contained
and compared those levels to the patients'medical records. They saw that a spike in the kinase levels was a strong predictor of developing metastases and poor outcomes in prostate cancer.
They also showed that DNA-PKCS was much more active in human samples of castrate-resistant prostate cancer, an aggressive and treatment-resistant form of the disease."
"These results strongly suggest that DNA-PKCS is a master regulator of the pathways and signals that lead to the development of metastases in prostate cancer,
and that high levels of DNA-PKCS could predict which early stage tumors may go on to metastasize,
"says Dr. Knudsen.""The finding that DNA-PKCS is a likely driver of lethal disease states was unexpected,
and the discovery was made possible by key collaborations across academia and industry,"explains Dr. Knudsen.
in addition to leaders of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center's Prostate Program, included the laboratories of Felix Feng (University of Michigan), Scott Tomlins (University of Michigan), Owen Witte (UCLA),
Cory Abate-Shen (Columbia University), Nima Sharifi (Cleveland Clinic) and Jeffrey Karnes (Mayo Clinic), and contributions from Genomedx.
"We are enthusiastic about the next step of clinical assessment for testing DNA-PKCS inhibitors in the clinic.
This new trial will be for patients advancing on standard of care therapies, and will be available at multiple centers connected through the Prostate Cancer Clinical Trials Consortium,
of which we are explained a member Dr. Knudsen.""Although the pathway to drug approval can take many years,
this new trial will provide some insight into the effect of DNAP-PKCS inhibitors as anti-tumor agents.
In parallel, using this kinase as a marker of severe disease may also help identify patients whose tumors will develop into aggressive metastatic disease,
so that we can treat them with more aggressive therapy earlier, "says Dr. Knudsen.""Given the role of DNA-PKCS in DNA repair as well as control of tumor metastasis,
there will be challenges in clinical implementation, but this discovery unveils new opportunities for preventing or treating advanced disease
#Wireless data delivery over active TV channels tested Rice university engineers have demonstrated the first system that allows wireless data transmissions over UHF channels during active TV broadcasts.
Today, injection and extrusion molding shape hot liquids into everything from car parts to toys.
As a result, patients often suffer for months before finding a medicine that makes them feel better.
The researchers tested the compounds in rats that were subjected to chronic mild stress that caused the animals to act in ways that resemble human depression.
who is also the vice president for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean of the School of medicine."
#Liquid biopsy identifies mutations in colorectal cancer undetected in tissue biopsy The results of the trial were twofold:
liquid biopsy effectively unmasked different tumor-related mutations. More specifically, in a subgroup of 41 patients who had received previously anti-EGFR therapy,
it was revealed that they had acquired KRAS mutations during the course of their disease. Such accurate information is difficult to obtain using tissue biopsy
which could, in the absence of this data, lead to a selection of therapy which may not be the most appropriate for these patients.
Moreover, the study concludes that regorafenib is effective in patients with KRAS and PIK3CA mutations."
"This is the first large clinical trial to compare liquid versus conventional tissue biopsy data, and the results show the former (BEAMING technology) obtain more data on tumor mutation throughout the course of the disease,
enabling us to better target therapy to the specificities of patient's tumor; this could have a considerable impact on clinical practice,
as novel applications of this technology could be investigated further and developed,"says Josep Tabernero, Head of the Medical Oncology Department of Hospital Universitario Vall d'Hebron, Director of VHIO,
and Co-Director of the study. The majority of clinical studies published on the use of DNA in blood to determine tumor genotype,
have enrolled only a relatively small number of patients which limits the significance of the findings as well as the ability to research possible correlations between genotype and clinical outcome.
Furthermore, most studies evaluated a single gene (such as KRAS) and used technologies that are not commercially available.
Arraytumor genotype plays an important role in drug resistance in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer,
but the genotype obtained at diagnosis can vary after different treatment lines. Therefore, DNA analysis using liquid biopsy has clear advantages over DNA analysis with tissue biopsy
and is rapidly gaining importance and momentum in the oncology field. Liquid biopsy, also known as a blood-based biomarker test, is a fast, simple method for detecting RAS (KRAS and NAS) mutation status in tumors
as it only requires a blood test rather than a tissue biopsy or surgical procedure. Further, it also provides mutation status results in a matter of days,
helping to determine the most specific, targeted treatment in each case. It represents one more important step in realizing the true promise of precision medicine in oncology--the main focus behind research at VHIO which aims to both advance
and deliver targeted therapies tailored to the particularities of each tumor for an increasing number of patients.
Although there are still some important questions that will need to be resolved concerning liquid biopsy for example, the possibility that not all tumors release enough DNA into the blood for it to be detected,
as well as the difficulty of assigning a particular genotype for each particular tumor in patients with multiple metastases,
the CORRECT study shows that liquid biopsy could become an essential tool in clinical practice.
Arraycolorectal cancer is the second most common cancer in the world, with an estimated incidence rate of more than 1. 36 million new cases per year.
Around 694,000 people die from colorectal cancer every year, accounting for 8. 5%of all cancer deaths
ranking as the fourth most common cause of death from cancer. Approximately 55%of all colorectal cancer cases are diagnosed in the world's developed regions,
and the incidence and mortality rates are considerably higher among men than in women e
#Potential of blue LEDS as novel chemical-free food preservation technology A team of scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has found that blue light emitting diodes (LEDS) have strong antibacterial
effect on major foodborne pathogens, and are most effective when in cold temperatures (between 4°C and 15°C) and mildly acidic conditions of around ph 4. 5. This opens up novel possibilities of using blue LEDS as a chemical-free food preservation method.
Acidic foods such as fresh-cut fruits and ready-to-eat meat can be preserved under blue LEDS in combination with chilling temperatures without requiring further chemical treatments that are needed commonly for food preservation.
These findings were published recently in the Food microbiology journal in June 2015 Enhancing blue LEDS'ability to deactivate bacteria
While LEDS are most commonly known as an energy saving light source, they have also been known to have an antibacterial effect.
In this study, the team placed three major foodborne pathogens--Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli o157: H7 and Salmonella typhimurium--under blue LED illumination,
#How the lung repairs its wounds Our lungs are exposed permanently to harmful environmental factors that can damage
According to the World health organization (WHO), lung diseases are the third most common cause of death worldwide:
toxic particles, infections, and chronic inflammatory responses pose a permanent threat to our lungs. To date, the regenerative mechanisms leading to healing of lung injury remain incompletely understood.
Since few to no causal therapies are in place for most lung diseases, it is important to understand how these healing processes,
which involve initial inflammation, fibrosis, and then resolution thereof, occur in the lung. Using novel mass spectrometry techniques,
an interdisciplinary team of scientists led by Prof. Matthias Mann, Director at the MPI of Biochemistry, and Prof.
Oliver Eickelberg, Chairman of the Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC) at the Helmholtz Zentrum München and University Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
The findings of the research team will provide an important basis for further translational research on the development of pulmonary fibrosis*and chronic lung diseases in general,
and abundance of proteins in patients with lung fibrosis and healthy individuals and will therefore likely lead to new approaches for the treatment of chronic lung diseases in general and lung fibrosis in particular,
However, recent data from the research group led by Markus Hengstschläger of the Institute for Medical Genetics of the Medical University of Vienna now suggest that another protein complex,
and may also be relevant for developing new tumour therapies in the future, "explains Markus Hengstschläger g
#Nanospheres shield chemo drugs, safely release high doses in response to tumor secretions Scientists have designed nanoparticles that release drugs in the presence of a class of proteins that enable cancers to metastasize.
so that the very enzymes that make cancers dangerous could instead guide their destruction.""We can start with a small molecule
and build that into a nanoscale carrier that can seek out a tumor and deliver a payload of drug,
The system takes advantage of a class enzymes called matrix metalloproteinases that many cancers make in abundance.
The shell fragments form a ragged mesh that holds the drug molecules near the tumor.
builds on his group's earlier sucess using a similar strategy to mark tumors for both diagnosis and precise surgical removal.
That means the drug was inactivated as it flowed through the circulatory system until it reached the tumor.
The protection allowed the researchers to safely give a dose 16 times higher than they could with the formulation now used in cancer clinics,
in a test in mice with grafted in fibrosarcoma tumors. In additional preliminary tests, Callmann and colleagues were able to halt the growth of the tumors for a least two weeks,
using a single lower dose of the drug. In mice treated with the nanoparticles coated with peptides that are impervious to MMPS or given saline,
the tumors grew to lethal sizes within that time. Gianneschi says they will broaden their approach to create delivery systems for other diagnostic and therapeutic molecules."
"This kind of platform is not specific to paclitaxel. We'll test this in other models--with other classes of drug and in mice with a cancer that mimics metastatic breast cancer, for example."
"They'll also continue to modify the shell, to provide even greater protection and avoid uptake by organs such as liver, spleen and kidneys,
"We want to open up this therapeutic window.""Additional authors include Matthew Thompson in Gianneschi's chemistry research group and Christopher Barback, David Hall and Robert Mattrey in UC San diego's Moores Cancer Center.
All animal procedures were approved by UC San diego's institution animal care and use committee. Callmann holds a fellowship through the Cancer Researchers in Nanotechnology Program at UC San diego. The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging
and Bioengineering provided financial support. This novel approach to using enzyme-directed assembly of particle theranostics (EDAPT) is patent pending g
essential in the treatment of chronic diabetic kidney disease. The drug, given in this trial at one of four doses based on disease severity,
returned blood potassium levels to normal when measured at four weeks and kept them under control for one year, the length of the trial.
The Journal of the American Medical Association, is the first to follow patients taking patiromer for more than a few weeks.
a huge deal,"said George Bakris, MD, professor of medicine and director of the Comprehensive Hypertension Center at the University of Chicago Medicine."
Patients most at risk are those with chronic kidney disease combined with diabetes and hypertension or heart failure.
patients with hyperkalemia, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease. All patients were taking RAAS inhibitors to treat their CKD prior to and during study treatment.
Thirty-five percent of patients also suffered from heart failure. Depending on the severity of their hyperkalemia
The combination of chronic kidney disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, hyperkalemia and, in about one-third of cases, heart failure, can be deadly.
and worsening of hypertension, plus constipation and diarrhea. Events related to patiromer primarily involved low magnesium, mild to moderate constipation and diarrhea.
Forty-four patients, 14.5 percent of the total, had serious adverse events. None of the serious events was attributed by the investigator to patiromer.
and evaluate aldosterone blockade in heart failure patients.""Previous research demonstrated the short-term benefits of patiromer,
The findings"have the potential to fundamentally change the current treatment approach to hyperkalemia,"according to an accompanying editorial by nephrologist Wolfgang Winklemayer, MD, Scd, of Baylor College of Medicine.
Mason Freeman, Massachusetts General Hospital; David Bushinsky, University of Rochester; and Martha Mayo, Dahlia Garza, Yuri Stasiv, Rezi Zawadzki and Lance Berman, from Relypsa a
#Noninvasive device could end daily finger pricking for people with diabetes A new laser sensor that monitors blood glucose levels without penetrating the skin could transform the lives of millions of people living with diabetes.
Currently, many people with diabetes need to measure their blood glucose levels by pricking their fingers,
This could help improve the lives of millions of people by enabling them to constantly monitor their glucose levels without the need for an implant.
this technology opens up the potential for people with diabetes to receive continuous readings, meaning they are alerted instantly
or readings directly to doctors, allowing them to profile how a person is managing their diabetes over time."
and funded by the University of Leeds and Netscientific plc, a biomedical and healthcare technology group specialisingin commercialising transformative technologies from leading universities and research institutes.
"Diabetes is a growing problem, with the need for noninvasive glucose monitoring becoming ever more critical.
This unique technology could help empower millions of people to better manage their diabetes and minimise interventions with healthcare providers.
The ultimate development of two distinct products--a finger-touch and a wearable--could give people with different types of diabetes the option of a device that best suits their lifestyle."
"The results of a pilot clinical study, carried out at the Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine under the supervision of Professor Peter Grant,
Professor Grant, Professor of Medicine at the University of Leeds and Consultant diabetes specialist, said:"
"Noninvasive monitoring will be particularly valuable in young people with Type 1 diabetes. Within this group, those who are attempting very tight control such as young women going through pregnancy
including investigators from the University of Mississippi Medical center (UMMC), has identified a gene that underlies healthy information processing--a first step on a complicated road to understand cognitive aging and age-related diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease.
The study, published online and expected to come out this fall in a print edition of the journal Molecular Psychiatry,
is one of the the largest genetics study to date to link a specific genetic mutation and information processing speed."
"said Dr. Tom Mosley, director of the Memory Impairment and Neurodegenerative Dementia (MIND) Center at UMMC and senior scientist on the study."
"The effort was conducted through the Cohorts for Heart and Aging research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) consortium, in
which researchers from around the world work together to search for genetic causes of disease in the general aging population.
"said Dr. Carla Ibrahim-Verbaas, a resident in neurology at Erasmus University Medical center in Rotterdam, The netherlands,
It is of interest that the gene has also been suggested in other studies to be involved in autism and personality traits."
and analytic resources, is significantly enhancing our ability to identify genes related to complex brain functions and disease."
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