- - European weblog on food, health and environment
News - Week 39 - 2008
Hormel Supplier Caught Abusing
Mother Pigs and Piglets
PETA's latest undercover investigation, at an Iowa pig factory farm that breeds and
supplies piglets to be grown and killed for Hormel products, reveals cruelty to animals.
During the investigation, sows were beaten, spray-painted in the face, and left to suffer
from painful wounds and other conditions, and workers attempted to kill piglets by
slamming their heads against the floor.
Let us step back from the Dark
Side! Sen Whitehouse
FDA: Infant Deaths From
Antidepressants (MOTHERS Act)
FDA's Medwatch Adverse Events Reporting System contains reports of hundreds of babies
killed and born with life-threatening birth defects during the past 4 years. The FDA
admits only 1-10% of drug side effects are ever reported. Stop The MOTHERS Act
Massage therapy may have positive
effects on cancer patients
A new study in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that massage therapy may have
immediate benefits on pain and mood among patients with advanced cancer. Following
treatment improvement in pain and mood was greater with massage than with simple touch
The corn refiners' cutesy ad campaign dismisses serious concerns by some researchers that
this generation of children may not live as long as their parents because of
obesity-related illnesses.And the corn refiners say their product is fine in moderation,
but they gloss over the fact that HFCS has become so pervasive that it's difficult to
moderate your intake.
Protein-rich Diet and Exercise Help
Seniors Live longer
Conducted by researchers at the Manchester Metropolitan University, the new study, has
found that exercise, low to moderate workouts, and a diet containing proteins and
carbohydrates can help old people live longer and stay healthier.
In 2006, a University of Cincinnati study found an increased risk of 10 cancers connected
with firefighting, and four others with a significantly increased risk connected to
firefighting -- testicular cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, prostate cancer and multiple
myeloma. The study that noted the actual risk of cancer might be underestimated because
firefighters are typically considered healthier than the general population when they
enter their careers.
Lower Breast Cancer Risk for Women
Who Were Breastfed as Children
Women who were breastfed as infants have a lower risk of breast cancer as adults,
according to a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Wisconsin at
Madison and published in the journal Epidemiology.
Minnesota Research Center Finds
Clues to Cause of Skin Cancer
Medical researchers in Minnesota have pinpointed the cause of sun-induced skin cancer -
the interaction of ultraviolet light rays with cells in the outermost layer of the skin.
The discovery could lead to the development of a medication to stop the cancer in its
tracks.
The study also found that women who make more money tend to have higher mercury levels.
That may be because they are better able to afford expensive seafood, such as swordfish or
high-grade tuna, that often is more contaminated.
While that much is true, a recent study by the state of Maine found that the mercury vapor
released by a broken bulb is enough to pose a health hazard if the room is not evacuated
and aired out for 15 minutes. Then there is the issue of long-term mercury exposure. Most
CFLs are thrown in the trash and wind up in a landfill. Once fractured, the metallic
mercury they contain eventually will be transformed by bacteria into the more dangerous
methyl mercury. That's the kind that contaminates water, climbs the food chain, poisons
fish and accumulates in the human fetus. This explains why many states (though not Oregon)
ban dumping CFLs in your trash, instead treating them as hazardous waste.
New Carbon Material Shows Promise
of Storing Large Quantities of Renewable Electrical Energy
Engineers and scientists at The University of Texas at Austin have achieved a breakthrough
in the use of a one-atom thick structure called "graphene" as a new carbon-based
material for storing electrical charge in ultracapacitor devices, perhaps paving the way
for the massive installation of renewable energies such as wind and solar power. The
researchers believe their breakthrough shows promise that graphene (a form of carbon)
could eventually double the capacity of existing ultracapacitors, which are manufactured
using an entirely different form of carbon. "Through such a device, electrical charge
can be rapidly stored on the graphene sheets, and released from them as well for the
delivery of electrical current and, thus, electrical power," says Rod Ruoff, a
mechanical engineering professor and a physical chemist. "There are reasons to think
that the ability to store electrical charge can be about double that of current
commercially used materials. We are working to see if that prediction will be borne out in
the laboratory."
Expert urges FDA to take action to
reduce BPA exposure
MU studies have shown dangerous health effects with BPA exposure since 1997. In the
current issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), researchers
report a significant relationship between urine concentrations of the environmental
estrogen bisphenol A (BPA) and cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and liver-enzyme
abnormalities. In an accompanying editorial, Frederick vom Saal, a University of Missouri
scientist, urges the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to follow recent action by
Canadian regulatory agencies, which have taken significant steps to limit human and
environmental exposures to BPA. Since 1997, research from vom Saal and other MU colleagues
have shown adverse health effects of BPA at exposure levels below those currently
considered safe by the FDA. "Despite growing research that confirms BPA is dangerous
to our health, the FDA and the European Food Safety Authority have chosen to ignore
warnings from expert panels and other government agencies and have continued to declare
BPA as 'safe,'" wrote vom Saal, who is a Curator's professor of biological sciences
in MU's College of Arts and Science. "Further evidence of harm should not be required
for regulatory action to begin the process of reducing exposure to BPA." BPA is a one
of the world's highest production-volume chemicals and is used to make hard plastic items
such as: drinking glasses, baby bottles, food-storage containers, the lining of food and
beverage containers, and dental sealants. Previous studies have shown adverse health
effects of BPA on the brain and reproductive system, as well as metabolic diseases in
laboratory animals. After a two-year review, the United States National Toxicology Program
stated its concern that, at current levels of exposure, BPA posed a risk to human infants.
The research published in JAMA is based on data from more than 1,450 Americans examined by
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey and is the first major study linking BPA to diseases in humans, vom
Saal said. "The good news is that government action to reduce exposures may offer an
effective intervention for improving health and reducing the burden of some of the most
consequential human health problems," vom Saal said.
Why some primates, but not humans,
can live with immunodeficiency viruses and not progress to AIDS
Some primate species, including sooty mangabeys, harbor simian immunodeficiency viruses
but remain healthy, unlike rhesus macaques. The immune systems of sooty mangabeys become
significantly less activated during SIV infection than the immune systems of macaques. The
less vigorous immune response to SIV in mangabeys may be an effective evolutionary
response to a virus that resists clearance by antiviral immune responses. New treatment
strategies that would steer the immune system away from over-activation could protect
against the unintended damage caused by host immune responses.
Our body is almost constantly being threatened by pathogens and cancerous cells that
appear out of the blue. But the body puts up a fight: specialized cells in the immune
system smuggle small molecules (granzymes) into cancer cells and those body cells that
have fallen prey to viruses. The molecules then trigger off the diseased cells’
built-in suicide program. There are two possible ways in which the granzymes gain entry
into the cells under attack. Despite more than twenty years of research, however, it
remained unclear as to which of these pathways is used to smuggle the lethal amount of
granzymes into a cell. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology have now
shown that minute pores on the cell surface open the door to the granzymes for a short
period of time. These results provide new prospects for improved methods of treatment of
chronic virus infections and cancer. (PNAS, 2. September 2008)
Carrots and sticks to promote a
healthy lifestyle?
When it comes to deciding whether paying people to make healthier lifestyle changes is a
good thing, it seems patient opinion is split right down the middle. Unsurprisingly
perhaps, those who smoke and are overweight are its greatest advocates. This is the
finding of a study by Judith Long and her colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania
School of Medicine to be published in the October issue of Springer's Journal of General
Internal Medicine.
Gene marker indicates doubling of
survival time in advanced colorectal cancer treated with cetuximab
Genetic testing can identify a group of patients with advanced colorectal cancer who are
likely to survive on average twice as long if treated with the drug cetuximab, late
breaking results show. At the 33rd Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology
(ESMO) in Stockholm, Dr. Christos Karapetis from Flinders University in Australia reports
on a genetic analysis of 394 patients who took part in a phase III study comparing the
monoclonal antibody cetuximab with best supportive care. The latest analysis compared the
effect of mutations in the K-Ras gene on overall survival and progression-free survival.
The gene encodes a protein that is a key component of cellular signalling pathways,
conveying extracellular growth signals from the cell surface to the nucleus. When growth
factors bind to cell surface receptors, including epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR),
K-Ras is temporarily activated, facilitating regulated cell growth and proliferation.
New drug substantially extends
survival in pancreatic cancer
A new form of chemotherapy that destroys new blood vessels that grow around tumors has
produced excellent results in a phase II trial of patients with inoperable pancreatic
cancer. European investigators led by Prof. Matthias Löhr from the Karolinska Institute
evaluated the efficacy and safety of three different doses of cationic lipid complexed
paclitaxel (EndoTAG-1) administered twice weekly, in combination with weekly infusions of
gemcitabine, compared to gemcitabine alone, in 200 patients with pancreatic
adenocarcinoma. “EndoTAG consists of charged particles that bind preferentially to
the fast-growing endothelial cells in new blood vessels being formed by tumors,”
Prof. Löhr explained. “The drug, paclitaxel, is then released and thus directly
reaches an important target in tumors, i.e. the vessels. Paclitaxel itself is not very
efficient in pancreratic cancer.”
Coating improves electrical
stimulation therapy used for Parkinson's, depression, chronic pain
Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have designed a way to improve electrical
stimulation of nerves by outfitting electrodes with the latest in chemically engineered
fashion: a coating of basic black, formed from carbon nanotubes. The nanotube sheathing
improves the signals received and transmitted by electrodes, which researchers say is a
potentially critical step for advancing electrical nerve stimulation therapy. This type of
therapy increasingly shows promise for diseases ranging from epilepsy to depression to
chronic leg and back pain. By implanting electronic nerve stimulators, doctors elsewhere
have provided a quadriplegic patient with the ability to move a computer cursor at will,
and monkeys have been able to move objects in a virtual world with mere mind power. For
individuals who lose an arm or leg and rely on prosthetics, implanted stimulators offer
promise in restoring feelings of sensation.
Depressed dialysis patients more
likely to be hospitalized or die, researcher finds
Dialysis patients diagnosed with depression are nearly twice as likely to be hospitalized
or die within a year than those who are not depressed, a UT Southwestern Medical Center
researcher has found. In the study, available online and in the Sept. 15 issue of Kidney
International, researchers monitored 98 dialysis patients for up to 14 months. More than a
quarter of dialysis patients received a psychiatric diagnosis of some form of depression
based on a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4th edition (DSM IV).
This is the first reported link between adverse clinical outcomes in dialysis patients and
depression made through a formal psychiatric interview based on the DSM-IV standards. More
than 80 percent of the depressed patients died or were hospitalized, compared with 43
percent of non-depressed patients. Cardiovascular events, which previously have been
linked to depression, led to 20 percent of the hospitalizations.
Dr. Stephen McCurdy of the UC Davis Department of Public Health Sciences, Division of
Environmental and Occupational Health, Western Center of Agricultural Health and Safety
presents the third part of an update on pesticides and health. The focus of this program
is the effects of pesticides on reproductive health.
Water Fuel Cell Car Conversion Kit
Sick of high gas prices? Learn how to easily double your gas mileage and run your car
cheaply and safely on water. Save over 40% on fuel costs with this conversion kit!
Trading on the female body:
exploitation of women for eggs
One quick Google search on "egg donation" will demonstrate how prevalent the
ads are to "make dreams come true" or "help create a miracle". Women
on Ivy League campuses across America and poor women from around the world are being
heavily recruited to "donate" their eggs to fertility clinics and now for
cloning research. Sadly, egg donation has less to do with altruism and more to do with the
exploitation of women--particularly young women and often poor women who are usually
facing large debts or just trying to make ends meet. Egg donation puts women's health and
safety at risk. Newer trends in fertility medicine are moving away from current practices
which are harmful to infertile women but neglect the nameless, faceless egg donor women.
People of all political and religious stripes have organized all around the world to call
attention to the risks of egg donation practices.
Killing bacteria isn't enough to
restore immune function after infection, researchers find
A bacterial molecule that initially signals to animals that they have been invaded must be
wiped out by a special enzyme before an infected animal can regain full health,
researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found. Using a genetically engineered
mouse model, the team found that simply eradicating the infection-causing bug isn’t
enough to restore an animal’s immune function. Lipopolysaccharide, or LPS, the
dominant bacterial “signal” molecule that heralds the invasion, must also be
inactivated. The findings are to appear online Sept. 11 in Cell Host & Microbe.
“We think this is the first evidence that killing the causative agent of a bacterial
infection isn’t enough for an animal to recover fully,” said Dr. Robert Munford,
professor of internal medicine and microbiology, and senior author of the study.
“You’ve got to get rid of this molecule that the host is responding to or else
its immune system remains suppressed.”
Stem cells may solve mystery of
early pregnancy breast cancer protection
The answer to why an early pregnancy seems to protect against breast cancer could rest
with a decrease in stem cells found after animals have given birth, said researchers at
Baylor College of Medicine in a report that appears in the current issue of the journal
Stem Cell. Women who have children young, at least before the age of 30, reduce their risk
of developing breast cancer, said Dr. Yi Li, a professor in the Lester and Sue Smith
Breast Center at BCM. The most dramatic reduction in risk occurs in women who have their
first children before the age of 24. However, the mechanism by which these early
pregnancies provided protection has proved elusive. The promise of such work is important.
"If we can figure out the mechanism behind this, we could develop a pill that we
could offer young women in high school and college that could significantly reduce their
risk of breast cancer," he said. However, he said, there are many steps to be taken
before he and his colleagues can determine how best to do that. Understanding why stem
cells decrease in women who have their children young could prove an important advance. In
studies in mice, Li and his colleagues compared the numbers of mammary or breast stem
cells (early cells that can differentiate into breast tissue) found in mice that had had
babies at an age equivalent to the teens to mice that had never had babies.
Viral “magic bullet”
targets cancer cells with help of new compound
Canadian researchers discover way to make cancer vulnerable to “good” viruses.
Researchers at McGill University and the affiliated Lady Davis Research Institute of the
Jewish General Hospital – along with colleagues at the University of Ottawa and the
Ottawa Health Research Institute (OHRI) – report a significant breakthrough in the
use of viruses to target and destroy cancer cells, a field known as oncolytic virotherapy.
Their results were published in the September early edition of the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Johns Hopkins scientists report success in significantly suppressing levels of the
“hunger hormone” ghrelin in pigs using a minimally invasive means of chemically
vaporizing the main vessel carrying blood to the top section, or fundus, of the stomach.
An estimated 90 percent of the body’s ghrelin originates in the fundus, which
can’t make the hormone without a good blood supply. “With gastric artery
chemical embolization, called GACE, there’s no major surgery,” says Aravind
Arepally, M.D., clinical director of the Center for Bioengineering Innovation and Design
and associate professor of radiology and surgery at the John Hopkins University School of
Medicine. “In our study in pigs, this procedure produced an effect similar to
bariatric surgery by suppressing ghrelin levels and subsequently lowering appetite.”
Reporting on the research in the September 16 online edition of Radiology, Arepally and
his team note that for more than a decade, efforts to safely and easily suppress grehlin
have met with very limited success.
Canadian researchers have used three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging (3-D MRI) to
accurately detect bleeding within the walls of diseased carotid arteries, a condition that
may lead to a stroke. The results of the study published in the October issue of Radiology
suggest the technique may prove to be a useful screening tool for patients at high risk
for stroke. When major arteries are affected by atherosclerosis, fatty deposits, or
plaques, accumulate on the inner lining of the vessel walls. Progression of the disease
over time leads to narrowing, restricting blood flow or becoming completely blocked. Until
recently, scientists believed that this narrowing, called stenosis, was responsible for
most heart attacks or strokes. But new studies have identified the composition of
complicated plaques as being a major cause of vascular events and deaths. These
complicated plaques are characterized by surface ulcerations, blood clots and bleeding
into the vessel wall. "There's been a major change in our research," said Alan
R. Moody, F.R.C.R., F.R.C.P., of the University of Toronto. "We now know that the
composition of carotid artery plaque is likely to be more predictive of future stroke
events than the amount of stenosis in the vessel." In the study, conducted at the
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto, researchers performed 3-D MRI on the carotid
arteries of 11 patients, age 69 to 81. Complicated plaques were then surgically removed
from the patients' diseased arteries and analyzed under a microscope.
Early parenting plays key role in
infants' physiological response to stress
In infancy, genes are the key influence on a child's ability to deal with stress. But as
early as 6 months of age, parenting plays an important role in changing the impact of
genes that may put infants at risk for responding poorly to stress. That's the message
from a new study by researchers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill,
Pennsylvania State University, the University of North Carolina-Greensboro, and North
Carolina State University. It appears in the September/October 2008 issue of the journal
Child Development. The researchers looked at 142 infants who had been placed in a
stressful situation—being separated from their mothers—when they were 3, 6, and
12 months old. They measured infants' heart rates while they were exposed to the stressor,
isolating a cardiac response called vagal tone. Vagal tone acts like a brake on the heart
when the body is in a calm state, but during a challenging situation, this brake is
withdrawn, allowing heart rate to increase so the body can actively deal with the
challenge. They also collected DNA to determine which form of a dopamine receptor gene the
infants carried; specific forms of this gene are related to problems in adolescence and
adulthood including aggression, substance abuse, and other risky behaviors. To assess the
mothers' behavior as high or low in sensitivity, they also videotaped the mothers and
their infants playing together for 10 minutes when the babies were 6 months old.
A common bronchodilator drug which has been used for more than a decade by patients with
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has been linked to a one-third higher risk of
cardiovascular-related deaths. The drug, ipratropium, is sold under the brand names
Atrovent and Combivent, the latter a combination product that contains ipratropium. A new
study from Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine found that veterans with
recently diagnosed COPD using ipratropium were 34 percent more likely to die of a heart
attack or of arrhythmia than COPD patients using only albuterol (another bronchodilator)
or patients not using any treatment. The study was published in the Sept. 15 issue of the
Annals of Internal Medicine. "This medication may be having some systemic
cardiovascular effect that is increasing the risk of death in COPD patients," said
Todd Lee, lead author and research assistant professor in the Institute for Healthcare
Studies at the Feinberg School.
New Synthetic Form of Protein Holds
Promise to Stop Cancer Spread
Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee have a pending patent on a
new synthetic form of a protein involved in certain types of cancers and immune system
diseases. The protein, CXCL12, is known as a chemokine. Chemokines are proteins that
regulate the movement of cells into tissues and recruit infection-fighting white blood
cells to infected and injured sites. They essentially act as homing beacons for the immune
system. New information on the structure of the protein was discovered in the lab of Brian
Volkman, Ph.D., associate professor of biochemistry at the Medical College. The findings
were based on seminal reports by Michael Dwinell, Ph.D., associate professor of
microbiology and molecular genetics, who initially inspired Dr. Volkman to look into the
properties of CXCL12 in 2001. (See sidebar) “We hope that stable synthetic versions
of CXCL12 will allow us to conduct proof-of-concept studies about cancer prevention,”
Dr. Volkman says. “It’s clear that CXCL12 is an important molecule for designing
new ways to treat cancer.” The new findings from the Medical College are published in
the September issue of Science Signaling, a new online journal published by Science
magazine. Christopher Veldkamp, Ph.D., a biochemistry graduate of the Medical
College’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, who was awarded a postdoctoral
research fellowship by the American Cancer Society earlier this year, is lead author of
the study. It had been previously established that CXCL12 and its target cellular
receptor, CXCR4, played an important role in the migration of cancer cells to common sites
of tumor formation, such as bone marrow, lymph nodes, liver and lung tissue. Dr.
Dwinell’s laboratory established that CXCL12 expression was key to interfering with
the progression of cancer.
Herpes drug inhibits HIV in
patients infected with both viruses
Researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), McGill University and other
institutions have discovered how a simple antiviral drug developed decades ago suppresses
HIV in patients who are also infected with herpes. Their study was published in the Sept.
11 issue of the journal Cell Host and Microbe. An NIH research team led by Dr. Leonid
Margolis made the initial discovery, while Dr. Matthias Gotte, Associate Professor in
Biochemical Virology at McGill’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology, along
with colleagues at Emory University, helped explain the precise molecular mechanisms.
According to Dr. Gotte, HIV/herpes co-infection rates are very high and carry significant
health burdens for those patients who are already coping with HIV.
Key protein molecule linked to
diverse human chronic inflammatory diseases
Liwu Li, associate professor of biological sciences at Virginia Tech, has revealed a
common connection between the cellular innate immunity network and human chronic
inflammatory diseases, including atherosclerosis, Type 2 Diabetes, and neurodegenerative
diseases. The finding presents a viable cellular and molecular target for the diagnosis
and treatment of serious human inflammatory diseases, according to Li. "Researchers
and physicians have long recognized that there is an association between these conditions.
For example, obesity increases the risk of heart attack or stroke, Type 2 Diabetes or
insulin resistance, and Alzheimer's Disease," said Li, who is the founding director
of the Inflammation Center at Virginia Tech. "Inflammation is the common
mechanism," he said. "Inflammation is a double-edged sword. Proper inflammation
is necessary to fend off infection and abnormal cell growth. On the other hand, excessive
inflammation contributes to diverse chronic diseases, including atherosclerosis, diabetes,
and lupus." However, the complex cellular and molecular networks controlling
inflammation are still poorly understood, he said. "The lack of understanding impedes
our progress in treating serious chronic inflammatory diseases."
Nanomedical approach targets
multiple cancer genes, shrinks tumors
Nanoparticles filled with a drug that targets two genes that trigger melanoma could offer
a potential cure for this deadly disease, according to cancer researchers. The treatment,
administered through an ultrasound device, demonstrates a safer and more effective way of
targeting cancer-causing genes in cancer cells without harming normal tissue. "It is
a very selective and targeted approach," said Gavin Robertson, associate professor of
pharmacology, pathology and dermatology, Penn State College of Medicine. "And unlike
most other cancer drugs that inadvertently affect a bunch of proteins, we are able to
knock out single genes." The Penn State researchers speculated that "silencing
RNA" (siRNA) -- strands of RNA molecules that knock out specific genes -- could turn
off the two cancer-causing genes and potentially treat the deadly disease more
effectively. "siRNA checks the expression of the two genes, which then lowers the
abnormal levels of the cancer causing proteins in cells," explained Robertson, who is
lead author of the paper appearing in the Sept. 15 issue of the journal Cancer Research.
In recent years, researchers have zeroed in on two key genes -- B-Raf and Akt3 -- that
cause melanoma. B-Raf, the most frequently mutated gene in melanoma, produces the mutant
protein, B-Raf, which helps mole cells survive and grow but does not form melanomas on its
own. Robertson and colleagues previously found that a protein called Akt3 regulates the
activity of the mutated B-Raf, which aids the development of melanoma. The drug in this
study specifically targets Akt3 and the mutant B-Raf and does therefore not affect normal
cells, added Robertson, who is also director of the Foreman Foundation Melanoma
Therapeutics Program at the Penn State College of Medicine Cancer Institute.
Avoid coupon redeemers - Their
stigma is contagious (unless they're attractive)
Less than 2 percent of Americans use coupons, likely because of fear of being viewed as
cheap or poor. A new study in the Journal of Consumer Research demonstrates that not only
do coupon users face stigmatization; people who stand near them do too.Authors Jennifer J.
Argo (University of Alberta) and Kelley J. Main (University of Manitoba) studied a
phenomenon called "stigma-by-association," which has already been documented in
regard to physical disabilities and alcoholism. In a series of studies, the authors found
that coupon stigma is real and it transfers to people who are in close proximity to coupon
users. "One implication that arises from society's fascination with wealth and status
is that when consumers engage in behaviors that differ from this view they risk being
sanctioned," the authors explain. "Using a retail context, we conducted four
experiments to demonstrate that the presence of one consumer redeeming a coupon results in
a second non-coupon redeeming shopper being stigmatized-by-association (i.e., perceived as
cheap)." The researchers interviewed shoppers who observed people using various kinds
of coupons. They tested participants' impressions of the coupon shoppers and people
standing near them. They found that people had negative ideas about the people using
coupons, especially low-value coupons. This stigma was more likely to be transferred if
the shoppers knew each other well, stood in the same line, or were of similar (average)
attractiveness. In addition, the authors discovered two ways to avoid catching the coupon
stigma: standing in a different checkout lane or being highly attractive. In fact, being
highly attractive also protected coupon redeemers from being stigmatized
Children’s Hospital of
Pittsburgh of UPMC Researchers Identify Genetic Mutation That May Predict Organ Rejection
Using a novel combination of cutting-edge technologies to scan the human genome,
researchers at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC have identified a genetic
mutation that identifies transplant recipients who experience rejection. Known as a single
nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), the genetic mutation validates the effectiveness of the
system the researchers developed to search the human genome, according to principal
investigator Rakesh Sindhi, MD, director of Pediatric Transplant Research in the Hillman
Center for Pediatric Transplantation at Children’s Hospital. They studied DNA samples
from 80 children who received liver transplants and their parents. “To identify
mutations that mark a disease, from the millions of known mutations in the human genome,
one needs to study hundreds, even thousands of patients with that disease. As a result,
large-scale scanning of known mutations has not been applied to rarer diseases, such as
those that affect children. However, by combining multiple layers of genetic information,
with information from the cell types and processes affected by these genes, we can now
study less common diseases using smaller numbers of subjects,” Dr. Sindhi said.
“Such mutations are likely to become the basis of a genomic fingerprint, which will
allow us to predict who will experience rejection beforehand, and to personalize
antirejection medication. The novel combination of techniques used in this study is a
major methodological advance toward developing personalized diagnostics for transplant
recipients, which will improve outcomes and quality of life.”
Vitamin Junkeys: Natural Lactation
and Breast Feeding Tips
In this week's episode, naturopath, Dr. JJ Dugoua and Jennifer Lyall talk about
lactation and breast feeding. They look at how long women typically breast feed, the
benefits of breast feeding, natural ways to stimulate breast milk production, foods to
include in your diet while breast feeding, ones to avoid. The show closes with some great
natural resources for pregnant/nursing women.
Landmark Study Opens Door to New
Cancer, Aging Treatments - Wistar Institute Researchers Decipher Telomerase Structure
Researchers at The Wistar Institute have deciphered the structure of the active region of
telomerase, an enzyme that plays a major role in the development of nearly all human
cancers. The landmark achievement opens the door to the creation of new, broadly effective
cancer drugs, as well as anti-aging therapies. Researchers have attempted for more than a
decade to find drugs that shut down telomerase—widely considered the No. 1 target for
the development of new cancer treatments—but have been hampered in large part by a
lack of knowledge of the enzyme’s structure. The findings, published online August 31
in Nature, should help researchers in their efforts to design effective telomerase
inhibitors, says Emmanuel Skordalakes, Ph.D., assistant professor in Wistar’s Gene
Expression and Regulation Program, who led the study. “Telomerase is an ideal target
for chemotherapy because it is active in almost all human tumors, but inactive in most
normal cells,” Skordalakes says. “That means a drug that deactivates telomerase
would likely work against all cancers, with few side effects.”The study elucidates
the active region of telomerase and provides the first full-length view of the telomerase
molecule’s critical protein component. It reveals surprising details, at the atomic
level, of the enzyme’s configuration and how it works to replicate the ends of
chromosomes—a process critical to both tumor development and the aging process.
Wistar Researchers Invigorate
“Exhausted” Immune Cells - Findings support new therapies for HIV, hepatitis,
cancer
In battles against chronic infections, the body’s key immune cells often become
exhausted and ineffective. Researchers at The Wistar Institute have found a way to restore
vigor to these killer T cells by blocking a key receptor on their surface, findings that
may advance the development of new therapies for diseases such as HIV, hepatitis B and C,
and cancer. In their study, published online September 15 in the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Wistar Institute investigators and colleagues report
that using an antibody to block the receptor, known as programmed death-1 (PD-1),
dramatically restored immunity in chronically infected mice. Furthermore, they discovered
a method to distinguish between T cells that can be revitalized in this way and those that
can’t. The findings will help researchers develop PD-1 blocking agents, and also
provide a way to select patients who may benefit most from such novel drugs, says the
study’s lead author E. John Wherry, Ph.D., an assistant professor in Wistar’s
Immunology Program. “Blocking PD-1 may provide a novel tool to fight chronic
infection as well as some cancers, like melanoma, that are susceptible to destruction by
the immune system,” Wherry said. Examples of infections that often result in T-cell
exhaustion are HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C, he says. Wherry’s continuing
research on PD-1 has provided the groundwork for developing antibody therapies that
inhibit the receptor. Wherry says he knows of a pharmaceutical company preparing to test
one of these agents in patients with hepatitis C.
Sun-damaged skin does not improve
with estrogen treatments
Treating the skin with estrogen can stimulate collagen production—which improves the
appearance of the skin—in areas not typically exposed to the sun, according to new
research from the University of Michigan Health System. But in sun-damaged skin, the same
treatment does not increase collagen production, the study found. The findings elucidate
why it is so difficult to reverse the effects of sun damage on the skin, says lead author
Laure Rittie, Ph.D., research investigator in the U-M Department of Dermatology.
“Frankly, we were very surprised to find that stimulation of collagen production by
topical estrogen treatment was restricted to skin not chronically exposed to sunlight.
These results suggest that sun exposure alters the ability of skin to respond to topical
estrogen, and point out how difficult it is to repair photoaged skin,” Rittie says.
The study appears in the new issue of the Archives of Dermatology.
International TGen-led team finds
link between brain protein and Alzheimer's disease
Investigators at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) today announced a
link between the brain protein KIBRA and Alzheimer's disease, a discovery that could lead
to promising new treatments for this memory-robbing disorder. The new discovery builds on
a previous TGen-led study published in the prestigious journal Science, which showed a
genetic link between KIBRA and memory in healthy adults. In the new study, TGen
researchers found that carriers of a memory-enhancing flavor of the KIBRA gene had a 25
percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. The findings were reported Saturday
in the online edition of Neurobiology of Aging, a Philadelphia-based peer-review journal
that generally focuses on how aging affects the nervous system. "This research
suggests that KIBRA, and possibly some of the proteins with which it interacts, may play a
role in Alzheimer's disease," said Dr. Matthew Huentelman, an investigator in TGen's
Neurogenomics Division and the paper's senior author.
Despite a deadly landslide, University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine researchers
collected more than 500 genetic samples that, for the first time, identified a series of
genetic mutations that appear linked to significant risk for cleft palate, Pitt announced
today."In some cases, it would be two entire days of travel by boat, car and foot to
reach just one family in a remote village," Dr. Alexandre Vieira, assistant professor
the school's Department of Oral Biology, said in a news release. "It took us about
three years to finish the project."
Promising new treatment option for
women with recurrent ovarian cancer
Combining the new drug trabectedin with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin provides clinical
benefit to women with relapsed ovarian cancer, according to new results presented at the
33rd Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in Stockholm. The
combination, which importantly does not include a platinum drug, challenges the current
standard of treatment for women whose cancer recurs at least 6 months after first-line
treatment, said Associate Prof. Bradley J. Monk from the University of California Irvine
Medical Center. "This trial, which included almost two-thirds such women, challenges
this traditional paradigm and suggests that a non-platinum doublet is also effective in
this setting," he said. "Trabectedin represents a 'new chemical entity' in North
America and if approved by the FDA, would be an important new option for women with
recurrent ovarian cancer." Trabectedin, a synthetic version of a compound first
isolated from sea-squirts, has been granted marketing approval in Europe for the treatment
of patients with advanced soft tissue sarcoma.
More Findings on Gene Involved in
Childhood Asthma
Asthma researchers have found that a gene variant known to raise the risk of childhood
asthma in European children plays a similar role in white American children, but not in
African American children. The most common chronic illness among children in the developed
world, asthma is a complex disease in which a variety of genes are thought to interact
with each other and with environmental influences to produce its effects. As in many other
genetic diseases, researchers expect that better knowledge of gene associations will pave
the way for new treatments and to customizing treatments to each patient's genetic
profile. Researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia found that variants in
the ORMDL3 gene were associated with childhood-onset asthma among U.S. patients of
European ancestry. In 2007 a study team based in Europe had identified the ORMDL3 gene,
located on chromosome 17, as contributing to childhood asthma among British and German
children. The current study, from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, appeared as a brief online report Aug. 29
in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
Gene therapy for chronic pain
enters first human trial
This week, University of Michigan scientists will begin a phase 1 clinical trial for the
treatment of cancer-related pain, using a novel gene transfer vector injected into the
skin to deliver a pain-relieving gene to the nervous system. A gene transfer vector is an
agent used to carry genes into cells. In this groundbreaking clinical trial, the
investigators will use a vector created from herpes simplex virus (HSV) – the virus
that causes cold sores – to deliver the gene for enkephalin, one of the body’s
own natural pain relievers. “In pre-clinical studies, we have found that HSV-mediated
transfer of enkephalin can reduce chronic pain,” says David Fink, M.D., Robert Brear
Professor and chair of the department of neurology at the U-M Medical School. Fink
developed the vector with collaborators and will direct the study.
Scientists Pioneer New Treatment
for Prostate Cancer
Scientists at Sunnybrook Research Institute (SRI) are developing and commercializing a
promising novel therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer that may offer patients a
faster and more precise treatment than existing clinical alternatives, with fewer side
effects. The new treatment—magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guided transurethral
ultrasound—uses heat from focused ultrasound to treat cancer in the prostate gland
precisely while sparing the delicate noncancerous tissues around the prostate essential
for healthy urinary, bowel and sexual function. Sunnybrook researchers Dr. Michael
Bronskill and Dr. Rajiv Chopra have licensed their innovation and formed Profound Medical
Inc., which will develop the technology for clinical use. Unlike surgical removal of the
prostate, the treatment is minimally invasive and could be performed without a lengthy
hospital stay. In preclinical studies, treatment takes less than 30 minutes. The therapy,
on which clinicians at Sunnybrook will conduct preliminary testing in preparation for a
clinical trial, could help limit the number of men living with the common, debilitating
and often permanent side effects of surgery and radiation treatments currently used. More
of these invasive therapies are being performed now because improved awareness among
younger men has converged with better clinical detection tools. Profound’s clinical
development is targeted at treatment that reduces the high level of incontinence and
impotence associated with current, invasive treatments. The therapy involves two different
and naturally incompatible technologies, ultrasound and MRI, which Bronskill and Chopra
spent 10 years making compatible. “You have to make an ultrasound heating applicator
work inside a magnetic resonance imager, without the two technologies interfering with
each other,” says Bronskill, who is a professor at the University of Toronto.
“The prostate cancer site is a natural for this technology because it’s
surrounded by structures you want to spare.” Dr. Laurence Klotz, chief of urology at
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, and a professor at the University of Toronto, says that
a noninvasive therapy for early, localized prostate cancer could improve the quality of
life of hundreds of thousands of men. “The key to effective noninvasive treatment is
accurate imaging of the target organ and of the effects of the treatment on tissue. In
that respect, MR-guided ultrasound has many potential advantages over transrectal
ultrasound-guided focused ultrasound, now approved for use in Canada,” says Klotz.
Biological Selenium Removal - The
Solution to Pollution?
Selenium has been referred to as an “essential toxin” due to the fact that it
shows only a marginal line between the nutritious requirement and toxic effects upon
exposure. The steep dose response curve due to bioaccumulation effects have lead to the
characterization of selenium as a “time bomb” that can be fused by exceeding a
narrow threshold concentration in ecosystems through anthropogenic activities. Ironically,
an estimated 0.5 to 1 billion people worldwide suffer from selenium deficiency, whereas
areas of toxicity can be separated from selenium deficient areas by only 20 km. The
microbiological treatment of selenium - so called "dissimilatory metal
reduction" - could supersede this problem, as selenium-reducing microorganisms are
highly selective for selenate, reducing it to insoluble, less-toxic elemental selenium
that can potentially be recovered from the process. A study funded by the European Union,
published in the September-October issue of the Journal of Environmental Quality,
demonstrates that the biological treatment is indeed efficient for selenate reduction, and
substantial amounts of selenate are converted to methylated selenium species or nano-sized
elemental selenium particles. The emission of nano-sized selenium particles is
problematic, as these can become bioavailable by direct assimilation or reoxidize to
selenite and selenate. Dimethlyselenide and dimethyldiselenide, two species with unknown
ecotoxicological long-term effects, contributed substantially to selenium dissolved in the
effluent. Their formation was induced by minor temperature changes during biological
reduction, thus a careful process control might drastically increase removal success of
existing biotreatment systems for selenium and is a prerequisite for successful removal in
full scale applications.
Nottingham scientists identify
childhood brain cancer genes
Scientists at The University of Nottingham have isolated three important genes involved in
the development of a type of childhood brain cancer. The breakthrough is revealed in a
study published in the British Journal of Cancer today (Tuesday). Researchers from the
Children’s Brain Tumour Research Centre at The University of Nottingham, on behalf of
the Children’s Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG), have found three genes associated
with specific characteristics of ependymoma — the third most common form of childhood
brain cancer. Before now, relatively little was known about the underlying biology of this
disease. The results of this study provide a more detailed understanding of the genetics
behind ependymoma, which could help scientists develop targeted drugs to treat the disease
more successfully, and with fewer side effects.
To Kill or Not to Kill - Study
Reveals How Co-infecting Viruses Coordinate to Determine a Bacterial Cell’s Fate
A new study suggests that bacteria-infecting viruses – called phages – can make
collective decisions about whether to kill host cells immediately after infection or enter
a latent state to remain within the host cell. The research, published in the September 15
issue of the Biophysical Journal, shows that when multiple viruses infect a cell, this
increases the number of viral genomes and therefore the overall level of viral gene
expression. Changes in viral gene expression can have a dramatic nonlinear effect on gene
networks that control whether viruses burst out of the host cell or enter a latent state.
New research could help cars kick
the fossil fuel habit
Researchers at the University of Bath are helping to develop new rechargeable batteries
that could improve hybrid electric cars in the future. Transport is a major energy user
and is estimated to be responsible for around 25% of the UK’s total carbon emissions.
As concern grows about climate change, a range of ‘green technologies’ are being
developed to help reduce carbon emissions. Hybrid petrol/electric cars that use
conventional metal-hydride batteries are already available but they are heavy and the cars
have limited power. Professor Saiful Islam, of the Department of Chemistry at the
University of Bath, is researching new materials to use in rechargeable lithium batteries,
similar to those that have helped to power the worldwide ‘portable revolution’
in mobile phones, laptops and MP3 players. For hybrid cars, new materials are crucial to
make the batteries lighter, safer and more efficient in storing energy.
"One-Hit" Event Provides
New Opportunity for Colon Cancer Prevention, Say Fox Chase Researchers
More than 30 years ago, Alfred Knudson Jr, MD, PhD, revolutionized the field of cancer
genetics by showing that a person must lose both their paternal and maternal copies of a
particular class of cancer-inhibiting genes, called tumor-suppressor genes, in order to
develop cancer. This theory, called the two-hit hypothesis, guided scientists around the
globe in their quest for tumor suppressor genes. Now Knudson, a Fox Chase Cancer Center
Distinguished Scientist and senior advisor to the Center president, and colleagues offer
evidence that a “one-hit” event is enough to change the cells and increase the
likelihood they would become cancerous. By studying people who have inherited the first
hit in every cell in the body, the Fox Chase researchers believe they may have discovered
a source for some of the earliest known molecular changes that signal the presence of
colorectal cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States.
Their findings are presented in the September 15 issue of the journal Cancer Research.
People with migraines may also be more likely to develop blood clots in their veins,
according to a study published in the September 16, 2008, issue of Neurology®, the
medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. In the condition, called venous
thrombosis or thromboembolism, blood clots form in a vein, which can limit blood flow and
cause swelling and pain. Those clots can then dislodge from the vein and travel to the
heart and the lungs, which can be fatal. For the study, 574 people in Italy age 55 and up
were interviewed to determine whether they had a history of migraine or migraine at the
time of the evaluation and their medical records were reviewed for cases of venous
thrombosis. The arteries in their necks and thighs were scanned with ultrasounds to check
for atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries. Of the participants, 111 people had
migraine. A total of 21 people with migraine also had one or more instances of venous
thrombosis, or 19 percent. In comparison, 35 people without migraine had the condition, or
8 percent. Researchers do not know why migraine and venous thrombosis are linked. One
theory is that the blood of people with migraine may be more prone to clotting.
Massage therapy may have immediate
positive effect on pain and mood for advanced cancer patients
A new study from the National Institutes of Health finds that massage therapy may have
immediate benefits on pain and mood among patients with advanced cancer. The study appears
in the September 16, 2008 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. In a randomized trial of
380 advanced cancer patients at 15 U.S. hospices, improvement in pain and mood immediately
following treatment was greater with massage than with simple touch. "When patients
near the end of life, the goals of medical care change from trying to cure disease to
making the patient as comfortable as possible," said Jean S. Kutner, MD, MSPH,
Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine at the University
of Colorado Denver School of Medicine. "This study is important because it shows
massage is a safe and effective way to provide immediate relief to patients with advanced
cancer." Pain and depressed mood are common problems for patients with advanced
cancer. While drug therapies can reduce symptoms, they don't always work and often have
troublesome side effects. Researchers think that massage may interrupt the cycle of
distress, offering brief physical and psychological benefits. Physically, massage may
decrease inflammation and edema, increase blood and lymphatic circulation, and relax
muscle spasms. Psychologically, massage may promote relaxation, release endorphins, and
create a positive experience that distracts temporarily from pain and depression.
Researchers caution that while massage may offer some immediate relief for patients with
advanced cancer, the effects do not last over time, demonstrating the need for more
effective strategies to manage pain at the end of life.
Protective pathway in stressed
cells not so helpful when it comes to prions
Scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have discovered that an important
cellular quality control mechanism may actually be toxic to some brain cells during prion
infection. The research, published by Cell Press in the September 16th issue of the
journal Developmental Cell, proposes a new general mechanism of cellular dysfunction that
can contribute to the devastating and widespread neuronal death characteristic of slowly
progressing neurodegenerative diseases.Prions cause a number of untreatable and fatal
neurodegenerative disorders, including bovine spongiform encephalopathy ("mad cow
disease") in cattle and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. "We know that
abnormal metabolism of a normal prion protein (PrP) is at the root of these diseases.
However, the pathways that lead to selective neuronal death are unknown," explains
senior author Dr. Ramanujan S. Hegde from the National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development in Bethesda, Maryland.The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a membrane-bound
subcompartment of the cell that helps fold newly-made proteins and route them to their
final destinations within or outside the cell. When protein folding or trafficking is
temporarily compromised, the ER experiences "stress" and compensates using a
specific ER stress response.
Studies Showing Adverse Effects of
Dietary Soy, 1971-2003
Soy Dangers Summarized
* High levels of phytic acid in soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper,
iron and zinc. Phytic acid in soy is not neutralized by ordinary preparation methods such
as soaking, sprouting and long, slow cooking. High phytate diets have caused growth
problems in children.
* Trypsin inhibitors in soy interfere with protein digestion and may cause pancreatic
disorders. In test animals soy containing trypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.
* Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause
infertility and to promote breast cancer in adult women.
* Soy phytoestrogens are potent antithyroid agents that cause hypothyroidism and may
cause thyroid cancer. In infants, consumption of soy formula has been linked to autoimmune
thyroid disease.
* Vitamin B12 analogs in soy are not absorbed and actually increase the body's
requirement for B12.
* Soy foods increase the body's requirement for vitamin D.
* Fragile proteins are denatured during high temperature processing to make soy protein
isolate and textured vegetable protein.
* Processing of soy protein results in the formation of toxic lysinoalanine and highly
carcinogenic nitrosamines.
* Free glutamic acid or MSG, a potent neurotoxin, is formed during soy food processing
and additional amounts are added to many soy foods.
* Soy foods contain high levels of aluminum which is toxic to the nervous system and
the kidneys.
Vaccine against HER2-positive
breast cancer offers complete protection in lab
Researchers at Wayne State University have tested a breast cancer vaccine they say
completely eliminated HER2-positive tumors in mice - even cancers resistant to current
anti-HER2 therapy - without any toxicity.The study, reported in the September 15 issue of
Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, suggests the
vaccine could treat women with HER2-positive, treatment-resistant cancer or help prevent
cancer recurrence. The researchers also say it might potentially be used in cancer-free
women to prevent initial development of these tumors.HER2 receptors promote normal cell
growth, and are found in low amounts on normal breast cells. But HER2-positive breast
cells can contain many more receptors than is typical, promoting a particularly aggressive
type of tumor that affects 20 to 30 percent of all breast cancer patients. Therapies such
as trastuzumab and lapatinib, designed to latch on to these receptors and destroy them,
are a mainstay of treatment for this cancer, but a significant proportion of patients
develop a resistance to them or cancer metastasis that is hard to treat.This treatment
relied on activated, own-immunity to wipe out the cancer, says the study's lead
investigator, Wei-Zen Wei, Ph.D., a professor of immunology and microbiology at the
Karmanos Cancer Institute.
Johns Hopkins neuroscientists
discover a critical early step of memory formation
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine report in the July issue of
Neuron how nerve cells in the brain ensure that Arc, a protein critical for memory
formation, is made instantly after nerve stimulation. Paradoxically, its manufacture
involves two other proteins — including one linked to mental retardation — that
typically prevent proteins from being made. Previous research already established that
long-term memory formation depends on Arc protein, but scientists did not know the
mechanism that turned on this process. To find it, they surveyed proteins in mouse brains
that change or are activated after a nerve is stimulated and identified eEF2K (short for
eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase) as a player. When turned on, eEF2K inhibits an
important step of protein translation. "This seemed strange, because it suggested
that nerve cells might make Arc protein by using pathways typically thought to turn off
protein manufacture," says Paul Worley, M.D., a professor of neuroscience in the
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.Further examination of mouse brain slices
lacking eEF2K in their nerve cells showed that when stimulated, such cells fail to make
the usual pools of Arc protein, demonstrating that eEF2K is required for making Arc.
Researchers identify cancer-causing
gene in many colon cancers
Demonstrating that despite the large number of cancer-causing genes already identified,
many more remain to be found, scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have linked a
previously unsuspected gene, CDK8, to colon cancer. The discovery of CDK8's role in cancer
was made possible by new tools for assessing the activity of specific genes, say the
authors of the new study. As these tools are further improved, the stream of newly
discovered cancer genes is expected to increase, providing new avenues for therapy, the
authors suggest. The findings are being published as an advanced online publication by the
journal Nature on Sept. 14. "This study provides confirmation that many of the genes
involved in cancer have yet to be identified," remarked the study's senior author,
William Hahn, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber and the Broad Institute of Harvard and M.I.T.
"When it comes to identifying gene targets for therapy, we've really only scratched
the surface." The study is noteworthy in another respect, as well, the authors
indicated. Many of the abnormal proteins linked to cancer are known as "transcription
factors" because they're able to "read" cell DNA and use that information
for producing other cell proteins. Although transcription factors are important
regulators, this class of proteins has proven to be impossible to target with drugs. Genes
that influence such transcription factors, however, make attractive targets for drugs,
since they can potentially disrupt the cancer process and disable tumor cells. CDK8 is
such a gene. The new study began with a focus on a protein called beta-catenin, a
transcription factor that is overactive in nearly all colorectal cancers. Although
overactive beta-catenin plays a role in the initial formation of tumors, other genetic
abnormalities must occur for tumors to become fully malignant. To determine which genes
control the production of beta-catenin and are involved in the proliferation of colon
cancer cells, the research team ran three screening tests. In the first two, they used RNA
interference to shut down more than a thousand genes one by one and recorded the instances
where beta-catenin activity decreased and the cells stopped growing. They then analyzed
colon cancers for genes that had extra copies. When they examined where the results of the
three tests overlapped, one gene stood out -- CDK8, explained Hahn, who is also an
associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School
Penn Researchers Use Honeybee Venom
Toxin to Develop a New Tool for Studying Hypertension
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have modified a honeybee
venom toxin so that it can be used as a tool to study the inner workings of ion channels
that control heart rate and the recycling of salt in kidneys. In general, ion channels
selectively allow the passage of small ions such as sodium, potassium, or calcium into and
out of the cell.The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences, is from the laboratory of Zhe Lu, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Physiology and a
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, who researched the action of a natural bee
toxin on inward-rectifier potassium channels, Kir channels for short, to identify new
approaches to treat cardiovascular disease.
Top-Selling Prescription Drug
Mismarketed to Women
Lipitor has been the top-selling drug in the world and has accounted for over $12 billion
in annual sales. It has been prescribed to both men and women to lower cholesterol and
reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in patients with common risk factors for heart
disease. However, a new study appearing in the Journal of Empirical Legal Studies was
unable to find high quality clinical evidence documenting reduced heart attack risk for
women in a primary prevention context. Furthermore, advertising omits label information
relevant to women.Theodore Eisenberg of Cornell Law School and Martin T. Wells of Cornell
University assembled studies for a meta analysis of drugs’ effects on cardiovascular
risk, taking into account all relevant studies reporting risks for both men and women.
Nitrate concentrations of ground
water increasing in many areas of the United States
A nationwide study of nitrate trends in the ground water of the United States was recently
completed by scientists at the US Geological Survey. Nitrate is the most common chemical
contaminant found in ground water, and is related to infant health and possible cancer
risks. The study focused on 24 well networks in the US from 1988 to 2004, of which seven
well networks showed statistically significant increases in concentrations of nitrate
during this period.
Older people who diet without
exercising lose valuable muscle mass
A group of sedentary and overweight older people placed on a four-month exercise program
became more fit and burned off more fat, compared to older sedentary people who dieted but
did not exercise. The new study also showed that when older people diet without
exercising, they lose more lean muscle compared to those who exercise. When they combined
weight loss with exercise, it nearly completely prevented the loss of lean muscle mass.
Inflammatory response to infection
and injury may worsen dementia
Inflammation in the brain resulting from infection or injury may accelerate the progress
of dementia, research funded by the Wellcome Trust suggests. The findings, published this
week in the journal Biological Psychiatry, may have implications for the treatment and
care of those living with dementia. Systemic inflammation – inflammation in the body
as a whole – is already known to have direct effects on brain function. Episodes of
delirium, in which elderly and demented patients become extremely disoriented and
confused, are frequently caused by infections, injury or surgery in these patients. For
example, urinary tract infections, which are typically bacterial, appear to be
particularly potent inducers of psychiatric symptoms. Until now, there had been little
research into the impact of systemic inflammation on the progress of dementia and
neurodegenerative diseases. However, with over 700,000 people currently living in the UK
with dementia – a figure set to rise with our ageing population – scientists are
keen to understand more about the mechanisms behind such diseases. Now, in a study to
mimic the effect of bacterial infection in people with dementia, Dr Colm Cunningham and
colleagues at Trinity College Dublin, in collaboration with Professor Hugh Perry at the
University of Southampton have shown that the inflammatory response to infection in mice
with prior neurodegenerative disease leads to exaggerated symptoms of the infection,
causes changes in memory and learning and leads to accelerated progression of dementia.
Link between paracetamol use and
asthma in European adults confirmed in GA²LEN study
Adults who take paracetamol weekly were nearly three times more likely to have asthma than
those taking paracetamol less often, according to a study organised by GA²LEN, the Global
Allergy and Asthma European Network. Use of other painkillers was not significantly
related to asthma. In the GA²LEN-SARI study, published in the European Respiratory
Journal, researchers across Europe compared the frequency of analgesic use in over 500
adults with asthma and over 500 controls. Their results, to be presented at the next
Annual Congress of the European Respiratory Society (ERS) in Berlin (October 4-8, 2008)
suggest that the risk of asthma symptoms is increased by frequent paracetamol use. This
may be the consequence of the action of paracetamol that reduces levels of
‘glutathione’ in the lungs, an antioxidant substance needed to defend the
airways against damage from air pollution and tobacco smoke. Dr Seif Shaheen from Imperial
College London, one of the authors of the study, says “Epidemiological evidence is
growing that shows a link between paracetamol and asthma. Since 2000, several publications
have reported this association for instance in the UK and the USA. We have also shown that
asthma prevalence is higher in children and adults in countries with higher paracetamol
sales.” “Considering asthma is a common disease and paracetamol use is frequent,
it is now important to find out whether this association is really a causal one. A
clinical trial may be the only way to answer this question conclusively.”The Selenium
and Asthma Research Integration (SARI) project was initially set out across 15 GA²LEN
centres to integrate research efforts and build capacity of the GA²LEN network for future
large epidemiological studies. The network is also developing a clinical trial network
specialised in allergy and asthma, which in the long run could help scientists to further
investigate the link between paracetamol and asthma.
Bovine colostrum and fermented
cabbage can help restrict infections
Researcher Susanna Rokka of MTT Agrifood Research Finland has shown in her doctoral thesis
that antibodies extracted from bovine colostrum as well as lactobacilli extracted from
fermented cabbage and other sources prevent the action of pathogenic bacteria in the
gastrointestinal tract.Rokka studied the effects of bovine colostrum, of specific
antibodies produced in the bovine colostrum by vaccinating cows, and of lactobacilli on
infections in the gastrointestinal tract. The infections studied were gastritis, dental
caries and the E. coli infection in calves. Helicobacter pylori, which causes gastritis
and gastric ulcer, is also often the cause of stomach cancer. Vaccinating cows with
specific pathogens can create antibodies in their blood which are then transferred to the
cow’s milk as well. Concentrations are particularly high in colostrum, which is
produced by the cow immediately after parturition.
A long-awaited federal study of an X-ray alternative to the dreaded colonoscopy confirms
its effectiveness at spotting most cancers, although it was far from perfect.
Food Makers Scrimp on Ingredients
In an Effort to Fatten Their Profits
Major food makers are quietly altering their recipes on candy, dairy products and other
top-selling lines, adding fillers and substituting cheaper ingredients to cut costs amid
the commodities boom.
Virtual colonoscopy as good as
other colon cancer screening methods, study says
CT colonography (CTC), known as virtual colonoscopy, is as accurate at screening for
colorectal cancers and pre-cancerous polyps as conventional colonoscopy, the current
screening standard, according to the National CT Colonography Trial, a nationwide
multi-center study that included the San Francisco VA Medical Center. “This is a
landmark study,” says study co-author Judy Yee, MD, chief of radiology at SFVAMC and
professor and vice-chair of radiology at the University of California, San Francisco.
“It demonstrates that CTC is a practical alternative to other, more invasive methods
of colon cancer screening. The hope is that these results will encourage more health care
payers to cover screening CT colonography.”
St. Jude researchers have discovered an intriguing insight into how T cells, the immune
system’s master regulatory cells, wage war on the body’s own tissues in such
autoimmune disorders as multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.
Their findings about T cells add another piece to the puzzle of understanding such
diseases. While the findings are quite basic, they could contribute to designing therapies
to suppress the immune responses that are misdirected against a person’s own tissues
in autoimmune disorders.T cells launch the immune system into action when they encounter
bits of foreign protein, called antigens. T cells sense these antigens—which may come
from invading viruses or bacteria—through receptors on the T cells’ surface.
These receptors recognize and attach to specific antigens like a key fitting a lock. Many
autoimmune diseases arise when T cell receptors that recognize the body’s own
proteins, called “self” antigens, spur T cells to mistakenly launch an immune
system to attack body tissues.“T cells have potentially millions of different
possible receptors,” said Terrence Geiger, MD, PhD, Pathology, the senior author of a
report on this work that appears in the July 1 issue of the Journal of Immunology.
“Some T cell receptors are adept at promoting autoimmunity, some are poor and some
are protective. It is not clear why one T cell receptor can promote autoimmunity, whereas
another T cell receptor on a similar kind of T cell either doesn’t do anything, or
even protects against autoimmune reaction.”
Scientists find a way to transform
brain tumor cells into normal brain cells
Stopping brain tumor cells from growing sounds like a dream. Turning those cells into
normal brain cells sounds like a fantasy. But scientists at St. Jude Children’s
Research Hospital are in the process of turning fantasy into reality.A team of researchers
led by Martine Roussel, PhD, of Genetics and Tumor Cell Biology, discovered that three
proteins called BMP2, BMP4 and BMP7 can stop the growth of brain tumor cells and turn them
into normal brain cells. The discovery suggests a safer way to treat medulloblastoma, a
rare but often fatal childhood brain tumor.
St. Jude study gives new insights
into how cells accessorize their proteins
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators have gained new insight into how the
cell's vast array of proteins would instantly be reduced to a confusion of lethally
malfunctioning molecules without a system for proteins to "accessorize" in order
to regulate their function. Just as eyeglasses improve vision, a coat provides warmth or
an umbrella wards off rain, cells use a set of proteins called ubiquitin-like proteins
(UBLs) as accessories that adapt their function as needed in the cell. Now St. Jude
scientists have discovered how the function of a protein called cullin-RING changes when
it wears the UBL accessory called NEDD8.The researcher's findings, published in the Sept.
19, 2008, issue of the journal "Cell," reveal that NEDD8 changes the shape of
cullin-RING to activate it to perform its function. The researchers found that when NEDD8
attaches, it transforms cullin-RING into a kind of molecular valet that can then attach a
different accessory (ubiquitin) onto other proteins to foster the myriad of biochemical
reactions that enable life."The ubiquitination machinery is critical for the cell's
proteins to be able to function as necessary in a given environment. One of the major
functions of ubiquitin is to mark a protein for disposal when its job is done," said
Brenda Schulman, Ph.D., associate member in the St. Jude Structural Biology and Genetics
and Tumor Cell Biology departments and Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)
investigator. "Understanding ubiquitination can give us important knowledge about
such biological processes as cell division, embryonic development and immune
function." Schulman is the paper's senior author.
Walnut Trees Emit Aspirin-Like
Chemical to Deal With Stress
Walnut trees respond to stress by producing significant amounts of a chemical form of
aspirin, scientists have discovered. The finding, by scientists at the National Center for
Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo., opens up new avenues of research into the
behavior of plants and their impacts on air quality, and also has the potential to give
farmers an early warning signal about crops that are failing. "Unlike humans, who are
advised to take aspirin as a fever suppressant, plants have the ability to produce their
own mix of aspirin-like chemicals, triggering the formation of proteins that boost their
biochemical defenses and reduce injury," says NCAR scientist Thomas Karl, who led the
study. "Our measurements show that significant amounts of the chemical can be
detected in the atmosphere as plants respond to drought, unseasonable temperatures, or
other stresses."
Natural Childbirth Linked to
Stronger Baby Bonding Than C-Sections
The bonds that tie a mother to her newborn may be stronger in women who deliver naturally
than in those who deliver by cesarean section, according to a study published by Yale
School of Medicine researchers in the October issue of Journal of Child Psychology and
Psychiatry. The researchers, led by Yale Child Study Center Assistant Professor James
Swain, M.D., recruited two groups of parents from postpartum wards. One group of 12
mothers had cesarean sections and the other delivered naturally (vaginally). All women
were interviewed and given brain scans two to three weeks after giving birth. During the
brain scans, parents listened to recordings of their own baby’s cry during the
discomfort of a diaper change. The researchers then conducted interviews to assess the
mothers’ mood as well as their thoughts and parenting. The team found that compared
to mothers who delivered by cesarean section, those who delivered vaginally had greater
activity in certain brain regions in response to their own baby’s cry as measured by
fMRI. These brain areas included cortical regions that regulate emotions and empathy, as
well as deeper brain structures that contribute to motivation, and habitual thoughts and
behaviors. The responses to their own baby’s cry in some of these regions varied
according to mood and anxiety.
'Estrogen flooding our rivers,'
Université de Montréal study
The Montreal water treatment plant dumps 90 times the critical amount of certain estrogen
products into the river. It only takes one nanogram (ng) of steroids per liter of water to
disrupt the endocrinal system of fish and decrease their fertility. These are the findings
of Liza Viglino, postdoctoral student at the Université de Montréal’s Department of
Chemistry, at the NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Drinking Water Treatment and
Distribution, who is under the supervision of Professors Sébastien Sauvé and Michèle
Prévost.
A new study has found that parental control directly influences whether a child will
develop a harmonious or obsessive passion for their favorite hobby. Conducted by Professor
Geneviève Mageau, of the Université de Montréal's Department of Psychology, the study
will be published this fall edition of the Journal of Personality. Mageau focused on 588
musicians and athletes between the ages of six and 38 who practice their hobby at
different levels (beginner, intermediate and expert). Mageau used a Likert-type scale to
measure how parents support the autonomy of their child. She also evaluated the
psychological well being of the child regarding their hobby, which in this case was piano,
saxophone, skiing or swimming.
Expanding cell girth indicates
seriousness of breast cancer
How fat cells become after being exposed to a specialized electrical field is helping
researchers determine whether cells are normal, cancerous or a stage of cancer already
invading other parts of the body. Purdue University scientists tested the electrical
process and found cells that expanded the most were metastatic cancer, the term used when
the disease has spread beyond its point of origin. The technique allows screening of
single cells 300 times faster - five cells per second compared with the one cell per
minute of previous methods, said Chang Lu, senior and corresponding author of the study
currently online in the journal Analytic Chemistry. This rapid cell inspection permits
testing of enough cells for diagnosis and determination of the disease's level, he said.
Site used by sodium to control
sensitivity of certain potassium ion channels
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine researchers have uncovered how sodium
is able to control specific potassium ion channels in cells, according to new study
findings published online this week in Nature Chemical Biology. These findings, published
Sept. 14, may help researchers gain a greater understanding of the mechanisms involved in
ion channel gating and may one day set the stage for new approaches in drug design.
Intracellular-sodium is known to control the opening and closing of certain potassium
channels. Using a computational-experimental approach, researchers examined the
interaction between sodium and a group of potassium channels known as Kir channel
proteins. The team had previously shown that Kir3 channels are sensitive to sodium, but
had not shown how sodium is coordinated by specific amino acids found in several Kir
channel proteins.
For years, researchers have known that high blood pressure causes blood vessels to
contract and low blood pressure causes blood vessels to relax. Until recently, however,
researchers did not have the tools to determine the exact proteins responsible for this
phenomenon. Now, using atomic force microscopy - a microscope with very high resolution -
and isolating blood vessels outside the body, University of Missouri researchers have
identified a protein that plays an important role in the control of tissue blood flow and
vascular resistance. This new knowledge brings researchers one step closer to
understanding vascular diseases, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and other vascular
problems. “This study provides new insights that clarify the role of specific
proteins and the vascular smooth muscle cells that control the mechanical activity of
blood vessels,” said Gerald Meininger, professor and director of MU’s Dalton
Cardiovascular Research Center. “We have identified an important receptor that is
responsible for the ability of small arteries in the body. This research provides new
clues for the cause of vascular diseases, such as high blood pressure and diabetes and may
be used in the future as a possible therapeutic target.”
Scientists identify the genes that
cause blindness produced by corneal edema
A study carried out by researchers of the UGR and the San Cecilio Teaching Hospital opens
the door to new treatments for corneal oedema and will even allow to modify the affected
genes by means of gene therapy. The work was published in the month of May in the renowned
journal Experimental Eye Research.
Thin men more vulnerable to
osteoporosis and bone fractures than other older men
Obesity and weight increase leads to an increased risk of many chronic diseases, and the
advice is therefore to maintain a stable healthy weight. Now, research shows that there
may be disadvantages to being thin. Men who have low weight in middle age and who reduce
their weight, increase the chance of osteoporosis and fracture. This is shown in data from
the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the University of Tromsø. The findings are
now published in the American Journal of Epidemiology.
Novel Anti-Cancer Mechanism Found
in Long-Lived Rodents
Biologists at the University of Rochester have found that small-bodied rodents with long
lifespans have evolved a previously unknown anti-cancer mechanism that appears to be
different from any anticancer mechanisms employed by humans or other large mammals. The
findings are published in today's issue of Aging Cell. Understanding this mechanism may
help prevent cancer in humans because many human cancers originate from stem cells and
similar mechanisms may regulate stem cell division. "We haven't come across this
anticancer mechanism before because it doesn't exist in the two species most often used
for cancer research: mice and humans," says Vera Gorbunova, assistant professor of
biology at the University of Rochester, a principal investigator of this study. "Mice
are short-lived and humans are large-bodied. But this mechanism appears to exist only in
small, long-lived animals."
Programmed cell death contributes
force to the movement of cells
In addition to pruning cells out of the way during embryonic development, the much-studied
process of programmed cell death, or apoptosis, has been newly found to exert significant
mechanical force on surrounding cells. This mechanical force may be harnessed throughout
biology by tissues to aid wound formation, organ development and other processes that
require cell movement, according to a Duke University team that melds biology with physics
to investigate force at the cellular level. Cells are known to move in coordinated fashion
during the closure of an eye-shaped opening on the back of a developing fruit fly embryo,
a model system Duke biophysicists have been working on for nearly a decade. Duke biology
chair Dan Kiehart likens this dorsal closure event to drawing the strings on a sleeping
bag.The newly discovered force created by apoptotic cells imploding and withdrawing
"is making a force sort of like a friend helping you tuck the edge of the sleeping
bag in," Kiehart said.
A New Class of Hormone from Healthy
Fat Cells Benefits Body Metabolism, HSPH Researchers Find in Mice
Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) have identified in mice a newly
discovered class of hormones -- lipokines, according to a report in the September 19,
2008, issue of Cell. Furthermore, they have implicated a lipokine as a molecule in mice
that helps stop or even reverse obesity-related conditions such as insulin resistance and
"fatty liver." Lipokines are hormones made from lipids, or fats. All other known
hormones -- chemical signals secreted into the blood that regulate distant cells and
organs -- are steroid- or protein-based. Researchers, led by HSPH Professor Gökhan
Hotamisligil, knew from previous experiments that an unidentified factor in the fat tissue
of genetically engineered mice sent signals to regulate metabolism in liver and muscle
tissues. The researchers suspected that elucidating the mechanism could be of
significance.
Revealing the regulating mechanism
behind signal transduction in the brain
Our brain consists of billions of cells that continually transmit signals to each other.
This dynamic process ? which enables us to learn, remember, and so much more ? works only
when the brain cells make contact correctly, or, in other words, when there is a good
'synapse'. An essential element in this process is a controlled protein production along
with the synapse. VIB researchers connected to the Center for Human Genetics (K.U.Leuven)
are now discovering how the Fragile X protein (FMRP) ensures that protein production is
controlled at synapse and regulated by brain activity. Their findings are being published
in the authoritative scientific journal Cell.
UNC scientists turn human skin
cells into insulin-producing cells
Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have
transformed cells from human skin into cells that produce insulin, the hormone used to
treat diabetes. The breakthrough may one day lead to new treatments or even a cure for the
millions of people affected by the disease, researchers say. The approach involves
reprogramming skin cells into pluripotent stem cells, or cells that can give rise to any
other fetal or adult cell type, and then inducing them to differentiate, or transform,
into cells that perform a particular function – in this case, secreting insulin.
Several recent studies have shown that cells can be returned to pluripotent state using
“defined factors” (specific proteins that control which genes are active in a
cell), a technique pioneered by Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, a professor at Kyoto University in
Japan. However, the UNC study is the first to demonstrate that cells reprogrammed in this
way can be coaxed to differentiate into insulin-secreting cells. Results of the study are
published online in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. “Not only have we shown that
we can reprogram skin cells, but we have also demonstrated that these reprogrammed cells
can be differentiated into insulin-producing cells which hold great therapeutic potential
for diabetes,” said study lead author Yi Zhang, Ph.D., Howard Hughes Medical
Institute investigator, professor of biochemistry and biophysics at UNC and member of the
Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Researchers at the University of Essex have received a three-year studentship from the
Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) to investigate the relationship between
tinnitus and defects in the inner ear. The award, worth over £69,000, has been given to
the Hearing Research Laboratory based within the University's Department of Psychology.
The research will be undertaken by Christine Tan, an audiologist, and supervised by
Professor Ray Meddis from the Department, with co-supervisor Mr Don McFerran, a Consultant
ENT Surgeon at Essex County Hospital. Tinnitus is defined as the perception of persistent
noise (such as buzzing or hissing) in the absence of any real sound. At present, there is
no objective way of measuring it and no consensus on the cause. or treatment of this
condition. While early theories on the cause of tinnitus focused on the ear itself, later
research concentrated on the hearing pathways within the brain.
European research effort FUMINOMICS
tackles dangerous mould
Aspergillus fumigatus, a member of the large Aspergillus family of filamentous fungi
(moulds), is an ubiquitous mould that lives in the soil and on plant debris and disperses
its spores through the air. The mould is harmless to most people, but for those with a
seriously diminished immune system, infection with A. fumigatus can be fatal. The group
most at risk are people who have undergone organ (bone marrow) transplants and cancer
treatment. In this group, infection with A. fumigatus is often lethal, with mortality
rates of 60-90% and occurs in 25 % of haematology patients. Diagnosis of invasive disease
caused by A. fumigatus is difficult (it is often mistaken for pneumonia), as is the
treatment of this type of infection.Currently, A. fumigatus is already the most common
cause of (clinical) mould infections worldwide. Harmless as the mould may be for persons
with a normal defence system, there are still many cases known in which infections with A.
fumigatus resulted in severe disease or even death in healthy individuals.
According to the latest report on diet and cancer risk published by the American Institute
for Cancer Research (AICR), there is convincing evidence that alcohol intake raises risk
for breast cancer.
Snacking on pistachio nuts may help to lower levels of so-called “bad” LDL
cholesterol, suggest results of a study by researchers at Penn State University. Professor
Penny Kris-Etherton and colleagues studied the effects of three cholesterol-lowering
diets, one without pistachios and two with varied levels of pistachios, on 28 adults with
borderline-high LDL cholesterol levels.
A case of false positive octreoscan
in Crohn's disease
A report of a patient suspicious of ileal carcinoid tumor is presented. Computer
tomograghy scan suggested tumor. The octeotride scan showed uptake in the same bowel loop
reported as pathological in CT. The patient underwent surgery and biopsy reported Crohn's
disease. This is the second report of CD as a cause of false positive in octeotride scan.
Unfortunately, no somatostatine receptors could be found in the sample, so further studies
should be performed.
CSHL team traces extensive
regulatory networks that help determine how certain RNA messages are alternatively
“spliced”
Two professors at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have succeeded in tracing intricate
biochemical networks involving a class of proteins that enable genes to express themselves
in specific tissues at particular moments in development. Michael Q. Zhang, Ph.D. and
Adrian R. Krainer, Ph.D., both professors at CSHL and heads of laboratories, are exploring
a phenomenon that biologists and geneticists call RNA splicing. Splicing is a key step in
the multi-step process that transmits a gene’s instructions to a cell, telling it how
and when to manufacture specific protein molecules, and how much to produce. Poorly
understood until recently, the splicing machinery and the networks that control it are
only now coming into clear view. In a paper appearing this week in the journal Genes &
Development, Drs. Zhang, Krainer, and colleagues from CSHL, Stony Brook University, and
Rosetta Inpharmatics, reveal how two closely related proteins called Fox-1 and
Fox-2--which are two among many splicing factors--control regulatory networks involving
many other genes. These regulatory networks, which are surprisingly extensive and highly
conserved by evolution, help scientists gain insights into gene regulation in different
cells—in these experiments, brain and muscle cells. The work is also relevant to
understanding dysfunction, which in brain and muscle has been implicated in a range of
developmental illnesses from autism to heart disease.
Type 1 Diabetes May Result from
Good Genes Behaving Badly
New research from Stanford University scientists suggests that type 1 diabetes, an
autoimmune disease that develops in children and young adults, may not be due to bad genes
but rather to good genes behaving badly. Because type 1 diabetes typically runs in
families, scientists have looked for inborn genetic errors or gene variants passed on from
generation to generation. Although this search has failed to find a single type 1 diabetes
gene, many candidate type 1 diabetes susceptibility genes have been identified. These
susceptibility genes, located in a region known as the major histocompatibility complex
(MHC), help the body distinguish its own cells and tissues from those that are foreign.
Studies in identical twins, however, reveal that the situation is more complicated: often
one twin develops type 1 diabetes while the other twin remains disease-free. This pattern
of good luck/bad luck led researchers at Stanford to examine whether genetically at-risk
individuals respond differently to environmental stimuli. In some cases, the immune system
will respond in a benign fashion, while in other cases it will begin an inflammatory
response that can ultimately lead to diabetes. The critical difference between health and
disease might thus reside not in an individual’s genetic blueprint but in how those
genes are “expressed”—that is, how the translation of genetic information
into proteins or RNA is switched on and off.
Monitoring Exhaled Nitric Oxide
Does Not Help Manage Asthma
A new study shows that monitoring levels of exhaled nitric oxide in adolescents with
asthma and adjusting treatment accordingly does not improve the course of their disease.
The study was conducted by the Inner City Asthma Consortium (ICAC), which is funded by the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National
Institutes of Health (NIH). The Sept. 20 issue of The Lancet reports the ICAC findings.
Approximately 550 adolescents in 10 cities across the United States participated in the
study. It was designed to examine whether in addition to treating asthma based on national
guidelines developed at NIH, measurements of exhaled nitric oxide would allow even better
control of the disease. This was the largest study to date testing exhaled nitric oxide as
a biomarker for asthma management. Asthma is a chronic disorder of the airways that
affects approximately 9 percent of children under age 17 in the United States. The causes
of asthma are still unknown, but allergens, air pollution and infections can provoke its
symptoms, which include wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath and coughing.
Asthma symptoms occur when the tissues of the lungs become inflamed and the muscles in the
airways contract, making breathing difficult. One measurable marker of asthma-related
inflammation is high levels of nitric oxide (NO) in the breath; it is known that the
higher the exhaled NO, the greater the inflammation of the lungs. Equipment is now
available to easily measure exhaled NO. Widely used asthma treatments, such as inhaled
corticosteroids, reduce both lung inflammation and exhaled NO. Exhaled NO would
potentially be a good biomarker—a measurable feature of a disease that indicates its
severity—of asthma inflammation.
Duke Medical Team Finds Genetic
Link Between Immune and Nerve Systems
Duke University Medical Center researchers have discovered genetic links between the
nervous system and the immune system in a well-studied worm, and the findings could
illuminate new approaches to human therapies. For some time, researchers have theorized a
direct link between the nervous and immune systems, such as stress messages that override
the protective effects of antibodies, but the exact connection was unknown. "This is
the first time that a genetic approach has been used to demonstrate that specific neurons
in the nervous system are capable of regulating immune response in distant cells,"
said Alejandro Aballay Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Duke Department of Molecular
Genetics and Microbiology. They studied a neural circuit in the roundworm Caenorhabditis
elegans. "The study of neural-immune communications is quite challenging in
mammals," Aballay said. "The simple, well-characterized nervous system of C.
elegans and its recently discovered innate immune system make it a prime system for
research. We can study the mechanisms and biological meaning of the cross-talk between the
immune and nervous systems, and our studies should set the stage for a new field of
research." Pamela Marino, Ph.D., who oversees molecular immunology grants at the
National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health, said,
"Dr. Aballay has made use of the well defined genetics of the roundworm to reveal
evidence of cross talk between the nervous system and the innate immune system. Beyond
neuronal regulation of immunity, this work opens the door to understanding how neurons may
affect other non-neural processes, such as fat storage and longevity."
Rodent Studies Suggest Mother's
Diet Can Affect Genes and Offspring's Risk of Allergic Asthma
A pregnant mouse's diet can induce epigenetic changes that increase the risk her offspring
will develop allergic asthma, according to researchers at National Jewish Health and Duke
University Medical Center. Pregnant mice that consumed diets high in supplements
containing methyl-donors, such as folic acid, had offspring with more severe allergic
airway disease than offspring from mice that consumed diets low in methyl-containing
foods. The results of the study are being published Sept. 18, 2008, in the online version
of the Journal of Clinical Investigation and will appear in the October print issue.
"Our findings suggest that a mother's diet that alters DNA methylation can affect the
development of the fetus's immune system, predisposing it to allergic airway
disease," said David Schwartz, MD, senior author on the paper and Professor of
Medicine at National Jewish Health. "It also suggests the dramatic increase in asthma
during the past two decades may be related in part to recent changes in dietary
supplementation among women of childbearing age." The prevalence of asthma has nearly
doubled in the past 25 years. Asthma currently affects about 11 percent of the US
population and accounts for $9.4 billion in direct healthcare costs. Although both genes
and environment are believed to play a role in the development of asthma, scientists have
been unable to definitively identify specific causes of the disease or explain the rise in
prevalence. Epigenetics is the study of gene regulation. Environmental exposures can lead
to modification of methyl groups (CH3) binding to certain DNA molecules, which can result
in modified expression of specific genes. A variety of environmental factors, including
diet, tobacco smoke, and medications, can modify methyl groups binding to DNA,
particularly during periods of vulnerability. Although no changes occur in the genetic
code, epigenetic effects can be passed to offspring. Emerging research has indicated that
epigenetic mechanisms can affect the development of the immune system, skewing it either
toward or away from a predisposition to allergies.
High blood pressure takes big toll
on small filtering units of the kidney
Take a kidney out of the body and it still knows how to filter toxins from the blood. But
all bets are off in the face of high blood pressure. "How does the kidney know how to
do it and why does it break in hypertension?" says Dr. Edward W. Inscho, physiologist
in the Medical College of Georgia Schools of Medicine and Graduate Studies. The kidneys
filter about 200 quarts of plasma daily, eliminating about two quarts of waste product and
extra water as urine, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and
Kidney Diseases. But the complete physiology remains a mystery. He challenged colleagues
to fill in important blanks in how this process works normally and how to make it work
better in disease during the Sept. 19 Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture at the 62nd High
Blood Pressure Research Conference and Workshop in Atlanta.
Oestrogen reduces risk of fracture
after menopause
From the end of the 1970s to the late 1990s there was a significant reduction in the
incidence of hip and distal forearm fractures among Oslo women in the early phase after
menopause. Part of this decline can be explained by the large increase in the use of
hormone replacement therapy after menopause in the same period, a new study shows. The
study is a collaboration between the University of Oslo, Aker University Hospital and the
Norwegian Institute of Public Health. Half of reduction in fractures may be due to hormone
replacement therapyFrom the end of the 1970s to the late 1990s the hip fracture rate
dropped by 39 percent, while the distal forearm fracture rate fell by 33 percent among
women aged 50-64 years. A similar decline was not registered among older women or among
men. Interestingly, use of post-menopausal hormone replacement therapy increased greatly
in the same period. It is shown that treatment with oestrogen reduces the risk of
osteoporosis and fracture. Based on data from the Oslo Health Studies, we have estimated
that almost half of the decline in fracture rates among women in the early phase after
menopause in Oslo can be caused by hormone replacement therapy, says Professor Haakon
Meyer, at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and University of Oslo.
What is sign for progressive of
colorectal carcinoma?
The process of tumor invasion and metastasis is associated with alterations in the
functions of several adhesion molecules. Reduced alpha-catenin expression was associated
with tumor invasion and metastases in colorectal cancer. A group from University of Turku
in Finland examined alpha-catenin expression in a series of 91 patients with advanced
colorectal carcinoma, and analyzed the relationship with clinical and pathological
features of CRC patients.
Can Taurine be a potent antioxidant
drug in the future?
In hepatotoxin induced liver fibr?sis, taurine alleviates ultrastructural injury and
organelle based transmission electron microscopy findings can successfully reflect the
histological results as well as tissue healing in hepatocytes.
A new diagnostic tool for
colorectal cancers prognosis
BMP and activin membrane-bound inhibitor expression is aberrantly elevated in most
colorectal cancers. However, few studies are reported on BAMBI expression in colorectal
tissue. To analyze the clinical significance of BAMBI, authors studied its expression in
CRC using immunohistochemical staining. They show that BAMBI overexpression is correlated
with aggressive tumor phenotypes and predicts tumor recurrence and cancer-related death in
CRC.
The effective chemoradiotherapy
method for pancreatic cancer
In the present study, the retrospective analysis of chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced
pancreatic cancer was performed, utilizing gemcitabine as a radiation sensitizer
administered twice weekly at a dose of 40 mg/m2. The median survival was 15.0 months and
the overall 1-year survival rate was 60%, while the median progression- free survival was
8 months. Patients developing liver metastases had worse prognosis. We might need another
strategy for the chemoradiotherapy for those patients.
People With Type 2 Diabetes Can Put
Fatty Livers On A Diet with Moderate Exercise
Weekly bouts of moderate aerobic exercise on a bike or treadmill, or a brisk walk,
combined with some weightlifting, may cut down levels of fat in the liver by up to 40
percent in people with type 2 diabetes, a study by physical fitness experts at Johns
Hopkins shows. According to researchers, who will present their findings on Sept. 18 at
the annual meeting of the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary
Rehabilitation, in Indianapolis, high liver fat levels are common among people with type 2
diabetes and contribute to heart disease risk. The study’s lead investigator,
exercise physiologist Kerry Stewart, Ed.D., says the rise in the number of people with
nonalcoholic fatty liver, mostly due to obesity, signals “a dark trend” because
the disease, also called hepatic steatosis, may lead to cirrhosis and subsequent liver
failure and transplantation, even cancer, as well as increased risk of diabetes-related
heart disease.
