Tag Archives: science

New possibilities for prostate cancer treatment revealed

Published today in Science Translational Medicine, a study led by Monash University researchers has found prostate cancer cells that survive androgen withdrawal treatment. Previously unidentified, these cells are potential targets for future treatments. As they are present early in disease development, there is the possibility of therapy before the cancer reaches the aggressive, incurable stage. Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men, with around 20,000 new cases diagnosed each year in Australia…

Errors in cloning study cast doubt on publication process

A headline-making paper last week announcing that scientists had, for the first time, cloned human embryos and harvested stem cells from them contains minor errors, the authors acknowledged on Thursday.  The mistakes raised questions about how well the journal that published the paper vetted it but probably do not undermine the study's central claim. In a statement, the journal, Cell, said “there were some minor errors” in the paper, but “we do not believe these errors impact the scientific findings of the paper.” An anonymous commenter on the website PubPeer, where scientists discuss papers after they have been published, first pointed out problems with the paper, which drew extensive media coverage. Even before the errors were spotted, however, there was concern among experts not involved in the study that Cell had rushed publication. It received the manuscript on April 30, tapped outside scientists to review it in the standard process called peer review, asked the authors to make revisions based on that review and accepted the paper on May 3. When asked about the short turnaround time last week, Cell spokeswoman Mary Beth O'Leary said the paper “underwent a rigorous peer review and editorial process.” Outside experts disagree. A three-day review process “is almost impossibly fast,” said cell biologist Jim Woodgett of Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, Canada. “To have a paper like this received, reviewed, revised and accepted so quickly is very, very unusual.” In a statement on Thursday, Cell referred to “the preeminence of the reviewers” (whom it would not identify) and said it has “no reason to doubt the thoroughness or rigor of the review process.” The rapid turnaround was possible because the reviewers “graciously agreed to prioritize” the paper. DOLLY REDUX The paper described how scientists led by biologist Shoukhrat Mitalipov of Oregon Health & Science University accomplished what others had failed to: “therapeutic cloning” in humans. That procedure begins with a human egg. The Oregon scientists removed its genetic material, or DNA, then took an adult skin cell and fused it with the egg. The DNA in the skin cell took over, causing the egg to begin developing as if it had been fertilized. This “somatic cell nuclear transfer” was used to clone Dolly the sheep in 1996. But in this case, the goal was not a human being; Mitalipov said last week that scientists would not implant the dividing embryo into a womb so that it could develop into a baby. Instead, the aim was a dishful of stem cells, which can morph into any of the 200-plus cells in the human body and might be used therapeutically, such as to replace cells lost to degenerative diseases such as Parkinson's. After a few days, the human embryo contained exactly that: stem cells that the Oregon scientists could use to start cell lines. The errors in the Cell paper involve photographs and data plots, something OHSU spokesman Jim Newman said was “an editing error, not issues with the research or the data itself. “OHSU agrees that there were some minor errors made when preparing the figures for initial submission,” Newman said, adding that the university does not believe the errors “impact the scientific findings of the paper in any way. We also do not believe there was any wrongdoing.” In one case, an image described as a cloned stem-cell colony is reproduced in another image, where it is labeled an embryonic stem-cell line derived from in vitro fertilization (IVF), not cloning. Mitalipov told the journal Nature that the label is wrong, and that another labeling mistake explained other duplicated images. Another error was in images purporting to show that the genes that are turned on in stem cells derived from the cloned embryo (such as genes that make a cell a neuron) are similar to those in stem cells taken from IVF embryos, considered the gold standard for embryonic stem cells. The point was that the stem cells taken from the cloned embryos are true stem cells. The problem, said the anonymous reviewer on PubPeer, is that the two images - genes activated in IVF stem cells and in clone stem cells - are suspiciously identical. Mitalipov said one image used the wrong data, and that he and his team are correcting it. While the mistakes seem innocent, they raised concerns among stem-cell researchers because the field has been struck by fraud in the past. In 2004 scientists led by Woo Suk Hwang of Seoul National University claimed to have produced human embryonic stem cells through the same technique used by the Oregon team. Their paper, published in Science, turned out to contain fabricated data. That came to light when scientists figured out that some of the images in the paper were copied or manipulated. “When I read the Hwang paper, I didn't find any glaring problems” at first, stem-cell biologist George Daley of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute said, explaining how difficult it is to spot fraud. “I am waiting to learn more, but there is a difference between errors in photomicrographs and fraudulent production of cell lines,” he said. So far, most scientists' ire is being directed at Cell more than the Oregon researchers. “To thoroughly evaluate the claims requires delving into the data, and you can't expect people to do that in a day or two,” said Mount Sinai's Woodgett, referring to peer review. “You're forcing them to be superficial.” Science journals compete intensely for “hot” papers, which can translate into headlines, subscriptions and advertising. Cell is published by Elsevier, a division of Reed Elsevier . Six years ago, Nature held up by six months a paper by Mitalipov in which his team used the Dolly method to clone monkey embryos, the journal reported on Wednesday. Scientists sometimes shop around hot papers, seeking a journal that will publish it fastest. Mitalipov told Nature he was in a hurry to get his Cell paper out before a stem cell meeting in June.source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/05/24/errors-in-cloning-study-cast-doubt-on-publication-process/

Bionimbus protected data cloud to enable researchers to analyze cancer data

The Bionimbus Protected Data Cloud, as it is called, enables researchers who are authorized by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to access and analyze data in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) without having to set up secure, compliant computing environments capable of managing and analyzing terabytes of data, download the data — which can take weeks — and then install the appropriate tools needed to perform the desired analyses. Using technology that was developed in part by the Open Science Data Cloud, a National Science Foundation-supported project that is developing cloud infrastructure for large scientific datasets, the Bionimbus Protected Data Cloud provides researchers with a more cost- and time-effective mechanism to extract knowledge from massive amounts of data. Drawing insights from big data is imperative for addressing some of today’s most vexing environmental, health and safety challenges. …

Students visiting PSU come home with bedbug bites

Some of 40 chaperones and students visiting Penn State's main campus say they came home with bedbug bites. The school says bedbugs were reported in the Curtin Hall dormitory. Three rooms were treated, and all of the residence hall's rooms are being checked. A university spokeswoman says a pest control service used a heat treatment to get rid of the bugs. Several Pittsburgh high school students staying in the dorm for the Junior Academy of Science State Meet science competition over the weekend say they came home with bedbug bites. Parents say the students were sent home with their luggage and clothes wrapped in garbage bags and information on how to prevent the bugs from spreading to their homes. The students say the rooms were dirty when they arrived.source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/05/17/students-visiting-psu-come-home-with-bedbug-bites/

Heavy use of pain pills increases risk for erectile dysfunction

Men taking prescription pain pills in high doses and over long periods of time are more likely to experience erectile dysfunction (ED), according to new research.   In a new study published in the journal Spine, researchers examined the health records of 11,000 men taking prescription opioids, like oxycodone, to treat chronic back pain. Men who took high-doses of these prescription painkillers for longer than four months were 50 percent more likely to require medication to treat ED than men who were not taking painkillers. Patients considered to be taking ‘high doses’ of opioids were consuming the equivalent of 80 milligrams of OxyContin per day – or 120 milligrams of morphine. Overall, about 19 percent of the men taking opioids over long periods experienced ED – but researchers said the number might be even higher. “That could well be an underestimate, because many don’t bring it to their doctors attention, would be embarrassed or wouldn’t connect it to medication,” lead study author Dr. Richard Deyo, from the Kaiser Permanante Center for Health Research at Oregon Health & Science University, in Portland Oregon, told FoxNews.com. Researchers noted that opioids are known to cause changes in testosterone levels. “Opioids suppress testosterone levels,” Deyo said. “It’s clear that people taking long-term opioids have testosterone levels well below normal,” Deyo said. Additionally, factors like depression, a common condition among chronic pain patients, could also be contributing to patients’ ED. According to Deyo, the researchers’ findings add to a wealth of evidence indicating that long-term opioid treatment for chronic pain should be avoided when possible. Patients who take opioids for extended periods often develop a tolerance to the medicine and can even experience greater sensitivity to pain over time.   “Patients need to be aware that these medications may not be effective in the long-term for treating chronic pain – they are certainly effective for short-term pain, but not (in the) long run,” Deyo said. Instead of relying on medications, the researchers believe that doctors should encourage alternative treatments for pain relief. “There’s growing evidence that some of the more effective treatments for persistent pain are rigorously designed exercise programs along with cognitive behavioral therapy ,” Deyo said. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is intended to help patients overcome fears associated with their chronic pain. When it comes to exercise, patients often become afraid of doing anything that might worsen their pain, causing them to avoid physical activities.  “CBT seems to be valuable along with exercise interventions…It’s important to consider the full range of options,” Deyo said. Deyo and his colleagues hope their research will increase patients’ awareness about their treatment options.  He noted that the side effects of pain medications, like ED, are often not well understood. “I think it’s important for people to be aware of this,” Deyo said. “Some people would say, ‘Gosh it’s a problem, but the pain is more important to me now; I’m less concerned about the side-effect than treating the pain.’ Others might say, ‘It’s a high price to pay,’ and they’d rather not (take pain medication).”source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/05/15/heavy-use-pain-pills-increases-risk-for-erectile-dysfunction/

Breakthrough in the understanding of how pancreatic cancer cells ingest nutrients points to new drug target

Now new research reveals a possible chink in the armor of this recalcitrant disease. Many cancers, including pancreatic, lung, and colon cancer, feature a mutated protein known as Ras that plays a central role in a complex molecular chain of events that drives cancer cell growth and proliferation…

Vietnam War chemical tied to aggressive prostate cancer risk

Men who were exposed to Agent Orange chemicals used during the Vietnam War are at higher risk for life-threatening prostate cancer than unexposed veterans, researchers have found. What's more, those who served where the herbicide was used were diagnosed with cancer about five years earlier than other men, on average, in the new study. “This is a very, very strong predictor of lethal cancer,” said urologist Dr. Mark Garzotto, who worked on the study at the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Oregon. “If you're a person who's otherwise healthy and you've been exposed to Agent Orange, that has important implications for whether you should be screened or not screened,” he told Reuters Health. But one researcher not involved in the new study said it's hard to take much away from it, given the imprecise way it measured exposure. Agent Orange - named after the giant orange drums in which the chemicals were stored - was used by the U.S. military to destroy foliage, mainly in southern Vietnam. The herbicide was often contaminated with a type of dioxin, a potently carcinogenic chemical. The Vietnam Red Cross Society has estimated that up to one million Vietnamese suffered disabilities or health problems as a result of Agent Orange, including children born with birth defects years after their parents were exposed. Past research has also suggested that U.S. veterans who served where Agent Orange was used are at an increased risk of lymphoma and certain other cancers, including prostate cancer. For the new study, researchers wanted to see whether exposure was more closely linked to slow-growing prostate cancers or aggressive tumors. They analyzed medical records belonging to 2,720 veterans who were referred to the Portland VA for a prostate biopsy. About one in 13 of those men had been exposed to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, according to their VA intake interviews. One third of all men in the study were diagnosed with prostate cancer, about half of which were high-grade cancers - the more aggressive and fast-growing type. When the researchers took men's age, race, weight and family history of cancer into account, they found those with Agent Orange exposure were 52 percent more likely than unexposed men to have any form of prostate cancer. Separating out different types of tumors showed the herbicide was not linked to an increased risk of slower-growing, low-grade cancer. But it was tied to a 75 percent higher risk of being diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer, the study team reported Monday in the journal Cancer. “The increase in the rate of cancers was almost exclusively driven by the potentially lethal cancers,” said Garzotto, also from Oregon Health & Science University. More research is needed to figure out exactly why that is, he said. In the meantime, Garzotto said veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange should discuss that with their doctors. But Dr. Arnold Schecter, from the University of Texas School of Public Health's Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Program in Dallas, said there's a “big problem” with just asking veterans if they were exposed to Agent Orange or served in an area where it was sprayed. “Of those most heavily exposed in the military as best we know, only a relatively small percentage of them had elevated dioxin from Agent Orange in their blood when tested by (the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention),” he told Reuters Health. Schecter said that in Vietnam, people who have high levels of that type of dioxin in their blood live in places where the chemical has become integrated into the food supply - or were sprayed directly with Agent Orange. Another researcher who has studied the effects of Agent Orange agreed that not having blood dioxin levels is a drawback, but said the findings are consistent with past research and general thinking about the chemical. “Almost all studies have implicated that men with Agent Orange (exposure) either have higher-grade prostate cancer or a more aggressive clinical course,” said Dr. Gregory Merrick, head of Wheeling Hospital's Schiffler Cancer Center in West Virginia, who also wasn't involved in the new research. But, he added, as long as men are getting into the VA system and getting regular evaluations and treatment for cancer, Agent Orange exposure “is not a death sentence by any means.”source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/05/13/vietnam-war-chemical-tied-to-aggressive-prostate-cancer-risk/

Activity of cancer inducing genes can be controlled by the cell’s skeleton

In the latest issue of the journal Oncogene, Florence Janody and her team at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência (IGC, Portugal), identified a novel mechanism by which the activity of Src is limited by the cell’s skeleton (cytoskeleton) limiting the development of tumours. Using the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a model, Florence Janody and her team were able to stop the tumour development induced by the high activity of Src through the genetic manipulation of the cytoskeleton in fly tissues. A major component of the cytoskeleton, the actin protein, form cables that crisscross the cell, creating a network, where molecules can move, inside the cell. …