Tag Archives: study

New family of proteins linked to major role in cancer

A major new study in the journal Nature sets out the structure of the new family, called glutamate intramembrane proteases – the founding member of which plays a critical role in transforming healthy cells into cancer cells. The research, funded by Cancer Research UK and conducted by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, defined the structure of a protein called Rce1, and established it as the first known member of a whole new protein family. …

New drug cuts risk of deadly transplant side effect in half

The study, the first to test this treatment in people, combined the drug vorinostat with standard medications given after transplant, resulting in 22 percent of patients developing graft-vs.-host disease compared to 42 percent of patients who typically develop this condition with standard medications alone. …

Hysterectomized women may benefit from testosterone

New research from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) has found that testosterone administration in women with low testosterone levels, whom previously had undergone hysterectomy with or without oophorectomy, was associated with improvements in sexual function, muscle mass and physical function. This research appears in the November 27, 2013 online issue of Menopause…

Negative BRCA testing may not always imply lowered breast cancer risk

Women with certain mutations in their BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes are at increased risk for breast cancer. However, if a woman who comes from a BRCA family tests negative for her family-specific BRCA mutation, her risk for breast cancer is considered to be the same as someone in the general population, according to the National Cancer Institute. This study, however, suggests that it may not always be true. "We found that women who test negative for family-specific BRCA2 mutations have more than four times the risk for developing breast cancer than the general population," said Gareth R. …

Leukemia cells exploit ‘enhancer’ DNA elements to cause lethal disease

The research, appearing today in Genes & Development and led by CSHL Assistant Professor Chris Vakoc, centers on the way a cancer-promoting gene is controlled. When this oncogene, called Myc, is robustly expressed, it instructs cells to manufacture proteins that contribute to the uncontrolled growth that is cancer’s hallmark. The Myc oncogene is also implicated in many other cancer types, adding to the significance of the new finding…

Biomedical scientist discovers method to increase survival in sepsis

A new study conducted by Jamey Marth, director of UC Santa Barbara’s Center for Nanomedicine and professor of the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, reports a new method to increase survival in sepsis. The results appear today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Building on earlier work in which Marth’s team revealed the biological purpose of the Ashwell-Morell receptor (AMR) in the liver, the new discovery not only describes the AMR’s protective mechanism, but also outlines a way to leverage it for therapeutic use…

Supporting others brings healing to cancer survivors

The process includes first writing for oneself in emotionally expressive ways about the trauma of the cancer and transplant experience, followed by peer helping, which includes writing as if speaking to a person ready to undergo the transplant procedure about the survivor’s experience while offering advice and encouragement. …

HPV associated with increased risk of HIV in men

The study, published online by the journal AIDS, was authored by Jennifer Smith, PhD, MPH, research associate professor with the Gillings School of Global Public Health and member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Anne Rositch, PHD, MSPH, assistant professor with the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "These data from Kenya add to a mounting evidence showing a higher risk of HIV acquisition among individuals with genital HPV infections," said Smith. Men in the study with at least one occurrence of HPV infection faced double the risk of acquiring HIV, and those with three or more HPV infections had more than three times the risk of developing HIV. This pattern was consistent in both circumcised and uncircumcised men…

Mouse study finds gut microorganisms may determine cancer treatment outcome

NCI scientists found that tumors of germ-free mice (mice completely lacking these microorganisms), or mice treated with antibiotics to deplete the gut of bacteria, were largely impaired in their ability to respond to immunotherapy that slows cancer growth and prolongs survival. The mice were also impaired in their ability to respond to mainstay chemotherapy drugs such as oxaliplatin and cisplatin. These findings in mice may underscore the importance of microorganisms in optimal cancer treatment outcomes in humans. …