Tag Archives: tsri

Genetic mutations linked to salivary gland tumors

The research, recently published online ahead of print by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that a pair of proteins joined together by a genetic mutation — known as CRTC1/MAML2 (C1/M2) — work with MYC, a protein commonly associated with other cancers, to promote the oral cancer’s growth and spread. “This research provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms of these malignances and points to a new direction for potential therapies,” says TSRI biologist Michael Conkright, PhD, who led the study…

New eye treatment effective in laboratory tests

The studies involved controlling the actions of microRNAs, tiny pieces of RNA that were once considered to be "junk" but are now known to fine-tune gene activation and expression. The researchers showed that treating mice with short RNA strands that precisely target and inhibit microRNAs ("antimicroRNAs") can stop the aberrant growth of blood vessels ("neovascularization"). It is this abnormal proliferation of vessels that exacerbates vision loss in neovascular eye diseases like "wet" macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, two of the leading causes of blindness. Described in the cover story of the November issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, the microRNA treatments blocked aberrant vessel growth without damaging existing vasculature or neurons in three separate models of neovascular eye disease — a proof-of-principle that suggests future treatment based on the same approach may be effective in humans…