Body

HOUSTON - Scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have discovered a gene that protects PTEN, a major tumor-suppressor that is reduced but rarely mutated in about half of all breast cancers.

The gene Rak helps protect and regulate PTEN, which also is important in several other types of cancer, the team reports in the April edition of Cancer Cell. Causes for diminished PTEN protein levels in breast cancer absent a mutation of the PTEN gene have eluded researchers, who knew for several years that a piece of the puzzle was missing.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) cause malformations in babies, including facial defects, short stature, and mental and behavioral abnormalities. The African frog, Xenopus, is a valuable tool for understanding early vertebrate development since these embryos are large, easy to work with and very responsive to environmental cues. New research uses this system to address the mechanism underlying the characteristics associated with maternal consumption of alcohol in early pregnancy.

PHILADELPHIA – Three-day-old broccoli sprouts, a widely available human food, suppressed Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infections, according to a report in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. H. pylori infections are one of the most common bacterial infections worldwide and are a major cause of stomach cancer.

A small, pilot study in 50 people in Japan suggests that eating two and a half ounces of broccoli sprouts daily for two months may confer some protection against a rampant stomach bug that causes gastritis, ulcers and even stomach cancer.

DURHAM, N.C. – Duke University researchers have identified a receptor on the surface of cells that may give them another avenue of attack against glioblastoma, the most common and most deadly type of brain cancer.

The neurokinin 1 receptor (NK1R), which may be expressed in all human glioblastoma cells, may prove to be an appropriate target for therapies aimed at treating these brain tumors, according to a study led by researchers in the Duke Department of Anesthesiology and the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Nicotine isn't just addictive. It may also interfere with dozens of cellular interactions in the body, new Brown University research suggests.

Conversely, the data could also help scientists develop better treatments for various diseases. Pharmaceutical companies rely on basic research to identify new cellular interactions that can, in turn, serve as targets for potential new drugs.

A team of researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Engineering in Medicine (MGH-CEM) has found the first evidence of cell-to-cell communication by amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, rather than by known protein signaling agents such as growth factors or cytokines. Their report will appear in an upcoming issue of the FASEB Journal and has been released online.

San Antonio … Researchers are one step closer to understanding the neurobiology that allows people to successfully learn motivated behaviors by associating environmental cues with rewarding outcomes, according to a study published yesterday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences' online Early Edition.

While sipping on sports drinks all day may provide an energy boost, this popular practice is also exposing people to levels of acid that can cause tooth erosion and hypersensitivity, NYU dental researchers have found.

Older men who were big during their 20s face an increased risk of suffering from atrial fibrillation, or abnormal heart rhythm. New research from the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, reveals that height and weight are both factors.

The results are being published in the latest issue of the European Heart Journal.

One reason for the development of allergy may be malfunction of the respiratory epithelium, which allows allergens to bind to, enter and travel through the epithelium. Two studies by Finnish research groups on this subject have recently been published in two international biomedical journals (1) Allergy, and (2) Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

It has so far not been proven that long-acting insulin analogues (LAIAs) have an advantage over conventional human insulin in the treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes. Even though the results of a 5-year study are available for one of the two LAIAs assessed (insulin glargine), the potential long-term benefits and harms of this drug class have still not been sufficiently investigated.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study by Ohio State University cancer researchers shows that boosting the level of a molecule called miR-29b in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells can reverse gene changes that trap the cells in an immature, fast growing state of development.

The study discovered how the miR reactivates silenced genes, which enables the leukemic cells to differentiate and mature, important steps that precede their death. The findings suggest that miR-29b could be a potent treatment for AML.

Monash University researchers have shown that babies born to a mother who smokes are more likely to be slower to wake or respond to stimulation – and this may explain their increased risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

Scientific director of the Ritchie Centre for Baby Health Research Associate Professor Rosemary Horne and PhD student Heidi Richardson compared babies of mothers who smoked both during the pregnancy and after the baby was born, with babies who lived in a smoke-free environment.

(PHILADELPHIA) – A new federally funded University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine study aims to learn whether women at high risk of breast cancer can use exercise to meaningfully reduce their risk of getting the disease. Building on evidence that reducing estrogen in the body reduces cancer risk, and that elite female athletes experience a drop in estrogen levels that often cause them to stop ovulating and menstruating, the WISER Sister trial will investigate two different levels of regular treadmill exercise as a possible intervention for breast cancer risk reduction.