Body

New research suggests that the identification and examination of key cell signaling events required for initiation and progression of cancer might be best accomplished at the single cell level. The research, published by Cell Press in the October issue of the journal Cancer Cell, provides new insight that may lead to better diagnosis and treatment of some complex cancers.

STANFORD, Calif. — A new twist on a well-known cell sorting technique may allow physicians to diagnose rare leukemias in hours instead of weeks, according to a study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and UC-San Francisco. The clinical promise of the Stanford-developed approach, which eavesdrops on individual cells to decipher potentially dangerous molecular conversations, is likely to extend to many other disorders in which cell-signaling pathways are disrupted.

A study led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine suggests that use of oral Vitamin D supplements bolsters production of a protective chemical normally found in the skin, and may help prevent skin infections that are a common result of atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema.

Researchers at Wake Forest University are using nanotechnology to search for new cancer-fighting drugs through a process that could be up to 10,000 times faster than current methods.

The "Lab-on-Bead" process will screen millions of chemicals simultaneously using tiny plastic beads so small that 1,000 of them would fit across a human hair. Each bead carries a separate chemical, which can be identified later if it displays the properties needed to treat cancer cells. One batch of nanoscopic beads can replace the work of thousands of conventional, repetitive laboratory tests.

CHICAGO, Oct. 6, 2008 – Putting together the Who's Who of bats, bears, beaked whales and all of Earth's other known mammals was a gigantic task ably assisted by a Field Museum scientific team with access to one of the planet's most extensive and diverse mammal collections.

A team headed by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) is releasing its comprehensive status on the world's mammals, including assessments of diversity, threat and knowledge of the creatures. The Oct. 10 issue of Science will feature the results of the study.

Combined results from two Phase 3 studies presented at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG) in Orlando, Fla., demonstrated that TAK-390MR resulted in higher healing rates than lansoprazole among patients with more severe grades of erosive esophagitis (EE). TAK-390MR combines dexlansoprazole with a Dual Delayed Release™ (DDR) formulation, designed to provide two separate releases of drug for extended duration of acid suppression.

CHESTNUT HILL, MA (October 6, 2008) – A gene contained in laboratory yeast has helped an international team of researchers uncover new findings about the process by which protein molecules bind to control sequences in genes in order to initiate gene expression, according to findings reported in the journal Nature.

OTTAWA, OCTOBER 6, 2008 – Investing in Canada's public health system is the best way to improve it, rather than privatization, writes Dr. Marcia Angell, a senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School and former editor-in-chief of The New England Journal of Medicine. The article was published online today in CMAJ http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/rapidpdf/cmaj.081177.

University of Iowa researchers and collaborators have found, in a previously identified gene, a variation that likely contributes to one in five cases of isolated cleft lip. It is the first time a genetic variant has been associated with cleft lip alone, rather than both cleft lip and palate.

The study provides insight on a previously unknown genetic mechanism and could eventually help with diagnosis, prevention and treatment of cleft lip, which affects more than five million people worldwide. The findings appeared Oct. 5 in the journal Nature Genetics.

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review a series of lower court rulings that restrict the Navy's use of sonar in submarine detection training exercises off the coast of Southern California. The court is due to hear arguments in the case this week.

A special supplement of the Oct. 15 journal Cancer for the first time details guidelines for low- and middle-income countries to implement breast cancer programs to detect and treat the most common disease among women worldwide.

Researchers at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) have developed a low-cost, high-resolution imaging system that can be attached to a helicopter to create a complete and detailed picture of an area devastated by a hurricane or other natural disaster. The resulting visual information can be used to estimate the number of storm refugees and assess the need for health and humanitarian services.

A Brazilian palm berry, popular health food though little research has been done on it, now may have its purported benefits better understood.

TORONTO, ON - Researchers at the University of Toronto have discovered that the EBNA1 protein of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) disrupts structures in the nucleus of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells, thereby interfering with cellular processes that normally prevent cancer development.

The study findings are published in the October 3rd edition of the journal PLoS Pathogens and describes a novel mechanism by which viral proteins contribute to carcinogenesis.

Orlando, FL, October 6, 2008 – A study released at the 73rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Orlando found that a new therapeutic treatment, when delivered endoscopically and used in combination with chemotherapy and radiation therapy, improved survival rates in patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer. Cancer of the esophagus often has a poor survival rate.