http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. (Medical Xpress)—New insights into a protein complex that regulates the very tips of chromosomes could improve methods of screening anti-cancer drugs. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-proteins-dna-cancer-insight.html Medical research Thu, 29 Nov 2012 15:46:00 EST news273426351 Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have made a major advance in understanding how flu viruses replicate within infected cells. The researchers used cutting-edge molecular biology and electron-microscopy techniques to "see" one of influenza's essential protein complexes in unprecedented detail. The images generated in the study show flu virus proteins in the act of self-replication, highlighting the virus's vulnerabilities that are sure to be of interest to drug developers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-elusive-replication-machinery-flu-viruses.html Medical research Thu, 22 Nov 2012 14:00:13 EST news272810332 A new discovery from researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah concerning a fundamental understanding about how DNA works will produce a "180-degree change in focus" for researchers who study how gene packaging regulates gene activity, including genes that cause cancer and other diseases. The discovery, by Bradley R. Cairns, PhD, Senior Director of Basic Science at HCI and a professor in the Department of Oncological Sciences, is reported in this week's online issue of the journal Nature. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-dna-packaging-discovery-reveals-principles.html Genetics Fri, 16 Nov 2012 19:35:15 EST news272316905 (Medical Xpress)—Despite urgent need and tremendous scientific effort, researchers have yet to discover a vaccine for HIV that adequately protects humans from infection. But some people don't need one. For reasons not completely understood, there are individuals who have developed a natural immunity to the virus without any medical intervention. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-people-natural-immunity-hiv-basis.html HIV & AIDS Fri, 09 Nov 2012 06:52:01 EST news271666305 Boosting the activity of a vitamin-sensitive cell adhesion pathway has the potential to counteract the muscle degeneration and reduced mobility caused by muscular dystrophies, according to a research team led by scientists at the University of Maine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-vitamin-based-treatment-muscle-degeneration-muscular.html Medical research Tue, 23 Oct 2012 17:30:01 EST news270225706 Using advanced computer simulations, University of Utah College of Pharmacy researchers have produced moving images of a protein complex that is an important target for anti-cancer drugs. This advancement has significant implications for discovering new therapies that could attack cancer without damaging the DNA of healthy cells, according to an article published July 31, 2012 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-molecular-movies-anti-cancer-drug-discovery.html Genetics Fri, 17 Aug 2012 09:20:03 EST news264413053 (Medical Xpress) -- Is anxiety related to premature aging? A new study by researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) shows that a common form of anxiety, known as phobic anxiety, was associated with shorter telomeres in middle-aged and older women. The study suggests that phobic anxiety is a possible risk factor for accelerated aging. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-anxiety-linked-shortened-telomeres-aging.html Medical research Wed, 11 Jul 2012 17:00:13 EST news261242524 A Penn- and MIT-led team explained how rapamycin, a drug that extends mouse lifespan, also causes insulin resistance. The researchers showed in an animal model that they could, in principle, separate the effects, which depend on inhibiting two protein complexes, mTORC1 and mTORC2, respectively. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-duality-longevity-drug-rapamycin.html Medical research Thu, 29 Mar 2012 14:00:10 EST news252247900 No one really wants the short end of the stick, in this case the short end of a chromosome. Telomeres, which are DNA-protein complexes at the ends of chromosomes, can be thought of as protein "caps" that protect chromosomes from deteriorating and fusing with neighboring chromosomes. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-scientists-link-chromosome-length-heart.html Cardiology Sun, 25 Mar 2012 14:04:28 EST news251903047 Researchers have just shown that the molecule REST acts as an adapter in stem cells, and hope that future studies of REST will contribute to the development of new types of treatments for diseases such as cancer. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-rest-crucial-brain.html Genetics Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:32:30 EST news249906737 Millions of "good" bacteria exist harmoniously on the skin and in the intestines of healthy people. When harmful bacteria attack, the immune system fights back by sending out white blood cells to destroy the disease-causing interlopers. But how do white blood cells know which bacteria are good and which are harmful? http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-protein-scouts-dangerous-bacteria-immune.html Immunology Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:52:41 EST news249223672 The same mechanism that stabilises the DNA in the cell nucleus is also important for the structure and function of vertebrate muscle cells. This has been established by RUB-researchers led by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Linke (Institute of Physiology) in cooperation with American and German colleagues. An enzyme attaches a methyl group to the protein Hsp90, which then forms a complex with the muscle protein titin. When the researchers disrupted this protein network through genetic manipulation in zebrafish the muscle structure partly disintegrated. The scientists have thus shown that methylation also plays a significant role outside the nucleus. They published their results in Genes and Development. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-protein-networks-stabilize-muscle-fibers.html Genetics Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:55:02 EST news246545676 A well-known protein complex responsible for controlling how DNA is expressed plays a previously unsuspected role in preventing pancreatic cancer, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-swisnf-protein-complex-role-suppressing.html Cancer Mon, 09 Jan 2012 15:00:04 EST news245324034 One major obstacle in the fight against cancer is that anticancer drugs often affect normal cells in addition to tumor cells, resulting in significant side effects. Yet research into development of less harmful treatments geared toward the targeting of specific cancer-causing mechanisms is hampered by lack of knowledge of the molecular pathways that drive cancers in individual patients. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-tumor-targeting-compound-personalized-cancer-treatments.html Cancer Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:00:01 EST news241977044 Researchers at the RIKEN Brain Science Institute (BSI) have discovered a key mechanism responsible for selectively degrading aggregates of ubiquitinated proteins from the cell. Their findings indicate that the capture and removal of such aggregates is mediated by the phosphorylation of a protein called p62, opening the door to new avenues for treating neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington's disease and Alzheimer's disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-uncovers-brain-cells-degrade-dangerous.html Medical research Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:04:36 EST news239886270 Researchers from the NYU Cancer Institute, an NCI-designated cancer center at NYU Langone Medical Center, have identified a cell cycle-regulated mechanism behind the transformation of normal cells into cancerous cells. The study shows the significant role that protein networks can play in a cell leading to the development of cancer. The study results, published in the October 21 issue of the journal Molecular Cell, suggest that inhibition of the CK1 enzyme may be a new therapeutic target for the treatment of cancer cells formed as a result of a malfunction in the cell's mTOR signaling pathway. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-cancer-cell.html Cancer Fri, 21 Oct 2011 17:23:02 EST news238436569 A protein critical in heart development may also play a part in colon cancer progression. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-bves-butts-colorectal-cancer.html Cancer Mon, 12 Sep 2011 12:29:25 EST news235049294 A new study from researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine has identified a unique protein complex that can be used to predict whether an epidural steroid injection will help relieve pain caused by a herniated disc in the lower spine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-biomarker-common-pain-treatment-doctor.html Medical research Thu, 11 Aug 2011 10:41:14 EST news232278054 Clinical researchers at VCU Massey Cancer Center have successfully completed a Phase I clinical trial evaluating a combination of the drugs Bortezomib and Alvocidib in patients with relapsed or refractory blood cancers, paving the way for a Phase II clinical trial to test the safety and effectiveness of the new therapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-lab-clinic-therapy-blood-cancers.html Cancer Thu, 02 Jun 2011 17:24:01 EST news226254213 Vitamin D helps to reduce the inflammation associated with psoriasis, a common skin condition that causes red, itchy patches on the skin, shows a new study. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-relief-red-itchy-skin-unraveling.html Medical research Thu, 12 May 2011 07:02:31 EST news224402524