Taccalonolides from bat plants selectively kill cancer cells |  |
- Taccalonolides from bat plants selectively kill cancer cells
- Derivative of the agent zileuton has proteasome inhibiting properties
- New service brings power of genomics to patient care
- $3.8 million grant investigates link between sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation
- NASA's NPP satellite acquires first VIIRS image
- New formula can help set commissioning budgets for general practices
- New Global Child Health curriculum announced in Canada
- Chew gum, lose weight
- Cancer vaccine impact limited unless drug industry focuses on difficult-to-treat tumors
- New projection shows global food demand doubling by 2050
| Taccalonolides from bat plants selectively kill cancer cells Posted: 22 Nov 2011 06:29 PM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) In a new study published this month in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, researchers with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio have pinpointed the cancer-fighting potential in the bat plant, or Tacca chantrieri. Susan Mooberry, Ph.D., leader of the Experimental Development Therapeutics Program at the Cancer Therapy & Research Center and a professor of pharmacology in the School of Medicine at the UT Health Science Center, has been working to isolate substances in the plant, looking for a plant-derived cancer drug with the potential of Taxol. Taxol, the first microtubule stabilizer derived from the Yew family, has been an effective chemotherapy drug, but patients eventually develop problems with resistance over time and toxicity at higher doses. Researchers have long been seeking alternatives. "We've been working with these for years with some good results, but never with the potency of Taxol," said Dr. Mooberry, lead author of the study. "Now we have that potency, and we also show for the first time the taccalonolides' cellular binding site." Microtubules are structures in the cells that act as conveyer belts. They help maintain cell shape and help guide chromosones in cell division to ensure that every new cell, including every new cancer cell, gets a full complement of genetic material. When microtubules are stabilized — essentially held still so they can't do their jobs — this disrupts numerous cellular processes, and the cell can die. The taccalonolides stabilize microtubules in cancer cells, but they do not attack healthy cells, Dr. Mooberry said. "We've run normal prostate cells and normal breast cells through these tests, and they don't die. The taccalonolides selectively kill cancer cells." Until now, how they did this was unknown. The isolation of these highly potent taccalonolides for the first time by Dr. Mooberry's team shows how they interact directly with... http://www.rxpgnews.com    |
| Derivative of the agent zileuton has proteasome inhibiting properties Posted: 22 Nov 2011 05:48 PM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Biochemists at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) have now identified the lead structure of a new class of drugs that attacks the proteasome in an unusual way. New medication could be developed on the basis of this previously unknown binding mechanism. The scientists report their results in the scientific journal Angewandte Chemie. The proteasome, a large protein complex, carries out a vitally important function in the cells of the body. Similar to a recycling plant, it decomposes unneeded proteins into short pieces and recycles them. In this way it controls a number of functions in the cell. It regulates cell growth and division, decomposes damaged proteins and also acts as a key partner of the immune system in immune defense and inflammatory reactions. Because it is involved in so many important mechanisms within the cell, the proteasome is also associated with many diseases such as cancer, mucoviscidosis and a whole series of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease. Due to its significant role in the growth of cancer cells, in recent years the proteasome has taken center stage in pharmacological research as a starting point for cancer medication. When it becomes inhibited, the growth of cancer cells slows down. Bortezomib, the first drug to apply this strategy, generates revenues of over one billion US dollars per year in the meantime. It is used against multiple myeloma, a cancer disease of the bone marrow. Yet in spite of all its successes, the proteasome inhibitors currently in use often have severe disadvantages. As a result of their high reactivity they attack other proteins, too, thereby damaging not only cancer cells but also other healthy cells. The search for alternatives conducted by a group of scientists headed by Professor Michael Groll, who holds the Chair of Biochemistry in the Department of Chemistry at the TU München, in collaboration with Professor Robert Huber,... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| New service brings power of genomics to patient care Posted: 22 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Physicians can now take advantage of a new genetics test -- one of the first of its kind to be offered in the United States -- that can help determine the best treatment for cancer patients. Genomics and Pathology Services at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (GPS@WUSTL) is now offering a test for mutations in 28 genes associated with cancer. The genes in the test affect a variety of different types of tumors, including blood, lymph, lung, brain, bladder, kidney, skin, stomach, prostate and breast cancers. Identifying specific mutations in these genes can help doctors decide which treatments are most likely to benefit individual patients, which is the goal of genomic (or personalized) medicine. All of these genes already can be tested individually for mutations. But using GPS@WUSTL, physicians throughout the country can order the new test to simultaneously examine the genes most likely to influence treatment of a patient's tumor. According to GPS@WUSTL organizers, sequencing multiple genes at once is less expensive than sequencing the genes separately. The next-generation sequencing technique and the novel bioinformatics platform used to produce the data also will significantly improve the sensitivity and accuracy of the results. Scientists envision the cancer genetics test as the first of many disease panels to be offered by GPS@WUSTL. Work is under way on similar panels that will influence the diagnosis and treatment of other disorders, including autism and kidney disease. GPS@WUSTL is bringing the promise of human genomics to the clinic, says Karen Seibert, PhD, director of GPS@WUSTL. We use the latest gene sequencing technology and cross-reference the results to known treatment options for the patient's particular mutations. In addition to patient care, our labs will support clinical trials aimed at identifying new ways to diagnose and treat disease. While costs for sequencing a patient's entire genome... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| $3.8 million grant investigates link between sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation Posted: 22 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has received a $3.8 million grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to study sleep apnea as a possible cause of atrial fibrillation (AF), the most commonly diagnosed type of arrhythmia, or irregular heart rhythm. AF is characterized by an abnormally rapid heart rate that can inhibit blood flow, and raise the risk of stroke and heart failure. The five-year, NHLBI grant will enable researchers to study how sleep apnea, a treatable disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep, produces functional and structural changes in the heart that may well contribute to the development of AF. The new research will characterize what aspects of sleep apnea lead to AF, honing in on the effects of sleep apnea-induced changes to the structure of the heart, including increases in blood pressure and reductions in oxygen levels, says the study's principal investigator, Reena Mehra MD, MS, associate professor of medicine in the Department of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and a pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine physician at University Hospitals Case Medical Center. The data generated from the research will fuel the development of new approaches for prevention and treatment of AF, and, will help identify key factors for future clinical trials, she says. More fully identifying AF risk factors and developing new treatments is instrumental to stemming the growing rate of AF, a condition that could afflict up to 16 million individuals by the year 2050, according to research projections. The growing prevalence of AF is not fully explained by known risk factors, such as age, existing heart disease and family history, highlighting the need to more precisely identifying potential novel AF triggers, Dr. Mehra explains. Because sleep disorders like sleep apnea are common among patients with heart disease, Dr. Mehra and... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| NASA's NPP satellite acquires first VIIRS image Posted: 22 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) GREENBELT, Md. -- The Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) onboard NASA's newest Earth-observing satellite, NPP, acquired its first measurements on Nov. 21, 2011. This high-resolution image is of a broad swath of Eastern North America from Canada's Hudson Bay past Florida to the northern coast of Venezuela. The VIIRS data were processed at the NOAA Satellite Operations Facility (NSOF) in Suitland, Md. VIIRS is one of five instruments onboard the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project (NPP) satellite that launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., on Oct. 28. Since then, NPP reached its final orbit at an altitude of 512 miles (824 kilometers), powered on all instruments and is traveling around the Earth at 16,640 miles an hour (eight kilometers per second). This image is a next step forward in the success of VIIRS and the NPP mission, said James Gleason, NPP project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. VIIRS will collect radiometric imagery in visible and infrared wavelengths of the Earth's land, atmosphere, and oceans. By far the largest instrument onboard NPP, VIIRS weighs about 556 pounds (252 kilograms). Its data, collected from 22 channels across the electromagnetic spectrum, will be used to observe the Earth's surface including fires, ice, ocean color, vegetation, clouds, and land and sea surface temperatures. VIIRS heralds a brightening future for continuing these essential measurements of our environment and climate, said Diane Wickland, NPP program scientist at NASA headquarters in Washington. She adds that all of NPP's five instruments will be up and running by mid-December and NPP will begin 2012 by sending down complete data. NPP is right on track to ring in the New Year, said Ken Schwer, NPP project manager at NASA Goddard. Along with VIIRS, NPP carries four more instruments that monitor the environment on Earth and the... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| New formula can help set commissioning budgets for general practices Posted: 22 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) A new formula that can predict future health costs more accurately than previous models could help guide commissioning budgets for general practices under the government's new Health Bill, finds a study published on bmj.com today. The model (known as the 'person based resource allocation' or PBRA) was developed to help allocate resources for commissioning hospital care to all general practices in England, based on the health needs of each individual registered in each practice. A team of researchers led by The Nuffield Trust set out to develop a formula that was accurate enough to predict future costs of a general practice's population and thus could serve as a basis for setting budgets for the next year's expenditure on hospital care. For everyone registered with a general practice in England, the team exploited the rich amount of information routinely collected by the NHS on their health needs, for example their illnesses as recorded in hospital. Importantly this was done in a way that protected patient confidentiality. Using this information they devised a series of mathematical models to predict future costs. In this study, models used data from 2005-6 and 2006-7 to predict costs in 2007-8. Predicted costs were then compared with each practice's actual costs for 2007-8 to assess how the model performed. The best model performed well by international standards, predicting 77% of hospital costs per practice. Subsequent analysis has increased this figure to 85%. The researchers say that this research could be very useful when the NHS Commissioning Board looks to set budgets for Clinical Commissioning Groups. The best formulae tested, however, could predict only about 12% of next year's hospital costs per individual. This suggests that the models should be used only to guide allocations to practices, and are not recommended for use at an individual level, say the authors. With current information, it is not possible to know... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| New Global Child Health curriculum announced in Canada Posted: 21 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) OTTAWA -- Globalization has led to significant changes in the health care of children worldwide, yet medical education in the developed world has remained domestically focused. Canadian pediatricians are caring for growing numbers of new immigrants, refugees and international adoptees, so their formal training should reflect these changes. Now medical trainees in Canada don't have to go abroad to improve cultural competency and expand their global health education. With support from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), a national team of global child health (GCH) experts working through the Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS) is the first to create a series of evidence-based educational modules to address a foundational learning gap for residents, pediatricians and health care institutions. The modules are now available in both official languages from the CPS, and include the following key topics: global child mortality, under-nutrition, fever in the returned child traveler, and refugee and immigrant health. The curriculum will be presented today at a luncheon with Dr. Margaret Chan, Director General of the World Health Organization, and the Honourable Beverley Oda, Minister of International Cooperation, and the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health. Today's announcement is the accumulation of five years work, and the uptake of the modules across Canada has been amazing to watch. It's rewarding to see our research efforts put into practice, said Dr. Jennifer Brenner, a pediatrician at Calgary's Alberta Children's Hospital and principal investigator of this GCH research program. Canada is in position to lead other developed nations by example, for tackling GCH at the residency level and influencing the practice of its future pediatricians and physicians. The curriculum is intended for all medical trainees, including those who have no intention of participating in an overseas elective or working... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Posted: 21 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Most people understand that serious weight loss requires changing attitudes toward what they eat and how often they exercise. But, what if the process could be aided by simply chewing a stick of gum after meals? That's the question a team of scientists, led by Syracuse University chemist Robert Doyle, is trying to answer. In a groundbreaking new study, Doyle's team demonstrated, for the first time, that a critical hormone that helps people feel full after eating can be delivered into the bloodstream orally. Doyle's study was published online Nov. 4, 2011 in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Medicinal Chemistry and is forthcoming in print. The journal is the most cited in the field and one of the leading primary research journals internationally. Doyle is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry in SU's College of Arts and Sciences. He collaborated on the study with researchers from Murdoch University in Australia. The hormone, called human PYY, is part of a chemical system that regulates appetite and energy. When people eat or exercise, PYY is released into the bloodstream. The amount of PYY that is released increases with the number of calories that are consumed. Past studies have shown that people who are obese have lower concentrations of PYY in their bloodstream both when fasting and after eating than their non-obese counterparts. Additionally, intravenous infusion of PYY into a volunteer group of obese and non-obese individuals increased the serum levels of the hormone and lowered the number of calories both groups consumed. PYY is an appetite-suppressing hormone, Doyle says. But, when taken orally, the hormone is destroyed in the stomach and that which isn't destroyed has difficulty crossing into the bloodstream through the intestines. What's needed is a way to disguise the PYY so that it can travel through the digestive system relatively unharmed. Several years ago, Doyle developed a way to use... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Cancer vaccine impact limited unless drug industry focuses on difficult-to-treat tumors Posted: 21 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Drug companies currently developing therapeutic cancer vaccines may be determining the cancers they target based on the number of annual cases, not the number of deaths they cause. This approach may limit the patient benefits of such drugs, according to a new University of Michigan report. Therapeutic vaccines, an alternative form of cancer treatment that may be more effective than traditional cancer therapies, are currently being tested in clinical trials around the world. Early studies on these vaccines, which trigger patients' immune systems to attack cancer cells, have shown they may offer new hope for those suffering from difficult-to-treat cancers. In 2011, there were about 230 clinical trials for therapeutic vaccines targeting 13 different types of cancer, says Matthew Davis, M.D., M.A.P.P., associate professor of pediatrics, internal medicine, and public policy at the University of Michigan Health System and Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. If a cancer is more commonly diagnosed in the United States, it is significantly more likely to have therapeutic vaccines in clinical trials, Davis adds. Focusing on annual incidence is a very common approach by drug companies in developing new therapies. Therapeutic vaccine development should focus on cancers with higher mortality rates, creating more potential to improve patient outcomes, Davis suggests. The lack of a connection between therapeutic cancer vaccine development and cancer deaths means that vaccine development in this arena today may not best serve the needs of cancer patients tomorrow, Davis says. As a primary care doctor, I would like to see innovations with therapeutic vaccines that target cancers where our current therapies are less effective than average. Davis and co-author Elias Dayoub, a second-year medical student, emphasize that lung cancer and pancreatic cancer are two tumor types where the five-year survival is lower than average and the... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| New projection shows global food demand doubling by 2050 Posted: 21 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Global food demand could double by 2050, according to a new projection by David Tilman, Regents Professor of Ecology in the University of Minnesota's College of Biological Sciences, and colleagues, including Jason Hill, assistant professor in the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. Producing that amount of food could significantly increase levels of carbon dioxide and nitrogen in the environment and cause the extinction of numerous species. But this can be avoided, the paper shows, if the high-yielding technologies of rich nations are adapted to work in poor nations, and if all nations use nitrogen fertilizers more efficiently. Agriculture's greenhouse gas emissions could double by 2050 if current trends in global food production continue, Tilman said. Global agriculture already accounts for a third of all greenhouse gas emissions. Much of these emissions come from land clearing, which also threatens species with extinction. The article shows that if poor nations continue current practices, they will clear a land area larger than the United States (two and a half billion acres) by 2050. But if richer nations help poorer nations improve yields to achievable levels, that could be reduced to half a billion acres. The research, published Nov. 21 online by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that adopting nitrogen-efficient intensive farming can meet future global food demand with much lower environmental impacts than the extensive farming practiced by many poor nations, which clear land to produce more food. The potential benefits are great. In 2005, crop yields for the wealthiest nations were more than 300 percent higher than yields for the poorest nations. Strategically intensifying crop production in developing and least-developed nations would reduce the overall environmental harm caused by food production, as well as provide a more equitable food supply across the globe, said... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
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