ALSO NOTED: Stanford gets $33M for stem cells;Researchers study trial biases;

Stem cell research

A private donor is giving $33 million to Stanford University for a new stem cell research facility. Report

In animal experiments, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have deconstructed the process in which adult stem cells are used to repair damaged hearts, describing how the stem cells fuse with heart muscle cells to create new cells that repopulate the ailing organ. Report

A group of molecular scientists at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have developed a procedure to spur human embryotic stem cells to differentiate into a pure population of lung epithelial cells. The procedure could be used to develop spinal cord, nerve and heart cells. Report

A major stem cell study in Nature which asserted that adult stem cells could be converted into every type of body tissue was "significantly flawed," according to an inquiry panel. Article

In an editorial, the San Jose Mercury News called for greater transparency in the stem cell grant procedure so that the public can gain a greater understanding of which researchers are being funded and why. Report

Cancer research

Cancer stem cells make up only 1 percent of a tumor, but researchers are increasingly pointing to them as far more lethal than most of the cancer cells that surround them. Report

New results in the field of RNA research establish that the RNA splicing factor SF2/ASF can act as a cancer-causing protein by changing the alternative splicing of other genes critical for growth-control of cells. "Regulating the level of SF2/ASF in cells impacts tumor growth, making it a new potential target for cancer therapy," said Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory professor Adrian Krainer. Report

Investigators have identified a cell pathway which plays a critical role in the development of colon cancer. This pathway may also play a role in the development of lung and stomach cancers. Report

Research led by investigators at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory may link viruses that have been considered harmless to chromosomal instability and cancer. "If the model that we propose is correct, protecting the body against viruses, or preventing the cell fusion that they cause may decrease the frequency of cancers and prevent their progression," said CSHL's lead investigator Yuri Lazebnik. Release

Researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have discovered a genetic signature identifying cases of lymphoma that are uniquely susceptible to a newly developed molecular targeted therapy. Release

Cancer cells differ from normal cells in, among other things, the way they divide. When a normal cell complies with a signal telling it to divide, it also begins to activate a "braking system" that eventually stops cell division and returns the cell to a resting state. When that braking system is faulty, uncontrolled cell division and the growth of cancer can result. Weizmann Institute scientists studied this system of brakes, and identified a number of the genes involved. Release

A new family of potential anti-cancer drugs is quietly causing excitement in the pharmaceutical industry as early data from clinical trials shows promising responses in patients, according to an article scheduled for the Feb. 26 issue of Chemical & Engineering News, the ACS' weekly news magazine. The drugs focus on a new target in the war against cancer--a substance called heat shock protein 90. Report

More research

Researchers comparing industry-funded drug trials and academic research note that the corporate research studies are likely to be smaller, more focused and more likely to deliver positive results. Article

QUT scientists have developed specially-designed ceramic membranes for nanofiltration, which are so advanced they have the potential to remove viruses from water, air and blood. Associate Professor Huaiyong Zhu, from QUT's School of Physical and Chemical Sciences, is leading the development of these membranes, also known as nano-mesh, and said preliminary research had proved it successful in removing viruses from water. Release

A group of scientists in Philadelphia have concluded that RNA editing plays a key role in allowing a limited number of genes do the work they're responsible for in humans. A breakdown in RNA editing in mice quickly led to gout or neuron damage. Report

The tiny Drosophila fruit fly may pave the way to new methods for studying and finding treatments for heart disease, the leading cause of death in industrialized countries, according to a collaborative study by the Burnham Institute for Medical Research, UC San Diego and the University of Michigan. The study reports that mutations in a molecular channel found in heart muscle cell membranes caused arrhythmias similar to those that are found in humans, suggesting that understanding how this channel's activity is controlled in the cell could lead to new heart disease treatments. Release

A new class of targeted anti-cancer drugs that blocks the human epidermal growth factor (HER) receptor family shows promise in prolonging the lives of patients with recurrent prostate cancer, a new Cedars-Sinai study shows. The drug, a molecular targeted compound called pertuzumab, works by binding to and inhibiting the function of HER2 receptors, interrupting a key pathway that leads to cancer growth. Release

North Carolina State University scientists have figured out a method to supply microscopic devices with enough energy to not only allow them to propel themselves through liquid--a difficult function in its own right--but also to perform some other functions, like emitting light. Report

The primary targets of HIV-1 infection in the human vagina have been definitively identified in a new study published in the February 2007 issue of the journal Immunity. The findings are likely to guide development of new strategies that will prevent HIV-1 transmission. Release

A microRNA directly regulates a gene implicated in human cancers, researchers from Whitehead Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology report in the February 22nd online issue of Science. Release

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis have a high risk of death from disease--at least double the risk of the general population, studies overwhelmingly show. Evidence has been less clear on whether RA patients are exceptionally vulnerable to dying from cancer. Release

Is it ethical for scientists to conduct or benefit from research in another country if that research would be unlawful, or not generally accepted, in their own country? In a policy paper in PLoS Medicine Loane Skene, Professor of Law at the University of Melbourne, Australia, presents a unique "barometer" for gauging the ethics of such research. Release

A plant extract used to stabilize fast food can also stabilize the gold nanoparticles used to identify cancer. Release

Scientists and public health officials, wary that the H5N1 avian influenza virus could trigger an influenza pandemic, have looked to past pandemics, including the 1918 "Spanish Flu," for insight into pandemic planning. However, David M. Morens, M.D., and Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, conclude that studies of the 1918 influenza pandemic have so far raised more questions than they answer. Release

Scientists at Forsyth Institute may have moved one step closer to regenerating human spinal cord tissue by artificially inducing a frog tadpole to re-grow its tail at a stage in its development when it is normally impossible. Using a variety of methods including a kind of gene therapy, the scientists altered the electrical properties of cells thus inducing regeneration. This discovery may provide clues about how bioelectricity can be used to help humans regenerate. Report

Systemic lupus erythomatosus, often simply called lupus, is a complex autoimmune disease marked by joint pain, skin rashes, extreme fatigue, and depression, among other symptoms. Some studies have described a possible link between SLE's most severe psychiatric manifestation, psychosis, and a protein autoantibody associated with the central nervous system, anti-ribosomal P. Release