A Newcastle research centre has been renamed in honour of a North East expert in muscular dystrophy and related neuromuscular conditions. The John Walton Muscular Dystrophy Research Centre, which is part of the Institute of Genetic Medicine at Newcastle University, officially adopted its new name yesterday. Born in Rowlands Gill, Lord Walton qualified from Newcastle Medical School, and went on to become both a consultant neurologist and professor of neurology in Newcastle, and from 1971-1981 was Dean of Medicine at the University. The 92-year-old has spent his career helping improve the lives of people with muscle-wasting conditions, as well as other neurological conditions, first through medicine and then through Parliamentary campaigning. Lord Walton said: I am deeply touched and honoured that it was decided that the centre should be called after me. It is more than 60 years since I began work on muscular dystrophy here in Newcastle and it is thrilling to see the way in which a whole area of research and management of patients has matured and developed. I have often said that I am a simple Geordie lad, born in Rowlands Gill, brought up in this area, my father a school teacher, my mother a school … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 24-Nov-2014 Contact: Vanessa Wasta wasta@jhmi.edu 410-614-2916 Johns Hopkins Medicine @HopkinsMedicine After mining the genetic records of thousands of breast cancer patients, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have identified a gene whose presence may explain why some breast cancers are resistant to tamoxifen, a widely used hormone treatment generally used after surgery, radiation and other chemotherapy. The gene, called MACROD2, might also be useful in screening for some aggressive forms of breast cancers, and, someday, offering a new target for therapy, says Ben Ho Park, M.D., Ph.D., an associate professor of oncology in the Kimmel Cancer Center's Breast Cancer Program and a member of the research team. The drug tamoxifen is used to treat estrogen receptor-positive breast cancers. Cells in this type of breast cancer produce protein receptors in their nuclei which bind to and grow in response to the hormone estrogen. Tamoxifen generally blocks the binding process of the estrogen-receptor, but some estrogen receptor-positive cancers are resistant or become resistant to tamoxifen therapy, finding ways to elude its effects. MACROD2 appears to code for a biological path to tamoxifen resistance by diverting the drug from its customary blocking process to a different way of … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 25-Nov-2014 Contact: Gina DiGravio ginad@bu.edu 617-638-8480 Boston University Medical Center @BostonUNews (Boston)-- In the largest study of the genetics of memory ever undertaken, an international researcher team including scientists from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), have discovered two common genetic variants that are believed to be associated with memory performance. The findings, which appear in the journal Biological Psychiatry, are a significant step towards better understanding how memory loss is inherited. Longer life spans and the increased prevalence of memory impairment and dementia world-wide underscore the critical public health importance of efforts aimed at deciphering the underlying mechanisms of human memory. The Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) consortium was developed to facilitate the study of the entire genome through pooling of data from research centers all across the world. Nearly 30,000 participants who did not have dementia were included in the study. Each participant completed memory tests, such as word recall, and their entire genome was genotyped. Using sophisticated statistical analysis, the genome was examined for segments that were associated with low memory scores. The researchers found genetic variants near the Apolipoprotein E gene, known to harbor an increased risk of … Continue reading →

Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online A new stem cell gene therapy developed by researchers at UCLA is set to begin clinical trials early next year after the technique reportedly cured 18 children who were born without working immune systems due to a condition known as ADA-deficient Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) or Bubble Baby disease. The treatment was developed by Dr. Donald Kohn, a member of the UCLA Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, and his colleagues, and according to the university, it is able to identify and correct faulty genes by using the DNA of the youngsters born with this life-threatening condition. Left untreated, ADA-deficient SCID is often fatal within the first year of a childs life, reports Peter M. Bracke for UCLA. However, after more than three decades of research, Dr. Kohns team managed to develop a gene therapy that can safely restore the immune systems of children with the disease by using their own cells and with no noticeable side effects. All of the children with SCID that I have treated in these stem cell clinical trials would have died in a year or less without this gene therapy, instead … Continue reading →

Contact Information Available for logged-in reporters only Newswise In a study led by Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research member, Dr. John Chute, UCLA scientists have for the first time identified a unique protein that plays a key role in regulating blood stem cell replication in humans. This discovery lays the groundwork for a better understanding of how this protein controls blood stem cell growth and regeneration, and could lead to the development of more effective therapies for a wide range of blood diseases and cancers. The study was published online November 21, 2014 ahead of print in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are the blood-forming cells that have the remarkable capacity to both self-renew and give rise to all of the differentiated cells (fully developed cells) of the blood system. HSC transplantation provides curative therapy for thousands of patients annually. However, little is known about the process through which transplanted HSCs replicate following their arrival in human bone marrow. In this study, the authors showed that a cell surface protein called protein tyrosine phosphatase-sigma (PTP-sigma) regulates the critical process called engraftment, meaning how HSCs start to grow and make … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 24-Nov-2014 Contact: Jen Middleton jen.middleton@ed.ac.uk 44-131-650-6514 University of Edinburgh @uniofedinburgh Liver disease patients could be helped by a new cell therapy to treat the condition. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh have received funding to start testing the therapy in patients within the next year. It will be the world's first clinical trial of a new type of cell therapy to treat liver cirrhosis, a common disease where scar tissue forms in the organ as a result of long-term damage. The Edinburgh team has received funding from the Medical Research Council and Innovate UK to investigate the disease, which claims 4000 lives in the UK each year. The only successful treatment for end-stage liver cirrhosis at present is an organ transplant. The new therapy is based on a type of white blood cell called a macrophage, which is key to normal repair processes in the liver. Macrophages reduce scar tissue and stimulate the liver's own stem cells to expand and form into healthy new liver cells. Scientists will take cells from the blood of patients with liver cirrhosis and turn them into macrophages in the lab using chemical signals. See the rest here: Cell therapy trial offers … Continue reading →

Cambridge stem cell pioneer DefiniGEN is in China this week showcasing technology that arguably gives the UK a world lead in countering liver and pancreatic cancer. The young company is seeking Chinese partners to broaden the reach of the technology which holds a potentially significant payback in regenerative medicine. With US global stem cell innovator Roger Pedersen among its technology founders, DefiniGEN was founded two years ago to commercialise a stem cell production platform developed at the University of Cambridge. The platform generates human liver and pancreatic cell types using Nobel Prize winning human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPSC) technology. DefiniGEN is visiting Shanghai and Beijing on a trade mission organised by UKTI East of England in partnership with the China-Britain Business Council. The company is actively looking to partner with Life Science distributors and pharmaceutical drug discovery companies in China. CEO Dr Marcus Yeo and Dr Masashi Matsunaga business development manager for Asia Pacific - are spearheading the initiative. The visit includes a range of medically-focused ventures from one to one meetings with key players to presentations at UK consulates. DefiniGEN cells are provided to the drug discovery sector for use in lead optimisation and toxicity programmes. The companys … Continue reading →

Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online A new stem cell gene therapy developed by researchers at UCLA is set to begin clinical trials early next year after the technique reportedly cured 18 children who were born without working immune systems due to a condition known as ADA-deficient Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) or Bubble Baby disease. The treatment was developed by Dr. Donald Kohn, a member of the UCLA Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, and his colleagues, and according to the university, it is able to identify and correct faulty genes by using the DNA of the youngsters born with this life-threatening condition. Left untreated, ADA-deficient SCID is often fatal within the first year of a childs life, reports Peter M. Bracke for UCLA. However, after more than three decades of research, Dr. Kohns team managed to develop a gene therapy that can safely restore the immune systems of children with the disease by using their own cells and with no noticeable side effects. All of the children with SCID that I have treated in these stem cell clinical trials would have died in a year or less without this gene therapy, instead … Continue reading →