PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 18-Jul-2014 Contact: Bonnie Prescott bprescot@bidmc.harvard.edu 617-667-7306 Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center BOSTON Aspirin is the gold standard for antiplatelet therapy and a daily low-dose aspirin is widely prescribed for the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Now, a new study suggests that common genetic variation in the gene for catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) may modify the cardiovascular benefit of aspirin, and in some people, may confer slight harm. The findings, led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) appear online in the American Heart Association journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. "This is one of the few cases where you can identify a single genetic polymorphism which has a significant interaction with aspirin such that it affects whether or not it protects against cardiovascular disease," says first author Kathryn Hall, PhD, MPH, an investigator in the Division of General Medicine and Primary Care at BIDMC and Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School. COMT is a key enzyme in the metabolism of catecholamines, a group of hormones that include epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine. "These hormones are implicated in a broad spectrum of disorders, including hypertension," explains Hall, "We were initially interested in finding out … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 18-Jul-2014 Contact: Charles Casey charles.casey@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu 916-734-9048 University of California - Davis Health System (SACRAMENTO, Calif.) Researchers from UC Davis School of Medicine and Shriners Hospitals for Children Northern California have identified a group of cells in the brain that they say plays an important role in the abnormal neuron development in Down syndrome. After developing a new model for studying the syndrome using patient-derived stem cells, the scientists also found that applying an inexpensive antibiotic to the cells appears to correct many abnormalities in the interaction between the cells and developing neurons. The findings, which focused on support cells in the brain called astroglial cells, appear online today in Nature Communications. "We have developed a human cellular model for studying brain development in Down syndrome that allows us to carry out detailed physiological studies and screen possible new therapies," said Wenbin Deng, associate professor of biochemistry and molecular medicine and principal investigator of the study. "This model is more realistic than traditional animal models because it is derived from a patient's own cells." Down syndrome is the most common chromosomal cause of mild to moderate intellectual disabilities in the United States, where it occurs in one in … Continue reading →