A fundraising blitz by the Office of the Vice President for Research’s first development director hopes to make a proposed autism research center a reality. The University has stayed committed to the autism and neuro-developmental disorder center since its conception in 2010, but Vice President for Research Leo Chalupa said the project cannot move forward unless newly hired Heather Russell can raise the capital for it. Chalupa has said $10 million is needed to completely launch an autism research center, but University spokeswoman Jill Sankey said Tuesday that the development of a center could begin with a portion of that sum raised. Chalupa said Russell, a former development director for the Texas-based Autism Treatment Center who started at the University last week, has a tough task ahead of her. “The reason autism was targeted for raising money is because it’s expensive,” Chalupa said. “It’s very broad. It varies in everything from lab work with animals to human brain imaging to things like that. So it’s expensive.” He has set a goal for Russell to raise $2 million to $3 million this year, which could get a lift from forging partnerships with private foundations, and continue fundraising over the next three … Continue reading →

Genomind and Massachusetts General Hospital Announce Inpatient Study Of Genetic Biomarkers In Treatment Resistant Depression Boston, MA (PRWEB) February 16, 2012 Genomind today announced that the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Department of Psychiatry is beginning a major inpatient study examining the use of genetic biomarker data to inform clinician treatment decisions for patients with treatment resistant major depressive disorder. The IRB-approved study compares treatment-as-usual vs. assay-guided treatment in inpatient adults with treatment resistant depression (TRD). Assay-guided treatment in the study will use the Genecept™ Assay. Recruitment begins immediately. The primary study objective is improvement in depressive symptoms from baseline to 6 months, and secondary endpoints including change in clinician behavior, as well as decrease in costs. “Until recently, clinicians have not had tools available for enhancing decision-making to increase the chance for treatment response and decrease the risk for adverse drug reaction, which can reach 5-10%,” said John D. Matthews, MD, Director of Inpatient Research and Training at MGH and an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. “Our understanding of the genetic basis of inter-individual variation of drug response, which can vary between 30-60%, has been advanced by genome sequencing, the development of pharmacogenetic biomarkers to predict treatment response and … Continue reading →

Newswise — Understanding how RNA binding proteins control the genetic splicing code is fundamental to human biology and disease – much like editing film can change a movie scene. Abnormal variations in splicing are often implicated in cancer and genetic neurodegenerative disorders. In a step toward deciphering the “splicing code” of the human genome, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have comprehensively analyzed six of the more highly expressed RNA binding proteins collectively known as heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoparticle (hnRNP) proteins. This study, published online Feb 16 in Cell Press’ new open-access journal Cell Reports, describes how multiple RNA binding proteins cooperatively control the diversity of proteins in human cells by regulating the alternative splicing of thousands of genes. In the splicing process, fragments that do not typically code for protein, called introns, are removed from gene transcripts, and the remaining sequences, called exons, are reconnected. The proteins that bind to RNA are important for the control of the splicing process, and the location where they bind dictates which pieces of the RNA are included or excluded in the final gene transcript -- in much the same fashion that removing and inserting scenes, or splicing, can … Continue reading →

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- bluebird bio, a world leader in the development of innovative gene therapies for severe genetic disorders, today announced the appointment of David M. Davidson, M.D., to the role of chief medical officer. “David brings a wealth of gene therapy, rare disease and clinical drug development expertise to bluebird bio during an exciting time in our company’s growth,” said Nick Leschly, chief executive officer of bluebird bio. “Operationally, David’s deep gene therapy and translational medicine experience will help guide bluebird bio’s clinical development efforts and regulatory strategies. With the addition of David to our team, we are well positioned to maximize the high priority opportunities available to us through our broad product platform.” Prior to joining bluebird bio, Dr. Davidson served as a senior medical director at Genzyme Corporation where he led clinical research for programs in Phases 1 through 4 across a wide range of therapeutic areas for more than a decade. Most recently, Dr. Davidson was the medical leader for Genzyme’s gene therapy and Pompe disease enzyme replacement therapy programs. In addition to Dr. Davidson’s translational medicine experience, he has also worked on a number of commercial products, including Fabrazyme® and Myozyme®/Lumizyme®, and was integral in … Continue reading →

Public release date: 16-Feb-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Ellen de Graffenreid edegraff@med.unc.edu 919-962-3405 University of North Carolina School of Medicine A series of 15 scientific papers published this week in the journals of the Genetics Society of America (Genetics and G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics) put North Carolina at the epicenter of a scientific resource called the Collaborative Cross ? a "library" of genetic diversity that scientists believe can help fast-track important discoveries about genetics and disease into new discoveries, tests, and treatments that impact human health. Researchers have long been frustrated by promising lab results that hit obstacles on the road to human application. Sometimes this is because research in other living organisms is very limited in terms of what conclusions scientists can safely extrapolate to the human population as a whole. One reason for this problem is that organisms studied in the laboratory lack the genetic diversity of humans. To overcome this obstacle, scientists have begun to create libraries of genetic material. These libraries ? called Genetic Resource Panels (GRPs) ? enable researchers to look at how genetic variation impacts living systems in a careful and systematic manner ? an approach that they think will help draw more … Continue reading →

World Stem Cells, LLC Stem Cell Therapy at a state of the art clinic in beautiful Cancun. The clinic is staffed by top specialist in the field of stem cell implants and a new laboratory to support the stem cell treatments given. (PRWEB) February 16, 2012 World Stem Cells, LLC. contract laboratory Advanced Cellular Engineering Lab (Ingenieria Celular Advanzada S.A. de C.V.) a new adult stem cell laboratory being built in Cancun, Mexico to support Stem Cell research, stem cell clinical trials and stem cell treatments. This was accomplished by private funding in conjunction with World Stem Cells, LLC worldstemcells.com a US patient management company, Medicina Biocelular Avanzada , S.E. de C.V. a Mexican patient management company and Advanced Cellular Medicine Clinic of Cancun, a Stem Cell treatment Clinic owned and operated by Dr. Sylvia M. Abblitt a well known board certified hematologist and oncologist, in Cancun. Uniquely, Dr. Abblitt is one of a limited number of physicians licensed to perform autologous and allogeneic stem cell transplants. Dr. Abblitt has been utilizing stem cell therapies with successes for many years. She is the president and lab director of Advanced Cellular Engineering Lab (Ingenieria Celular Advanzada S.A. de C.V.). Her extensive … Continue reading →