ALSO NOTED: Scientists create chimera; New cancer research institute; Most influential scientists in biotechnology;

Stem Cell Research

Scientists at the University of Chicago have created an "interspecies" rodent which combines cells of two distantly related mouse species by injecting ESCs from one species into an embryo of another species. The resulting chimera is an example of how two species can be intermingled. Report

Cardiologists at the University Hospital of Navarre have used a catheter to implant adult stem cells in a Phase II trial on the effects of stem cells on some 50 patients. Release

A consortium of pharma companies is joining the UK government to produce ESCs for toxicity testing. Report

New research from the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research in Cambridge, MA indicates that adult stem cells lack the Oct4 protein, which helps ESCs remain in an undifferentiated state. Report

Quantum dots are being studied for their uses in imaging related to embryonic stem cell research. Report

State regulators in Massachusetts have repealed limits on stem cell research, which should go a long way to easing any fears of possible criminal charges that could have resulted from certain kinds of lab work. Report

Cancer Research

A UK science team has found immune proteins that could offer an early warning for lung cancer. Report

Billionaire David Koch, a cancer survivor, has given MIT $100 million to establish a cancer research institute that will explore cancer detection, diagnosis and therapy. A new building for the collaborative work will open in 2010. Report

Researchers have discovered new small molecules that may prevent prostate cancer cells from turning off normal genes in a process that transforms normal cells into cancer cells. This significant discovery in the field of epigenetics has immediate implications in the development of new diagnostic tests and cancer medications. Release

A team at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory say that by turning off three genes--TTF1, NKX2-8 and PAX9--they can stop tumor formation in lung cancer. Report

Genetics

Already linked to longer life, researchers say that the SIRT1 gene may also help lower cholesterol by increasing the activity of liver X receptor protein and may be of use in fighting atherosclerosis and Alzheimer's. Report

Affymetrix, Stanford and UC Santa Cruz have snared 40 percent of the $80 million in grant money being handed out for the human genome expansion project by the National Human Genome Research Institute. Report

British scientists are analyzing DNA from 14,000 volunteers to better understand that genetic triggers of osteoarthritis. They're working to develop a test that can predict a person's risk for the disease. Report

Doctors said Thursday that a genome for one strain of an extensively drug-resistant form of tuberculosis has been sequenced--a finding they say could help fight the disease. Report

More Research

Red wine is known to have multiple health benefits. Researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia have found that red wine may also protect humans from common food-borne diseases. Release

Scientists at MassGeneral Institute for Neurological Disorders say that the C2-8 molecule--which blunts the advance of neurological damage--could be effective as a treatment against Huntington's disease. Release

Scientists have already discovered how to "print" simple bacteria on paper. If they can figure out how to extend that process to multiple layers for cells, they will take another big step toward creating new organs. Their work is outlined in a paper published in Science. Report

MIT scientists have found a protein that regulates toxins in blood, a discovery that could lead to new therapies for inherited blood disorders. Report

Newsweek has named deCODE Genetics CEO Kari Steffanson as one of the 10 most influential scientists in biotechnology. Article