Stem Cell Research
Regenerative stem cells were used to repair damaged lungs in mice, pointing to new ways to treat patients with common diseases such as asthma, bronchitis and emphysema. Report
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the NIH are launching a joint pilot program while searching for new ways to work together on translational stem cell projects. Article
North Carolina's Center for Comparative Medicine and the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine will work on new translational efforts. Story
Cancer
The prestigious Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has joined hands with Brigham & Women's Hospital to track down the genetic triggers of cancer as they search for new, more personalized therapies. Item
New work on the complicated biology associated with cancer may help developers find new ways to stop the disease. The macrophage cell surface protein S100A10 plays a major role in allowing macrophages to move to the site of tumor growth--a process that is essential to tumor development, according to investigators at Dalhousie University. Release
Genetics
A new field study of a genetically altered mosquito designed to pass a lethal gene on to its disease-carrying offspring shows signs of success. But it also raised concerns about releasing a modified insect into nature. Story
After mapping the genetics of the intestinal roundworm investigators say they've found new drug targets that promise to control the parasitic disease. Release
A team at Yale say they have determined that genes responsible for autism and schizophrenia are activated in the brain before birth. "The complexity of the system shows why the human brain may be so susceptible to psychiatric disorders," said study senior author Nenad Sestan. Report