Cancer Research

Master Switches Found For Adult Blood Stem Cells

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have found a set of "master switches" that keep adult blood-forming stem cells in their primitive state. Unlocking the switches' code may one day enable scientists to grow new blood cells for tr ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 9 2007 - 12:19pm

New Weapon Against Cancer: HIV Protein Enlisted To Help Kill Cancer Cells

Cancer cells are sick, but they keep growing because they don't react to internal signals urging them to die. Now researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found an efficient way to get a messenger into cancer cells th ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 11 2007 - 10:38pm

Why Do Women Tend To Live Longer Than Men?

A provocative new model proposed by molecular biologist John Tower of the University of Southern California may help answer an enduring scientific question: Why do women tend to live longer than men? That tendency holds true in humans and many other mamma ...

Article - Pierre Far - Feb 12 2007 - 11:37am

Emerging Research Heralds New Era Of Breast Cancer Management

Aggressive research currently underway brings hope of dramatic advances in breast cancer management, according to a new review. Published in the March 15, 2007 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the review reveals tha ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 12 2007 - 1:27pm

Hooked By Genes: Studies Identify DNA Regions Linked To Nicotine Dependence

Americans are bombarded with antismoking messages, yet at least 65 million of us continue to light up. Genetic factors play an important role in this continuing addiction to cigarettes, suggest scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 12 2007 - 1:41pm

First Evidence Of Stem Cells In Pancreatic Tumors

University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers have discovered the small number of cells in pancreatic cancer that are capable of fueling the tumor's growth. The finding is the first identification of cancer stem cells in pancreatic t ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 12 2007 - 10:36pm

MedWatch: Genes, Genes, Genes

Before publishing the first issue of Gene Genie, a blog carnival on genes, I list here the most interesting announcements and findings on genes from the past day. The Diabetes Genetics Initiative (The Biotech Weblog) ...

Article - Bertalan Meskó - Feb 14 2007 - 4:01pm

Protein Sensor For Fatty Acid Buildup In Mitochondria

Just as homes have smoke detectors, cells have an enzyme that responds to a buildup of fatty acids by triggering the production of a key molecule in the biochemical pathway that breaks down these fatty acids, according to investigators at St. Jude Childre ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 16 2007 - 1:44am

Stem Cells Determine Their Daughters' Fate

From roundworm to human, most cells in an animal’s body ultimately come from stem cells. When one of these versatile, unspecialized cells divides, the resulting “daughter” cell receives instructions to differentiate into a specific cell type. In some case ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 16 2007 - 1:18am

Building A Better Painkiller: Neuroscientists Explain Inner Workings Of Critical Pain Pathway

Whether they're fighting postoperative soreness or relieving chronic discomfort from conditions such as cancer, morphine and other opioids are powerful weapons against pain. Now, in research published online in Nature Neuroscience, Brown University s ...

Article - News Staff - Feb 16 2007 - 1:57am