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Two academic teams have independently shown that targeting the inflammasome reduces retinal damage in mouse models of age-related macular degeneration. One study favors inhibiting inflammasome activation to treat dry …
Published on 5/17/2012
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Eyeing the inflammasome Figure 1. The inflammasome in age-related macular degeneration. Two groups have independently found that the inflammasome and IL-18 play a key role in the development and progression of age-…
Published on 5/17/2012
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Although pharmas are cutting back on internal neuroscience R&D programs, the number of precompetitive consortia backed by industry continues to rise. Most initiatives are focused on developing better disease models and …
Published on 5/10/2012
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A mind for precompetitive collaboration Table 1. Selected ongoing precompetitive neuroscience industry collaborations. Initiative Research goals Industry partners Nonindustry partners Funding or organizing body…
Published on 5/10/2012
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UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have discovered that knocking down microRNA-208a in the heart leads to systemic benefits in obesity and metabolic diseases. The findings could expand the potential indications…
Published on 5/3/2012
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Two research teams have independently developed large-scale screening platforms to profile hundreds of human cancer cell lines and identify drug sensitivity biomarkers. Novartis, a member of one of the groups, is now …
Published on 4/26/2012
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A super kind of cytokine Figure 1. IL-2 regulation of T cells. IL-2 binds and signals through a complex consisting of IL-2, IL-2 receptor a-chain (IL2-RA; CD25), IL-2 receptor b-chain (IL2-RB; CD122) and IL-2 …
Published on 4/19/2012
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Researchers from Stanford and Zurich have engineered a variant of IL-2 that shows a better antitumor response in mice than wild-type IL-2. The new variant, dubbed an IL-2 superkine, is licensed to Teva, which is …
Published on 4/19/2012
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UCSF researchers have found that the majority of triple-negative breast cancers have a dysregulated MYC pathway, and the group has shown that CDK inhibitors such as Merck and Ligand's dinaciclib could selectively kill …
Published on 4/12/2012
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Researchers at Merck have identified targets in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus that synergize with beta-lactam antibiotic targets to restore antibiotic sensitivity. The findings suggest it may now be …
Published on 4/5/2012
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A Harvard Medical School team has identified a T cell-based immune response in the skin that is better at protecting mice from some viral infections than circulating T cells. Trem Rx is developing a vaccine platform …
Published on 3/29/2012
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Cover Story: Bioartificial pancreas beta test Figure 1. Beta-O2's bioartificial pancreas system. As reported by Ludwig et al., the bioartificial pancreas system from Beta-O2 Technologies Ltd. and collaborators …
Published on 3/22/2012
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Beta-O2 Technologies and an international team of academic collaborators have shown that the company's bioartificial pancreas normalizes blood glucose levels in rat models of diabetes for up to three months. The team …
Published on 3/22/2012
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Speed and cost are the potential selling points for nanopore sequencing, but thus far speed has come at the cost of accuracy. Now, a team at UC Santa Cruz has discovered a way to improve the accuracy of nanopore …
Published on 3/15/2012
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Keeping up with the nanopores Table 1. Nanopore sequencing in development. At least five companies are developing nanopore-based DNA sequencers, which determine base-pair identity by measuring unique signatures …
Published on 3/15/2012
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Canadian researchers have found that ganglioside GM1, a naturally occurring lipid, improves motor function and slows disease progression in mice with Huntington's disease. The team is in talks to license the findings to…
Published on 3/8/2012
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Four research teams have independently identified a RET kinase fusion that could drive about 2% of lung adenocarcinoma cases. One of the groups hopes to begin a Phase II trial of Pfizer's multikinase inhibitor Sutent in…
Published on 3/1/2012
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A Canadian and a U.S. team have independently shown that restoring normal function to mutant CFTR requires correcting two distinct folding steps. The findings could provide a road map to guide the rational development …
Published on 2/23/2012
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U.S. researchers have uncovered a plethora of mechanisms in ALK-rearranged lung cancers that could drive resistance to Pfizer's Xalkori crizotinib. The findings suggest that Xalkori, and possibly other ALK inhibitors, …
Published on 2/16/2012
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Cover Story: Bringing on the BRAF Figure 1. BRAF inhibition leads to EGFR-mediated pathway activation. Two groups suggest epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mediated pathway activation evades BRAF inhibition. …
Published on 2/9/2012
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Independent findings from European and U.S. teams suggest combining BRAF inhibitors with EGFR inhibitors could treat colorectal cancers resistant to monotherapy with either type of drug. Both groups are now planning …
Published on 2/9/2012
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Browning fat Figure 1. Exercise messenger. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers have identified a new hormone, irisin, which mediates some of the benefits exercise has on metabolism. Exercise induces increased …
Published on 2/2/2012
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Dana-Farber researchers have identified a hormone, irisin, that converts white fat into brown-like fat in mice. Ember Therapeutics has licensed the findings and is generating stabilized irisin variants for obesity and …
Published on 2/2/2012
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Japanese researchers have developed a method for creating large libraries of N-methylated peptide macrocycles. PeptiDream Inc. has exclusively licensed the technology and set up collaborations with six pharmas.
Published on 1/26/2012
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Macrocycles by the Trillions Figure 1. Making macrocycles RaPID-ly. A team from The University of Tokyo has developed a method called RaPID for generating libraries of trillions of N-methylated peptide macrocycles …
Published on 1/26/2012