Category Archives: Cell Medicine

Reported in CELL, Stony Brook pathologist uncovers new p53 mechanism triggering necrosis Newswise STONY BROOK, N.Y., June 22, 2012 The gene p53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer. p53 is dubbed the guardian of the genome because it blocks cells with damaged DNA from propagating and eventually becoming cancerous. However, new research led by Ute M. Moll, M.D., Professor of Pathology at Stony Brook University School of Medicine, and colleagues, uncovers a novel role for p53 beyond cancer in the development of ischemic stroke. The research team identified an unexpected critical function of p53 in activating necrosis, an irreversible form of tissue death, triggered during oxidative stress and ischemia. The findings are detailed online in Cell. Ischemia-associated oxidative damage leads to irreversible necrosis which is a major cause of catastrophic tissue loss. Elucidating its signaling mechanism is of paramount importance. p53 is a central cellular stress sensor that responds to multiple insults including oxidative stress and is known to orchestrate apoptotic and autophagic types of cell death. However, it was previously unknown whether p53 can also activate oxidative stress-induced necrosis, a regulated form of cell death that depends on the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (PTP) pore. We identified … Continue reading →

More Photos Click thumbnails to enlarge Some of the automated sampling equipment in the Rensselaer Stem Cell Research Center in Troy. Some of the automated sampling equipment in the Rensselaer Stem Cell Research Center in Troy. (Mike McMahon / The Record) By Danielle Sanzone dsanzone@troyrecord.com Twitter.com/DanielleSanzone State Department of Health Commissioner Nirav Shah, left, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson, right, announce the opening of the Rensselaer Center for Stem Cell Research during a forum at the colleges Troy campus Friday. (Mike McMahon / The Record) TROY During a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute forum on Friday, dozens were able to see their first baby picture: a single cell that eventually multiplied, in part due to stem cells, into an organism with trillions of cells. That, to me, is the most amazing thing in the study of biology, said Glenn Monastersky, director of the Rensselaer Center for Stem Cell Research. See the original post here: VIDEO: Stem cell research facility to open at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute … Continue reading →

Public release date: 22-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: William Gilroy gilroy.6@nd.edu 574-631-4127 University of Notre Dame Alumnus Michael Gallagher and his wife, Elizabeth, have made a $5 million gift to establish the Elizabeth and Michael Gallagher Family Professorships in Adult Stem Cell Research at the University of Notre Dame. Their gift, which will fund three new endowed professorships in adult and all forms of non-embryonic stem cell research, will strengthen Notre Dame's leadership in the field of stem cell research and enhance the University's effective dialogue between the biomedical research community and the Catholic Church on matters related to the use and application of stem cells and regenerative medicine. "As a Catholic university, Notre Dame carries a mantle of responsibility to use our scholarship and resources to help alleviate human suffering, and, in this area of research in particular, to do so with deep respect for the sanctity of all human life," said Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., the University's president. "These new professorships will enable us to effectively build upon an already strong foundation in this critically important field. We are tremendously grateful to the Gallaghers for making this possible with their transformative gift." Despite years … Continue reading →

-- Research May Translate into Therapeutic Treatment for Degenerative Disorders Research Featured as Cover Story by Science Translational Medicine Published Today by Scientists from University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Newswise Piscataway, NJ -- Throughout the lifecycle, injury to the bodys cells occurs naturally, as well as through trauma. Cells have the ability to repair and regenerate themselves, but a defect in the repair process can lead to cardiovascular, neurological, muscular or pulmonary diseases. Recent discoveries of key genes that control cell repair have advanced the often painstaking search for ways to enhance the repair process. A new study by researchers from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ)-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School reports that the protein MG53, previously shown to be the key initiator in the cell membrane repair process, has the potential to be used directly as a therapeutic approach to treating traumatic tissue damage. The research, published today, is featured on the cover of Science Translational Medicine. We studied the use of MG53 in treating muscular dystrophy by targeting the protein directly to the damaged muscle. The direct application of MG53 slowed the development of the disease by … Continue reading →

Public release date: 20-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Erika Matich erika.matich@ucdenver.edu 303-524-2780 University of Colorado Denver AURORA, Colo. (June 20, 2012) -AURORA, COLO (June 20, 2012) -- Modern cancer therapies start in cells researchers compare cancer samples to healthy cells to discover how cancer is genetically different, and use cell lines to test promising new drugs. However, a University of Colorado Cancer Center study published this week in the journal Gynecologic Oncology shows that due to a high rate of contamination, misidentification and redundancy in widely available cell lines, researchers may be drawing faulty conclusions. "I've seen faculty and graduate students leave my lab in tears when we discovered the cells on the label weren't the cells they were actually experimenting on," says Christopher Korch, PhD, investigator at the CU Cancer Center and director of the center's DNA Sequencing and Analysis Service, the paper's co-first author. "When you get a cell line, you have to look that gift horse in the mouth there's up to a 40 percent chance it's a Trojan horse, not what it says it is." For example, the cell line known as HES has been widely used as a "normal" model of endometrial … Continue reading →

Public release date: 21-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Scott LaFee slafee@ucsd.edu 619-543-6163 University of California - San Diego Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have uncovered a new signal transduction pathway specifically devoted to the regulation of alternative RNA splicing, a process that allows a single gene to produce or code multiple types of protein variants. The discovery, published in the June 27, 2012 issue of Molecular Cell, suggests the new pathway might be a fruitful target for new cancer drugs. Signal transduction in the cell involves kinases and phosphatases, enzymes that transfer or remove phosphates in protein molecules in a cascade or pathway. SRPK kinases, first described by Xiang-Dong Fu, PhD, professor of cellular and molecular medicine at UC San Diego in 1994, are involved in controlling the activities of splicing regulators in mammalian cells. Prior studies have implicated SRPK1 in cancer and other human diseases. For example, it has been shown that SRPK1 plays a critical role in regulating the function of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor or VEGF, which stimulates blood vessel growth in cancer. SRPK1 has been found to be dysregulated in a number of cancers, from kidney and … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (June 21, 2012) Modern cancer therapies start in cells -- researchers compare cancer samples to healthy cells to discover how cancer is genetically different, and use cell lines to test promising new drugs. However, a University of Colorado Cancer Center study published this week in the journal Gynecologic Oncology shows that due to a high rate of contamination, misidentification and redundancy in widely available cell lines, researchers may be drawing faulty conclusions. "I've seen faculty and graduate students leave my lab in tears when we discovered the cells on the label weren't the cells they were actually experimenting on," says Christopher Korch, PhD, investigator at the CU Cancer Center and director of the center's DNA Sequencing and Analysis Service, the paper's co-first author. "When you get a cell line, you have to look that gift horse in the mouth -- there's up to a 40 percent chance it's a Trojan horse, not what it says it is." For example, the cell line known as HES has been widely used as a "normal" model of endometrial cells since its development in 1989. There are literally hundreds of papers that, for example, look for differences between endometrial cancer cells and these … Continue reading →

FORT WORTH, Texas, June 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Healthpoint Biotherapeutics today announced the company is planning a significant upgrade to its 80,000 square foot research and manufacturing facility in Ft. Worth. The new, state-of-the-art facilities will comprise 25,000 square feet of manufacturing infrastructure, labs and clean room space for the production of cell-based therapies. "We are very pleased to be embarking on this important and innovative initiative at our headquarters here in Fort Worth," noted Travis E. Baugh, President and Chief Operating Officer of Healthpoint Biotherapeutics. "The planned, ultra-modern facility will create an efficient platform to support our lead pipeline candidate, HP802-247, which recently completed a successful phase 2b study in venous leg ulcers. Importantly, the facility will also add critical capabilities as we look toward the promise of regenerative medicine." The facility upgrade comes as the company is engaged in developing a pipeline of next generation wound care therapies based on cell and cell-matrix biology. The advanced nature of the facility will provide efficient and scalable manufacturing capabilities to support both development and future commercialization, as well as create a unique environment for novel collaboration and identification of new technologies. Healthpoint Biotherapeutics is planning to invest approximately $60 million to … Continue reading →

SAN BRUNO, Calif., June 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Twenty years ago this month, CBR (Cord Blood Registry) in partnership with the University of Arizona, processed the first cord blood stem cell sample in the world to be stored specifically for family use. Since 1992, the number of conditions treated with cord blood stem cells has greatly expanded, and so has CBR. Today, CBR is the largest family cord blood bank in the world with more than 425,000 samples in storage a population the size of a major city like Miami. What distinguishes the "city of individuals" with newborn stem cells banked at CBR is the exclusive opportunity to participate in a growing number of ground-breaking clinical trials. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120620/SF27549-INFO) (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120216/AQ54476LOGO) "As the leader and innovator in family banking, we believe every newborn deserves a healthy future and that we have a responsibility to lead the way," said Heather Brown, vice president of scientific & medical affairs at CBR. "Looking back, the creation of our bank allowed families for the first time to preserve a genetically-related source of newborn stem cells, ready and available if needed for a lifesaving transplant to regenerate a person's immune system after radiation or chemotherapy. … Continue reading →

SAN BRUNO, Calif., June 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Twenty years ago this month, CBR (Cord Blood Registry) in partnership with the University of Arizona, processed the first cord blood stem cell sample in the world to be stored specifically for family use. Since 1992, the number of conditions treated with cord blood stem cells has greatly expanded, and so has CBR. Today, CBR is the largest family cord blood bank in the world with more than 425,000 samples in storage a population the size of a major city like Miami. What distinguishes the "city of individuals" with newborn stem cells banked at CBR is the exclusive opportunity to participate in a growing number of ground-breaking clinical trials. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120620/SF27549-INFO) (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120216/AQ54476LOGO) "As the leader and innovator in family banking, we believe every newborn deserves a healthy future and that we have a responsibility to lead the way," said Heather Brown, vice president of scientific & medical affairs at CBR. "Looking back, the creation of our bank allowed families for the first time to preserve a genetically-related source of newborn stem cells, ready and available if needed for a lifesaving transplant to regenerate a person's immune system after radiation or chemotherapy. … Continue reading →