ScienceDaily (July 5, 2012) A*STAR scientists from the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) and the Singapore Bioimaging Consortium (SBIC) have discovered a new signalling pathway that controls both obesity and atherosclerosis. The team demonstrated, for the first time, that mice deficient in the Wip1 gene were resistant to weight gain and atherosclerosis via regulation of the Ataxia telangiectasia mutated gene (ATM) and its downstream signalling molecule mTor. These groundbreaking findings were published in the journal Cell Metabolism on 3rd July and may provide significant new avenues for therapeutic interventions for obesity and atherosclerosis. Obesity and atherosclerosis-related diseases account for over one-third of deaths in the Western world. Controlling these conditions remains a major challenge due to an incomplete understanding of the molecular pathways involved. Atherosclerosis, a progressive disease of the large arteries, is an underlying cause of many cardiovascular diseases. In Singapore, 10.8% of our population is obese[1] and cardiovascular disease accounted for 31.9% of all deaths[2] in 2010. Obesity and atherosclerosis are accompanied by the accumulation of lipid droplets in adipocytes (fat cells) and in foam cells respectively. Foam cells can subsequently rupture, damaging blood vessels, and contributing to further progression of atherosclerosis. The scientists discovered that … Continue reading →

NEW YORK - The days of pregnant women having a 3-inch-long (8-centimetre-long) hollow needle jabbed into their abdomens may be numbered. For the second time in a month, scientists have announced that a simple blood test, rather than more invasive tests such as amniocentesis, can determine a fetus's genetic make-up, identifying mutations causing any of about 3,000 inherited disorders that arise from a glitch in a single gene, such as cystic fibrosis. Unlike a procedure unveiled last month, the one announced Wednesday in the journal Nature can be done without knowing who the father is, much less obtaining a sample of his DNA. Since paternity is unknown or incorrect in an estimated 3 to 10% of births in the United States, the father-free method promises to make fetal DNA sequencing possible in every pregnancy, if hurdles including cost and accuracy are overcome. "We're really on the verge of an enormous increase in our ability to understand what an infant will be like," said Dr Michael Katz, a senior adviser to the March of Dimes, a foundation that supports research on pregnancy and birth defects. Katz was not involved in the study. "You'll be able to detect any kind of abnormality … Continue reading →

Editor's Choice Main Category: Alzheimer's / Dementia Also Included In: Genetics Article Date: 05 Jul 2012 - 10:00 PDT Current ratings for: Researchers Working Hard To Unlock Alzheimer's Genetic Secrets The study, which will be conducted by researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine and colleagues across the country, could significantly affect the development of treatments for Alzheimer's. The researchers will sequence and examine genomes of more than 800 adults taking part in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). The study, supported by the Brin Wojcicki Foundation and the Alzheimer's Association, will provide a listing of all 3 billion segments (base pairs) of genetic code in each participant's DNA. Andrew Saykin, Psy.D., director of the Indiana University Center for Neuroimaging and lead researcher for the genetics core of the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, explained: "This is the equivalent of going from a good quality map of the United States to having the detailed blueprints for everything within our borders." The DNA samples gathered from participants are stored at the National Cell Repository for Alzheimer's Disease at the IU School of Medicine. The repository, directed by Tatiana Foroud, Ph.D., P. Michael Conneally Professor of Medical and Molecular Genetics, prepared the DNA … Continue reading →

SYDNEY Researchers in Australia say microscopic robots could soon be swimming around our bloodstream repairing cells and diagnosing diseases. Drugs with improved therapeutic properties that can target affected parts of the body without damaging surrounding tissue have been the focus of an international nanomedicine conference in Australia. The conference, organized by the University of New South Wales in Sydney, has brought together academics and clinicians from 16 countries, including the United States, Britain and Australia. They have highlighted research into targeted drug delivery systems, diagnostics and regenerative therapies, all enabled by nanomedicine. It is the building of tiny machines to help combat disease. It is a field of research that works at a very small scale. A nanometer is equivalent to one-billionth of a meter or the size of a single strand of DNA. "I see enormous potential in this technology to be able to deliver drugs or deliver gene-silencing tools to target cancer-causing genes in tumor cells, so where we can load up this payload on our little trucks . . . [and] deliver specifically to the tumor cells and spare the normal cells," said Maria Kavallaris, from the Australia Center for Nanomedicine, one of the conference organizers. Scientists … Continue reading →