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Older AML patients show promising response in drug study

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Older patients with acute myloid leukemia (AML) who were once told that nothing could be done for them are finding new hope – and life – through a clinical trial at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.

Preliminary findings of the phase II study suggest that older, previously untreated AML patients can achieve complete remission at a higher than expected rate when treated with the drug decitabine using a novel dosing schedule.

Program to deter youth alcohol use also reduces conduct problems, study finds

Athens, Ga. – A University of Georgia program designed to reduce alcohol use, drug use and risky sexual behavior in African-American youth also reduces the likelihood of engaging in conduct problems by up to 74 percent two years later, according to a new study.

The finding, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, is the latest in a series of studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of the Strong African-American Families (SAAF, pronounced "safe") Program, which is increasingly being adopted across Georgia and nationwide.

Confusing risk information may lead breast cancer patients to make poor treatment choices

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — A new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center found that a tool commonly used by doctors to estimate the risk of a woman's breast cancer returning after surgery is not very effective at explaining risk to patients. As a result, women with breast cancer may not find these tools helpful when deciding whether to have chemotherapy.

NEJM: 2 new studies show malaria vaccine candidate advancing in Africa

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New hybrid nanostructures detect nanoscale magnetism

Troy, N.Y. – A key challenge of nanotechnology research is investigating how different materials behave at lengths of merely one-billionth of a meter. When shrunk to such tiny sizes, many everyday materials exhibit interesting and potentially beneficial new properties.

Magnetic behavior is one such phenomenon that can change significantly depending on the size of the material. However, the sheer challenge of observing the magnetic properties of nanoscale material has impeded further study of the topic.

Researchers study virus with unusual properties

A team of researchers from Penn State University and the University of Chicago has uncovered clues that may explain how and why a particular virus, called N4, injects an unusual substance -- an RNA polymerase protein -- into an E. coli bacterial cell. The results, which are published in the current issue of the journal Molecular Cell, contribute to improved understanding of the infection strategies used by viruses that attack bacterial cells. Such viruses are known as bacteriophages, or phages.

Educational Researcher devoted to report of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel

WASHINGTON, December 8, 2008—The December 2008 issue of Educational Researcher (ER) provides a timely scholarly examination of Foundations for Success: The Final Report of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. With peer-reviewed articles from leading education research experts, and under the guest editorship of Dr. Anthony E. Kelly of George Mason University, this ER issue presents diverse perspectives on substantive research in mathematics education and contributes to the discussion of valid methodological approaches.

The Burnham buzz

A mutation in the gene coding the protein dystrophin has long been known to be associated with muscular dystrophy, but the role the protein plays in the disease was unknown. Lorenzo Puri, M.D., Ph.D. and colleagues have discovered that the dystrophin mutation causes an increase in the amount of the histone deacetylase enzyme, HDAC2. Increased HDAC2 activity alters the gene expression profile in the diseased muscle cells compared to normal muscle cells. By inhibiting HDAC2 with small molecule compounds or RNA interference, Dr.

DOE Joint Genome Institute completes soybean genome

WALNUT CREEK, Calif.— The U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) has released a complete draft assembly of the soybean (Glycine max) genetic code, making it widely available to the research community to advance new breeding strategies for one of the world's most valuable plant commodities. Soybean not only accounts for 70 percent of the world's edible protein, but also is an emerging feedstock for biodiesel production. Soybean is second only to corn as an agricultural commodity and is the leading U.S. agricultural export.

Genetic signature predicts outcome of pediatric liver cancer

Scientists have identified a genetic signature that is remarkably effective at predicting the prognosis of an aggressive liver cancer in children. The research, published by Cell Press in the December issue of the journal Cancer Cell, may lead to better treatments for pediatric liver cancers.

When less is more: Brief inhibition of cancer target is effective and less toxic

New research shows that the delicate balance between maximum clinical impact and toxicity may not be quite as fragile as scientists had previously believed. The study, published by Cell Press in the December issue of the journal Cancer Cell, is likely to have a major impact on the future design and implementation of targeted cancer therapies.

Einstein researchers discover protein that contributes to cancer spread

December 8, 2008 – BRONX, NY - In an important finding published online in Developmental Cell, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, along with collaborators at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have identified a protein likely responsible for causing breast cancer to spread.

An Achilles heel in cancer cells

A protein that shields tumor cells from cell death and exerts resistance to chemotherapy has an Achilles heel, a vulnerability that can be exploited to target and kill the very tumor cells it usually protects, researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago show in a new study published in the Dec. 9 issue of Cancer Cell.

Akt is a signaling protein, called a kinase, that is hyperactive in the majority of human cancers.

Cellular stress causes fatty liver disease in mice

A University of Iowa researcher and colleagues at the University of Michigan have discovered a direct link between disruption of a critical cellular housekeeping process and fatty liver disease, a condition that causes fat to accumulate in the liver.

Promising trials of malaria vaccine lead to calls for Phase 3 development

Experts are recommending that a malaria vaccine progress to Phase 3 trials following the successful trial of the RTS, S/AS01E malaria vaccine among 5-17 month old children in Korogwe, Tanzania and coastal Kenya, which is reported today in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

In a separate paper, which also appears in the online journal today, the findings are presented of the first co-administration of the RTS, S/AS02 malaria vaccine through the WHO Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) in infants living in an area of perennial transmission in Tanzania.