In new research published in the open-access, peer-reviewed scientific journal PLoS ONE, Dr Patrice Dubreuil and colleagues characterise the pharmacological profile of masitinib (AB1010), a novel tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) that targets the stem cell factor (KIT), PDGFR and Lyn. Masitinib is the active pharmacological ingredient of the first ever registered veterinary anticancer drug, Masivet® (1). The main cellular targets of masitinib are mast cells, meaning this drug also has many potential non-oncology applications.
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The more weight women gain from the age of 18 until middle age, the less likely they are to enjoy a long and healthy life, according to new research published on bmj.com today.
Compared with lean women, the results show that being obese in middle age reduces those odds by 79%, underscoring the importance of maintaining a healthy weight from early adulthood, say the authors.
The origin of the 'Celtic fringe' of genetically and culturally distinctive people in the northern and western British Isles is the source of fierce academic controversy.
But new research into the movement of small mammals, such as voles and shrews, at the end of the last Ice Age, could provide important new clues to resolve the debate. The research is published in the latest issue of Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
A new study of microscopic marine microbes, called phytoplankton, by researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and the University of South Carolina has solved a ten-year-old mystery about the source of an essential nutrient in the ocean.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — An early laboratory success is taking University of Michigan researchers a step closer to parathyroid gland transplants that could one day prevent a currently untreatable form of bone loss associated with thyroid surgery.
The scientists were able to induce embryonic stem cells to differentiate into parathyroid cells that produced a hormone essential to maintaining bone density. The laboratory results in live cell cultures, published in Stem Cells and Development, need to be tested in further pre-clinical studies.
Researchers studying a large sample of adolescent American boys have found an association between metabolic syndrome, which is a complication of obesity, and elevated liver enzymes that mark potentially serious liver disease.
The link between metabolic syndrome and the suspected liver disease did not appear in adolescent girls, said study leader Rose C. Graham, M.D., a pediatric gastroenterologist at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. There were ethnic differences among the boys as well, she added, between Hispanic and non-Hispanic males.
New research announced today, Wednesday 30th September, by a team of leading scientists working with the UK's national Synchrotron, Diamond Light Source, could have a significant impact on the development and refinement of new eco-friendly pest control methods for worldwide agriculture.
MADISON, WI, September 28, 2009 -- Soybeans contain high levels of several health-beneficial compounds including tocopherols, which have antioxidant properties. These molecules can be used in the development of functional foods, which have specific health-beneficial properties and can be used in the treatment or prevention of diseases. Tocopherols exist in four forms (α, β, γ, and δ) of which γ-tocopherol is found in greatest concentration in soybeans. However, α-tocopherol has the greatest antioxidant activity, and is the form converted to vitamin E in the human body.
PHILADELPHIA – Social environment can play an important role in the biology of disease, including breast cancer, and lead to significant differences in health outcome, according to results of a study published in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
PHILADELPHIA – Younger women with metastatic colorectal cancer lived longer than younger men. However, this survival advantage disappeared with age, suggesting a benefit from estrogen or other hormones, according to results of a study published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
New Orleans, LA – Research led by Dr. Jay Kolls, Professor and Chairman of Genetics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, has identified a therapeutic target for acute lung injury resulting in acute respiratory distress syndrome, a highly fatal complication of influenza infection. The research will be published in The Journal of Immunology in October.
Hikers know that moss on a tree trunk always points north. According to new research by Israeli and German scientists, this ancient plant may also provide a new "compass" for stem cell research, telling scientists how better to program stem cells for medical purposes.
MADISON — When pondering the demise of a famous dinosaur such as 'Sue,' the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex whose fossilized remains are a star attraction of the Field Museum in Chicago, it is hard to avoid the image of clashing Cretaceous titans engaged in bloody, mortal combat.
It is an image commonly promoted by museums and dinosaur aficionados. Sue's remains, in fact, exhibit holes in her jaw that some believed were battle scars, the result of conflict with another dinosaur, possibly another T. rex.
A new report from the National Research Council, RESPONSIBLE RESEARCH WITH BIOLOGICAL SELECT AGENTS AND TOXINS, assesses the efficacy of regulations, procedures, and oversight that have been instituted to safeguard against the deliberate misuse of biological select agents and toxins (BSAT) used in research. The report looks at security programs designed to protect against external threats, as well as internal threats from laboratory personnel. The report also makes recommendations on refining security programs and procedures with the aim of informing policy discussions in the U.S.
Although arsenic (As) occurs ubiquitously in the environment and has been used since its isolation in 1250 A.D in various fields such as medicine, metallurgy, agriculture and electronics, it is undoubtedly best known for its toxicity to both plants and animals. The toxic effects of arsenic in humans range from skin lesions to cancer of the brain, liver, kidney and stomach. Generally inorganic arsenic species are more toxic to humans and other animals than organic forms.