Tag Archives: tumors

Researchers Do Precise Gene Therapy Without A Needle

COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the first time, researchers have found a way to inject a precise dose of a gene therapy agent directly into a single living cell without a needle.

The technique uses electricity to “shoot” bits of therapeutic biomolecules through a tiny channel and into a cell in a fraction of a second.

L. James Lee and his colleagues at Ohio State University describe the technique in the online edition of the journal Nature Nanotechnology, where they report successfully inserting specific doses of an anti-cancer gene into individual leukemia cells to kill them. (more…)

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Sea Squirt Cells Shed Light on Cancer Development

*Specialized structures used by cancer cells to invade tissues could also help them escape protection mechanisms aimed at eliminating them, a UA-led research team has discovered.*

Delicate, threadlike protrusions used by cancer cells when they invade other tissues in the body could also help them escape control mechanisms supposed to eliminate them, a research group led by led by Bradley Davidson in the University of Arizona’s department of molecular and cellular biology reports in Nature Cell Biology.

Studying embryos of the sea squirt Ciona intestinalis, the researchers discovered that even non-invasive cells make the delicate, highly transient structures known as invadopodia. The group found that future heart cells in the Ciona embryo use invadopodia to pick up chemical signals from their surroundings. These so-called growth factors provide the cells with clues as to where they are in the developing embryo and what type of cell they are supposed to turn into. (more…)

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‘Combining Therapies Appears Safe, May Benefit Patients with Advanced Liver Cancer’

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Few treatments exist for patients with advanced primary liver cancer, but University of Florida researchers have found a new way to broaden the range of options and potentially improve health outcomes by combining two treatments.

In the first study of its kind, the researchers combined sorafenib, the only Food and Drug Administration-approved pill for treating advanced liver cancer, with another routinely used therapy known as transarterial chemoembolization, which works by cutting off the blood supply to tumors. No unexpected toxic effects were seen, and the combo appears to have the potential to improve survival for certain groups of patients. (more…)

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Prostate Cancer Spreads to Bones by Overtaking The Home of Blood Stem Cells

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Like bad neighbors who decide to go wreck another community, prostate and breast cancer usually recur in the bone, according to a new University of Michigan study.

Now, U-M researchers believe they know why. Prostate cancer cells specifically target and eventually overrun the bone marrow niche, a specialized area for hematopoietic stem cells, which make red and white blood cells, said Russell Taichman, professor at the U-M School of Dentistry and senior author of the study. (more…)

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Breast Cancer Risk Varies Among Different Progestins Used in Hormone Replacement Therapy, MU Researchers Finds

COLUMBIA, Mo.Progestins are used in hormone replacement therapies to counteract the negative effects of estrogen on the uterus and reduce the risk of uterine cancer.  

However, evidence in recent studies and clinical trials has demonstrated that progestins increase the risk of breast cancer.

(more…)

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