Research led by the German Institute of Human Nutrition (DIfE) has identified a new gene associated with diabetes, together with a mechanism that makes obese mice less susceptible to diabetes. A genomic fragment that occurs naturally in some mouse strains diminishes the activity of the risk gene Zfp69. The researchers also found that the corresponding human gene (ZNF642) is especially active in overweight individuals with diabetes. The results of the study, which also involved scientists from the University of Leipzig and the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg, are published July 3 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

Mental stress causes carotid artery dilation and increases brain blood flow. A series of ultrasound experiments, described in BioMed Central's open access journal Cardiovascular Ultrasound, also found that this dilatory reflex was absent in people with high blood pressure.

A similarity in brain disturbance between insects and people suffering from migraines, stroke and epilepsy points the way toward new drug therapies to address these conditions. Queen's University biologists studying the locust have observed that these human disorders are linked by a brain disturbance during which nerve cells shut down. This also occurs in locusts when they go into a coma after exposure to extreme conditions such as high temperatures or lack of oxygen........

There are hundreds of choices when picking a crabapple tree from the nursery, but a Purdue University expert says only a handful are resistant to a widespread fungus or other serious diseases. After reviewing 33 years of data, Janna Beckerman, a Purdue assistant professor of botany and plant pathology, observed that only five of 287 crabapple varieties had durable resistance to a serious disease of crabapple trees. The results of her study were reported in the recent issue of the journal HortScience.......

Metals have important roles in biochemistry ranging from essential to toxic. This prologue introduces the second of the Thematic Minireview Series on Metals in Biology, which includes minireviews on five metals: iron, zinc, nickel, vanadium, and arsenic. Three of the minireviews are focused on the roles of the metals in enzymes (iron, nickel, and vanadium). Zinc deficiency is discussed in another, and the arsenic minireview deals with the toxic and some potentially useful applications of the biological effects.

Desaturases and related enzymes perform O₂-dependent dehydrogenations initiated at unactivated C-H groups with the use of a diiron active site. Determination of the long-sought oxidized desaturase crystal structure facilitated structural comparison of the active sites of disparate diiron enzymes. Experiments on the castor desaturase are discussed that provide experimental support for a hypothesized ancestral oxidase enzyme in the context of the evolution of the diiron enzyme diverse functionality. We also summarize recent analysis of a castor mutant desaturase that provides valuable insights into the relationship of proposed substrate-binding modes with respect to a range of catalytic outcomes.

Photo courtesy PDPhoto.org

Summer is here and you know what that means. It's grilling time. Before you put that meat on the grill, you may want to add a particular seasoning that has been found to help prevent cancer.

Researchers have discovered that Rosemary can help protect against carcinogenic compounds. They suggest adding a bit of Rosemary to meat products before grilling. In studies, Rosemary was shown to reduce carcinogenic compounds, or HCAs, anywhere from 30 to 100 percent.

For additional information, see:

• To Block The Carcinogens, Add A Touch Of Rosemary When Grilling Meats (Science Daily)

R&D Logic, preferred provider of web based business management software specific to the Life Sciences Industry, today announced five new additions to their Life Sciences Customer Community.

Critical Outcome Technologies Inc. (TSX VENTURE:COT), announced positive results today from combination agent animal experiments carried out at a prominent American cancer research facility.

Recent work in Arabis alpina, a perennial relative of Arabidopsis, has uncovered subtle differences in control of a gene that represses flowering which contributes to the polycarpic habit.

Researchers have shown that getting at least eight hours of sleep is needed for good heart health, especially for women. In fact, women who don't get at least eight hours of sleep are at a greater risk for developing heart disease.

The study, published in the American journal Sleep, showed that women who did not get eight hours of sleep had increased levels of Interleukin-6 (IL-6) in their blood stream. IL-6 is involved in the body's inflammatory response and increased levels are associated with coronary heart disease. For women who got five hours of sleep or less, the levels of a risk factor for future cardiovascular morbidity also increased. Men with the same sleeping habits however, did not have an increase in these same risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Learn more about this study, see:

• Lack Of Sleep Could Be More Dangerous For Women Than Men (Science Daily)

Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc., ("Stemedica"),a leader in the manufacturing and development of clinical grade allogeneic adult stem cell technology, has discovered a significant breakthrough in the use of human stem cells and stem cell factors for the potential treatment of degenerations of the retina and retinal pigmented epithelium.

Hamilton Robotics introduces MICROLAB® NIMBUS NVS (NIMBUS Vacuum System), an integrated platform for automated vacuum-based separations. NIMBUS NVS integrates liquid handling workstation capabilities with a vacuum manifold, pump and collection device for solid-phase extraction (SPE) of analytes from complex biological mixtures in 96-well plate format.

Morphotek®, Inc., a subsidiary of Eisai Corporation of North America, announced a research collaboration agreement with Synageva BioPharma Corporation to express and develop therapeutic monoclonal antibodies for the potential treatment of various forms of cancer and infectious disease.

Background: Hundreds of proteins modulate neurotransmitter release and synaptic plasticity during neuronal development and in response to synaptic activity. The expression of genes in the pre- and post-synaptic neurons is under stringent spatio-temporal control, but the mechanism underlying the neuronal expression of these genes remains largely unknown. Results: Using unbiased in vivo and in vitro screens, we characterized the cis elements regulating Rab3A gene, which is expressed abundantly in presynaptic neurons. A set of identified regulatory elements of the Rab3A gene corresponded to the defined Rab3A multi-species conserved elements. In order to identify clusters of enriched transcription factor binding sites, for example, cis-regulatory modules, we analyzed intergenic multi-species conserved elements in the vicinity of nine presynaptic genes, including Rab3A, which are highly and specifically expressed in brain regions. Sixteen transcription factor binding motifs were over-represented in these multi-species conserved elements. Based on a combined occurrence for these enriched motifs, multi-species conserved elements in the vicinity of 107 previously identified presynaptic genes were scored and ranked. We then experimentally validated the scoring strategy by showing that 12 of 16 (75%) high-scoring multi-species conserved elements functioned as neuronal enhancers in a cell-based assay. Conclusion: This work introduces an integrative strategy of comparative genomics, experimental, and computational approaches to reveal aspects of a regulatory network controlling neuronal-specific expression of genes in presynaptic neurons.

Comparison of a regulatory network that specifies dopaminergic neurons in Caenorhabditis elegans to the development of vertebrate dopamine systems in the mouse reveals a possible partial conservation of such a network.

Rubicon Genomics, Inc., a developer of pre-amplification products that enable optimal performance of the most advanced genetic analysis tools, announced today the release of its PicoPlex Single Cell Whole Genome Amplification (WGA) kit-a more rapid, accurate and reproducible method for amplifying single genomes than current technologies.

BioSeek, Inc., a pioneer in the application of predictive human biology to drug discovery, announced today that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will utilize BioSeek's BioMAP Systems technology to profile the biological effects of compounds in a second phase of the agency's ToxCast program.

POZEN Inc., today announced the submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the marketing approval of VIMOVO (PN 400), the combination of enteric coated (EC) naproxen and immediate release esomeprazole.

GE Healthcare, a unit of General Electric Company, and Geron Corporation today announced that they have entered into a global exclusive license and alliance agreement to develop and commercialize cellular assay products derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) for use in drug discovery, development and toxicity screening.

Global market for Autoimmune Disease Therapeutics is projected to reach US$49.8B in 2015. Biologics emerged as the leading therapeutic option in the treatment of autoimmune diseases, owing to their superior efficacy compared to conventional small molecule drugs.

Florida Biologix is a unique contract manufacturing organization capable of helping companies get products through proof of concept and phase I studies quickly and at reasonable cost.

Sales of Malvern Instruments' Mastersizer systems have exceeded the 10,000 instruments mark, a major milestone in the company's history. Now used by more than 90% of the world's leading chemical and pharmaceutical companies, Mastersizer laser diffraction particle size analyzers have become the systems of choice in companies of all sizes across many different industries.

Biological drugs are the big winners in the market for autoimmune disorders.

Ambient ID, Inc. today unveiled the company's LabTrack solution -- a comprehensive business information management system proven in diagnostic laboratories and hospitals throughout North America to significantly improve operational efficiency and reduce test costs.

The construction of a genetic map of the human infective blood fluke (Schistosoma mansoni), coupled with the availability of the genome sequence, offers new approaches for research on this important parasitic worm.

Background: Schistosoma mansoni is a blood fluke that infects ~90 million people. The complete life cycle can be maintained in the laboratory making this one of the few experimentally tractable human helminth infections and a rich literature reveals heritable variation in important biomedical traits such as virulence, host-specificity, transmission and drug resistance. However, there is a current lack of tools needed to study molecular, quantitative, and population genetics. Our goal was to construct genetic linkage map for S. mansoni, and thus provide a new resource that will help stimulate research on this neglected pathogen. Results: We genotyped grandparents, parents and 88 progeny to construct a 5.6cM linkage map containing 243 microsatellites positioned on 203 of the largest scaffolds in the genome sequence. The map allows 70% of the estimated 300Mb genome to be ordered on chromosomes, and highlights where scaffolds have been incorrectly assembled. The markers fall into 8 main linkage groups, consistent with 7 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex chromosomes, and we were able to anchor linkage groups to chromosomes using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). The genome measures 1228.6cM. Marker segregation reveals higher female recombination, confirms ZW inheritance patterns, and identifies recombination hotspots and regions of segregation distortion. Conclusion: The genetic linkage map presented here is the first for S. mansoni and first for a species in the phylum Platyhelminthes. The map provides the critical tool necessary for quantitative genetic analysis, aids genome assembly, and furnishes a framework for comparative flatworm genomics and field-based molecular epidemiological studies.

Recommendations for how the HHS Office of the Secretary will spend $400M in funds for patient-centered research, also known as comparative effectiveness research, were released today by Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER).

Synexus' Chris Hannigan will present his vision for how the clinical trials industry must respond to the changing landscape faced by the pharmaceutical sector and embrace innovative practices to improve the speed of clinical trials, rein in costs and increase the statistical power of the results particularly in Phase II.

Aegis Analytical Corp., the leading provider of Enterprise Manufacturing Intelligence (EMI) software solutions, announced recently that its annual user conference,Aegis Discover 2009, will be held Oct. 5-8 at the St. Julien Hotel in Boulder, Colo.

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc., recently announced that it has signed an exclusive collaboration and option for license agreement with a top 20 global pharmaceutical company (the "Partner Co.") for the development of RX-3117.

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics, Ltd., a clinical-stage biotechnology company that is developing immune based therapies for the treatment of brain and other cancers, announced today the issuance of a Japanese patent relating to the company's monoclonal antibody therapeutics.

Today, at the 17th international conference on Intelligent Systems for Molecular Biology (ISMB) and 8th European Conference on Computational Biology (ECCB) in Stockholm, Sweden, CLC bio has revealed their first turnkey biocomputing solution for analyzing and visualizing Next Generation Sequencing data, called CLC Genomics Machine.

Molecular networks are being used to reconcile genotypes and phenotypes by integrating medical information. In this context, networks will be instrumental for the interpretation of disease at the personalized medicine level.

Lessons in personal genome analysis, social networking or health information?