New research examines how HIV infections occur on the molecular level
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The UK’s National Physical Laboratory (NPL) with the University of Edinburgh and IBM’s TJ Watson Research Center have published new research about the structure of an HIV-1 protein that could help to develop new drugs to stop the virus infecting healthy cells.
The research provides a new insight into how the changes in structure of a small part of an HIV protein (a membrane proximal peptide) may alter the infection of the virus into healthy cells. The team was able to observe key changes in this part of the protein implicated in the early stages of the infection by using a combination of powerful experimental and computational tools. This is the first attempt to demonstrate that the inducible binding of the peptide with membrane-like surfaces can serve as a responsive molecular anchor underpinning HIV fusion to target cells.
This information is important as it gives us a better understanding of how HIV infections take hold at the molecular level. Drug designers could use this information to develop treatments that stop HIV from entering a healthy cell and infecting it.
Functional boost for magnetic resonance imaging
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Over the last few years, researchers have used a type of brain scanning, known as functional magnetic resonance imaging fMRI, to help them map changes in blood flow in the brain and to correlate this with thoughts and behavior. A new way to analyze fMRI data, which could improve is reported in the International Journal of Computational Biology and Drug Design.
Scientists have known since the 1890s that changes in blood flow and blood oxygenation in the brain (hemodynamics) are correlated with activity in brain cells, neurons. When a neuron is active it needs more energy from glucose and this demand increases blood flow to the regions of the brain where there is more neural activity. This leads to local changes in the relative concentration of oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin and changes in local cerebral blood volume and in local cerebral blood flow, which researchers have been measuring using fMRI since the early 1990s. Since then, brain mapping using this relatively non-invasive technique, which also avoids exposure to ionizing radiation has become more and more widely used.
Researchers have used fMRI to study brain development and function, to diagnose problems following injury and to predict when a person might be fit enough to return to work, as an alternative to lie detectors, to allegedly peer into a person’s dreams, and even to communicate with patients in a vegetative state. Many of the experiments that have received attention in the news media are controversial in that interpreting images of changing blood flow in the brain is only a proxy of actual activity Moreover, extrapolating those proxy images to thoughts and behavior involves a not in significant extrapolation.
Cheney to consider heart transplant at some point
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Former Vice President Dick Cheney said in an interview aired on Tuesday that he will have decide whether to undergo a heart transplant to replace the heart pump that is now keeping him alive.
“I’ll have to make a decision at some point whether or not I want to go for a transplant,” he told NBC News. “But we haven’t addressed that yet.”
Cheney, who turns 70 later this month, has had five heart attacks, the latest in February 2010.
He opted for a heart pump in July after experiencing increasing congestive heart failure, a chronic condition that develops as the heart loses its ability to pump properly and gradually enlarges.
Scientists bring cancer cells back under control
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Scientists at The University of Nottingham have brought cancer cells back under normal control - by reactivating their cancer suppressor genes. The discovery could form a powerful new technology platform for the treatment of cancer of the breast and other cancers.
Breast cancer is diagnosed in about 1.4 million women throughout the world every year, with half a million dying from the disease. A common cause of cancer is when cells are altered or mutated and the body’s tumour suppressor genes are switched off.
Research, published today in the Journal Molecular Cancer, reveals how Dr Cinzia Allegrucci from the School of Veterinary Science and Medicine and Dr Andrew Johnson in the Centre for Genetics and Genomics reactivated tumour suppressor genes and stopped the cancer from growing by treating them with Axolotl oocyte extract. After 60 days there was still no evidence of cancerous growth.
Projections of cancer care costs in the US: 2010-2020
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The estimated total cost of cancer care in the United States in 2020 is expected to be $158 billion assuming the most recent observed patterns of incidence, survival, and cost remain the same. This represents a 27% increase from 2010 due only to the projected aging and growth of the US population, according to a study published online January 12th in The Journal of the National Cancer Institute. However, the authors also note the cost of cancer care could rise even more quickly under some reasonable assumptions such as a 2% annual increase in costs of the initial and final phases of cancer care.
Cancer disproportionately affects the elderly population, which is expected to increase from 40 million in 2009 to 70 million in 2030. With changes in risk factor prevalence and stage at diagnosis, and development of new diagnostic tools and treatments for cancer in the 1990s, in general cancer incidence declined and survival improved, but cancer care became more expensive. Under a different scenario of continuing trends in cancer incidence, survival, and costs of care, the total cost of cancer care in 2020 is expected to be $173 billion, an even larger increase (39% from 2010).
To estimate the national medical cost of cancer care through the year 2020 for 13 cancers in men and 16 cancers in women, Angela Mariotto, Ph.D., and colleagues from the National Cancer Institute, analyzed data on cancer incidence (the rates of newly diagnosed cancer in any given year) and survival from the (SEER) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database http://url.health.am/80/ and Medicare expenditures associated with cancer from the linked SEER-Medicare database http://url.health.am/79/.
Hold the Gas? Inhaled Nitric Oxide of No Benefit to Most Premature Babies
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A new Johns Hopkins Children’s Center study challenges the widespread practice of treating premature babies with nitric oxide gas to prevent lung problems, neurological damage and death. The research, based on analysis of 22 major studies of the effect of nitric oxide in babies born before 34 weeks of age, found no evidence of benefit in most infants.
Overall, the Hopkins review found that babies who received nitric oxide in the neonatal intensive care unit didn’t fare any better than those who didn’t. The babies who received the treatment were no less likely to die, develop chronic lung disease of prematurity, suffer cerebral palsy or have neurological or cognitive impairments, the researchers found.
The findings, to appear in the February issue of the journal Pediatrics, point against the routine use of inhaled nitric oxide in all premature babies and call for careful, case-by-case evaluation of each baby’s degree of brain and lung maturation to determine if nitric oxide would help, hurt or do nothing for a patient, the researchers say.
Device Promising for Detecting Metastatic Breast Cancer Cells
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Research by engineers and cancer biologists at Virginia Tech indicate that using specific silicon microdevices might provide a new way to screen breast cancer cells’ ability to metastasize.
An image of their work provided to Biomaterials was selected as one of the 12 best biomaterials-related images published in the journal’s 2010 catalogue. http://www.elsevierscitech.com/pdfs/Biomaterials_2010.pdf
The Virginia Tech researchers are: Masoud Agah, director of Virginia Tech’s Microelectromechanical Systems Laboratory (MEMS) Laboratory in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Jeannine Strobl, a research professor in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Mehdi Nikkhah of mechanical engineering; and Raffaella DeVita of engineering science and mechanics and the director of the soft biological systems laboratory. Nikkhah was Virginia Tech’s Outstanding Doctoral Student in the College of Engineering for 2009.
Researchers visualize herpes virus’ tactical maneuver
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For the first time, researchers have developed a 3D picture of a herpes virus protein interacting with a key part of the human cellular machinery, enhancing our understanding of how it hijacks human cells to spread infection and opening up new possibilities for stepping in to prevent or treat infection. This discovery uncovers one of the many tactical manoeuvres employed by the virus.
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)-funded team, led by The University of Manchester, have used NMR - a technique related to the one used in MRI body scanners and capable of visualising molecules at the smallest scales – to produce images of a herpes virus protein interacting with a mouse cellular protein. These images were then used to develop a 3D model of this herpes virus protein interacting with human protein. The research is published this evening (06 January) in PLoS Pathogens.
Lead researcher Dr Alexander Golovanov from Manchester’s Interdisciplinary Biocentre and Faculty of Life Sciences said “There are quite a few types of herpes viruses that cause problems as mild as cold sores through to some quite serious illnesses, such as shingles or even cancer. Viruses cannot survive or replicate on their own – they need the resources and apparatus within a human cell to do so. To prevent or treat diseases caused by viruses we need to know as much as possible about how they do this so that we can spot weak points or take out key tactical manoeuvres.”
Parents demand answers in China lead poisoning
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Parents of children poisoned by lead in eastern China are demanding answers and compensation from the government after the country’s latest incident of heavy metal pollution made more than 200 sick.
Authorities in Gaohe in eastern Anhui province have closed two battery plants blamed for the poisoning just a stone’s throw from residences in contravention of planning laws, according to state media.
Some of the children affected are just a few months old.
Q&A: What is the future of healthcare law?
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The future of President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform will be at stake after Republicans take charge of the House of Representatives on Wednesday following their gains at midterm elections last year.
Here are some questions and answers about the political and legal challenge to healthcare reform.
WILL CONGRESS REPEAL THE WHOLE LAW?
Republicans will be in control of the House but not the Senate, limiting their power to overturn the healthcare law. House Republicans will hold a vote on repeal on Jan 12, before Obama’s State of the Union address, and are set to win it.
Hepatitis C: In 2011, a predictive marker for response to therapy
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Scientists at Inserm and Institut Pasteur have performed biomarker discovery on patients being treated for chronic hepatitis C infection. Their work, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, demonstrates that the plasma levels of the protein IP-10 predict, prior to treatment initiation, the efficacy of treatment with pegylated-interferon and ribavirin. Based on these results, the scientists have developed a prognostic test. Commercialization is anticipated in 2011, and will help inform physicians of the chances that patients will respond to standard treatment or if instead they will require new therapeutic cocktails (e.g., inclusion of protease inhibitors).
Importantly, hepatitis C is the leading cause of primary liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma) and it remains an important cause of liver failure due to fibrosis and cirrhosis. This infectious disease represents a major public health problem, with greater than 170 million cases worldwide. The World Health Organization estimates 3 to 4 million new cases per year and considers the virus a ” viral time bomb” due to the long term sequella of infection.
Currently, there is no approved vaccine available and approximately 80% of individuals infected by the virus develop chronic disease, a risk factor for cirrhosis, liver failure, liver cancer as well as other medical complications (e.g., diabetes).
Helicopter Transport Increases Survival for Seriously Injured Patients
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Severely injured patients transported by helicopter from the scene of an accident are more likely to survive than patients brought to trauma centers by ground ambulance, according to a new study published in The Journal of Trauma: Injury, Infection, and Critical Care. The study is the first to examine the role of helicopter transport on a national level and includes the largest number of helicopter-transport patients in a single analysis.
The finding that helicopter transport positively impacts patient survival comes amid an ongoing debate surrounding the role of helicopter transport in civilian trauma care in the United States, with advocates citing the benefits of fast transport times and critics pointing to safety, utilization and cost concerns.
The new national data shows that patients selected for helicopter transport to trauma centers are more severely injured, come from greater distances and require more hospital resources, including admission to the intensive care unit, the use of a ventilator to assist breathing and urgent surgery, compared to patients transported by ground ambulance. Despite this, helicopter-transport patients are more likely than ground-transport patients to survive and be sent home following treatment.
Organic onions, carrots and potatoes do not have higher levels of healthful antioxidants
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With the demand for organically produced food increasing, scientists are reporting new evidence that organically grown onions, carrots, and potatoes generally do not have higher levels of healthful antioxidants and related substances than vegetables grown with traditional fertilizers and pesticides. Their study appears in ACS’ bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
In the study, Pia Knuthsen and colleagues point out that there are many reasons to pay a premium for organic food products. The most important reasons for the popularity of organic food products include improved animal welfare, environmental protection, better taste, and possible health benefits. However, the health benefits of organic food consumption are still controversial and not considered scientifically well documented.
The scientists describe experiments in which they analyzed antioxidants termed “polyphenols” from onions, carrots and potatoes grown using conventional and organic methods. They found no differences in polyphenol content for organic vs. traditional methods of growth.
Accurate interpretation of antinuclear antibodies test key to confirming autoimmune disease
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The presence of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) indicates the possibility of autoimmunity and the indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) assay on HEp-2 cells is the standard blood test (ANA-HEp-2) used to detect ANA. However, studies have shown that a “false-positive” ANA test occurs in up to 13% of healthy individuals. In such cases the test detects the presence of autoantibodies that apparently are not associated with autoimmunity. Researchers from Brazil have now uncovered distinguishing characteristics of the ANA test in healthy individuals and patients with autoimmune disease, reducing the likelihood of an erroneous autoimmune disorder diagnosis. Their findings are published in the January 2011 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR).
The immune system is responsible for protecting the body against foreign invaders and infection, but in some individuals the immune system repeatedly attacks healthy cells in the body resulting in an autoimmune disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) autoimmune diseases - which include rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren’s syndrome, and systemic lupus erythematosus - affect up to 8% (22 million individuals) of the U.S. population.
The Brazilian research team, led by Luis Andrade, MD, PhD, from the Federal University of São Paulo, recruited 918 healthy individuals (634 females and 284 males) between the ages of 18 and 66 years for this study. In the control group were 153 patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases that included lupus (87), systemic sclerosis (45), Sjögren’s syndrome (11) and idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (10). To determine the concentration of ANA in the blood, ANA-HEp-2 tests were run on all participants and considered positive if a well defined IIF pattern was identified.
Republicans seek to bleed Obama’s health reform
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Republicans armed with new power will pounce on one of their top targets, President Barack Obama’s hard-fought healthcare reforms, when the House of Representatives reopens for business on Wednesday.
Although Obama’s Democrats, who still control the Senate, can probably rebuff any attempt to repeal the overhaul, House Republicans say they will try to choke off its funding and delay its implementation.
The reforms, passed early last year as the legislative high point of Obama’s first two years, were aimed at addressing the huge cost of healthcare and eventually extending health insurance to all Americans.
