ScienceCache
Vol. 188
Dec. 8, 2004
FORM OF CANCER MAY BE TARGET FOR DIABETES DRUGS
In laboratory tests on multiple myeloma cells, researchers have found
that this type of cancer expresses a protein that makes it an easy target
for an existing class of diabetes drugs. After more investigation, they
hope the discovery will lead to a new, targeted therapy for myeloma patients. “To
our knowledge, this is the first time anyone has shown that multiple
myeloma cells are sensitive to these agents, and we found multiple myeloma
cells are killed quite effectively,” says lead author Richard P.
Phipps, professor of environmental medicine and of oncology. The drugs
in question are from the thiazolidinedione (TZD) class of anti-diabetic
therapies, known as PPAR-gamma ligands. They bind to PPAR-gamma, a protein
associated with multiple myeloma and many other cancers, as well as chronic
inflammation and diabetes. When the drugs bind to PPAR-gamma, at least
in laboratory experiments, the cancerous cells are destroyed. PPAR-ligands
are emerging as a new type of cancer therapy because they directly target
errant cells and stop tumor growth in animal models. Co-investigator
Steven Bernstein, who treats myeloma patients at the James P. Wilmot
Cancer Center, is cautious but hopeful about the prospects of this research
leading to a new treatment. “Although we are optimistic about these
early findings, we need to do further investigation to understand how
the TZD class of drugs work against multiple myeloma, before clinical
trials are warranted.” The research was reported in the November
issue of Clinical Immunology.
Full story
‘
SLOW LIGHT’ RESEARCH SPEEDS UP WITH $6.5 MILLION GRANT
Optical computers have long held the promise of incredible computing
power, and now researchers are getting a chance to show how some of their
work, like bringing light to a near halt, can carry that promise to fruition.
The project is spurred on by a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
(DARPA) award for $6.5 million over the next four and a half years; the
project is led by University of Rochester scientists and includes researchers
from several other universities as well. “We’ve got an all-star
team tackling some of the toughest problems in all-optical processing,” says
Robert Boyd, professor of optics and physics, who is leading the effort.
In recent work, Boyd and colleagues have developed a system to slow the
speed of light to a comparative crawl. Whereas electrical signals have
proven simple to store, light wants to race along at speeds up to 186,000
miles per second. Boyd’s system, relatively simple compared to
other slow-light systems, puts the brakes on the photons, slowing them
to just 127 miles per hour – 5.3 million times slower than light’s
normal speed. Such work aimed at controlling light precisely would be
crucial to all-optical signal processing, which offers great advantages
over today’s techniques. The telecommunications industry, for instance,
shuttles tremendous amounts of data via fiber optics, but must convert
most of it back and forth to the electrical domain in order to route
or process it. A more efficient method would be to process the incoming
photons directly, operating at the speed of light and without suffering
the inefficiencies associated with the conversion from optical to electrical
and back to optical.
Full story
SCIENTISTS ALIGN BILLION-YEAR-OLD PROTEIN WITH EMBRYONIC HEART DEFECTS
Scientists studying a vital protein called Serum Response Factor (SRF)
in mice have learned new and unexpected facts about SRF’s role
in early cardiovascular development, and how a defect in this gene may
be an underlying cause in human miscarriages. The research is reported
in this week’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
At this point it is unclear whether subtle defects in SRF might also
be linked to adult cardiovascular disease. However, the research provides
a foundation for understanding how gene mutations may disrupt heart function,
perhaps making some adults more susceptible to heart failure or irregular
reactions to drugs. “One reason for studying the biology of our
genetic blueprint is so that we can understand how mutations in the genes
encoding for proteins such as SRF may relate to human disease,” says
Joseph M. Miano, associate professor of medicine in the Center for Cardiovascular
Research. “Defining the full spectrum of genetic mutations is key
to genetic screening and gene-based therapies.” SRF is one of nature’s
oldest proteins and is essential for life because it supports the basic
internal structure of all living cells. Its function is to carefully
turn on 300 of our approximately 30,000 genes. But until now, scientists
did not know much about its role in the heart region. The team found
that the heart and related vessels did not develop properly in mice without
a normal amount of SRF.
Full story
UNIVERSITY AMONG TOP TEN FOR TECHNOLOGY REVENUE
Companies around the world paid more than $26 million for commercial
rights to the University’s research during the 2003 fiscal year,
according to the latest revenue report published by the Association for
University Technology Managers (AUTM). That figure, which denotes the
University as the eighth highest revenue recipient in the nation, was
surpassed by the latest revenue numbers that showed the University brought
in more than $33 million from licensing in 2004. In addition, the report
listed the University as having the fourth-highest licensing revenue
in the nation for every dollar of research spending, behind only New
York University, Wake Forest University, and Florida State University.
The most lucrative patents include the Hib vaccine, used to prevent meningitis
in children around the world, and Prevnar, which prevents several pneumococcal
diseases in children.
Full story
|
