CANTON, Mass., March 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Today MassBio members elected Geoff MacKay, president & CEO of regenerative medicine leader Organogenesis Inc., as chairman of the board of directors at the 2012 MassBio Annual Meeting.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120327/NE76866)

During this year's meeting, MassBio members also elected three new board members: Caren Arnstein, senior vice president and Head of Communications for Genzyme, James Hoyes, President of EMD Serono, Inc., and David Lucchino, CEO of Semprus BioSciences. MacKay will serve a two-year term as board chair.

"Geoff has long been a champion and an advocate for the biotechnology industry in Massachusetts and we look forward to his vision for the future of the industry association," Robert K. Coughlin, President & CEO of MassBio.

Mr. MacKay has served as president and CEO of Organogenesis since 2003 and provides significant global, commercial experience spanning the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors. He has held numerous leadership positions throughout his career, including in the areas of transplantation, immunology and tissue engineering, and specifically in the regenerative medicine field for the last decade.

"It is an honor to be elected to serve the country's oldest biotech trade association, especially during a time of tremendous growth and change for the industry," said MacKay. "Organogenesis, which was founded as an MIT spin-off, is a Massachusetts success story. Our company has benefitted throughout its development from the state's biotech super-cluster, including the robust confluence of academia, skilled workforce, innovation and investment. During my term, I hope to bring the experiences of a fast-growing life sciences company, as well as the examples it can provide for the industry, to MassBio as it works to strengthen and build the biotech industry of the future."

About MassBio

MassBio, a not-for-profit organization that represents and provides services and support for the Massachusetts biotechnology industry, is the nation's oldest biotechnology trade association. Founded in 1985, MassBio is committed to advancing the development of critical new science, technology and medicines that benefit people worldwide. Representing over 600 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, research hospitals, and service organizations involved in life sciences and health care, MassBio works to advance policy and promote education, while providing member programs and events, industry information, and services.

For more information, visit the Massachusetts Pavilion at the 2012 BIO International Convention (# 137 on the Exhibit Floor) or the organization's website at http://www.massbio.org.

About Organogenesis Inc.

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Organogenesis CEO Geoff MacKay Elected Chairman of MassBio Board of Directors

Recommendation and review posted by sam

25-03-2012 17:39 Dr Timothy Henry is Director of research at the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation and an Interventional cardiologist at the Minneapolis Heart Institute/ Abbott Northwestern Hospital. The interview was conducted on 24 March 2012 at the American College of Cardiology's (ACC's) 61st Annual Scientific Session & Expo in Chicago. See more ACC.12 Coverage: http://www.getinsidehealth.com

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Cell therapy to improve quality of life - Video

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

March 27, 2012

According to a new study, using a patients own bone marrow may help repair damaged areas of the heart caused by heart failure.

Researchers found that left ventricular ejection fraction increased by 2.7 percent in patients who received stem cell therapy.

The study, which was presented at the American College of Cardiologys 61st Annual Scientific Session, revealed that the improvement in ejection fraction correlated with the number of CD34+ and CD133+ cells in the bone marrow.

This is the kind of information we need in order to move forward with the clinical use of stem cell therapy, Emerson Perin, MD, PhD, director of clinical research for cardiovascular medicine at the Texas Heart Institute and the studys lead investigator, said at the event.

The study included 92 patients who were randomly selected to receive stem cell treatment or placebo. The patients all had chronic ischemic heart disease and an ejection fraction of less than 45 percent along with heart failure.

Doctors placed a catheter in the hearts left ventricle to inject 3 ccs, or 100 million stem cells, into an average of 15 sites of the stem cell patients hearts.

The doctors used electromechanical mapping of the heart to measure the voltage in areas of the heart muscle and create a real-time image of the heart.

With this mapping procedure, we have a roadmap to the heart muscle, said Dr. Perin. Were very careful about where we inject the cells; electromechanical mapping allows us to target the cell injections to viable areas of the heart.

The trial was designed to determine whether left ventricular end systolic volume and myocardial oxygen consumption improved in patients who received stem cell treatment.

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Cell Therapy Improves Damaged Heart In Study

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Dublin - Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/01d4e5c9/from_genes_to_geno) has announced the addition of John Wiley and Sons Ltd's new book "From Genes to Genomes: Concepts and Applications of DNA Technology, 3rd Edition" to their offering.

Rapid advances in a collection of techniques referred to as gene technology, genetic engineering, recombinant DNA technology and gene cloning have pushed molecular biology to the forefront of the biological sciences. From Genes to Genomes: Concepts and Applications of DNA Technology explains key ideas underlying the most central techniques in the context of the ways in which they are used. The book opens with a brief review of the basic concepts of molecular biology, before moving on to describe the key molecular methods and how they fit together. This ranges from the cloning and study of individual genes to the sequencing of whole genomes, and the analysis of genome-wide information. Finally, the book moves on to consider some of the applications of these techniques, in biotechnology, medicine and agriculture, as well as in research that is causing the current explosion of knowledge across the biological sciences.

Features:

- Major revision of a concise, well-written introduction to genome sequencing technologies.

- Excellent balance between clarity of coverage and level of detail.

- Includes clear, two-colour diagrams throughout.

- Dedicated website will include all figures.

The latest edition of this highly successful textbook introduces the key techniques and concepts involved in cloning genes and in studying their expression and variation.

Key Topics Covered:

1 From Genes to Genomes

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Research and Markets: From Genes to Genomes: Concepts and Applications of DNA Technology, 3rd Edition

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Newswise MAYWOOD, Ill. -- Researchers have identified genetic causes in nearly 1 in 5 patients who suffer a type of heart failure called dilated cardiomyopathy. Carolyn Jones, MD, PhD, of Loyola University Medical Center, is co-author of the study, published in the Journal of Cardiac Failure. First author is Neal Lakdawala, MD, of Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Researchers did genetic testing on 264 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and found that 17.4 percent had gene mutations associated with the disease. Pediatric patients were more likely to have the mutations than older patients.

The findings will help in the development of new treatments, Jones said. "By understanding the genes involved in dilated cardiomyopathy, we possibly will be able to circumvent the defect."

Also, if a genetic test shows a patient has an inherited form of the disease, it would indicate that other family members also should be tested, Jones said.

Dilated cardiomyopathy is a condition in which the heart becomes weakened, enlarged and unable to pump efficiently. It is the leading reason for heart transplants. In addition to genetic causes, there are environmental causes, including alcohol abuse, atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat) and autoimmune diseases such as lupus.

Earlier studies involved genetic testing on carefully selected research subjects. The new study, by contrast, involved genetic testing in real-life clinical practices. Jones was among the physicians in the study who saw patients, obtained their family histories and arranged for their genetic testing, which was done at the Laboratory for Molecular Medicine at the Partners HealthCare Center for Personalized Genetic Medicine in Cambridge, Mass.

The study included an ethnically diverse sample of patients ranging in age from newborn to 71 years. The average age was 26. Children with dilated cardiomyopathy frequently tested positive for mutations, even if they did not have a family history. Conversely, no patient over age 40 had mutations, unless they also had a family history.

Jones is director of Clinical and Cytogenetics and an associate professor in the departments of Pediatrics and Pathology of Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

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Genetic Causes Found in 17 Percent of Patients with Dilated Cardiomyopathy Heart Failure

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Public release date: 27-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Jim Ritter jritter@lumc.edu 708-216-2445 Loyola University Health System

MAYWOOD, Ill. -- Researchers have identified genetic causes in nearly 1 in 5 patients who suffer a type of heart failure called dilated cardiomyopathy.

Carolyn Jones, MD, PhD, of Loyola University Medical Center, is co-author of the study, published in the Journal of Cardiac Failure. First author is Neal Lakdawala, MD, of Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Researchers did genetic testing on 264 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and found that 17.4 percent had gene mutations associated with the disease. Pediatric patients were more likely to have the mutations than older patients.

The findings will help in the development of new treatments, Jones said. "By understanding the genes involved in dilated cardiomyopathy, we possibly will be able to circumvent the defect."

Also, if a genetic test shows a patient has an inherited form of the disease, it would indicate that other family members also should be tested, Jones said.

Dilated cardiomyopathy is a condition in which the heart becomes weakened, enlarged and unable to pump efficiently. It is the leading reason for heart transplants. In addition to genetic causes, there are environmental causes, including alcohol abuse, atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat) and autoimmune diseases such as lupus.

Earlier studies involved genetic testing on carefully selected research subjects. The new study, by contrast, involved genetic testing in real-life clinical practices. Jones was among the physicians in the study who saw patients, obtained their family histories and arranged for their genetic testing, which was done at the Laboratory for Molecular Medicine at the Partners HealthCare Center for Personalized Genetic Medicine in Cambridge, Mass.

The study included an ethnically diverse sample of patients ranging in age from newborn to 71 years. The average age was 26. Children with dilated cardiomyopathy frequently tested positive for mutations, even if they did not have a family history. Conversely, no patient over age 40 had mutations, unless they also had a family history.

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Genetic causes found in nearly 1 in 5 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy heart failure

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

NEW YORK (AP) -- Analysts said that this week's Supreme Court decision to order a new review of patents held by Myriad Genetics Inc. is not bad news for Myriad, and its shares should trade higher.

THE OPINION: On Monday the Supreme Court ordered a federal appeals court to conduct a new review of a case that challenges two patents held by Myriad. The company has patents on genetic mutations that are linked to increased risk of breast cancer, and its BRACAnalysis test looks for those mutations. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit was ordered look at the case again in light of a ruling the Supreme Court made on Wednesday.

In that case, the court threw out patent claims that were used in a blood test. It said the patents were not valid because they were based on the laws of nature, and those laws cannot be patented.

However analysts say that the two cases are different and the appeals court will probably not change its decision in the Myriad case.

"The Supreme Court's rationale in the Mayo v Prometheus decision does not seem to suggest a conflicting precedent to the relevance of Myriad Genetics' composition claims," said Jefferies & Co. analyst Jon Wood. Wood said the appeals court could make a new decision late in 2012 or early in 2013. After that, Myriad or its opponents can then appeal to the Supreme Court again. If the court hears the case, a final ruling may come in spring 2014.

Myriad, based in Salt Lake City, has many other patents supporting BRACAnalysis, and Wood said those patents should keep similar products off the market until at least 2018. He said the shares should trade higher and maintained a price target of $28 per share.

William Blair & Co. analyst Amanda Murphy said the new review reduces the risk that patents will be ruled invalid.

"We see no reason to believe the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit would reach a different decision on the product claims than it did in 2011," she said.

Both analysts rate the stock at the equivalent of "Buy."

THE STOCK: Myriad shares dipped 10 cents to $23.24 in afternoon trading. The shares rose 2.5 percent on Monday, but before that, they had fallen 11.2 percent since March 20.

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Analysts see court positives for Myriad Genetics

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Ambry Genetics, a global leader in genetic services with a focus on clinical diagnostics and genomics, announces the First-Step Exome test. The First-Step Exome reports on all Human Gene Mutation Database (HGMD)-defined genes.

The role of genes in human disease has only been defined in approximately 20% (~4,400 of ~20,000 genes) of the human genome. The First-Step Exome analyzes the DNA sequence of the exons (coding regions) and flanking intronic regions of these ~4,400 genes. Ambry Genetics believes that the targeted exome sequencing provided by the First-Step Exome is appropriate for a variety of whole exome sequencing indications and will yield the answers clinicians are seeking in many clinical scenarios without the added expense and complexity of whole exome analysis.

With the launch of the First-Step Exome, Ambry Genetics now offers unparalleled flexibility in exome testing, said Charles Dunlop, Chief Executive Officer of Ambry Genetics. The First-Step Exome reports on all HGMD-defined genes at a lower price point than other similar tests offered by competitors. Moreover, after clinicians receive results, we offer them the flexibility to easily reflex to our whole-exome Clinical Diagnostic Exome test.

Four individuals with rare genetic conditions for which the cause could not previously be identified were recently successfully diagnosed using Ambry Genetics proprietary new Clinical Diagnostic Exome, three at Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore and one at a large, Ivy League-affiliated university hospital in New York City.

Building on our successful launch of the Clinical Diagnostic Exome, the First-Step Exome provides a realistic option for clinicians who want to utilize whole exome sequencing in the diagnosis of their patients, but are not prepared to explore the uncharted territory of novel genes or incidental findings, said Elizabeth Chao, M.D., Director of Translational Medicine at Ambry Genetics. We believe that the First-Step Exome will become a popular option for clinicians considering exome testing for a variety of indications. For example, this test may be the prudent exome sequencing option for disease phenotypes that have many previously defined genes in the diagnostic differential, but for which traditional genetic testing options for clinical testing are unavailable or cost-prohibitive.

About Ambry Genetics

Ambry Genetics is a College of American Pathologists (CAP)-accredited and Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)-certified commercial clinical laboratory with headquarters in Aliso Viejo, Orange County, Calif. Since its founding in 1999, it has become a leader in providing genetic services focused on clinical diagnostics and genomic services, particularly in sequencing and array services. Ambry has established a reputation for unparalleled service and has been at the forefront of applying new technologies to the clinical molecular diagnostics market and to the advancement of disease research. To learn more about testing and services available through Ambry Genetics, visit http://www.ambrygen.com.

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Ambry Genetics Introduces "First-Step Exome™" Sequencing Test

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Blocking "don't destroy me" signals that normally sit on the surface of tumor cells and render them resistant to immune-cell attack slows the growth of a broad range of human cancers when they're implanted in mice, researchers have found.

The approach, reported by immunologists at the Stanford University School of Medicine, was effective against ovarian, breast, colon, bladder, liver, prostate and brain cancer cells. If the work can be repeated in people, the approach may someday help doctors marshal defender cells in patients' own bodies to fight cancers, the researchers said.

Key to the work is a cell protein called CD47, which is already being investigated in the treatment of leukemia.

CD47 sits on cell membranes and communicates with various immune cells, including macrophages, which gobble up foreign invaders in the body. It plays an important role in the normal life cycle of healthy red blood cells, telling macrophages to leave the cells alone.

In the study, the scientists injected the animals with antibodies that bind to CD47 and block out its protective signal.

"If we can block this signal, we can get the immune system to eat [the cancer cells] up," said Stephen Willingham, a postdoctoral researcher in the laboratory of immunologist Dr. Irving Weissman at Stanford and first author of a paper about the work.

The Stanford team examined cancer cells removed from patients with a variety of types of solid tumors. They found that CD47 studded the membranes of almost all of the cancer cells in their sample, suggesting that it is a molecule common to all cancers.

Placing the cells in lab dishes, the team administered an antibody: a protein that binds to CD47 and blocks it from warding off immune system cells. Macrophages ate the cells.

The researchers then implanted human tumor cells in mice for further study. They allowed the cancers to grow, and administered the antibody against CD47.

Antibody treatment inhibited the growth of almost all of the solid tumors and was able to wipe out some smaller cancers altogether, according to the report, which was published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Cancer research targets a key cell protein

Recommendation and review posted by simmons

Nature | Health

A Monsignor and Officer for Studies at the Pontifical Academy for Life called the cancellation a "sad event." Attendees are set to receive an official explanation

March 26, 2012|

By Ewen Callaway of Nature magazine

The Vatican has abruptly cancelled a controversial stem-cell conference that was set to be attended by the Pope next month.

The Third International Congress on Responsible Stem Cell Research, scheduled for 25-28 April, was to focus on clinical applications of adult and reprogrammed stem cells. But a number of the invited speakers, including Alan Trounson, president of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine in San Francisco, and keynote speaker George Daley, a stem-cell scientist at Children's Hospital Boston in Massachusetts, are involved in research using human embryonic stem cells, which the Catholic Church considers unethical. The previous two congresses had also included scientists who worked on such cells, without generating much controversy.

Father Scott Borgman, secretary of the Church's Pontifical Academy for Life, one of the conference organizers, says that logistical, organizational and financial factors forced the cancellation, which was announced on 23 March. The academy weighs in on bioethical and theological issues that are relevant to Church teachings.

The Catholic News Agency, an independent news service based in Englewood, Colorado, quoted an unnamed academy member who called the cancellation an "enormous relief to many members of the Pontifical Academy for Life, who felt that the presence on its program of so many speakers, including the keynote speaker, committed to embryonic stem cell research, was a betrayal of the mission of the Academy and a public scandal".

"I think the only interpretation is that we are being censored. It is very disappointing that they are unwilling to hear the truth," says Trounson. He had hoped to provide a "balanced perspective" on the potential clinical applications of stem cells, both adult and embryonic.

Meanwhile, some European scientists, who had called for a boycott because they believed the conference unfairly maligned embryonic stem cell research, cheered its cancellation.

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Vatican Calls Off Stem-Cell Conference

Recommendation and review posted by simmons

SALT LAKE CITY, March 26, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Myriad Genetics, Inc. (Nasdaq:MYGN - News) reported today that the Supreme Court of the United States remanded the case of The Association for Molecular Pathology, et al., v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., et al (Docket No. 11-725) to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. As a result of this decision by the Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will reconsider their decision dated July 29, 2011, which upheld Myriad's gene patents. In that decision, the Federal Circuit declared that the composition of matter claims covering isolated DNA of the BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 genes are patent-eligible under Section 101 of the United States Patent Act.

"While, this case should not have any direct impact to Myriad and its operations because of our extensive patent estate, it has great importance to the medical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and other commercial industries, as well as the hundreds of millions of people whose lives are bettered by the products these industries develop based on the promise of strong patent protection," said Peter Meldrum, President and CEO of Myriad Genetics. "Thus, we are prepared to vigorously defend the patent claims granted to Myriad by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and believe that we will be successful."

Importantly, Myriad's intellectual property for the BRACAnalysis(R) test is strong with 23 issued patents and approximately 500 claims, including approximately 245 composition of matter claims and 240 method claims. Only 15 claims are at issue in this case; the rest of the claims remain in full force and effect providing Myriad with extensive patent protection.

Myriad is committed to researching and commercializing innovative molecular diagnostics tests, such as the BRACAnalysis test, to assess a person's risk of developing disease, guide treatment decisions and help improve patients' quality of life. As such, the Company plans to continue its strong commitment to promoting women's health in the areas of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer, advancing and fostering research on the BRCA genes, and providing excellent patient access to its test, including offering financial assistance programs to qualifying individuals.

It is important to correct some common misconceptions on the societal impact of "gene" patents; namely that such patents impede research, result in high-cost testing and takeaway a patient's option for confirmatory testing. Myriad believes that statements made to these points in the public press are incorrect. To set the record straight,

Brian M. Poissant, Gregory A. Castanias, Laura A. Coruzzi, Eileen Falvey and Sasha Mayergoyz and other members of the law firm of Jones Day represented Myriad in this matter.

About Myriad Genetics

Myriad Genetics, Inc. (Nasdaq:MYGN - News) is a leading molecular diagnostic company dedicated to developing and marketing transformative tests to assess a person's risk of developing disease, guide treatment decisions and assess a patient's risk of disease progression and disease recurrence. Myriad's portfolio of nine molecular diagnostic tests are based on an understanding of the role genes play in human disease and were developed with a focus on improving an individual's decision making process for monitoring and treating disease. With fiscal year 2011 annual revenue of over $400 million and more than 1,100 employees, Myriad is working on strategic directives, including new product introductions, companion diagnostics, and international expansion, to take advantage of significant growth opportunities. For more information on how Myriad is making a difference, please visit the Company's website: http://www.myriad.com.

Myriad, the Myriad logo, BRACAnalysis, Colaris, Colaris AP, Melaris, TheraGuide, Prezeon, OnDose, Panexia and Prolaris are trademarks or registered trademarks of Myriad Genetics, Inc. in the United States and foreign countries. MYGN-G

Safe Harbor Statement

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Supreme Court of the United States Remands Gene Patenting Case

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

A benefit fundraiser for two young girls seriously injured in a car accident two weeks ago will be held at Say Cheese Pizza in Mount Shasta Monday, April 2.

A portion of all in-house sales between 5 and 9 p.m. will be donated to the benefit for Ashlynn and Alexis Myrtle account at PremierWest Bank.

Alexis, age 4, suffered a severe head injury in the March 16 accident, and underwent surgery to repair her right eye. She is recovering well but is having some problems coming to terms with the traumatic incident, said Becky Gordon, a family friend who set up the PremierWest community fund.

Ashlynn, 3, suffered a spinal cord injury and is paralyzed from the waist down. Shes now getting used to her wheelchair, said Gordon.

She loves being in it. Shes learning how to use it... its a little hard, because her arms are so short, but shes working on her upper body strength, Gordon said, adding Ashlynn is resilient and "always has a smile on her face."

Ashlynn and Alexis recently moved from Mount Shasta to Redding with their mother, Amanda Pevehouse. They previously attended Chestnut Preschool in Mount Shasta.

The girls were improperly restrained in the back seat of their fathers car when it drifted off the road and hit a concrete bridge abutment in Cottonwood on the evening of March 16, according to the California Highway Patrol. Their father, Nicolaas Myrtle, pleaded not guilty last week to felony DUI and two counts of child endangerment.

While Alexis is recovering at Mercy Medical Center Redding, Ashlynn was transferred to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, where shes getting specialized care for pediatric spinal injuries.

Pevehouse, who has full custody of the girls, has been traveling back and forth between Redding and San Jose to be with both her daughters.

Donations for the family of Ashlynn and Alexis can be made at any PremierWest Bank branch. The account number is 68016754. Donations can also be made the night of the benefit at Say Cheese in a donation jar at the front counter.

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Benefit for injured girls planned for April 2

Recommendation and review posted by sam

From being unable to move the majority of his body in 2008 to taking steps with leg braces today, Mount Shastas Corben Brooks is proving that a spinal cord injury isnt the end of the world.

Three and a half years after a high school football injury left him a quadriplegic, Mount Shastas Corben Brooks is focused on recovery while in New Delhi, India, where hes receiving a third round of stem cell treatments not yet available in the United States.

The ever-optimistic 20 year old can now stand with minimal assistance, take steps with leg braces, wiggle his toes, partially close his hands and feel the majority of his legs.

Corben said hes looking forward to Labor Day Weekend, when his family will host Thunder in the Park in Mount Shasta, an event which will include the raffle drawing for a custom built motorcycle dubbed Corbens Ride, as well as live music, a chili cookoff, pancake breakfast and a poker run. Thunder in the Park will coincide with the Mount Shasta Police Departments Show & Shine car show in attempt to keep visitors in Mount Shasta the entire weekend.

Without the support of our community and countless other people I wouldn't be where I am today, Corben said via email from India last week. I can honestly say that without the help from my family, friends, this wonderful community and all who have so generously gone out of their way to help me, I would not be in the remarkable position that I am today. Thank you is nowhere near an adequate enough word to express my thanks.

Though he knows stem cell treatments are controversial, Corben said after each treatment he sees more function and sensation in his body for up to nine months after returning home.

So far on this trip I have gained new sensation and feeling in the back of my legs and hamstrings and additional feeling on my left foot, Corben said.

The results of a recent MRI also showed encouraging results, said Corben.

What we saw was the stem cells have been reducing the amount of scar tissue in my spinal cord at the injury site, Corben said. With the scar tissue being reduced, my nerves are given the opportunity to reestablish a connection. And we believe that is why I have been seeing continual recovery during and after these treatments.

Since his last visit in 2011, Corben said his walking has improved greatly, thanks to the help of his trainer back at home, Lisa Pigoni.

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Corben Brooks continues on road to recovery

Recommendation and review posted by sam

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., March 26, 2012/PRNewswire/ -- Tengion, Inc. (NASDAQ: TNGN - News), a leader in regenerative medicine, today reported its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2011 and provided a business and clinical update detailed in a separate press release issued today, in which the Company reported that it has made significant advances in its two lead programs.

"We have made significant progress advancing our Neo-Urinary Conduit and Neo-Kidney Augment programs and I believe we have created strong momentum to build upon as we continue to execute on our aggressive development goals in 2012," stated John L. Miclot, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tengion. "A fourth patient has now been enrolled and implanted in our Neo-Urinary Conduit clinical trial and we have submitted a pre-Investigational New Drug filing to FDA for our Neo-Kidney Augment one quarter ahead of schedule."

Financial Update

For the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company reported an adjusted net loss of $24.4 million, or $1.13 per basic and diluted common share, compared with an adjusted net loss of $25.8 million, or $2.80 per basic and diluted common share, for the same period in 2010.

The decreased adjusted net loss for the 2011 period was primarily due to a decrease in interest expense of $1.2 million resulting from lower average debt balances outstanding in 2011, and a decrease in depreciation expense of $1.7 million resulting from both a change in the estimated useful life of leasehold improvements at the Company's leased facility in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and the impairment of the Company's leased facility in East Norriton, Pennsylvania. These decreases were offset in part by increased general and administrative expense of $1.2 million related to restructuring charges incurred during 2011 and an increase in research and development expense of $0.4 million primarily due to increased preclinical study costs associated with the Company's Neo-Kidney Augment program. The adjusted net loss per basic and diluted common share for the year ended December 31, 2011 was significantly affected by the issuance of common stock in connection with equity financings completed in April 2010 and March 2011.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2011, the Company reported an adjusted net loss of $6.2 million, or $0.26 per basic and diluted common share, compared with an adjusted net loss of $5.9 million, or $0.48 per basic and diluted common share, for the same period in 2010.

The increased adjusted net loss for the 2011 period was primarily due to an increase in research and development expense of $1.0 million related to preclinical studies associated with the Company's Neo-Kidney Augment program. In addition, general and administrative expense also increased $0.3 million primarily due to a restructuring charge. These increases were offset in part by a decrease in depreciation expense of $1.0 million related to a change in the estimated useful life of leasehold improvements at the Company's leased facility in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and the impairment of the property and equipment at the Company's leased facility in East Norriton, Pennsylvania. The adjusted net loss per basic and diluted common share for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2011 was significantly affected by the issuance of common stock in connection with the equity financing completed in March 2011.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company held $15.3 million in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. Based upon the Company's currently expected level of operating expenditures and debt repayments, the Company expects to be able to fund its operations to September 2012.

Recent Clinical Advancements

In a separate release issued today, the Company reported that it has made significant clinical advances in its two lead programs, as follows:

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Tengion Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2011 Financial Results

Recommendation and review posted by sam

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., March 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Tengion, Inc. (NASDAQ: TNGN - News), a leader in regenerative medicine, today announced that it has made significant advances in its two lead programs. A fourth patient was implanted in the last several weeks in the ongoing initial clinical trial of the Company's lead product candidate, the Neo-Urinary Conduit. The Company also submitted a pre-Investigational New Drug (IND) filing to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its lead preclinical program, the Neo-Kidney Augment. Tengion also announced its fourth quarter and full year 2011 financial results in a separate release issued today and will hold a conference call to discuss these updates today, March 26, 2012, at 5:00 p.m. EDT.

"The implanting of the Neo-Urinary Conduit into the fourth patient and the pre-IND filing for our Neo-Kidney Augment are significant achievements for Tengion and we are confident in our ability to execute on our ambitious objectives for these two programs going forward," stated John L. Miclot, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tengion. "We have gained substantial knowledge and insight from the first three patients in the ongoing trial for the Neo-Urinary Conduit and we believe that the surgical modifications implemented for the fourth patient will improve outcomes for current and future patients in the trial. In addition, now that we have submitted a pre-IND filing to the FDA for the Neo-Kidney Augment, we are preparing a proposed clinical trial design and timeline to continue our progress toward establishing clinical proof of concept."

Neo-Urinary Conduit Clinical Program UpdateTengion has now enrolled a fourth patient in the ongoing initial clinical trial of its lead product candidate, the Neo-Urinary Conduit, which is being evaluated in bladder cancer patients requiring a urinary diversion following bladder removal (cystectomy). The trial is designed to assess the safety and preliminary efficacy of the Neo-Urinary Conduit in up to 10 patients, as well as to translate the surgical procedure successfully used in preclinical animal models into clinical trials with human patients. The ongoing initial trial is being conducted at the University of Chicago Medical Center and at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

The goal set by the clinical investigators in this trial has been to optimize the surgical procedure and post-surgical care by incorporating the outcomes observed in each patient into the surgical approach for subsequent patients, as necessary. Data from the first three patients have allowed clinical investigators to make surgical modifications for the trial moving forward in an effort to address conduit patency and vascular supply. Complications that arose in the first three patients were resolved successfully and, following new surgeries to construct a urinary diversion using bowel tissue, all three patients have recovered well.

Upon implanting the fourth patient in the ongoing trial, Tengion and its clinical investigators believe they have translated the surgical technique, including the procedure to provide greater blood supply to the Neo-Urinary Conduit supporting regeneration of urinary tissue; the ureteral attachment to the Neo-Urinary Conduit using an established surgical procedure used in the current standard of care; and the procedure for the stoma incision and passage of the Neo-Urinary Conduit with its blood supply through the abdominal wall. The Company is also collaborating with post-operative care staff at the two trial sites to optimize stoma management for rapid patient recovery.

The Company plans to discuss with the Data Safety Monitoring Board a reduction in the timelines between future patient implants, which is currently 12 weeks. If granted and assuming appropriate safety data, the Company anticipates that it will complete implantation of up to 10 patients by the end of 2012.

Neo-Kidney Augment Preclinical Program UpdateTengion submitted a pre-IND filing to the FDA for its lead preclinical program, the Neo-Kidney Augment, one quarter ahead of schedule. The Neo-Kidney Augment is intended to prevent or delay the need for dialysis or kidney transplant by catalyzing the regeneration of functional kidney tissue in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD). Following the early submission of the pre-IND, Tengion's Board of Directors has authorized the Company to aggressively pursue the development of its Neo-Kidney Augment program and will retain the full team of employees involved in the Neo-Kidney Augment program.

Tengion has scheduled a meeting with the FDA to discuss the Company's proposed GLP animal study program to support an IND filing. Tengion is also exploring moving forward using the Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMP) pathway, an established regulatory route in Europe for advanced cell-based therapies. The Company expects to provide an update on its expectations for the clinical trial program in its first quarter 2012 financial results announcement in May.

About the Neo-Urinary ConduitThe Neo-Urinary Conduit is a combination of a patient's own cells and bioabsorbable scaffold that is intended to catalyze regeneration of a native bladder tissue conduit, passively transporting urine from the ureters through a stoma, or hole in the abdomen, into a standard ostomy bag. Standard of care for patients requiring a non-continent urinary diversion uses bowel tissue to construct a conduit for urine to exit from the body. There are over 20,000 urinary diversions performed annually in the United States and Europe. These patients are at risk for complications associated with the use of bowel tissue, as well as for those associated with the surgery to harvest the bowel tissue. The Neo-Urinary Conduit is the only product currently in development that aims to avoid the use of bowel tissue.

About the Neo-Kidney AugmentThe Neo-Kidney Augment is intended to prevent or delay the need for dialysis or kidney transplant by catalyzing the regeneration of functional kidney tissue in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD). This increase in functional kidney mass could thereby delay or prevent the need for dialysis or kidney transplant in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD). According to the United States Renal Data System, more than $27 billion in Medicare costs each year are attributable to patients with ESRD and ESRD is associated with an approximate 20% mortality rate per year, with the average life expectancy of a patient initiating dialysis of approximately four years. Tengion scientists have published and presented positive data on the effect of the Company's Neo-Kidney Augment in four different preclinical models of CKD. Two of these preclinical models have been conducted for a sufficiently long period of time to demonstrate durability and an impact on survival.

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Tengion Announces Significant Advances in Neo-Urinary Conduit™ and Neo-Kidney Augment™ Programs

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Columbia, SC (WLTX) --What if your pet couldn't walk anymore? One Midlands vet is using stem cell therapy to help.

For Beth Phibbs it's almost like a turning back of the hands of time.

"I call her my little miracle dog, because she's doing things she used to do," said Phibbs. "Now she's not on any medication, and she can go up and down the steps and she runs and jumps and things that she used to do when she was five."

Phibbs has spent the last 13 years loving and looking after her pet dog Maggie, and when she pet began to develop arthritis and a limp she had to take action. But when the first treatments stopped working, Phibbs and Maggie had to look to another options, dog stem cell therapy.

"I had no idea that animals were able to have they type of procedures," she said.

Dr. Kenneth Banks a veterinarian with the Bank Animal Hospital, performed the surgery for Maggie using her own stem cells in the one day procedure.

Banks said the stem cell therapy not only cost less than some other options, but was less invasive and had a quicker recovery time as well.

Still with about three similar procedures under his belt, even he didn't expect to see a such change in maggie just 40 days after the surgery.

"I wasn't sure we were gonna get the results this fast, we were expecting results, maybe not a good as she's done. We're real happy with her results," said Banks.

Now, after three years on medication and walking with a limp, Maggie's getting used to a new way of life -- one with out pain in her golden years.

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Midlands Vet Uses Stem Cell Therapy for Pets in Pain

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Saturday, March 24, 2012

CHICAGO A research network led by a Mayo Clinic physician found that stem cells derived from heart failure patients' own bone marrow and injected into their hearts improved the function of the left ventricle, the heart's pumping chamber. Researchers also found that certain types of the stem cells were associated with the largest improvement and warrant further study.

VIDEO ALERT: Additional audio and video resources, including excerpts from an interview with Dr.Simari describing the research, are available on the Mayo Clinic News Blog.

The results were presented today at the 2012 American College of Cardiology Meeting in Chicago. They will also be published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

This Phase II clinical trial, designed to test this strategy to improve cardiac function, is an extension of earlier efforts in Brazil in which a smaller number of patients received fewer stem cells. For this new network study, 92 patients received a placebo or 100 million stem cells derived from the bone marrow in their hips in a one-time injection. This was the first study in humans to deliver that many bone marrow stem cells.

"We found that the bone marrow cells did not have a significant impact on the original end points that we chose, which involved reversibility of a lack of blood supply to the heart, the volume of the left ventricle of the heart at the end of a contraction, and maximal oxygen consumption derived through a treadmill test," says Robert Simari, M.D., a cardiologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. He is chairman of the Cardiovascular Cell Therapy Research Network (CCTRN), the network of five academic centers and associated satellite sites that conducted the study. The CCTRN is supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, which also funded the study.

"But interestingly, we did find that the very simple measure of ejection fraction was improved in the group that received the cells compared to the placebo group by 2.7 percent," Dr. Simari says. Ejection fraction is the percentage of blood pumped out of the left ventricle during each contraction.

Study principal investigators Emerson Perin, M.D., Ph.D., and James Willerson, M.D., of the Texas Heart Institute, explain that even though 2.7 percent does not seem like a large number, it is statistically significant and means an improvement in heart function for chronic heart failure patients who have no other options.

"This was a pretty sick population," Dr. Perin says. "They had already had heart attacks, undergone bypass surgery, and had stents placed. However, they weren't at the level of needing a heart transplant yet. In some patients, particularly those who were younger or whose bone marrows were enriched in certain stem cell populations, had even greater improvements in their ejection fractions."

The average age of study participants was 63. The researchers found that patients younger than 62 improved more. Their ejection fraction improved by 4.7 percent. The researchers looked at the makeup of these patients' stem cells from a supply stored at a biorepository established by the CCTRN. They found these patients had more CD34+ and CD133+ type of stem cells in their mixture.

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Bone Marrow Stem Cells Improve Heart Function, Study Finds

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ScienceDaily (Mar. 26, 2012) A research network led by a Mayo Clinic physician found that stem cells derived from heart failure patients' own bone marrow and injected into their hearts improved the function of the left ventricle, the heart's pumping chamber. Researchers also found that certain types of the stem cells were associated with the largest improvement and warrant further study.

The results were presented March 26 at the 2012 American College of Cardiology Meeting in Chicago. They will also be published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

This Phase II clinical trial, designed to test this strategy to improve cardiac function, is an extension of earlier efforts in Brazil in which a smaller number of patients received fewer stem cells. For this new network study, 92 patients received a placebo or 100 million stem cells derived from the bone marrow in their hips in a one-time injection. This was the first study in humans to deliver that many bone marrow stem cells.

"We found that the bone marrow cells did not have a significant impact on the original end points that we chose, which involved reversibility of a lack of blood supply to the heart, the volume of the left ventricle of the heart at the end of a contraction, and maximal oxygen consumption derived through a treadmill test," says Robert Simari, M.D., a cardiologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. He is chairman of the Cardiovascular Cell Therapy Research Network (CCTRN), the network of five academic centers and associated satellite sites that conducted the study. The CCTRN is supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, which also funded the study.

"But interestingly, we did find that the very simple measure of ejection fraction was improved in the group that received the cells compared to the placebo group by 2.7 percent," Dr. Simari says. Ejection fraction is the percentage of blood pumped out of the left ventricle during each contraction.

Study principal investigators Emerson Perin, M.D., Ph.D., and James Willerson, M.D., of the Texas Heart Institute, explain that even though 2.7 percent does not seem like a large number, it is statistically significant and means an improvement in heart function for chronic heart failure patients who have no other options.

"This was a pretty sick population," Dr. Perin says. "They had already had heart attacks, undergone bypass surgery, and had stents placed. However, they weren't at the level of needing a heart transplant yet. In some patients, particularly those who were younger or whose bone marrows were enriched in certain stem cell populations, had even greater improvements in their ejection fractions."

The average age of study participants was 63. The researchers found that patients younger than 62 improved more. Their ejection fraction improved by 4.7 percent. The researchers looked at the makeup of these patients' stem cells from a supply stored at a biorepository established by the CCTRN. They found these patients had more CD34+ and CD133+ type of stem cells in their mixture.

"This tells us that the approach we used to deliver the stems cells was safe," Dr. Simari says. "It also suggests new directions for the next series of clinical trials, including the type of patients, endpoints to study and types of cells to deliver."

Other co-authors of the study are Guilherme Silva, M.D., Deirdre Smith, Lynette Westbrook; and James Chen, all of the Texas Heart Institute, St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, Houston; Carl Pepine, M.D., R. David Anderson, M.D., Christopher Cogle, M.D., and Eileen Handberg, Ph.D., all of the University of Florida School of Medicine, Gainesville; Timothy Henry, M.D., Jay Traverse, M.D., and Rachel Olson, all of the Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital; Doris Taylor, Ph.D., and Claudia Zierold, Ph.D., both of the University of Minnesota School of Medicine, Minneapolis; Stephen Ellis, M.D., James Thomas, M.D., and Carrie Geither, all of The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Ohio; David Zhao, M.D., Marvin Kornenberg, M.D., Antonis Hatzopoulos, Ph.D., Sherry Bowman, and Judy Francescon, all of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Tennessee; Dejian Lai, Ph.D., Sarah Baraniuk, Ph.D., Linda Piller, M.D., Lara Simpson, Ph.D., Judy Bettencourt, Shelly Sayre, Rachel Vojvodic, and Lemuel Moye, M.D., Ph.D., all of The University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston; A. Daniel Martin, Ph.D., of the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions, Gainesville; Marc Penn, M.D., Ph.D., of Northeast Ohio Medical University, Akron; Saif Anwaruddin, M.D., of Penn Heart and Vascular Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; Adrian Gee, Ph.D., and David Aguilar, M.D., of Baylor College of Medicine, Houston; Catalin Loghin, M.D., of The University of Texas Medical School, Houston; and Sonia Skarlatos, Ph.D., David Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., Ray Ebert, Ph.D., and Minjung Kwak, Ph.D., all of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, Bethesda, MD.

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Bone marrow stem cells can improve heart function, study suggests

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Public release date: 26-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Tara Womersley tara.womersley@ed.ac.uk 44-131-650-9836 University of Edinburgh

A breakthrough using cutting-edge stem cell research could speed up the discovery of new treatments for motor neurone disease (MND).

The international research team has created motor neurones using skin cells from a patient with an inherited form of MND.

The study discovered that abnormalities of a protein called TDP-43, implicated in more than 90 per cent of cases of MND, resulted in the death of motor neurone cells.

This is the first time that scientists have been able to see the direct effect of abnormal TDP-43 on human motor neurons.

The study, led by the University of Edinburgh's Euan MacDonald Centre for Motor Neurone Disease Research, was carried out in partnership with King's College London, Colombia University, New York and the University of San Francisco.

MND is a devastating, untreatable and ultimately fatal condition that results from progressive loss of the motor nerves motor neurones that control movement, speech and breathing.

Professor Siddharthan Chandran, of the University of Edinburgh, said: "Using patient stem cells to model MND in a dish offers untold possibilities for how we study the cause of this terrible disease as well as accelerating drug discovery by providing a cost-effective way to test many thousands of potential treatments."

The study, funded by the MND Association, is published in the journal PNAS

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Stem cell study aids quest for motor neurone disease therapies

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Public release date: 24-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Beth Casteel bcasteel@acc.org 240-328-4549 American College of Cardiology

CHICAGO -- A new study found that using a patient's own bone marrow cells may help repair damaged areas of the heart caused by heart failure, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 61st Annual Scientific Session. The Scientific Session, the premier cardiovascular medical meeting, brings cardiovascular professionals together to further advances in the field.

Millions of Americans suffer from heart failure, the weakening of the heart muscle and its inability to pump blood effectively throughout the body. If medications, surgery, or stents fail to control the disease, doctors often have few treatment options to offer.

This is the largest study to date to look at stem cell therapy, using a patient's own stem cells, to repair damaged areas of the heart in patients with chronic ischemic heart disease and left ventricular dysfunction. Researchers found that left ventricular ejection fraction (the percentage of blood leaving the heart's main pumping chamber) increased by a small but significant amount (2.7 percent) in patients who received stem cell therapy. The study also revealed that the improvement in ejection fraction correlated with the number of CD34+ and CD133+ cells in the bone marrow information that will be helpful in evaluating and designing future therapies and trials.

"This is the kind of information we need in order to move forward with the clinical use of stem cell therapy," said Emerson Perin, MD, PhD, director of clinical research for cardiovascular medicine at the Texas Heart Institute and the study's lead investigator.

This multi-center study was conducted by the Cardiovascular Cell Therapy Research Network and took place between April 2009 and 2011. At five sites, 92 patients were randomly selected to receive stem cell treatment or placebo. The patients, average age 63, all had chronic ischemic heart disease and an ejection fraction of less than 45 percent along with heart failure and/or angina, and were no longer candidates for revascularization.

"Studies such as these are able to be completed much faster because of the team approach of the network," said Sonia Skarlatos, PhD, deputy director of the division of cardiovascular sciences at the National, Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, and program director of the network.

Bone marrow was aspirated from the patients and processed to obtain just the mononuclear fraction of the marrow. In patients randomly selected to receive stem cell therapy, doctors inserted a catheter into the heart's left ventricle to inject a total of 3 ccs comprising 100 million stem cells into an average of 15 sites that showed damage on the electromechanical mapping image of the heart. Dr. Perin said the procedure is relatively quick and painless, involving only an overnight stay at the hospital.

The study used electromechanical mapping of the heart to measure the voltage in areas of the heart muscle and create a real-time image of the heart.

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Stem cell therapy possibly helpful in heart failure patients

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Dublin - Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/e0c7cab9/nanotechnology_in) has announced the addition of the "Nanotechnology in Health Care" book to their offering.

Nanotechnologies are among the fastest growing areas of scientific research, and this is expected to have a substantial impact on human health care, especially in biomedical applications and nanomedicine now and in the near future. In the present scenario, nanotechnology is spreading its wings to address the key problems in the field of nanomedicine and human health care by improving diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and tissue engineering.

This book provides an in-depth investigation of nanotechnology-based therapy and recent advancements in this field for revolutionizing the treatments for various fatal diseases, including cardiovascular and infectious diseases.

Key Features

- Covers significant applied aspects of nanotechnology with up-to-date information and its breakthrough in various fields of human health care

- Presents comprehensive coverage of the dominant technology in various aspects of human health, supported by excellent photographs, figures, and references

- Provides important information regarding a variety of topics that will influence improved nanomedicine and biomedical research

Readership

Advanced undergraduate- and graduate-level students in nanotechnology, nanobiotechnology; researchers in macromolecular science, nanosciences, nanotechnology, chemistry, biology, and medicine, especially those with an interest in drug delivery or cancer therapy.

Key Topics Covered:

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Research and Markets: Nanotechnology in Health Care. An In-Depth Investigation of Nanotechnology-Based Therapy

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Featured Article Academic Journal Main Category: Genetics Also Included In: Flu / Cold / SARS;Swine Flu Article Date: 26 Mar 2012 - 3:00 PDT

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People who do not have the rare variant of IFITM3 only have mild reactions to the influenza virus, said the researchers who found the gene codes for a protein that is important for helping the body defend itself against the virus.

It appears that when there is plenty of IFITM3 protein in the body, the flu virus can't penetrate deep into the lungs.

The 2009 H1N1 "swine flu" pandemic showed how quickly a new virus can spread, and how a generally mild infection can become serious and even kill a small subset of the population, the authors write in their background information.

The antiviral role of IFITM3 in humans was first suggested by studies that showed the protein blocked the growth of influenza virus and dengue virus in cultured cells.

So they decided to take this further by examining the effect of this protein family in lab mice.

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Gene Explains Why Flu Can Be Serious

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We already know that during sexual reproduction, offsprings get 50 percent of the genes from the father and the other half from its mother. While the parents' genes determine the offsprings' traits, some of these genes are switched on only on the paternal side while others are switched on only on the maternal side. This influences certain traits, such as the number of piglets born.

In genetics, this means that there is a difference between two DNA classes: BA (in which B is maternal and switched on and A is paternal and switched off) and AB (the exact opposite). This is called 'genetic imprinting'. The switches which turn the genes 'on' and 'off' are present in specific parts of the genome, as was already discovered in earlier research on humans. Researchers Albart Coster and Ole Masen used genetic markers to examine the pig genome to find the genes which regulate fertility. Their search brought them to the DIO3 gene. Subsequent research showed that if the breeding pig gets a strain of this gene from the mother, it gives birth to 12.7 piglets on the average. If the DIO3 strain originates from the father, only 11.9 piglets are born. It is remarkable that just one gene can bring about such a considerable difference.

'Other genes can also influence the sow's fertility,' says Bovenhuis, 'but the DIO gene alone is responsible for 15 percent of the genetic variation in offsprings.' This gene can therefore be a major selection criterion in the pig breeding sector. But Bovenhuis says that their research is significant because it offers fundamental knowledge on the epigenetics of, for example, humans and mice. This is also why their article has been published in the Plos One journal at the end of February.

Geneticists do not yet know exactly whether imprinting affects embryo development or fertility. This can only be discovered if there is a big difference in the offsprings' traits. 'If the effect of the DIO3 gene on fertility had only been a few percent, we would never have discovered this gene,' says Bovenhuis.

Provided by Wageningen University

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Maternal gene causes more piglets to be born

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An international team of researchers has discovered a human genetic flaw that could explain why influenza makes some people more sick than others.

Reporting in the journal Nature, British and American researchers, led by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (WTSI) in the UK, said the variant of the IFITM3 gene was much more common in people hospitalized for the flu than in those who were able to fight the disease at home.

The researchers said this could explain why during the 2009/10 H1N1 swine flu pandemic most people had mild symptoms, while others got seriously ill and died. They said they scoured genetic databases covering thousands of people and found evidence that around one in 400 people may have the flawed genetic variant.

IFITM3 is an important protein that protects cells against infection and is believed to play a crucial role in the immune systems response against viruses such as H1N1. When the protein is abundant in the body, the spread of the virus in the lungs is hindered, but if the protein is defective or absent, the virus can spread rapidly, causing greater illness and perhaps death.

Aaron Everitt, lead researcher from WTSI, said although the IFITM3 protein is known to play an important role in limiting the spread of viruses in cells, little is known about how it works in lungs. Our new research helps to explain how both the gene and protein are linked to viral susceptibility, he added.

The role of IFITM3 in humans was first suggested by studies using a genetic screen, which showed the protein blocked the growth of the flu and dengue in cells. This finding led the team to further investigate how the gene works in both humans and mice.

For the study, the researchers removed the gene from mice and found when they developed flu, their symptoms were much worse than the mice that still had the gene. They found that the loss of this single gene in mice can turn a mild case of influenza into a potentially fatal infection.

Armed with this knowledge, the researchers sequenced the IFITM3 genes of 53 patients hospitalized with the flu and found three (one in 18) have a genetic mutation of this gene, which is rare in normal people.

Since IFITM3 appears to be a first line defender against infection, our efforts suggest that individuals and populations with less IFITM3 activity may be at increased risk during a pandemic and that IFITM3 could be vital for defending human populations against other viruses such as avian influenza virus and dengue virus, said Dr. Abraham Brass, an Assistant Professor at the Ragon Institute and Gastrointestinal Unit of Massachusetts General Hospital, and co-lead author of the study.

The team said these findings need to be replicated in bigger studies before they can positively rule that the IFITM3 gene mutation is the key factor for causing serious illness.

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Gene Can Transform Mild Flu Into A Life-threatening Disease

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Public release date: 26-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Peggy Calicchia calicchi@cshl.edu 516-422-4012 Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

March 27, 2012 Large numbers of people moved between Africa and Europe during recent and well-documented time periods such as the Roman Empire, the Arab conquest, and the slave trade, and genetic evidence of these migrations lives on in Europeans today. But were there more ancient migrations? In a study published online today in Genome Research, researchers present the first genetic evidence for prehistoric gene flow between Africa and Europe, dating back as far as 11,000 years ago.

To trace the evolution and ancestry of humans, scientists study the DNA sequence of the mitochondria, a specialized cellular structure that produces energy for the cell and carries genetic information that is separate from the rest of the genome that resides in the nucleus. While the nuclear genome is a mix of genetic information from both mother and father, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is passed directly from mother to child without any contribution of DNA from the father. But not everyone's mtDNA is exactly alike: over long periods of time, small changes in the mtDNA sequence have arisen in different populations. Geneticists can use these changes as markers that indicate the movements and migrations of humans in the past, and classify them into specific "haplogroups."

In this study, an international team of researchers performed the largest analysis of complete mtDNA genomes belonging to haplogroup L (a lineage of sub-Saharan Africa origin) in Europe to date, aiming to untangle the history of genetic links between the two contents. By comparing the sequences of mtDNA genomes from various regions of Europe with mitochondrial genomes from around the world, they made a very surprising observation regarding when sub-Saharan lineages appeared in Europe.

"It was very surprising to find that more than 35 percent of the sub-Saharan lineages in Europe arrived during a period that ranged from more than 11,000 years ago to the Roman Empire times," said Dr. Antonio Salas of the University of Santiago de Compostela and senior author of the study. The other 65% of European haplogroup L lineages arrived in more recent times.

The authors explain that these contacts likely connected sub-Saharan Africa to Europe not only via North Africa, but also directly by coastal routes. Salas said that it still remains unknown why there was genetic flow between the Africa and Europe in prehistoric times, but one possible scenario is that some bidirectional flow was promoted when the last glaciation pushed some Europeans southward, until the glacier receded and populations returned north.

In addition to tracing the genetic links of Africa and Europe back to prehistoric times, Salas expects that their work will also help those individuals who want to learn more about their own ancestry. "There is a growing interest in direct-to-consumer genetic testing, including those aimed to serve a public interested in reconstructing their ancestry," Salas said. "Studies like the one presented here will help to unravel inferences made in these studies."

Scientists from the University of Santiago de Compostela (Galicia, Spain), the University of Perugia (Perugia, Italy), the University of Pavia (Pavia, Italy), the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (Salt Lake City, UT), the University of Oxford (Oxford, UK), and the National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Science (Sevilla, Spain) contributed to this study.

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Genetic study unravels ancient links between African and European populations

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