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Using a device implanted in KRAS-driven pancreatic tumors, authors demonstrate that cancer cells incorporate proteins in their microenvironment as a source of amino acids. This work provides a novel approach to study tumor metabolism that could be applied with therapeutic purposes.
A pharmacological screen has identified the histone methyltransferase G9a as a target to reactivate imprinted genes in a mouse model of Prader–Willi Syndrome that improves growth and survival.
Genetic deletion of HDAC3, a circadian epigenome regulator, specifically in skeletal muscle alters amino acid metabolism, leading to increased muscle endurance but at the cost of whole-body insulin resistance.
New vaccine approaches that safely elicit immunity are needed to protect against infectious disease. Erasmus et al. report their development of an insect-virus-based platform that they use to engineer a protective vaccine against chikungunya fever.
The therapeutic response of acute myeloid leukemia to the nucleoside analog Ara-C is controlled by SAMHD1, an enzyme that hydrolyzes the active metabolite Ara-CTP.
Soluble uPAR is known to contribute to certain types of chronic kidney disease, and myeloid cells from the bone marrow have now been shown to be a key source of this factor.
In leukemic mice, fasting reduces the development of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, but not acute myeloid leukemia, via upregulation of leptin receptor expression and signaling in the leukemic cells.
Proteasomal degradation of EZH2 in AML patients in response to therapy triggers the expression of stem cell markers and has been identified as an epigenetic pathway leading to acquired drug resistance. Treatments aimed to restore EZH2 expression in relapsed AML patients have shown clinical efficacy and constitute a viable approach to re-sensitize tumors to chemotherapy.
From an alarming global health emergency to an increased focus on antibiotic resistance, 2016 was a year replete with attention on infectious disease. But the year also included events ranging from clinical trials gone horribly awry to calls for expanded access to marijuana for research.
Recent ballot initiatives instituting a tax on sugary drinks in the US, alongside related efforts by other countries and support from the World Health Organization, bring to the forefront the need for greater scientific insight into how sugars affect metabolic health.
The quest to improve influenza vaccines is aided by research into the immune response that they generate. Two recent studies have focused their attention on the specificities of antibodies induced after vaccination with conventional inactivated influenza vaccines.
From tech billionaires turned medical philanthropists to a crusader for improved drug safety, our list of newsmakers this year includes a number of hyper-ambitious individuals.
A recent study shows that spermidine has beneficial effects on health and lifespan in mice, and that these effects are the result of improved cardiovascular function. Similar effects of spermidine on humans are supported by epidemiological studies.
Tumors continue to escape therapies that target single signaling pathways. A recent study in mice shows that combination immunotherapy involving different arms of immune response can overcome this and cure intractable tumors.
This past year saw breakthroughs in areas ranging from gene editing to eye-tissue repair. Here are a few of the research papers that reported some of the exciting discoveries of 2016.