Public release date: 18-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Tiffany Trent ttrent@vbi.vt.edu 540-231-6822 Virginia Tech

Building on previous work with the botanical abscisic acida, researchers in the Nutritional Immunology and Molecular Medicine Laboratory (NIMML) have discovered that abscisic acid has anti-inflammatory effects in the lungs as well as in the gut. The results will be published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.

"While the immune effects of abscisic acid are well understood in the gut, less was known about its effects in the respiratory tract. We've shown definitively that not only does abscisic acid ameliorate disease activity and lung inflammatory pathology, it also aids recovery and survival in influenza-infected mice," said Raquel Hontecillas, Ph.D., study leader, assistant professor of immunology at Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, and co-director of NIMML.

Influenza accounts for anywhere from 3,000 to 49,000 deaths per year in the United States alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control. It is difficult to treat if not caught immediately; antivirals usually become ineffective after the virus incubation period has passed and resistance to antiviral drugs poses a serious public health problem in the face of outbreaks. Abscisic acid, however, has been shown to be most effective at about seven to ten days into the infection, targeting the immune response rather than the virus itself, which many researchers feel is a safer way to reduce flu-associated fatalities.

"Most drugs for respiratory infections target the virus itself, rather than the inflammatory responses caused by the virus. Abscisic acid activates peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma, a receptor that aids in reducing inflammation, through a newly identified pathwaya but it does so without the side effects of other agonists like thiazolidinediones, which are known to have strong adverse side effects. The development of complementary and alternative Medicine approaches that modulate the host response has great promise in decreasing respiratory damage caused by influenza or other respiratory pathogens," said Josep Bassaganya-Riera, Ph.D., director of NIMML and professor of nutritional immunology at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute.

From this and previous research, it's clear that abscisic acid could yield a novel new way to combat inflammatory disease, both in the gut and the respiratory tract. By using host-targeted strategies to mediate disease, alternate pathways can be established to activate immune responses without the deadly side effects of many drugs currently on the market.

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This research was supported by award number R01AT004308 of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health awarded to Josep Bassaganya-Riera, the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute-Fralin CRI grants program to Raquel Hontecillas, and funds from the Nutritional Immunology and Molecular Medicine Laboratory.

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Botanical compound could prove crucial to healing influenza

Public release date: 3-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Rhiannon Bugno Biol.Psych@utsouthwestern.edu 214-648-0880 Elsevier

Philadelphia, PA, July 3, 2012 Exposure to childhood maltreatment increases the risk for most psychiatric disorders as well as many negative consequences of these conditions. This new study, by Dr. Gustavo Turecki and colleagues at McGill University, Canada, provides important insight into one of the most extreme outcomes, suicide.

"In this study, we expanded our previous work on the epigenetic regulation of the glucocorticoid receptor gene by investigating the impact of severe early-life adversity on DNA methylation," explained Dr. Turecki. The glucocorticoid receptor is important because it is a brain target for the stress hormone cortisol.

The researchers studied brain tissue from people who had committed suicide, some of whom had a history of childhood maltreatment, and compared that tissue to people who had died from other causes. They found that particular variants of the glucocorticoid receptor were less likely to be present in the limbic system, or emotion circuit, of the brain in people who had committed suicide and were maltreated as children compared to the other two groups.

This study also advances the understanding of how the altered pattern of glucocorticoid receptor regulation developed in the maltreated suicide completers. The authors found that the pattern of methylation of the gene coding for the glucocorticoid receptors was altered in the suicide completers with a history of abuse. These DNA methylation differences were associated with distinct gene expression patterns.

Since methylation is one way that genes are switched on or off for long periods of time, it appears that childhood adversity can produce long-lasting changes in the regulation of a key stress response system that may be associated with increased risk for suicide.

"Preventing suicide is a critical challenge for psychiatry. This study provides important new information about brain changes that may increase the risk of suicide," said Dr. John Krystal, Editor of Biological Psychiatry. "It is striking that early life maltreatment can produce these long-lasting changes in the control of specific genes in the brain. It is also troubling that the consequences of this process can be so dire. Thus, it is important that we continue to study these epigenetic processes that seem to underlie aspects of the lasting consequences of childhood adversity."

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The article is "Differential Glucocorticoid Receptor Exon 1B, 1C, and 1H Expression and Methylation in Suicide Completers with a History of Childhood Abuse" by Benoit Labonte, Volodymyr Yerko, Jeffrey Gross, Naguib Mechawar, Michael J. Meaney, Moshe Szyf, and Gustavo Turecki (doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.01.034). The article appears in Biological Psychiatry, Volume 72, Issue 1 (July 1, 2012), published by Elsevier.

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Highlighting molecular clues to the link between childhood maltreatment and later suicide

San Diego, CA (PRWEB) July 03, 2012

The scientific discoveries that led to the founding of the science driven molecular diagnostics company NexDx, Inc. (http://www.nexdx.com) in 2011 in San Diego are published in the current online edition of the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (http://bit.ly/QOZ8Zr), one of the highest impact peer reviewed scientific and medical journals, with the highest Impact Factor in the rheumatology category.

The new research, conducted by Gary S. Firestein, M.D., and colleagues at UC San Diego School of Medicine, is the first study to uncover a striking pattern of aberrant modifications in the DNA of the inflammation-producing cells, referred to as fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS), lining the joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

The DNA modifications that Dr. Firesteins lab discovered in RA patients cells are caused by an epigenetic mechanism known as methylation. Epigenetics refers to the modifications to an individuals unique DNA that influence the expression, or activity, of his/her genes without altering the order or sequence of the original DNA.

Dr. Firestein, an internationally recognized rheumatologist and Professor in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology at UC San Diego, and his team identified and then compared the DNA methylation profiles of the FLS of patients with RA, individuals with osteoarthritis (OA), which unlike RA is not an inflammatory or autoimmune disease, and individuals not affected by either disease.

RAs DNA methylation pattern was found to be novel and to involve 207 genes, many of which play key roles in inflammation, regulation of the matrix that supports cells, and recruitment of leukocytes, which are key cells of the immune system.

Dr. Firestein and his colleagues also determined that a genes methylation state whether it was hypo or hyper-methylated correlated with its actual expression or activity in RA cells.

The DNA modifications that are unique to RA are potential biomarkers for a blood-based test to diagnose the disease early when it can be most effectively treated, said Jonathan Lim, M.D., chairman and CEO of NexDx.

Drs. Lim and Firestein co-founded NexDx in August 2011. In April 2012, NexDx announced that it had signed an exclusive worldwide license agreement with UC San Diego to develop and commercialize Dr. Firesteins discoveries.

In addition to developing a diagnostic test, NexDx is investigating the aberrant DNA methylation signatures to determine the optimal therapy and discover novel drug targets for biopharmaceutical company partners.

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NexDx Co-Founder Gary S. Firestein Publishes Findings that Epigenetics Alters Genes in Rheumatoid Arthritis

SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Great Basin Corporation, a privately-held molecular diagnostics company developing sample-to-result solutions, announced today that a study published in the July issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology demonstrates its TB ID/R assay to be 96 percent accurate in detecting rifampin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB). The assay is currently under development to provide rapid diagnosis and drug susceptibility information for TB.

More than 9.8 million cases of multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR TB) are reported worldwide each year, and more than half of those previously treated experience repeat infections. TB can be treated effectively if properly identified; however, mistreated or left untreated, can cause drug resistance and can be deadly. Many sources suggest that the main contributor in the delay of TB treatment is poor sensitivity of diagnostic tests.

The need for improved point-of-care testing for drug resistance in MDR TB is acute, especially in the developing world, said Robert Jenison, CTO of Great Basin Corporation and study co-author. A significant advantage of the TB ID/R assay is that more information can be added to it to detect additional TB resistance mechanisms, potentially allowing for diagnosis of MDR-TB, even extremely drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB). This diagnostic capability can improve management and treatment for greater numbers of infected patients, further reducing transmission risks.

The study was conducted by researchers from Great Basin Corporation and the Public Health Research Institute Tuberculosis Center at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

The data from this study further validates the versatility of Great Basins technology as a platform for providing fast and accurate answers for some of the worlds most vexing infectious diseases, said Ryan Ashton, CEO and president, Great Basin Corporation. The progress were seeing on the development of our TB ID/R test, in concert with our recently-cleared C. diff assay and our product pipeline of staph and fungal detection solutions, means were executing on our goal of delivering a robust menu of true sample-to-result and cost-effective molecular diagnostic solutions.

Great Basins technology entails an integrated disposable cartridge containing all necessary reagents and an inexpensive bench-top analyzer that executes the assay, interprets the results and provides eye-visible detection to the clinician. This test is being automated in a manner consistent with the World Health Organizations ASSURED (Affordable, Sensitive, Specific, User-friendly, Rapid and Robust, Equipment-free and Deliverable to end-users) goals for developing world point-of-care testing for drug-resistant TB.

The lead author of the study is Wanyuan Ao, senior scientist at Great Basin Corporation. In addition to Ao and Jenison, co-authors include Stephen Aldous, Evelyn Woodruff, Brian Hicke and Larry Rea of Great Basin; and Barry Kreiswirth of the Public Health Research Institute Tuberculosis Center, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

About Great Basin Corporation

Great Basin Corporation is a privately held molecular diagnostics company that commercializes breakthrough chip-based technologies. The company is dedicated to the development of simple, yet powerful, sample-to-result technology and products that provide fast, multiple-pathogen diagnoses of infectious diseases. By providing more diagnostic data per sample, healthcare providers are able to treat patients with the right medication sooner, improving outcomes and reducing costs. The companys vision is to make molecular diagnostic testing so simple and cost-effective that every patient will be tested for every serious infection, reducing misdiagnoses and significantly limiting the spread of infectious disease. More information can be found on the companys website at http://www.gbscience.com.

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Great Basin Corporation’s TB ID/R Molecular Diagnostic Test Detects Mycobacterium Tuberculosis with 96 Percent ...

San Diego biotech NexDx, Inc., successfully closed a $2.1 million Series B financing led by founding investor, City Hill Ventures, LLC, and a $500,000 capital term loan from Silicon Valley Bank.San Diego, CA (PRWEB) June 29, 2012 NexDx, Inc., a science driven molecular diagnostics company providing next generation products and services for personalized medicine in rheumatoid arthritis and other ...

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NexDx Raises $2.6 million in Series B Financing and Capital Term Loan

The Loma Linda University Center for Health Disparities and Molecular Medicine learns that funding by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), has been renewed with a grant of more than $5.9 million over the next five years. ...

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Loma Linda University Center for Health Disparities and Molecular Medicine Receives $5.9 Million Grant Award

HOUSTON, June 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Veracyte, Inc., a molecular diagnostics company that is pioneering the emerging field of molecular cytology, today announced results from a large, prospective, multicenter study, which demonstrated the potential for the Afirma Gene Expression Classifier, a gene expression test, to reduce the large number of unnecessary surgeries in thyroid cancer diagnosis by more than half.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120625/SF29625LOGO)

The results are being shared during a late-breaking data presentation at The Endocrine Society's ENDO 2012: The 94th Annual Meeting & Expo in Houston, Texas, and coincide with online publication by the New England Journal of Medicine. The study is scheduled to appear in the journal's August 23, 2012 print issue.

The two-year study involved 265 indeterminate thyroid FNA samples collected from 49 academic and community sites around the United States. The findings showed that the Afirma Gene Expression Classifier can reclassify as "benign" with a high degree of accuracy thyroid nodule fine needle aspirate (FNA) samples that were originally deemed inconclusive by cytopathology review using a microscope. When applied to the major categories of indeterminate samples (those with cytology labeled: "atypical of an undetermined significance" or "follicular neoplasm"), the genomic test had a negative predictive value (NPV) of 95 and 94 percent, respectively. Overall, the NPV was 93 percent, based on the study's cancer prevalence rate of 32 percent. The overall NPV increases to 95 percent when a lower cancer prevalence rate of 24 percent, which is more representative of thyroid cases across the U.S., is applied. The test had a sensitivity of 92 percent and a specificity of 52 percent.

"Presently, patients with cytologically indeterminate thyroid nodules are usually referred for thyroid surgery to ensure that thyroid cancer is not present," said co-principal study investigator Erik K. Alexander, M.D., of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. "The gene expression test, when benign, should now enable physicians to consider recommending against surgery and confidently monitor patients in a more conservative fashion. Approximately half of all patients with indeterminate thyroid nodule cytology will have a benign gene expression test. This means that tens of thousands of thyroid nodule patients in the U.S. each year can potentially be spared a thyroid surgery they do not need."

Indeterminate thyroid nodule cytology results are a significant problem in thyroid cancer diagnosis. Thyroid nodules are common and, while most are benign, 5-15 percent prove malignant, prompting diagnostic evaluation, typically via FNA sampling. Approximately 450,000 thyroid nodule FNAs a minimally invasive procedure to extract cells for examination under a microscope are performed in the U.S. each year. Such cytology samples, however, produce indeterminate results in 15-30 percent of cases, or approximately 100,000 patients each year in the U.S. Current medical guidelines recommend that most of these patients have all or part of their thyroids removed for final diagnosis. However, the majority (70-80 percent) prove to have benign conditions. These surgeries are invasive, costly and typically result in lifelong hormone therapy for the patient. Additionally, these patients are unnecessarily exposed to a 2-10 percent risk of surgical complications.

"Our results showed that the gene expression test can substantially reclassify otherwise inconclusive thyroid nodule cytology results," said co-principal study investigator Bryan R. Haugen, M.D., professor of medicine and pathology head, Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism & Diabetes at the University of Colorado. "When the gene expression test is benign, this conveys the same level of predictive accuracy comparable to patients who had a benign cytopathology result."

An accompanying New England Journal of Medicine editorial concludes, "In this era of focusing on high-quality outcomes at lower cost, this new gene-expression classifier test is a welcome addition to the tools available for informed decision making about the management of thyroid nodules."

The two-year study enrolled 3,789 patients and prospectively collected 4,812 thyroid FNA samples from nodules larger than or equal to 1.0 cm. Samples were simultaneously collected for local cytopathology analysis, as well as for the study. If the local cytopathology result was indeterminate, the study sample was then analyzed using the gene expression test. Thyroid surgery was performed based on the judgment of the treating physician who was blinded to the genomic test results. At completion of the study, the gene expression test results were compared to gold-standard histopathology diagnosis provided by two blinded experts following review of surgically removed tissue samples.

"This rigorous study is the largest of its kind ever conducted to assess thyroid diagnosis and further confirms the strength and utility of our Afirma Gene Expression Classifier to help prevent avoidable surgeries," said Bonnie Anderson, Veracyte's cofounder and chief executive officer. "Ultimately, these results should underscore the potential of the genomic test to help physicians make more informed treatment decisions early, thus improving patient care and helping to take significant costs out of the healthcare system."

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Veracyte Announces Study Results Published Online in New England Journal of Medicine Which Suggest that Its Afirma® ...

IRVING, Texas, June 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/--Caris Life Sciences, a leading biosciences company focused on enabling precise and personalized healthcare through molecular profiling and blood-based diagnostic services, today announced the launch of Caris Target Now Select, an advanced, evidence-based molecular profiling service for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), melanoma, and cancers of the breast, colon and ovary. In addition, the company has enhanced the original Caris Target Now comprehensive molecular profiling service offering for all solid tumors.

"This latest effort by Caris is another significant step in what I call health improvement, while at the same time fulfilling on the promise of personalized medicine," said David D. Halbert, Chairman and CEO, Caris Life Sciences. "With these enhancements, we believe we can prolong the lives of patients and improve outcomes, while also lowering costs to the healthcare system."

Caris Target Now Select incorporates updated, evidence-based technology platforms to determine the genomic information unique to a patient's tumor based on the presence of relevant biomarkers. In addition to providing focused biomarker profiles designed for earlier-stage cancer patients, it offers the advantages of known "on-Compendium-only" drug associations, faster turnaround time, the capability to derive meaningful results from smaller tissue samples, up to 30 reported biomarkers per patient (depending on tumor type), and for the first time Clinical Trials Connector, a service that enables biomarker-specific clinical trial matching.

"Caris Target Now Select is an important new tool to assist physicians in choosing among standard drug choices earlier in the course of treatment, where molecular profiling can have the largest benefit to patient care," said Tom Spalding, Oncology Senior Vice President and Group Head, Caris Life Sciences. "In addition, the new Clinical Trials Connector uncovers even more possibilities by linking patients to open and enrolling clinical trials based upon their individual biomarker status."

Using the strongest clinical evidence, Caris Target Now Select highlights known therapeutic associations with appropriate, tumor-specific treatments for the five target tumor types, as identified in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Drug & Biologics Compendium[1]. In addition, the newly enhanced version of Caris' original molecular profiling service (now renamed Caris Target Now Comprehensive) provides both on- and off-Compendium therapeutic associations for all solid tumors, across a wide range of evidence.

"Caris Target Now Select is an evidence-based molecular profiling service that can help both earlier-stage and later-stage cancer patients, as it employs the most relevant biomarkers and technologies to help decode a patient's tumor," said Sandeep Reddy, MD, Clinical Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Senior Medical Director at Caris. "This service allows physicians to augment their years of experience with advanced theranostic resources, further personalizing cancer care based on the expression status of specific biomarkers."

Through analysis with multiple, highly integrated technology platforms such as immunohistochemistry (IHC), fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and DNA sequencing, both the Caris Target Now Select and Comprehensive services provide vital information that may be useful to oncologists in individualizing therapeutic regimens for cancer patients. By utilizing the most relevant, evidence-based molecular profiling technologies to determine the biomarkers unique to a patient's tumor, and performing an extensive review of clinical literature correlating biomarkers to drug response, Caris Target Now Select can help illuminate the benefit (or lack thereof) of specific agents, and may reveal appropriate treatments not previously considered.

Both services can be requested for cancer patients by physicians seeking to utilize biomarker analysis to inform therapeutic decision-making. For more information, visit http://www.caristargetnow.com.

About Caris Life Sciences

Caris Life Sciences is a leading biosciences company focused on developing and delivering innovative molecular diagnostic, prognostic, and theranostic services. The company's evidence-based molecular profiling service, Caris Target Now, matches molecular data generated from a patient's tumor with biomarker/drug associations derived from the world's leading clinical cancer literature. Caris Target Now uses the most advanced and clinically relevant technologies to provide physicians with information to aid in the selection of personalized cancer treatments more likely to work for each patient. Caris is also developing a series of blood tests based on the company's patented Carisome platform a proprietary, blood-based testing technology for diagnosis, prognosis, and theranosis of cancer and other complex diseases. Through the precise and personalized information provided by technologies like Caris Target Now and Carisome, the company believes that the quality of healthcare can be dramatically improved, while also significantly reducing costs. Headquartered in the Dallas metroplex, Caris Life Sciences offers services throughout the United States, Europe, and other international markets. To learn more, please visit http://www.carislifesciences.com or http://www.caristargetnow.com.

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Caris Life Sciences Launches Caris Target Now™ Select for NSCLC, Melanoma, and Cancers of the Breast, Colon, and Ovary

MAYNARD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Allegro Diagnostics today announced the formation of its Clinical and Scientific Advisory Board. Allegro has developed a molecular testing platform that utilizes gene expression of normal epithelial cells in the respiratory tract to detect early signs of lung cancer.

Our advisory board is comprised of some of the most respected and prolific clinicians, researchers and pioneers in the fields of pulmonary medicine, lung cancer and cancer diagnostics, said Michael D. Webb, President and Chief Executive Officer of Allegro Diagnostics. These individuals will play a central role in advising Allegro on its research and development efforts, as well as on the product development strategy for the BronchoGen genomic test, which is approaching commercialization.

The members of the advisory board are:

About the Allegro Platform

Allegro Diagnostics molecular testing platform utilizes gene expression of normal epithelial cells in the respiratory tract to detect early signs of lung cancer. The field of injury principle on which the platform is based refers to the common molecular response that occurs throughout the respiratory tract in current and former smokers with lung cancer. These changes can be detected in a gene expression signature from non-malignant airway cells and indicate the presence of malignancy remotely in the lung. Allegro has applied this platform to generate multiple product candidates.

About Allegro Diagnostics

Allegro Diagnostics is a molecular diagnostics company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative genomic tests for the diagnosis, staging and informed treatment of lung cancer and other lung diseases. Allegro has developed a molecular testing platform that utilizes a genomic biomarker to detect early signs of lung cancer in current and former smokers. The companys lead product is the BronchoGen genomic test for use in combination with standard bronchoscopy for the diagnosis of lung cancer. http://www.allegrodx.com

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Allegro Diagnostics Appoints Clinical and Scientific Advisory Board Comprised of Experts in Pulmonology, Lung Cancer ...

by Alma L. Tingcang

MANILA The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) proudly announced their third batch of scholars for the MD-PhD Program in Molecular Medicine.

DOST undersecretary Fortunato de la Pea said this during the MD-PhD in Molecular Medicine Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signing held recently at Hyatt Hotel Manila.

The MD-PhD program in Molecular Medicine is a scholarship grant under the DOST Accelerated Science and Technology Human Resource Development Program (ASTHRDP), which aims to develop human resource capacities to meet the biomedical research and development (R&D) needs of the country.

Through this program, the countrys global competitiveness and capability to innovate in health R&D will be improved. I commend our new batch of scholars who have chosen molecular medicine as their study course. You are exactly what the country needs right now, a doctor-scientist who will conduct biomedical research especially on emerging diseases, said de la Pea.

The scholars are Crizelda Jean Cruz, Sheriah Laine De Paz, Maria Isabel Idolor, Ana Joy Padua, Joyce Ann Robles, Ian Kim Tabios and Cherry Joy Tumampo from UP Diliman; Josept Mari Poblete and Jayson Trinchera of UP Manila, and Angelo Sumalde of UP Los Baos.

All the scholars obtained at least a 90 percent score in the National Medical Admission Test (NMAT), which is one of the requirements to qualify for the scholarship program. Seven of the scholars graduated Summa Cum Laude, six were Magna Cum Laude and three Cum Laude.

They are the cream of the crop, the best in terms of academic performances, and our future scientists and researchers that will lead our scientific communities in the development of effective drugs, vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutic agents for patient management and clinical care, de la Pea said.

For the latest Zamboanga City and Philippine news stories and videos, visit ZamboTimes.com

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DOST gives full scholarship to 10 outstanding Molecular Medicine students

TheInstitute for Research in Molecular Medicine (INFORMM) began as a multi-disciplinary cluster-based research programme spearheaded by 11 principal researchers from the Schools of Medical Sciences, Dental Sciences, Health Sciences and MITD (Medical Innovation and Technology Development Unit) located at the USM Health Campus in Kelantan. In 2003, after a rigorous audit exercise INFORMM was established following a formalised recognition accorded by the university and the Ministry of Higher Education. This was also the first time in the history of USM that an institute was formed bottom-upthrough efforts of a group of researchers in a cluster.

From the initial members of the loose research cluster, INFORMM now boasts 20 full-time PhD qualified lecturers. The multidisciplinary character of the institution has been maintained and is reflected in the staff development plan of its younger members, who have been trained in the latest techniques in biotechnology and molecular biology. This has enabled the institution to grow from strength to strength, culminating in it being recognised as a Higher Education Centre of Excellence (HiCoE) by the Ministry of Higher Education in 2008.

Physically, INFORMM straddles East and West Malaysia, having a purpose-built building in both the Kelantan and Penang campuses of USM. Within these two facilities are housed roughly 90 postgraduate students doing full-time research in molecular medicine. Research at INFORMM is cluster-based, concentrated on translational and fundamental research. Each research cluster comprises a group of scientists with differing expertise but with a common research focus area.

Contributions from these individual scientists towards a common goal help to focus and accelerate research findings and optimise research output. In practice, research in INFORMM adopts the R-D-C-E (Research - Development - Commercialisation - Entrepreneurship) concept, where research development and innovation are performed under one roof to bring the innovation to the marketplace in a timely manner. These approaches have led INFORMM to achieve success in its research output and subsequently transform these into commercialised products or licensed technology. The R-D-C-E approach adopted by INFORMM for its research and innovation activities is also now subscribed by many research organisations in Malaysia.

Grooming Postgraduate Students: In a short space of less than 10 years, INFORMM has successfully obtained research grants of more than RM26 million and the research output, measured by the number of publications and cumulative impact factors, have been steadily increasing. The institute has also seen success in the commercialisation and licensing of its innovations. As with any other research institution, while the fundamental knowledge, ideas and inspiration comes from the academia, the output and successes will not be possible without industrious postgraduate students.

INFORMM encourages and recruits bright and promising students from all over the world to join the institute as postgraduate students in order to catapult INFORMM to a world-class level. Currently the postgraduate enrolment is 90 students with 60 per cent pursuing their masters studies, and 40 per cent, their doctorates. The number of students is expected to exceed 100 this year.

As the student numbers approach saturation, the emphasis will be on increasing the percentage of high quality doctorate students. This is seen as a natural progression as the institute matures, and the quality of its research will be its ultimate sustaining factor.

Whilst it is assumed that postgraduate students need to spend hours upon hours acquiring specialised skills and running experiments, those at INFORMM also receive an all-round education, in addition to the technical skills that are needed for their research. During their stint in the institute, they undergo soft skill development, communication skills development and project management skills.

Weekly journal club presentations, annual students colloquiums, regular technology enhancement lectures and invited speaker lectures are practised. This year, an element of entrepreneurial training and exposure is being introduced as a soft start to academic entrepreneurship. This is seen as very relevant, to the R-D-C-E concept, which has shown good results in a relatively short time. The postgraduate students also work in an ISO 9001 regulated environment and are trained to adhere to the standard operating procedures and management practices of INFORMM. INFORMM is constantly in dialogue using regular student-director meetings to ensure they receive the best training possible as scientists as well as future engineers in the nations development.

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R&D: Molecular medicine excellence

Public release date: 21-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Scott LaFee slafee@ucsd.edu 619-543-6163 University of California - San Diego

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have uncovered a new signal transduction pathway specifically devoted to the regulation of alternative RNA splicing, a process that allows a single gene to produce or code multiple types of protein variants. The discovery, published in the June 27, 2012 issue of Molecular Cell, suggests the new pathway might be a fruitful target for new cancer drugs.

Signal transduction in the cell involves kinases and phosphatases, enzymes that transfer or remove phosphates in protein molecules in a cascade or pathway. SRPK kinases, first described by Xiang-Dong Fu, PhD, professor of cellular and molecular medicine at UC San Diego in 1994, are involved in controlling the activities of splicing regulators in mammalian cells.

Prior studies have implicated SRPK1 in cancer and other human diseases. For example, it has been shown that SRPK1 plays a critical role in regulating the function of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor or VEGF, which stimulates blood vessel growth in cancer. SRPK1 has been found to be dysregulated in a number of cancers, from kidney and breast to lung and pancreatic.

Conversely, studies suggest the absence of SRPK1 may be problematic as well, at least in terms of controlling some specific cancer phenotypes. Reduced SRPK1, for example, has been linked to drug resistance, a major problem in chemotherapy of cancer.

In their new paper, Fu and colleagues place SRPK1 in a major signal transduction pathway in the cell. "The kinase sits right in the middle of the PI3K-Akt pathway to specifically relay the growth signal to regulate alternative splicing in the nucleus," said Fu. "It's a new signaling branch that has previously escaped detection."

As such, the SRPK offers a new target for disease intervention and treatment, researchers say. "It's a good target because of its central role and because it can be manipulated with compounds that suppress its activity, which appears quite effective in suppressing blood vessel formation in cancer," Fu said.

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Co-authors of the paper are Zhihong Zhou, Jinsong Qiu, Yu Zhou and Hairi Li, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, UC San Diego; Liu Wen, Qidong Hu and Michael G. Rosenfeld, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Medicine; Ryan M. Plocinik and Joseph A. Adams, Department of Pharmacology, UC San Diego; and Gourisanker Ghosh, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UC San Diego.

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Enzyme offers new therapeutic target for cancer drugs

PHILADELPHIA Amyloid fibers are protein aggregates associated with numerous neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease, for which there are no effective treatments.

However, on the flip side, the fibers can also play beneficial, protective roles. In yeast, they are associated with increased survival and the evolution of new traits. In humans, they form biological nanostructures to house pigments and other molecules and may also be central to long-term memory formation and storage. Amyloid fibers are among the most stable protein-based structures in nature, and so when they are detrimental, as in Parkinson's disease, they are notoriously difficult for cells to break down.

In a new study published in PLoS Biology this week, James Shorter, PhD, assistant professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and colleagues address an urgent need to find ways to promote beneficial amyloid fiber assembly or to reverse its pathogenic assembly, at will.

In the paper, Shorter and colleagues define the mechanisms by which small heat-shock proteins (hsp) collaborate with other molecular chaperones to regulate the assembly and disassembly of a beneficial yeast prion (an amyloid that can spread between individuals).

Yeast harbor a declumping protein called Hsp104, which rapidly disassembles amyloid fibers, and this activity is greatly enhanced by small heat shock proteins. Humans and other animals, however, lack Hsp104, and so the puzzle has always been: Can human cells also disassemble these exceptionally stable amyloid fibers?

In this study, Shorter and colleagues establish that in the absence of Hsp104, the yeast small heat shock proteins collaborate with other molecular chaperones to slowly depolymerize the amyloid fibers by removing one fiber subunit at a time from the tips of the fibers. This activity was extremely surprising as traditionally the small heat shock proteins and other molecular chaperones are famous for their duties in preventing protein clumping. They were not previously known to reverse the assembly of exceptionally stable amyloid fibers that were already formed.

Importantly, the proteins of the amyloid-depolymerase machinery is conserved to humans. Thus, even without Hsp104, human small heat shock proteins can collaborate with human molecular chaperones to slowly depolymerize amyloid fibers. For example, it is now clear that human cells harbor the necessary machinery to clear amyloid fibers connected with neurodegenerative disease.

"Remarkably, the human small heat shock protein, HspB5, stimulates other heat shock proteins, Hsp110, Hsp70, and Hsp40, to gradually depolymerize amyloid fibers formed by alpha-synuclein, which are implicated in Parkinson's disease, from their ends on a biologically relevant timescale. Because monomers [shorter segments] are released by this system and not toxic oligomers [longer segments], we believe this is an extremely safe way to dissolve amyloid" explains Shorter.

This newly identified and highly conserved amyloid-depolymerase system could have important therapeutic applications for various neurodegenerative disorders, suggest the researchers. The goal is to stimulate the machinery in humans to pull apart the fibers where and when needed by increasing the expression of heat shock proteins to hopefully pull apart already-formed amyloid fibers. The next step will be to boost the activity of the newly discovered amyloid-depolymerase system, perhaps with drug-like small molecules, in animal models of neurodegenerative disease.

The research is supported by the American Federation for Aging Research; the William Wood Foundation; the Hereditary Disease Foundation; an NIH Director's New Innovator Award (1DP2OD002177-01); an Ellison Medical Foundation New Scholar in Aging Award; a National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke grant (1R21NS067354-0110); a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Grand Challenges Explorations Award; and a University of Pennsylvania Diabetes and Endocrinology Research Center Pilot and Feasibility grant.

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Penn Study Describes Molecular Machinery that Pulls Apart Protein Clumps

An image of molecular chaperones (Hsp110, Hsp70, and Hsp40) dissolving Sup35 prions. Credit: James Shorter, PhD, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Amyloid fibers are protein aggregates associated with numerous neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease, for which there are no effective treatments.

However, on the flip side, the fibers can also play beneficial, protective roles. In yeast, they are associated with increased survival and the evolution of new traits. In humans, they form biological nanostructures to house pigments and other molecules and may also be central to long-term memory formation and storage. Amyloid fibers are among the most stable protein-based structures in nature, and so when they are detrimental, as in Parkinson's disease, they are notoriously difficult for cells to break down.

In a new study published in PLoS Biology this week, James Shorter, PhD, assistant professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and colleagues address an urgent need to find ways to promote beneficial amyloid fiber assembly or to reverse its pathogenic assembly, at will.

In the paper, Shorter and colleagues define the mechanisms by which small heat-shock proteins (hsp) collaborate with other molecular chaperones to regulate the assembly and disassembly of a beneficial yeast prion (an amyloid that can spread between individuals).

Yeast harbor a declumping protein called Hsp104, which rapidly disassembles amyloid fibers, and this activity is greatly enhanced by small heat shock proteins. Humans and other animals, however, lack Hsp104, and so the puzzle has always been: Can human cells also disassemble these exceptionally stable amyloid fibers?

In this study, Shorter and colleagues establish that in the absence of Hsp104, the yeast small heat shock proteins collaborate with other molecular chaperones to slowly depolymerize the amyloid fibers by removing one fiber subunit at a time from the tips of the fibers. This activity was extremely surprising as traditionally the small heat shock proteins and other molecular chaperones are famous for their duties in preventing protein clumping. They were not previously known to reverse the assembly of exceptionally stable amyloid fibers that were already formed.

Importantly, the proteins of the amyloid-depolymerase machinery is conserved to humans. Thus, even without Hsp104, human small heat shock proteins can collaborate with human molecular chaperones to slowly depolymerize amyloid fibers. For example, it is now clear that human cells harbor the necessary machinery to clear amyloid fibers connected with neurodegenerative disease.

"Remarkably, the human small heat shock protein, HspB5, stimulates other heat shock proteins, Hsp110, Hsp70, and Hsp40, to gradually depolymerize amyloid fibers formed by alpha-synuclein, which are implicated in Parkinson's disease, from their ends on a biologically relevant timescale. Because monomers [shorter segments] are released by this system and not toxic oligomers [longer segments], we believe this is an extremely safe way to dissolve amyloid" explains Shorter.

This newly identified and highly conserved amyloid-depolymerase system could have important therapeutic applications for various neurodegenerative disorders, suggest the researchers. The goal is to stimulate the machinery in humans to pull apart the fibers where and when needed by increasing the expression of heat shock proteins to hopefully pull apart already-formed amyloid fibers. The next step will be to boost the activity of the newly discovered amyloid-depolymerase system, perhaps with drug-like small molecules, in animal models of neurodegenerative disease.

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Study describes molecular machinery that pulls apart protein clumps

Public release date: 15-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: John Wallace wallacej@vcu.edu 804-628-1550 Virginia Commonwealth University

Richmond, Va. (June 15, 2012) A multi-institutional research study has uncovered a new mechanism that may lead to unique treatments for lung cancer, one of the leading causes of death worldwide.

The study recently published in the journal Genes & Development was a collaboration between Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Massey Cancer Center and the VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine, the University of California, San Diego, the University of Minnesota and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The scientists discovered that the protein Bax Inhibitor-1 (BI-1) protects lung cancer cells and promotes tumor growth by regulating autophagy, a complex process initiated under stressful conditions that breaks down a cell's own components to provide nutrients needed for survival.

"Cancer cells are remarkably adaptive and depend on a variety of mechanisms to ensure their survival and continued growth when challenged by their environment," says John C. Reed, M.D., Ph.D., professor and CEO of Sanford-Burnham. "By reducing levels of BI-1, it appears we were able to modulate intracellular signals and starve lung cancer cells of the energy needed to carry out one of their most important survival mechanisms, autophagy."

The researchers showed that BI-1 appeared to be linked to levels of calcium, which aids in signal transduction. Suppressing BI-1 reduced calcium levels in the endoplasmic reticulum, the interconnected network of sacs and tubules that manufacture, process and transport a variety of compounds for use inside and outside of cells. Lowering BI-1 levels led to reduced mitochondrial activity, oxygen consumption and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels. ATP is often called the "molecular unit of currency" due to the important role it plays in transporting chemical energy needed for metabolism.

The researchers' laboratory findings were confirmed by animal models that showed BI-1 suppression reduced human lung cancer tumor growth.

"These studies are the first to show that BI-1 may play an important survival role in cells under circumstances where oxygen and nutrient deprivation are encountered, such as the conditions that arise in advanced tumors or when cells are stressed by chemotherapy treatments," says Paul B. Fisher, M.Ph., Ph.D., Thelma Newmeyer Corman Endowed Chair in Cancer Research and program co-leader of Cancer Molecular Genetics at VCU Massey Cancer Center, chairman of VCU's Department of Human and Molecular Genetics and director of the VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine. "We are excited by our findings because they uncover a new pathway that may be an effective target for future therapies to treat advanced lung cancer."

Next, the scientists hope to apply their findings to screen for potential drugs that can reduce BI-1-mediated protective autophagy in cancer cells.

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Scientists discover mechanism that promotes lung cancer growth and survival

MONTCLAIR, N.J., June 18, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FluoroPharma Medical, Inc. (FPMI), a company specializing in the development of breakthrough molecular imaging products that utilize positron emission tomography (PET) technology for the detection and assessment of pathology before clinical manifestation of diseases, announced today the release of a company overview as presented by FluoroPharma's President, CEO and Chairman of the Board, Thijs Spoor. This second "State of the Union" address serves to provide shareholders with a perspective on the company, its evolution and future potential.

Mr. Spoor began the communication by stating, "Our company vision is clear, our financial position is sound, our promising product portfolio is on track and our company is led by a highly qualified team with significant and directly applicable experience in the successful development of radiopharmaceuticals. Our comprehensive technology platform was developed by scientists at the Massachusetts General Hospital and we are well positioned to capitalize on its superior technology."

"As we advance our business model, we recognize the importance of keeping shareholders informed, and it is with this intention that I present this to you today."

Our Business Outlook

FluoroPharma is looking to capitalize on the growth of PET in cardiac diagnostics. In development are three novel cardiac PET radiopharmaceuticals, two of which are in clinical-stage and have advanced to phase II clinical. The third candidate is in the pre-clinical, early development stage.

FluoroPharma's products are aimed at improving overall patient care via improved disease detection and could potentially provide greater diagnostic accuracy compared to currently employed nuclear imaging agents and modalities, increase the use of PET in cardiac imaging, and help reduce the number of unnecessary diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.

In the U.S., there are estimated to be more than 2 million PET imaging procedures done per year according to Biotech Systems -- although the vast majority of these scans are for the diagnosis of cancer. PET is becoming more established in the cardiac setting as several factors have led to a shift in favor of PET for the diagnosis of cardiac disease.

Roughly one-third of all Americans are estimated to have some form of cardiovascular disease, with approximately 13 million people suffering from coronary artery disease. Cardiovascular disease is the number one leading cause of death in the U.S., claiming almost one million lives per year. People with cardiovascular disease typically have an accumulation of plaque within the walls of the coronary arteries (i.e. - atherosclerosis) that supply the myocardium (heart muscle) with oxygen. Known as coronary artery disease (CAD), the condition is progressive and can result in severely reduced supply of blood to the heart (i.e. - myocardial ischemia or ischemic heart disease). Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is a term used to describe symptoms of the disease, such as chest pain or a heart attack. As these symptoms may not be present until the disease has progressed to an advanced stage, barring a reliable diagnosis and appropriate intervention, CAD is often fatal. Cardiac imaging is used to diagnose CAD and to determine the presence and severity of ischemic heart disease and the related risk of suffering a heart attack. It is also used to help determine the most appropriate course of treatment.

Our Portfolio

FluoroPharma's initial focus is the development of innovative positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agents for the efficient detection and assessment of acute and chronic forms of coronary artery disease (CAD). The FluoroPharma team is advancing two products in clinical trials for the assessment of cardiac disease. These first in class novel diagnostic agents have been designed to rapidly target myocardial cells. Other products in the pipeline include imaging agents for detection of a bio-marker associated with Alzheimer's disease and imaging agents that could potentially be used for imaging specific cancers.

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FluoroPharma CEO Provides Shareholders With a "State of the Union" Communication

15.06.2012 - (idw) Universitt Ulm

The International Graduate School in Molecular Medicine Ulm is overwhelmed with joy and relief: The extremely successful institution will continue to receive funding from the Excellence Initiative of the German federal and state governments in the coming five years. Today, the German Research Foundation (DFG) has announced in Bonn that the Graduate School will be supported with 1.8 million Euros annually. The deciding conference of the jury consisting of DFG-representatives, officers from the German Council of Science and Humanities (Wissenschaftsrat) as well as from the Federal Republic and the 16 states had preceded the announcement. The University of Ulm was competing with 38 graduate schools already supported by the Excellence Initiative and 25 new applicants. Over the last years, the Graduate School has considerably contributed to the profile of the University of Ulm and will continue to do so in the future. The same holds true for the national and international visibility of our University, says Professor Karl Joachim Ebeling, President of the University of Ulm. He believes that the institution will continue to have positive effects on scientific accomplishments that are already remarkable in biomedical research.

Professor Thomas Wirth, Dean of the Medical Faculty, stresses comparable aspects in his reaction to the good news: The funding by the Excellence Initiative has already contributed to the increased quality of our scientific training program as well as the capability of biomedical research at the University of Ulm. Thanks to the re-approved funding, we are glad to continue on this road to success. The Graduate Schools spokesman, Professor Michael Khl, underlines that the institution has considerably contributed to the internationalization of the University of Ulm. In this context, Khl mentions international supervisors of the PhD-students, annual international Spring and Fall Meetings, a global network of partner-universities and the introduction of international double-degrees. We will continue to pursue internationalization, promises the institutions director. The recent decision is a milestone for the Graduate School and the University of Ulm, says the managing director, Dr. Dieter Brockmann. We are glad that our concepts have convinced the international top-class jury.

Further Information:

Prof. Dr. Michael Khl Spokesman of the Graduate School Tel.: 0731-500-23283 Email: michael.kuehl@uni-ulm.de

PD Dr. Dieter Brockmann Managing director Tel.: 0731-500-22026 Email: dieter.brockmann@uni-ulm.de jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $("fb_share").attr("share_url") = encodeURIComponent(window.location); });

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International Graduate School in Molecular Medicine: Success in German Excellence Initiative

CAMBRIDGE, MA--(Marketwire -06/14/12)- Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced the presentation of nonclinical and clinical data at the Society of Nuclear Medicine 2012 Annual Meeting held June 9-13 in Miami Beach, Florida. The data were presented in seven oral sessions and five poster presentations and focused on the Company's small molecule approach to targeted radiotherapy and imaging of cancer, with particular emphasis on prostate cancer. These scientific presentations are available on the Company's website: http://www.molecularinsight.com/MolecularMedicine/ScientificPresentations.aspx

In a presentation titled "Small Molecule Inhibitors of Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) for SPECT: Summary of Phase 1 Studies in Patients with Prostate Cancer (PCa)" (Abstract 179), Dr. John W. Babich, President and Chief Scientific Officer, discussed how 123I and 99mTc-labeled small molecule PSMA inhibitors can rapidly detect metastatic prostate cancer in soft tissue and bone with high specificity and clearly visualize sub-centimeter lymph nodes. In this Phase 1 study, 123I-MIP-1072 planar and SPECT imaging were compared with 111In capromab pendetide images in a group of 24 advanced metastatic prostate cancer patients. Standard clinical endpoints of a prior documented prostate cancer diagnosis including clinical outcome, serial PSA levels, and CT and bone scans were used to define truth; biopsy confirmation of lesions detected radiographically was not included in this Phase 1 study. In 67% of subjects, a greater amount of tumor burden was observed by 123I-MIP-1072 imaging than in the same subjects imaged with 111In capromab pendetide. Additionally, there was agreement in 29% of subjects in which the 111In capromab pendetide and 123I-MIP-1072 estimated the same amount of tumor burden. The study also showed that 123I-MIP-1072 identified 20%-25% more subjects with at least one positive lesion than did 111In capromab pendetide. In addition, at the lesion level, upwards of 50% more lesions were identified as positive by 123I-MIP-1072 as compared to 111In capromab pendetide.

Also presented were the results of a separate study comparing the distribution, kinetics, and prostate cancer targeting of 99mTc-MIP-1404 and 99mTc-MIP-1405 in six patients with metastatic cancer and in six normal men. 99mTc- labeled MIP-1404 and MIP-1405 rapidly localized in bone and lymph node metastases as early as 1 hour post injection and both agents cleared rapidly from blood. Both agents identified a greater number of lesions than bone scans and rapidly detected soft tissue prostate cancer lesions including sub-centimeter lymph nodes. Non-significant uptake was seen in the prostate of normal men, though significantly lower urinary activity was seen with 99mTc-MIP-1404 than with 99mTc-MIP-1405. The lower urinary activity allows enhanced visualization of the prostate and lymph nodes in the lower pelvis making 99mTc-MIP-1404 the preferred agent for further development.

"In patients with metastatic prostate cancer, our clinical studies demonstrated that our technetium-99m-labeled compounds, particularly MIP-1404, rapidly localize to lesions in lymph nodes and bone on whole-body imaging as early as 1 hour post injection," noted Dr. Babich. "The study also showed there is a good correlation with bone scans in most subjects, but, in general, more lesions are visualized with 99mTc-MIP-1404 than with bone scan. With an increasing number of new therapies coming to market for the prostate cancer patient, visualizing disease earlier should help physicians make more rapid and informed decisions regarding the sequencing and use of this expanding group of drugs."

Dr. Babich continued, "Since our studies have demonstrated that 99mTc-MIP-1404 has less urinary excretion, and since better visualization of the prostate and surrounding lymph nodes is crucial in the imaging of prostate cancer, the Company plans to initiate a multi-center international Phase 2 clinical trial in high risk prostate cancer patients undergoing a prostatectomy. The aim of this trial will be to validate 99mTc-MIP-1404 uptake with the presence of prostate cancer in the prostate and lymph nodes as determined by histopathology. The Phase 2 trial is set to begin in the third quarter of 2012."

A second presentation titled, "[131I]MIP-1466, A Small Molecule Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) Inhibitor for Targeted Radiotherapy of Prostate Cancer (PCa)" (Abstract 170), was delivered by Dr. Shawn M. Hillier, Associate Director, Biology. In this study 123I-MIP-1095, a high affinity ligand for PSMA in prostate cancer, has been shown to localize to radiologically-confirmed metastatic prostate cancer in men. That high expression of PSMA in prostate cancer led to the evaluation of the 131I analog of MIP-1095 (currently identified as MIP-1466) for therapeutic efficacy in a mouse tumor model of human prostate cancer. It was shown that 131 I-MIP-1466 dose dependently inhibited the growth of tumor xenografts in a PSMA specific manner at 131I doses that are clinically relevant. These data support clinical investigation of 131I-MIP-1466 as a targeted radiotherapeutic for the treatment of prostate cancer in men.

From now on, the compound currently identified as MIP-1466 will be known as 131I-MIP-1095. 131 I-MIP-1095 is structurally identical to 123I-MIP-1095 which was previously studied in humans for imaging prostate cancer. It is anticipated that an IND application for 131I-MIP-1095 will be filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the fourth quarter of this year, and that a Phase 1 dose escalation clinical trial will begin in the first quarter of 2013.

A third presentation titled, "Development of a Simple Kit for Tc-99m-MIP-1404, a Single Amino Acid Chelate (SAACII) Small Molecule Inhibitor of Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) for Imaging Prostate Cancer" (Abstract 523), was given by Director of Radiochemistry and Production, Dr. Kevin P. Maresca. He reported on the development of a simple and efficient radiolabeling kit that could eventually be used to prepare 99mTc-MIP-1404 in radiopharmacies around the world for clinical studies and beyond. Optimization of the radiolabeling reaction conditions (time, temperature and concentration) of the final product was described. Radiochemical yield, radiochemical purity and specific activity were determined by HPLC analysis.

Dr. Maresca reported that the kit preparation method was shown to be robust and tolerant to a broad range of concentrations and volumes. The simple kit also allows the production of 99mTc-MIP-1404 in high radiochemical yield, radiochemical purity and specific activity. 99mTc-MIP-1404 demonstrated excellent radiochemical stability of greater than 90% after more than 24 hours at room temperature. Furthermore, this simple kit procedure has produced sterile, safe and high quality formulations of the 99mTc-MIP-1404 that maintain PSMA binding affinity and allows for vivid diagnostic images of prostate cancer as demonstrated in early clinical experience.

About Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on critical unmet diagnosis and therapeutic needs of the prostate cancer patient. The Company is targeting the development of a proprietary small molecule platform to improve detection and visualization of primary and metastatic prostate cancer and to provide a novel systemic radiotherapy for relapsed and metastatic prostate cancer. For further information, please visit the Company's website: http://www.molecularinsight.com.

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Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals Presents Clinical Oncology Data at Society of Nuclear Medicine 2012 Annual Meeting

SEATTLE, WA--(Marketwire -06/13/12)- Integrated Diagnostics (InDi), an emerging leader in molecular diagnostics, today announced that the company has launched a new operating division, InDi Imaging, that is creating a new generation of PET imaging probes using the company's innovative protein catalyzed capture (PCC) agent technology. PCCs, initially developed for in vitro molecular diagnostics, will be employed as rationally designed, in vivo diagnostic imaging probes that mimic the properties of antibodies and biologics in PET molecular imaging, with the benefit of being chemically stable, synthetic small-molecules.

Concurrently, the company announced that it has appointed Norman Hardman, Ph.D. as the president of InDi Imaging. Dr. Hardman, a well-respected biotechnology executive, has a long track record of successfully commercializing new molecular technologies. The company also announced that Michael Phelps, Ph.D., Norton Simon Professor, chairman of the UCLA Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology and the inventor of PET, has been appointed to InDi Imaging as an advisor. Integrated Diagnostics' other division, InDi Dx, will continue to focus on in vitro diagnostic medicine. Its first diagnostic test, a blood based protein test for the detection of lung cancer in patients with intermediate size pulmonary nodules, is scheduled for commercial launch in the first half of 2013.

"InDi Imaging is seeking to provide whole body imaging assays with PET of all tissues of the body to examine the primary tumor in cancers and metastases in different organs that are known to have different biological characteristics to supplant more conventional diagnostic modalities through real time imaging with PET using PCC technology," said Albert "Al" A. Luderer, Ph.D., CEO of Integrated Diagnostics. "Norm Hardman brings a wealth of experience and success in R&D, pharmaceuticals and biotech. I believe Norm is uniquely positioned to lead InDi Imaging as we create a new world of imaging products with PCC technology that are coupled to our in vitro blood based molecular diagnostics."

PCCs are stable, synthetic, rationally designed chemical compositions with small-molecule like properties designed to detect designated motifs on any target protein through chemical diversity in the PCCs for arrays of protein targets. InDi licensed PCCs from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The technology is based on inventions pioneered by Jim Heath, Ph.D., a Caltech and UCLA professor, InDi co-founder and board member. The team at InDi, under the direction of Paul Kearney, Ph.D., the company's president, CSO, and co-founder, is adapting PCCs for in vivo diagnostic imaging applications. PCCs are manufactured using "click chemistry," a process that allows scientists to join ("click") together molecular components with unusual precision and stability with high selectivity to the target protein. InDi has obtained a license to use click chemistry from the Scripps Research Institute. The company plans to pursue the first human studies of its PCC-based imaging products over the next 12-18 months.

"PCCs are incredibly versatile because they are built using the principles of modular chemistry. That means they can be optimized for use as in vivo imaging PET probes, enabling us to simultaneously pursue multiple disease targets in a way that is difficult or impossible using more traditional antibody- or phage-display approaches," said Dr. Hardman. "I am very excited to join Al, Jim, Paul and the rest of the InDi team in developing new imaging products that will be clinically significant and commercially successful. I'm also looking forward to working closely with Dr. Phelps in the application of PCC technology to develop the next-generation of imaging probes with superior performance in PET imaging and informative diagnosis of the biology of disease in patients."

Dr. Phelps is the inventor of PET, a molecular imaging technique that provides in vivo images of biological processes, blood flow, metabolism, cell communication systems, drug interactions and gene expression. The technology has many important clinical applications in the diagnosis of human disease, and monitoring of therapeutic modalities. There are 2,400 clinical PET imaging centers in America, as well as PET clinical services throughout the rest of the world. While uniquely providing molecular imaging diagnostics of disease, the unique principles of PET have provided its molecular imaging diagnostics in approximately 37 million clinical studies without a single reported complication.

"We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Michael Phelps as an advisor to InDi Imaging," said Dr. Luderer. "He is an unparalleled scholar and entrepreneur in molecular imaging whose counsel will be essential to the technical and clinical success of PCC technology as an innovative new approach to molecular diagnostic imaging of disease."

About Dr. Hardman

Prior to joining Integrated Diagnostics, Dr. Hardman was the president and CEO of Oxalis Partners, a strategic consultancy to US and EU biotechnology companies and venture capital firms. He is currently non-executive director of Chelsea Therapeutics, Inc. and has previously held senior management roles in several US-based biotechnology companies, including: president and CEO of Amicus Therapeutics; CEO of the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) Technology Transfer organization; senior VP of technology for Enzon Pharmaceuticals; COO of Onyx Pharmaceuticals; and president and COO of GeneMedicine.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Hardman served as head of R&D at Ciba-Geigy UK and played a central role in the integration of the global R&D organization during the merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz to form Novartis AG, becoming head of UK R&D Operations in the merged entity. He has been involved at various stages in the R&D of several important pharmaceutical products, including: Gleevec, Xolair, Nexavar, Amigal and Plicera.

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Integrated Diagnostics(R) Launches Imaging Division to Create PET Imaging Probes

CALGARY , June 13, 2012 /CNW/ - Oncolytics Biotech Inc. ("Oncolytics") (TSX:ONC, NASDAQ:ONCY) announced today that a paper entitled "Cell Carriage, Delivery, and Selective Replication of an Oncolytic Virus in Tumor in Patients," has been published in the latest issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine (Vol. 4 Issue 138 138ra77).

The paper covers findings from a U.K. translational clinical trial (REO 013) investigating intravenous administration of REOLYSIN in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer prior to surgical resection of liver metastases. The paper was jointly first-authored by researchers from the Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Leeds , UK and The Institute of Cancer Research, London , UK.

The trial was an open-label, non-randomized, single centre study of REOLYSIN given intravenously to patients for five consecutive days in advance of their scheduled operations to remove colorectal cancer metastasis in the liver. Ten patients were treated with intravenous REOLYSIN at 1x1010 TCID50, one to four weeks prior to planned surgery. After surgery, the tumor and surrounding liver tissue were assessed for viral status and anti-tumor effects.

The researchers demonstrated that even though all the treated patients had preexisting immunity to the virus, intravenously administered reovirus could still specifically target and infect metastatic liver tumors in 90% of the patients. The researchers were able to determine that reovirus was able to evade these neutralizing effects of the immune system by binding to specific blood cells that would in turn deliver the virus to the tumor. Analysis of surgical specimens demonstrated greater, preferential expression of reovirus protein in malignant cells compared to either tumor stroma or surrounding normal liver tissue. There was evidence of viral factories within tumor and recovery of replicating virus from tumor (but not normal liver) in all four patients from whom fresh tissue was available. This is the first time that researchers have been able to demonstrate in patients treated with intravenously delivered oncolytic virus, that a virus could cloak itself from neutralizing antibodies after systemic administration through blood cell carriage and specifically target tumor tissue.

"These are key findings that directly further our understanding of how REOLYSIN interacts with the human immune system and retains its cytotoxicity in the body following intravenous administration," said Dr. Brad Thompson , President and CEO of Oncolytics. "It also highlights the reovirus' unique ability to target cancer cells, and create viral factories within tumor cells, without harming normal, healthy tissue."

"We believe this trial is a key step forward for virotherapy," said Dr. Alan Melcher , Professor of Oncology and Biotherapy at the University of Leeds , UK. "For the first time it shows in patients that intravenously injected reovirus selectively targets cancer, but not normal tissue, for replication and tumor cell killing. It also shows that even when anti-viral antibodies are present in the circulation, the virus can evade neutralization by "hitch-hiking" on blood cells to reach its tumor target."

One of the UK's largest medical, health and bioscience research bases, the University of Leeds delivers world leading research in medical engineering, cancer, cardiovascular studies, epidemiology, molecular genetics, musculoskeletal medicine, dentistry, psychology and applied health. Treatments and initiatives developed in Leeds are transforming the lives of people worldwide with conditions such as diabetes, HIV, tuberculosis and malaria. http://www.leeds.ac.uk.

The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) is one of the world's most influential cancer research institutes. Scientists and clinicians at the ICR are working every day to make a real impact on cancer patients' lives. Through its unique partnership with The Royal Marsden Hospital and 'bench-to-bedside' approach, the ICR is able to create and deliver results in a way that other institutions cannot. Together the two organisations are rated in the top four cancer centres globally. The ICR has an outstanding record of achievement dating back more than 100 years. It provided the first convincing evidence that DNA damage is the basic cause of cancer, laying the foundation for the now universally accepted idea that cancer is a genetic disease. Today it leads the world at isolating cancer-related genes and discovering new targeted drugs for personalised cancer treatment. As a college of the University of London , the ICR provides postgraduate higher education of international distinction. It has charitable status and relies on support from partner organisations, charities and the general public. The ICR's mission is to make the discoveries that defeat cancer. For more information visit http://www.icr.ac.uk.

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust The Royal Marsden opened its doors in 1851 as the world's first hospital dedicated to cancer diagnosis, treatment, research and education. Today, together with its academic partner, The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), it is the largest and most comprehensive cancer centre in Europe treating over 44,000 patients every year. It is a centre of excellence with an international reputation for groundbreaking research and pioneering the very latest in cancer treatments and technologies. The Royal Marsden also provides community services in the London boroughs of Sutton and Merton and in June 2010 , along with the ICR, the Trust launched a new academic partnership with Mount Vernon Cancer Centre in Middlesex. Since 2004, the hospital's charity, The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, has helped raise over 50 million to build theatres, diagnostic centres, and drug development units. Prince William became President of The Royal Marsden in 2007, following a long royal connection with the hospital. For more information, visit http://www.royalmarsden.nhs.uk.

About Oncolytics Biotech Inc. Oncolytics is a Calgary-based biotechnology company focused on the development of oncolytic viruses as potential cancer therapeutics. Oncolytics' clinical program includes a variety of human trials including a Phase III trial in head and neck cancers using REOLYSIN, its proprietary formulation of the human reovirus. For further information about Oncolytics, please visit: http://www.oncolyticsbiotech.com.

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Oncolytics Biotech® Inc. Announces Publication of Translational Clinical Trial Results in Science Translational Medicine