Category Archives: Molecular Medicine

The Cancer Institute at The University of Tennessee Medical Center joins Caris' extensive network of leading cancer institutions committed to utilizing clinical data to advance patient care and outcomes

IRVING, Texas, Oct. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --Caris Life Sciences(Caris), the leading molecular science and technology company actively developing and delivering innovative solutions to revolutionize health care, announced today that The University of Tennessee Medical Center's (UTMC) Cancer Institute has joined Caris' Precision Oncology Alliance (POA). The POA is a growing network of leading cancer centers across the globe that collaborate to advance precision oncology and biomarker-driven research. POA members work together to establish and optimize standards of care for molecular testing through innovative research focused on predictive and prognostic markers that improve the clinical outcomes for cancer patients.

UTMC, a Magnet recognized hospital, Level I Trauma Center and regional academic medical center, serves as a major referral center for East Tennessee, Southeast Kentucky and Western North Carolina. As the largest provider of cancer care in the region, the Cancer Institute offers the broadest spectrum of cancer specialists and services to care for the local adult population, with research as its cornerstone of knowledge.

"We are proud to join the Caris Precision Oncology Alliance," said John L. Bell, M.D., Director of the Cancer Institute at The University of Tennessee Medical Center."As cancer treatments become more sophisticated and personalized, having access to the most recent, ever-changing molecular testing helps our providers choose the best cancer treatment for each patient. It is truly an honor to join this prestigious group of institutions and make this testing available to patients in East Tennessee and beyond through cutting-edge precision oncology research."

"We're excited to welcome The University of Tennessee Medical Center's Cancer Institute into the growing Caris Precision Oncology Alliance network and look forward to collaborating with its clinicians and investigators to advance clinical and translational research," said Chadi Nabhan, M.D., MBA, FACP, Chairman of the Caris Precision Oncology Alliance. "The University of Tennessee Medical Center's addition to the POA advances our precision oncology research portfolio aiming to improve the outcomes of patients with cancer."

The Caris Precision Oncology Alliance includes 73 cancer centers and academic institutions. These institutions have early access to the extensive database and artificial intelligence platform within Caris to establish evidence-based standards for cancer profiling and advance research in cancer precision medicine. By leveraging the comprehensive genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic profiling available through Caris molecular profiling, Caris seeks to provide this network with the ability to prioritize therapeutic options and determine which clinical trial opportunities may benefit their patients. POA members are also able to integrate with a growing portfolio of biomarker directed trials sponsored by biopharma. Additionally, as a member of the POA, institutions have access to Caris CODEai, the most comprehensive data solution in the industry with cancer treatment information and clinical outcomes data for over 275,000 patients covering over 1 million data points per patient.

About Caris Life SciencesCaris Life Sciences (Caris) is the leading molecular science and technology company actively developing and delivering innovative solutions to revolutionize healthcare and improve patient outcomes. Through comprehensive molecular profiling (Whole Exome and Whole Transcriptome Sequencing) and the application of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms, Caris has created the large-scale clinico-genomic database and cognitive computing needed to analyze and unravel the molecular complexity of disease. This information provides an unmatched resource and the ideal path forward to conduct the basic, fundamental research to accelerate discovery for detection, diagnosis, monitoring, therapy selection and drug development to improve the human condition.

With a primary focus on cancer, Caris' suite of market-leading molecular profiling offerings assesses DNA, RNA and proteins to reveal a molecular blueprint that helps patients, physicians and researchers better detect, diagnose and treat patients. Caris' latest advancement is a blood-based, circulating nucleic acids sequencing (cNAS) assay that combines comprehensive molecular analysis (Whole Exome and Whole Transcriptome Sequencing from blood) and serial monitoring making it the most powerful liquid biopsy assay ever developed.

Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Caris has offices in Phoenix, New York, Denver, Tokyo, Japan and Basel, Switzerland. Caris provides services throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia and other international markets. To learn more, please visitCarisLifeSciences.comor follow us on Twitter (@CarisLS).

About The University of Tennessee Medical Center:The mission of The University of Tennessee Medical Center (UTMC), a Magnet recognized hospital also certified by The Joint Commission as a Comprehensive Stroke Center, is to serve through healing, education and discovery. UTMC is a 710-bed, not-for-profit academic medical center, with a regional network of primary care and specialty care physicians and practices as well as outpatient regional health centers and urgent care locations throughout its 21-county primary service area. The medical center, the region's ACS-verified Level I Trauma Center and state designated regional perinatal referral center with a Level III private room NICU, is one of the largest employers in Knoxville. UTMC features nine Centers of Excellence, including the Brain & Spine Institute, Cancer Institute, Emergency & Trauma Center, Heart Lung Vascular Institute, Orthopaedic Institute, Center for Complex Medicine, Center for Perioperative Medicine, Primary Care Collaborative and Center for Women & Infants. VisitUTMedicalCenter.orgfor more information.

Caris Life Sciences Media Contact: Lisa Burgner[emailprotected]214.294.5606

The University of Tennessee Medical CenterMedia Contact:Laura Dean[emailprotected]865.305.6082

SOURCE Caris Life Sciences

Go here to read the rest:
Caris' Precision Oncology Alliance Welcomes The Cancer Institute at The University of Tennessee Medical Center - PR Newswire

Aside from catching Covid itself, many other factors could increase the risk of someone developing long Covid a chronic condition that develops after acute Covid infections and is characterized by a variety of symptoms, such as fatigue, breathing problems, or brain fog. Some of these risk factors include having asthma, type 2 diabetes, autoimmune conditions, or being female.

Now, a team of scientists led by Harvard University has found that patients with arthritis who developed long Covid showed evidence of an underwhelming antibody response to SARS-CoV-2, but a massive antibody response to OC43 one of the several endemic coronaviruses that cause common colds.

The researchers tested the blood of 43 patients who had arthritis or a similar condition before the pandemic, and discovered that, when their immune systems were exposed to SARS-CoV-2, they responded with OC43 antibodies which, although similar, were less than ideal in fighting the novel coronavirus, leading to chronic inflammation and other long Covid symptoms.

According to Eric Topol, a professor of Molecular Medicine at Scripps Research, these new findings come in a very interesting report that adds to the possible underpinnings of long Covid. While previous research investigated the relationship between prior infections with the Epstein-Barr virus and other pathogens and long Covid risk factors, this is the first study to assess the role common cold may play in the development of this debilitating conditions.

However, the researchers warned that that are multiple categories of long Covid with, perhaps, different triggers for each type (aside from Covid itself). Thus, although prior infection with this common cold may play a role in arthritis patients with long Covid, it may or may not play a similar role in other categories of patients. Nonetheless, this discovery could serve as a way of identifying long Covid risk levels in arthritis patients and possibly find new ways of treating it.

A pre-print version of the study is published in medRxiv.

Check us out on EarthSnap, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

By Andrei Ionescu, Earth.com Staff Writer

Read more:
Common cold may increase the risk of long Covid - Earth.com

About the position

We have a vacancy for a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine.

The position is within the project Liquid biopsies for identifying relapsing lung cancer, which is using profiles of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) and microRNAs (miRNAs) to develop a classification system for identifying lung cancer patients with risk of relapse after curative therapy. The project is a collaboration between NTNU, St. Olavs hospital, and University of Troms, and the multidisciplinary project group include physicians and researchers of oncology, pathology, bioinformatics, and molecular biology.

The postdoc position will focus on bioinformatics analyses of ctDNA and miRNA data generated from repeated blood samples taken from lung cancer patients before, during, and after treatment. The data analyses will include processing of raw sequencing data, testing for associations between miRNA or ctDNA profiles and clinically relevant parameters, and developing models that integrate ctDNA and miRNA profiles for predicting relapse. The position is available at the bioinformatics and gene regulation research group and will report to professor Pl Strom.

Duties of the position

The postdocs main responsibility will be bioinformatics analyses of high throughput genomics data from lung cancer patients, but the position will also involve the following tasks:

Requiredselectioncriteria

The appointment is to be made in accordance withRegulations on terms of employment for positions such as postdoctoral fellow, Ph.D Candidate, research assistant and specialist candidate.

Preferred selection criteria

Personal characteristics

Weoffer

Salary and conditions

As a Postdoctoral Fellow (code 1352) you are normally paid from gross NOK 563 500 per annum before tax, depending on qualifications and seniority. From the salary, 2% is deducted as a contribution to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund

The period of employment is 2years.

The engagement is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerningState Employees and Civil Servants, and the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment to NTNU.

It is a prerequisite you can be present at and accessible to the institution on a daily basis.

About the application

The application and supporting documentation to be used as the basis for the assessment must be in English.

Publications and other scientific work must follow the application. Please note that applications are only evaluated based on the information available on the application deadline. You should ensure that your application shows clearly how your skills and experience meet the criteria which are set out above.

If, for any reason, you have taken a career break or have had an atypical career and wish to disclose this in your application, the selection committee will take this into account, recognizing that the quantity of your research may be reduced as a result.

The application must include:

If all, or parts, of your education has been taken abroad, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education. Description of the documentation required can be found here. If you already have a statement from NOKUT, please attach this as well.

Joint works will be considered. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to joint works, you must attach a brief description of your participation.

In the evaluation of which candidate is best qualified, emphasis will be placed on education, experience and personal and interpersonal qualities. Motivation, ambitions, and potential will also count in the assessment of the candidates.

NTNU is committed to following evaluation criteria for research quality according toThe San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment - DORA.

General information

Working at NTNU

NTNU believes that inclusion and diversity is a strength. We want our faculty and staff to reflect Norways culturally diverse population and we continuously seek to hire the best minds. This enables NTNU to increase productivity and innovation, improve decision making processes, raise employee satisfaction, compete academically with global top-ranking institutions and carry out our social responsibilities within education and research. NTNU emphasizes accessibility and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of gender identity, ability status, periods of unemployment or ethnic and cultural background.

NTNU is working actively to increase the number of women employed in scientific positions and has a number ofresources to promote equality.

The city of Trondheimis a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the innovation capital of Norway with a population of 200,000.The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.

As an employeeatNTNU, you mustat all timesadhere to the changes that the development in the subject entails and the organizational changes that are adopted.

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you want to reserve yourself from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance withcurrent legislation. You will be notified if the reservation is not accepted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Professor Pl Strom, telephone +47 98203874, emailpal.satrom@ntnu.no. If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR Advisor Vebjrn F. Andreassen, e-mail:vebjorn.andreassen@ntnu.no

If you think this looks interesting and in line with your qualifications, please submit your application electronically via jobbnorge.no with your CV, diplomas and certificates attached. Applications submitted elsewhere will not be considered.Upon request, you must be able to obtain certified copies of your documentation.

Application deadline:19.10.22

NTNU

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

The Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine (IKOM):

The Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine (IKOM) is NTNUs largest department, with 450 employees. Our research and teaching help to improve treatment and health.

IKOM has expertise in basic, clinical and translational research within broad disciplinary areas. We study childrens and womens health, cancers, blood disorders and infectious diseases, gastroenterology, inflammation, metabolic disorders, laboratory sciences and medical ethics. The Department offers teaching in medicine at masters and PhD level. We also offer continuing education for employees in the health services.

Deadline19th October 2022EmployerNTNU - Norwegian University of Science and TechnologyMunicipalityTrondheimScopeFulltimeDuration ProjectPlace of service

More:
Postdoctoral Fellow in Lung Cancer Genomics job with NORWEGIAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - NTNU | 311727 - Times Higher Education

Merus N.V.

MCLA-129 observed to be well tolerated with preliminary evidence of anti-tumor activity during dose escalation phase

Initial recommended phase two dose set at 1500 mg with dose expansion ongoing

Poster presentation with additional data at ENA available on October 26 at 9am CET/3am ET, and presented on October 28, 2022, 10:00-15:00 CET

Investor call to discuss a MCLA-129 program update on October 26 at 13:30 CET/7:30am ET

UTRECHT, The Netherlands and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 12, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Merus N.V. (Nasdaq: MRUS) (Merus, the Company, we, or our), a clinical-stage oncology company developing innovative, full-length multispecific antibodies (Biclonics and Triclonics), today announced the publication of the abstract highlighting interim data from the ongoing phase 1/2 trial of the bispecific antibody MCLA-129 on the 34th EORTC/NCI/AACR Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics (ENA Symposium) website. MCLA-129 is a fully human IgG1 Biclonics bispecific antibody that binds to EGFR and c-MET and is being investigated in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and other solid tumors. This phase 1/2 study has completed the dose escalation phase and is on-going in the dose expansion phase.

The poster will be presented at the 34th ENA Symposium in Barcelona, Spain on Friday, October 28, 2022, 10:00-15:00 CET, and will be available online Wednesday, October 26, 2022. The poster presentation will include additional interim clinical data from this dose escalation cohort.

We are encouraged by the promising initial clinical data for MCLA-129 presented in the abstract and are looking forward to providing additional clinical data from the dose escalation cohort in the poster presentation at the ENA Symposium, said Dr. Andrew Joe, Chief Medical Officer at Merus. We also intend to share a MCLA-129 program update on our upcoming conference call.

The reported interim data in the abstract are from the phase 1/2 trial of MCLA-129 in patients with advanced NSCLC and other solid tumors.

Story continues

Information and observations in the abstract include:

As of the May 8, 2022 cutoff date, 20 patients were treated with MCLA-129 across doses of 100, 300, 600, 1000, and 1500 mg every two weeks

Median age of patients was 65 years (range 43-79)

Tumor types enrolled included:

14 patients with EGFR mutant (mt) NSCLC (4 L858R, 8 Del19, 1 exon 20 insertion, 1 other)

2 patients with c-MET exon 14 mt NSCLC

1 patient with c-MET amplified gastric adenocarcinoma

1 patient with squamous cell esophageal cancer

2 patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

13 patients were evaluable for response with preliminary signs of anti-tumor activity observed:

Median duration of treatment was 8 weeks (range 3.4- 29.3) with 11 patients still on treatment at the cutoff date

Safety:

No dose limiting toxicity was observed and maximum tolerated dose was not reached

The most frequently reported adverse event (AE) was infusion related reaction (IRR)

18 of 20 pts (90%) reported IRR after first dose, all but one were mild or moderate (grade 1-2)

All but one infusion were completed on the same day

No treatment discontinuations due to AE

No interstitial lung disease was observed

Recommended initial phase 2 dose for expansion is 1500 mg every two weeks. The expansion cohorts are enrolling.

Dose-dependent depletion of soluble EGFR and c-MET was observed

In doses ranging from 600-1500 mg every two weeks, MCLA-129 demonstrated linear pharmacokinetics

Mean serum concentrations at 1500 mg every two weeks dose are modeled to be above that required for >95% target engagement of cell-bound EGFR and c-MET throughout the dosing period

Presentation Details:

Title: MCLA-129, a human anti-EGFR and anti-c-MET bispecific antibody, in patients with advanced NSCLC and other solid tumors: an ongoing phase 1/2 studyFirst author: Prof. Sai-Hong Ignatius Ou, Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology Oncology, University of California Irvine School of Medicine, USSession: New Therapies in Immuno OncologyDate: Friday, October 28, 2022 Time: 10:00-15:00 CETAbstract #: 341Poster #: PB121

The poster will be available at the start of the conference on October 26, 2022and on-demand throughout the conference on the conferencewebsite. The poster will also be available on the Merus website contemporaneously.

Company Conference Call and Webcast Information

Merus will hold a conference call and webcast for investors on Wednesday, October 26, 2022 at 13:30 CET/7:30am ET to discuss the MCLA-129 initial clinical data and provide a program update. A replay will be available after the completion of the call in the Investors and Media section of our website for a limited time.

Date: October 26, 2022Webcast link: available on our websiteDial-in: Toll-free: 1 (800) 715-9871 / International: 1 (646) 307-1963Conference ID: 1694377

About MCLA-129MCLA-129 is an antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity-enhanced Biclonics that is designed to inhibit the EGFR and c-MET signaling pathways in solid tumors. Preclinical data have shown that MCLA-129 can effectively treat TKI-resistant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in xenograft models of cancer. MCLA-129 is designed to have two complementary mechanisms of action: blocking growth and survival pathways to stop tumor expansion and recruitment and enhancement of immune effector cells to eliminate the tumor.

About Merus N.V.Merus is a clinical-stage oncology company developing innovative full-length human bispecific and trispecific antibody therapeutics, referred to as Multiclonics. Multiclonics are manufactured using industry standard processes and have been observed in preclinical and clinical studies to have several of the same features of conventional human monoclonal antibodies, such as long half-life and low immunogenicity. For additional information, please visit Merus website, http://www.merus.nland https://twitter.com/MerusNV.

Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding MCLA-129s mechanisms of action; the impact of observations concerning any interim clinical data, including on future results or development plans; any planned clinical or program updates; and potential of the MCLA-129 Biclonics in preclinical or clinical development to treat cancer.

These forward-looking statements are based on managements current expectations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following: our need for additional funding, which may not be available and which may require us to restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or Biclonics, Triclonics and multispecific antibody candidates; potential delays in regulatory approval, which would impact our ability to commercialize our product candidates and affect our ability to generate revenue; the lengthy and expensive process of clinical drug development, which has an uncertain outcome; the unpredictable nature of our early stage development efforts for marketable drugs; potential delays in enrollment of patients, which could affect the receipt of necessary regulatory approvals; our reliance on third parties to conduct our clinical trials and the potential for those third parties to not perform satisfactorily; impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; we may not identify suitable Biclonics or bispecific antibody candidates under our collaborations or our collaborators may fail to perform adequately under our collaborations; our reliance on third parties to manufacture our product candidates, which may delay, prevent or impair our development and commercialization efforts; protection of our proprietary technology; our patents may be found invalid, unenforceable, circumvented by competitors and our patent applications may be found not to comply with the rules and regulations of patentability; we may fail to prevail in potential lawsuits for infringement of third-party intellectual property; and our registered or unregistered trademarks or trade names may be challenged, infringed, circumvented or declared generic or determined to be infringing on other marks.

These and other important factors discussed under the caption Risk Factors in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2022 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, on August 8, 2022, and our other reports filed with the SEC, could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent managements estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change, except as required under applicable law. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

Multiclonics, Biclonics and Triclonics are a registered trademarks of Merus N.V.

The rest is here:
Merus Announces Publication of Abstract on MCLA-129 at the 34th EORTC/NCI/AACR (ENA) Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics - Yahoo...

A molecular test called PancreaSeq accurately classifies pancreatic cysts as potentially cancerous or benign, according to a large, multi-center study led by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and UPMC researchers.

Published in Gastroenterology, the prospective study of more than 1,800 patients found that incorporating molecular markers improved the accuracy of diagnoses compared with current guidelines based on imaging of cysts.

Based on the results of this study, molecular testing of pancreatic cysts is poised to enter international consensus guidelines for the diagnosis of pancreatic cysts and early detection of pancreatic cancer, said co-senior author Aatur Singhi, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of pathology at Pitt and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center investigator. Our hope is that PancreaSeq will not only improve early detection of pancreatic cancer but also avoid overtreatment and unnecessary surgery of non-cancerous cysts.

Up to 15% of the U.S. population will develop a pancreatic cyst at some point in their lives. Most of these cysts are benign, but a small fraction will transform into cancer.

Although rare, pancreatic cancer is a deadly disease: Most patients will die within a few years of diagnosis, said Singhi. The only way we can improve outcomes for pancreatic cancer is to find better treatments or detect it earlier. Here at UPMC, our focus has been addressing both of these issues, and especially improving early-stage detection efforts.

Pitt developed PancreaSeq, which accurately distinguishes benign cysts from those that could become cancerous by sequencing 22 pancreatic cyst-associated genes.

To capture the true population of pancreatic cyst patients and confirm that PancreaSeq can be applied in a clinical setting, the new multi-center study included 1,832 patients from 31 institutions. Using a prospective study design, the researchers analyzed molecular markers in pancreatic cyst fluid collected from patients and followed their outcomes for two years.

Pancreatic cysts can be broadly categorized as non-mucinous, which are benign, and mucinous, which have the potential to give rise to pancreatic cancer.

Based on mutations in genes called KRAS and GNAS, PancreaSeq diagnosed mucinous cysts accurately in 90% of cases, making it a highly sensitive test. It did not identify any false positives, meaning that it had a specificity of 100%.

There is a very low likelihood of mucinous cysts giving rise to cancer, but accurately identifying this type of cyst is important because it gives us a window of opportunity to monitor patients and prevent pancreatic cancer from developing, said Singhi.

Among mucinous cysts, the test accurately identified those that had advanced to cancer in 88% of cases and with a specificity of 98%. When the researchers included another type of analysis evaluation of cells under the microscope for cancer-associated changes the test sensitivity improved to 93% and specificity remained high at 95%.

The test also performed well in detecting non-mucinous cysts and another type of lesion called pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. Also known as PanNETs, these tumors are usually benign, but can be lethal if they metastasize to other parts of the body.

This study lays the foundation for developing prognostic biosignatures for PanNETs so that we can identify which tumors will metastasize and which wont, said Singhi.

Current guidelines for assessing whether a pancreatic cyst is cancerous mostly rely on imaging of features such as size and growth rate. The researchers found that PancreaSeq distinguished different types of cysts with higher accuracy than traditional forms of surveillance and current pancreatic cyst guidelines.

According to Singhi, the findings from this study will inform international consensus guidelines for treatment of pancreatic cysts, adding molecular testing to forthcoming updated recommendations.

This test developed at UPMC is going to make a big difference in how we classify and manage patients moving forward, said Singhi. Our hope is that PancreaSeq prevents overtreatment but at the same time doesnt miss pancreatic cancer.

An expanded version of PancreaSeq that includes a broader array of biomarkers is now available to patients both within the U.S. and internationally. Samples are collected at local centers and are sent to UPMC for testing and analysis. The researchers are now applying for broad insurance coverage, which they hope to have approved by the end of the year.

Reference: Singhi A, et al. Prospective, multi-institutional, real-time next-generation sequencing of pancreatic cyst fluid reveals diverse genomic alterations that improve the clinical management of pancreatic cysts. Gastroenterology. 2022.

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

Continue reading here:
Molecular Test Could Improve Early Detection of Pancreatic Cancer - Technology Networks

The researchers found that the antibody reduced amyloid burden, eased neuron damage, and alleviated cognitive decline.

According to a team of researchers from the University of Texas Health Houston, a newly created agonistic antibody decreased amyloid pathology in mice with Alzheimers disease, indicating its promise as a possible treatment for the condition.

TREM2 TVD-lg, a tetra-variable domain antibody targeting the triggering receptor expressed on myeloid 2 (TREM2), decreased amyloid burden, eased neuron damage, and alleviated cognitive decline in mice with Alzheimers disease, according to research headed by senior author Zhiqiang An, Ph.D., professor and Robert A. Welch Distinguished University Chair in Chemistry at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston. The study was recently published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Antibody-based therapy is a viable drug modality for the treatment of Alzheimers disease, said An, director of the Texas Therapeutics Institute with The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine for the Prevention of Human Diseases (IMM). One of the major areas of focus at the Texas Therapeutics Institute is developing technologies to deliver antibody-based therapies across the blood-brain barrier for the potential treatment of the disease.

TREM2 is a single-pass receptor expressed by microglia, which are supporting cells in the central nervous system that serve as scavengers. Microglia are important in the removal of amyloids that form clusters surrounding amyloid-beta plaques, which are a hallmark of Alzheimers disease.

While prior research has indicated that TREM2 is crucial in the pathophysiology of Alzheimers disease, the new study suggests that raising TREM2 activation may have therapeutic benefits such as improved cognition.

By leveraging the unique antibody drug discovery capabilities at UTHealth Houston and collaborating with scientists with complementary expertise, we demonstrated the feasibility of engineering multivalent TREM2 agonistic antibodies coupled with TfR-mediated brain delivery to enhance microglia functions and reduce amyloid pathology in vitro and in vivo, said co-senior author Ningyan Zhang, Ph.D., professor at the Texas Therapeutics Institute at IMM at McGovern Medical School. This antibody engineering approach enables the development of effective TREM2-targeting therapies for AD.

Reference: A tetravalent TREM2 agonistic antibody reduced amyloid pathology in a mouse model of Alzheimers disease by Peng Zhao, Yuanzhong Xu, LuLin Jiang, Xuejun Fan, Leike Li, Xin Li, Hisashi Arase, Yingjun Zhao, Wei Cao, Hui Zheng, Huaxi Xu, Qingchun Tong, Ningyan Zhang and Zhiqiang An, 7 September 2022, Science Translational Medicine.DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abq0095

The study was funded by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas and the Welch Foundation.

The rest is here:
New Antibody Demonstrates Therapeutic Benefits Against Alzheimers - SciTechDaily

image:Amanda Casey, Ph.D. (left), and Hillery F. Gray in the Orth lab. view more

Credit: UT Southwestern Medical Center

An enzyme called Fic, whose biochemical role was discovered at UTSouthwestern more than a dozen years ago, appears to play a crucial part in guiding the cellular response to stress, a new study suggests. The findings, published inPNAS, could eventually lead to new treatments for a variety of diseases.

We think that Fic acts like a thermostat that adjusts a cells response to stressors. If we could gain control of that thermostat and set it how we want in different tissues, we might someday be able to slow or even stop progression of some diseases, saidAmanda Casey, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology and former postdoctoral fellow in theOrth labat UTSW. Dr. Casey co-led this study withKim Orth, Ph.D., Professor of Molecular Biology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator.

Originally discovered in theVibrio parahaemolyticusbacteria known to cause food poisoning, Fic has been a longtime focus of the Orth lab. In 2009, Dr. Orth and her colleagues publishedthe first papershowing that Fic is involved in a process called AMPylation, in which this enzyme facilitates transfer of a phosphate and adenosine group to other proteins, changing their activity. The researchers soon discovered that animals ranging from worms to humans also have a Fic enzyme.

Research in fruit flies suggested that Fic appeared to be important for stress resilience and recovery. Apaperpublished in 2018 by Dr. Orth andDr. Helmut Krmer, Ph.D., Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology at UTSW, and colleagues showed that flies constantly exposed to bright light, which damages their eyes, suffered permanent harm if their Fic gene was deleted through genetic engineering. However, the role of this enzyme in mammals was unclear.

To answer this question, the researchers engineered a mouse model without a Fic gene. These animals were initially indistinguishable from littermates with Fic and appeared healthy. However, when the researchers fasted the animals for 14 hours and then allowed them to eat as much as they wanted for two hours a stressor for the pancreas, which controls blood sugar and produces key digestive enzymes blood work on the Fic-deficient animals showed a much higher stress response than the animals with Fic. Further investigation showed that a molecular pathway called the unfolded protein response (UPR) which becomes activated when stressed cells cant keep up with folding newly generated proteins was more strongly activated in the Fic-deficient animals.

The researchers made similar findings when the mouse models were dosed with a drug called caerulein, which acts on the pancreas to force an increased output of digestive enzymes. Although animals with Fic and those without developed pancreatitis, those without this enzyme had significantly worse disease, accompanied by a significantly stronger UPR.

Interestingly, although animals with Fic had a quick recovery, those without Fic developed permanent scarring in their pancreas a sign of significantly lower resilience to stress, Dr. Casey said.

Dr. Orth added that an uncontrolled cellular stress response and UPR play a role in many diseases including cancer, metabolic syndrome, atherosclerosis, retinal degeneration, and various neurodegenerative disorders.

If we can determine how the stress thermostat is set, we could adjust it up or down in various diseases where stress response is a factor, she said.

Other UTSW researchers who contributed to this study include Hillery F. Gray, Suneeta Chimalapati, Genaro Hernandez, Andrew Moehlman, Nathan Stewart, Hazel A. Fields, Burak Gulen, Kelly A. Servage, Karoliina Stefanius, Aubrie Blevins, Bret Evers, and Helmut Kramer.

This research was funded by grants from The Welch Foundation (I-1561), the Once Upon a Time Foundation, the National Institutes of Health (R35 GM130305 and EY10199), and a Life Sciences Research Foundation Fellowship.

Dr. Orth holds the Earl A. Forsythe Chair in Biomedical Science and is a W.W. Caruth, Jr. Scholar in Biomedical Research. She is a member of theHarold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center.

About UTSouthwestern Medical Center

UTSouthwestern, one of the nations premier academic medical centers, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institutions faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 26 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 14 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The full-time faculty of more than 2,900 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UTSouthwestern physicians provide care in more than 80 specialtiesto more than 100,000 hospitalized patients, more than 360,000 emergency room cases, and oversee nearly 4 million outpatient visits a year.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

Here is the original post:
UTSW researchers identify key player in cellular response to stress - EurekAlert

Mount Sinai researchers have published one of the first studies to demonstrate the importance of reactive oxygen species in maintaining stem cell function and preventing inflammation during wound repair, which could provide greater insights into the prevention and treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), according to findings published in the journal Gut on October 3.

Reactive oxygen species are highly reactive chemicals formed from oxygen. They serve as prime signals of cellular dysfunction that contribute to diseases. Secretion of reactive oxygen species in the intestine is necessary for maintaining stem cell function and important for wound repair; however, it can cause inflammatory effects as well. The Mount Sinai team found the key transcription factors driving abnormal stem cell changes, suggesting a significant role of reactive oxygen species in maintaining healthy intestines.

While its clear that regulation of oxygen and reactive oxygen species plays a critical role in chronic diseases generally, and IBD in particular, this study provides a major advance in defining the key role of oxygen species in maintaining a healthy epithelial barrier for IBD, said senior author Judy H. Cho, MD, Dean for Translational Genetics and Ward-Coleman Chair in Translational Genetics, and Vice Chair of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-Based Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

The research team studied the role of reactive oxygen species and NOX1, the protein used to produce these chemicals, by examining single-cell gene expression in vitro and in vivo in mice models, as well as ex vivo in the form of human intestinal biopsies obtained following routine colonoscopies. They measured the amount of reactive oxygen species and analyzed the gene expression profile of intestine barrier cells from mice and human patients with a subtype of IBD known as ulcerative colitis. Intestine barrier cells cover the intestine surface and help to digest food, absorb nutrients, and prevent the invasion of gut bacteria. The Mount Sinai researchers compared gene expression data in both inflamed and uninflamed colon tissues.

The researchers found that a combination of NOX1, loss of functionwhich results in decreased reactive oxygen species, plus the presence of a substance known as TNF that causes inflammation leads to an abnormal increase of microfold cells. Microfold cells, also known as M cells, are crucial to regulating gut immune response. The research team found this abnormal increase in M cells, as a result of loss of reactive oxygen species, in stem cells in both the human and mice models. This increase in epithelial M cells drives increased recruitment of immune cells in mice. By treating intestine cells with reactive oxygen species, they were able to reverse the initial defect caused by losing reactive oxygen species during inflammation.

Reactive oxygen specifies released by stem cells are critical in maintaining a heathy gut via maintaining proper balance of intestine barrier cell types, said lead author Nai-Yun Hsu, PhD, Associate Scientist in the Judy Cho Laboratory. The researchers encourage further studies, which they said could include direct reactive oxygen species-stem cell modulation therapy to IBD patients in future treatments.

The University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom, contributed to the research. The study was supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Sanford J. Grossman Charitable Trust.

About the Mount Sinai Health System

Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with more than 43,000 employees working across eight hospitals, over 400 outpatient practices, nearly 300 labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.

Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 joint-venture outpatient surgery centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. We are consistently ranked by U.S. News & World Report's Best Hospitals, receiving high Honor Roll status, and are highly ranked: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Rehabilitation, and Urology. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked No. 12 in Ophthalmology. U.S. News & World Reports Best Childrens Hospitals ranks Mount Sinai Kravis Children's Hospital among the countrys best in several pediatric specialties. The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is one of three medical schools that have earned distinction by multiple indicators: It is consistently ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News & World Reports Best Medical Schools, aligned with a U.S. News & World Report Honor Roll Hospital, and top 20 in the nation for National Institutes of Health funding and top 5 in the nation for numerous basic and clinical research areas. Newsweeks Worlds Best Smart Hospitals ranks The Mount Sinai Hospital as No. 1 in New York City and in the top five globally, and Mount Sinai Morningside in the top 30 globally; Newsweek also ranks The Mount Sinai Hospital highly in 11 specialties in Worlds Best Specialized Hospitals, and in Americas Best Physical Rehabilitation Centers.

For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

NOX1 is essential for TNFa-induced intestinal epithelial ROS secretion and inhibits M cell signatures

3-Oct-2022

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

Go here to see the original:
Mount Sinai study uncovers mechanisms of reactive oxygen species in stem cell function and inflammation prevention - EurekAlert

About the position

The position is connected with the Norwegian research infrastructure for bioinformatics, ELIXIR Norway (http://elixir.no), which is a node in the pan-European infrastructure for bioinformatics. ELIXIR Norway is funded by The Research Council of Norway to enable safekeeping, use, and re-use of life science data for research and innovation. ELIXIR Norway is currently expanding its efforts into providing focused support towards open science research in biodiversity and precision medicine in Norway.

The postdoc position will focus on multi-omics analyses within precision medicine. The appointment has a duration of three years with no teaching duties. The postdoc position is available at the Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine (IKOM) at the bioinformatics and gene regulation research group and the Bioinformatics core facility (BioCore) and will report to professor Pl Strom.

Duties of the position

The postdocs main responsibility will be on developing and implementing methods for multi-omics analyses in secure computational settings (HUNT Cloud, TSD, SAFE) and make such methods available and easily reusable within the ELIXIR infrastructure. This work will be done in the context of ongoing and new precision medicine projects at BioCore, where the postdoc will participate in planning experiments, managing and analysing data, and publishing and presenting results. Focus will be on projects involving diagnosis, prognosis, and patient stratification based on bulk, spatial and single cell omics data.

Requiredselectioncriteria

The appointment is to be made in accordance withRegulations on terms of employment for positions such as postdoctoral fellow, Ph.D Candidate, research assistant and specialist candidate.

Preferred selection criteria

Personal characteristics

Weoffer

Salary and conditions

As a Postdoctoral Fellow (code 1352) you are normally paid from gross NOK 563 500 per annum before tax, depending on qualifications and seniority. From the salary, 2% is deducted as a contribution to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund

The period of employment is 3 years (without teaching duties).

The engagement is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerningState Employees and Civil Servants, and the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment to NTNU.

After the appointment you must assume that there may be changes in the area of work.

It is a prerequisite you can be present at and accessible to the institution on a daily basis.

About the application

The application and supporting documentation to be used as the basis for the assessment must be in English.

Publications and other scientific work must follow the application.Please note that applications are only evaluated based on the information available on the application deadline. You should ensure that your application shows clearly how your skills and experience meet the criteria which are set out above.

If, for any reason, you have taken a career break or have had an atypical career and wish to disclose this in your application, the selection committee will take this into account, recognizing that the quantity of your research may be reduced as a result.

The application must include:

If all,or parts,of your education has been taken abroad, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education.Description of the documentation required can befoundhere. If you already have a statement from NOKUT,pleaseattachthisas well.

Joint works will be considered. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to joint works, you must attach a brief description of your participation.

In the evaluation of which candidate is best qualified, emphasis will be placed on education, experienceand personal and interpersonalqualities.Motivation,ambitions,and potential will also countin the assessment ofthe candidates.

NTNU is committed to following evaluation criteria for research quality according toThe San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment - DORA.

General information

Working at NTNU

NTNU believes that inclusion and diversity is a strength. We want our faculty and staff to reflect Norways culturally diverse population and we continuously seek to hire the best minds. This enables NTNU to increase productivity and innovation, improve decision making processes, raise employee satisfaction, compete academically with global top-ranking institutions and carry out our social responsibilities within education and research. NTNU emphasizes accessibility and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of gender identity, ability status, periods of unemployment or ethnic and cultural background.

NTNU is working actively to increase the number of women employed in scientific positions and has a number ofresources to promote equality.

The city of Trondheimis a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the innovation capital of Norway with a population of 200,000.The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.

As an employeeatNTNU, you mustat all timesadhere to the changes that the development in the subject entails and the organizational changes that are adopted.

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you want to reserve yourself from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance withcurrent legislation. You will be notified if the reservation is not accepted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Professor Pl Strom, telephone +47 98203874, emailpal.satrom@ntnu.no. If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR advisor Vebjrn F. Andreassen, e-mail:vebjorn.andreassen@ntnu.no

If you think this looks interesting and in line with your qualifications, please submit your application electronically via jobbnorge.no with your CV, diplomas and certificates attached. Applications submitted elsewhere will not be considered.Upon request, you must be able to obtain certified copies of your documentation.

Application deadline:16.10.22

NTNU

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

The Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine (IKOM):

The Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine (IKOM) is NTNUs largest department, with 450 employees. Our research and teaching help to improve treatment and health.

IKOM has expertise in basic, clinical and translational research within broad disciplinary areas. We study childrens and womens health, cancers, blood disorders and infectious diseases, gastroenterology, inflammation, metabolic disorders, laboratory sciences and medical ethics. The Department offers teaching in medicine at masters and PhD level. We also offer continuing education for employees in the health services.

Deadline16th October 2022EmployerNTNU - Norwegian University of Science and TechnologyMunicipalityTrondheimScopeFulltimeDuration ProjectPlace of service

The rest is here:
Postdoctoral Fellow in Bioinformatics job with NORWEGIAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - NTNU | 311073 - Times Higher Education

BRIDGEWATER, N.J., Oct. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NovoPath LLC. (NovoPath), the leader in laboratory information systems (LIS), today announced the release of enhanced integrated workflows for genetic and molecular testing. With integrated workflows, NovoPath 360 makes it easier than ever for laboratories to produce comprehensive, easy to read diagnostic reports to power the advancements of precision medicine.

"By enabling labs to easily provide an array of tests and become their clients' single testing center, we're not only helping drive the advancements of precision medicine but giving labs a way to stay competitive in a consolidating market." Said Promise Okeke, CEO of NovoPath. "This release gives our clients a better way to provide care and interact with their clients"

NovoPath 360 Powers Precision Medicine by Bridging the Gap Between Pathologists and Oncologists

NovoPath 360 is bridging the gap between Pathologists and Oncologists by providing an enhanced SaaS-based LIS platform empowering diagnostic labs to effortlessly add molecular and genomic ancillary tests to anatomic workflows. Consequently, providing physicians comprehensive, easy to read reports that present the interpretation and impact of all tests in a single file. Additional NovoPath360 enhancements include:

"The future of diagnostics is molecular and as a LIS vendor need to create solutions that drive diagnostic laboratories to be better in communicating results AND help brainstorm predictive measures for patients" says Ed Youssef, Chief Strategy Officer at NovoPath. The team at NovoPath is doing so in many ways, including our most recent release."

About NovoPath LLC. (www.novopath.com)

NovoPath 360 is redefining how pathology laboratories operate. Our award-winning SaaS-based platform enables anatomic, clinical, and molecular pathology labs to automate, track, simplify and complete complex cases from hemes to derm faster than ever before. For over 25 years, we keep raising the bar with one-of-a-kind capabilities helping labs accession, diagnose and generate fully customizable reports. Hundreds of labs around the world are increasing case volume, reducing operating costs and establishing customer loyalty, enabling them for future growth.

See how the labs of tomorrow are operating with NovoPath at http://www.NovoPath.com

Contact:Dayna Carlin, Marketing Director1 732-329-3206[emailprotected]

SOURCE NovoPath LLC

Excerpt from:
NovoPath Pushes the Limits of Laboratory Information Systems with Integrated Workflows for Genetic and Molecular Testing - PR Newswire