Category Biology/Biotechnology

NMR-based model for Pin1 (“A” and “B” globular domains), and its interaction with its “disordered” protein targets pertinent to cancer and Alzheimer’s disease (green). The Pin1 “A” and “B” domains specialize in peptidyl-prolyl isomerase activity and binding, respectively. (1) Close contact between “A” and “B” acts as a “brake” on “A” activity. (2) Upon target encounter, “B” binds one site, which unleashes “A,” thereby releasing the brake on “A” activity. (3) The flexibly tethered “A” is then poised to hunt for an adjacent site with enhanced activity. Credit: Jeffrey Peng/University of Notre Dame

Drugs to treat cancer and Alzheimer’s disease usually target the active sites of specific protein molecules sustaining the disease...

Micra® Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) Credit: Image courtesy of Meridian Health

The Micra® Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) – the world’s smallest pacemaker – has now been gained FDA approval. Jersey Shore University Medical Center, part of Meridian CardioVascular Network, is the first hospital in New Jersey to implant the TPS. Micra TPS is a new type of heart device that treats patients with bradycardia, a common heart condition characterized by a slow or irregular heart rhythm.

People with bradycardia usually experience fewer than 60 beats per minute. At this rate, the heart is unable to pump enough oxygen-rich blood to the body during normal activity or exercise, causing dizziness, fatigue, shortness of breath or fainting spells...

Metformin

In one study (abstract 1569), the first to examine the effect of metformin on survival rates for breast cancer patients, researchers examined clinical outcomes for 1,215 patients who were diagnosed and underwent surgical treatment for breast cancer between 1997 and 2013. 97 patients examined reported using metformin before their diagnosis, and 97 reported use of the drug after diagnosis.

Results of the study showed that patients who used metformin before being diagnosed with breast cancer were more than 2X likely to die than patients who never used the drug, while patients who began using metformin after their cancer diagnosis were almost 50% more likely to survive than non-users.

“While use of the drug may have a survival benefit for some breast cancer patients, those who develo...

The new active ingredient consists of DARPins (red and orange) bend the HER2 receptors (blue) so no more growth signal is transmitted into the cell interior (below the cell membrane in yellow). Credit: © UZH

An active substance that kills the cancer cells very effectively without harming healthy cells has now been developed. In Switzerland alone, >5,700 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and almost 1,400 of those affected die of the disease. In many very invasive forms of breast cancer, the cells have too much of the receptor HER2 on their surface. This leads to uncontrolled growth of the cells. Various antibodies such as trastuzumab and pertuzumab, which recognize the HER2 receptor, have been used in breast cancer therapy for many years now...