Scientists take aim at virulent bacteria by decoding machinery of key control enzyme
By deciphering the ingenious mechanism used by a particular enzyme to modify bacterial chromosome chemistry, scientists have come a step closer to designing a new kind of drug that could stop virulent bacterial infections in their tracks. Their research will be published in the May 6 issue of the journal Cell. Scientists have known for many years that an enzyme called Dam (DNA adenine meth...Less virulent strains of avian influenza can infect humans
In findings with implications for pandemic influenza, a new study reports for the first time that a less-virulent strain of avian influenza virus can spread from poultry to humans. The research appears in the October 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online. Crossing the species barrier is an important step in the development of a flu virus with pandemic potenti...New cellular flaw found in some virulent breast cancers
Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified a molecular interaction that triggers a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer, and suggest that attacking this target with selective drugs might improve treatment. In the January issue of Cancer Cell, a team led by Qunyan Yu, MD, and Peter Sicinski, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber report that the interaction of a certain mutated...New test for most virulent HPV strains under study
A test for the two strains of human papillomavirus responsible for most cervical cancers is under study. The molecular assay uses a cervical scraping, like that for a liquid-based Pap smear, to test for HPV types 16 and 18, responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancers, says Dr. Daron G. Ferris, family medicine physician and director of the Gynecologic Cancer Prevention Center at the Med...