Cell's Protein Recycling Systems Linked, Implications For Neurodegeneration

Dolly submitted, created time 1 year 6 months (www.medicalnewstoday.com)

Many age-related neurological diseases are associated with defective proteins accumulating in nerve cells, suggesting that the cell's normal disposal mechanisms are not operating correctly. Now, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered a molecular link between the cell's two major pathways for breaking down proteins and have succeeded in using this link to rescue neurodegenerative diseases in a simple animal model. The study appears this week in Nature.

Submit comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: protein recycling Neurodegeneration

Novel Drug That Preventa Protein Recycling Shows Potential For Treating Leukemia

channel submitted, created time 1 year 8 months (www.medicalnewstoday.com)

n the March online issue of the journal Blood, investigators reported that the new proteasome inhibitor, NPI-0052, not only successfully kills leukemia cells, but also shows greater efficacy than its predecessor bortezomib when combined with other agents in animal models. According to researchers, proteasomes clean out mutated or damaged proteins within cells, which promotes cell growth and allows cancer cells to rapidly reproduce. Proteasome inhibitors block this process, resulting in apoptosis, or cell death, of the malignant cells.

Submit comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: Leukemia Protein Recycling