Alzheimer’s disease
NIH deposits first batch of genomic data for Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers can now freely access the first batch of genome sequence data from the Alzheimer’s Disease Sequencing Project (ADSP), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced last month. The ADSP is one of the first projects undertaken under an intensified national program of research to prevent or effectively treat Alzheimer’s disease.
The first data release includes data from 410 individuals in 89 families. Researchers deposited completed WGS data on 61 families and have deposited WGS data on parts of the remaining 28 families, which will be completed soon. WGS determines the order of all 3 billion letters in an individual’s genome. Researchers can access the sequence data at dbGaP or the National Institute on Aging Genetics of Alzheimer’s Disease Data Storage Site (NIAGADS), https://www.niagads.org.
Genome sequencing—determining the order of chemical letters in a cell’s DNA—is a key strategy to identifying new clues to the fundamental cause of Alzheimer’s disease and the development of new diagnostics and treatments. The clues come from differences in the order of DNA letters in Alzheimer’s patients compared to control groups.
Cancer
Protein in prostate biopsies signals increased cancer risk. Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College have shown that the presence of a particular protein in biopsied prostate tissue substantially increases the likelihood that cancer will develop in that organ. The discovery may help physicians decide how closely to monitor men potentially at risk for the cancer. The findings, reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, are the first to quantify in a clinical trial the increased risk of prostate cancer development from the protein ERG.
Investigators found that 53% of men whose prostate biopsies showed expression of ERG protein developed invasive prostate cancer, compared to 35% of men whose biopsies were ERG-negative. All of the biopsies were classified as having high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN), which are lesions that may or may not morph into cancer.
The findings mean that potentially thousands of men a year—those with ERG-positive HGPIN biopsies—may benefit from increased surveillance and early treatment, while those whose HGPIN biopsies come back ERG-negative may be able to avoid unnecessary future biopsies.
Hematology
Advances in gene therapy provide hope for patients with blood disorders. A series of advancements in genetically engineered cell therapies demonstrate early efficacy and safety in patients with blood disorders for whom standard treatments have been unsuccessful, according to data showcased during last month’s 55th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition.
Many patients with blood disorders ranging from cancer to rare genetic conditions respond well to modern treatment regimens. However, for more than half of newly treated patients, therapies fail to work or patients experience relapses. Now an emerging field, dubbed “precision medicine,” aims to improve success rates by attacking the specific targets that are responsible for a patient’s disease, using a patient’s own re-engineered cells to attack their disease. Building on the concept of turning the immune system into a disease-fighting weapon, precision medicine adds innovative technologies that transform healthy cells into “super” cells that can more effectively combat disease.
Several studies presented during the ASH meeting detail results using one method, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) cell engineering. The CAR process starts when T cells are extracted from the blood of an individual and outfitted with two powerful features: a receptor on the outer cell surface that recognizes the protein CD19, present on most leukemic cells, and a powerful mechanism inside the cell that triggers it to expand and proliferate once attached to the targeted protein. With these new engineered features, the T cells are injected back into the patient, now primed to seek and destroy cancer cells.
Infectious Disease
FDA approves Gilead’s Sovaldi. In a decision with potentially far-reaching ramifications, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given its approval to Sovaldi, the much-anticipated drug produced by Gilead Sciences. Unlike current treatments for Hepatitis C, which involve weekly injections for up to a year that have unpleasant side effects, Gilead, which was approved for use in conjunction with other drugs, involves taking a pill each day, for perhaps as short a time as 12 weeks. Apart from compliance issues, Sovaldi may have a higher cure rate, too.
Industry News
COLA announces endowment to support Howard Community College lab training program. COLA, marking 25 years of service to the laboratory industry, announced it is funding a $25,000 endowment to expand Howard Community College’s (Columbia, MD) newly created Medical Laboratory Technician program. The gift is designed to help create further awareness of laboratory science careers, at a time when there are more than 40,000 current lab job vacancies in the U.S.
The accrediting organization also announced plans to launch a course for allied health professionals, emphasizing the components of good clinical laboratory practices. Designed for technologists, nurses, and other health care personnel who work in hospitals, clinics, and physician office laboratories, the course will provide non-laboratorians with a basic knowledge of quality laboratory testing procedures in healthcare settings.
Organizations
Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening to reveal Innovation Award winner. Nine scientists are being honored as SLAS Innovation Award finalists, but only one will receive a $10,000 cash prize at SLAS2014, the Third Annual SLAS Conference and Exhibition, which will be held January 18-22, 2014, at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, CA.
The annual SLAS Innovation Award recognizes extraordinary achievement in innovative laboratory science and technology. After considering abstracts by more than 83 SLAS2014 podium presenters, the SLAS Innovation Award panel of judges invited 20 to submit extended abstracts for further scrutiny. Finalists were elected after the judges determined that these scientists offered fundamental studies to develop new technology for the laboratory; a new application of technology to laboratory automation or screening; or a use of technology to solve a unique problem.
The winner of the 2014 SLAS Innovation Award will be announced and celebrated during the SLAS2014 Closing Session on Wednesday, Jan. 22.
