Researchers find 2 new methods to determine ALK status

Tests continue trend in personalized medicine for lung cancer patients

2013-07-02

(Press-News.org) DENVER – The implementation of personalized health care in cancer relies on the identification and characterization of cancer biomarkers and the availability of accurate detection systems and therapies for those biomarkers. Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK), a tyrosine kinase, is a more recently characterized cancer biomarker in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). To identify NSCLC patients with ALK gene rearrangement in clinical trials, researchers have used the methods known as fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) or immunohistochemistry (IHC). While IHC is a less complex and less costly technology than FISH, both methods present challenges. Now research published in the August issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology (JTO), describes the development and evaluation of two new methodologies. To improve IHC assay sensitivity, the researchers incorporated the novel, nonendogenous hapten 3-hydroxy-2-quinoxaline and tyramide amplification into a diaminobenzidine and horseradish peroxidase–based assay. The new detection system proved to be very useful for detecting low levels of ALK protein expression in NSCLC. They also developed a brightfield IHC–in situ hybridization combination assay (gene–protein assay) for the concurrent visualization of ALK protein and ALK gene arrangement. This allows the concurrent visualization of ALK gene and ALK protein status in single cells, allowing more accurate ALK status determination even in heterogeneous specimens. The authors say, "this tool for simultaneously assessing both ALK protein expression (IHC) and ALK gene rearrangement (ISH) in NSCLC will be valuable for research on the mechanisms driving ALK-dependent malignancies and as a model of new diagnostic approach for identifying patients who might benefit from ALK-targeted therapies. More generally, it also provides proof of concept for the development of new methodologies for the simultaneous assessment of gene structure and protein-expression status in a single cell. ### The lead author of the study is Dr. Hiroaki Nitta. Dr. Koji Tsuta is an IASLC co-author. About the IASLC: The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) is the only global organization dedicated to the study of lung cancer. Founded in 1974, the association's membership includes more than 3,500 lung cancer specialists in 80 countries. To learn more about IASLC please visit http://www.iaslc.org. END

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Study shows SBRT for stage I NSCLC safe and effective

2013-07-02

DENVER – Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is considered the treatment of choice for early-stage non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) if patients are inoperable because of additional medical conditions. This is based on several prospective phase II trials, which reported consistently high rates of local tumor control. However, these studies only included small number of patients, the methodology of SBRT varied between the studies and SBRT was mainly practiced in specialized centers. Therefore, safety and efficacy of SBRT practiced in routine clinical practice outside ...

Silver Fire, New Mexico

2013-07-02

The Silver Fire in southern New Mexico continues to generate a lot of smoke, as seen recently on imagery from NASA's Terra satellite. The Silver Fire is burning in the Gila National Forest. As of July 1, the fire had consumed 133,625 acres. It began on June 7 from a lightning strike near Kingston, New Mexico. According to the multi-agency Incident Information System called Inciweb, the fire was 50 percent contained on July 1. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument aboard NASA's Terra satellite has infrared capabilities that can detect ...

Pregnancy as window to future health

2013-07-02

Physicians with the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine released a paper today that provides significant insight into future health conditions that women are likely to experience, and that can be detected early based on information relating to the course of pregnancy. The paper, Pregnancy as a Window to Future Health: The development of complications in pregnancy provides a new window of opportunity for early heart disease risk screening and intervention for women, acknowledges that, for most women, the demands of pregnancy on the cardiovascular and metabolic systems are ...

NASA sees heavy rainfall as Typhoon Rumbia heads for landfall in China

2013-07-02

Typhoon Rumbia developed from a low pressure area east of the Philippines and crossed the country from east to west before moving into the South China Sea. NASA's TRMM satellite flew over Rumbia as it nears southeastern China and identified areas of heavy rainfall in the southern quadrant of the storm. On Sunday, June 30, NASA infrared satellite imagery revealed tightly curved bands of thunderstorms over the southern quadrant of the storm were wrapping into the northern quadrant of the low-level center. However, in the northwestern quadrant, the quadrant that will make ...

Researchers pinpoint sources of fibrosis-promoting cells that ravage organs

2013-07-02

HOUSTON – Scientists have tracked down and quantified the diverse origins of cells that drive fibrosis, the incurable, runaway wound-healing that scars and ultimately destroys organs such as the lungs, liver and kidneys. Findings from research conducted at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston and continued at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center are reported in an advance online publication at Nature Medicine on June 30. "Answering a fundamental question about the origin of these ...

Surprise superconductor

2013-07-02

Washington, D.C.—Superconductivity is a rare physical state in which matter is able to conduct electricity—maintain a flow of electrons—without any resistance. This phenomenon can only be found in certain materials under specific low-temperature and high-pressure conditions. Research to create superconductors at higher temperatures has been ongoing for two decades with the promise of significant impact on electrical transmission. New research from a team led by Choong-Shik Yoo at Washington State University—and including Carnegie's Viktor Struzhkin, Takaki Muramatsu, ...

Altitude sickness may hinder ethnic integration in the world's highest places

2013-07-02

Ethnic segregation in nations straddling the world's steepest terrains may be reinforced by the biological tolerance different peoples have to altitude, according to one of the first studies to examine the effect of elevation on ethnic demographics. Research from Princeton University published in the journal Applied Geography suggests that people native to low-lying areas can be naturally barred from regions such as the Tibetan Plateau, the Andes or the Himalayas by altitude sickness, which is caused by low oxygen concentration in the air and can be life-threatening. ...

Doctor-patient communication about dietary supplements could use a vitamin boost

2013-07-02

Vitamins, minerals, herbs and other dietary supplements are widely available in supermarkets and drug stores across the nation without a prescription, so it's no surprise that nearly half of all Americans take them. But they do carry risks, including potentially adverse interactions with prescription drugs, and some people may even use them in place of conventional medications. So it's important that primary care physicians communicate the pros and cons of supplements with their patients. In fact, both the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of ...

New American Chemical Society video focuses on ancient secrets of alchemy

2013-07-02

The pursuit that obsessed some of the world's greatest geniuses for centuries — alchemy and its quest for the "Philosopher's Stone" that would transform lead and other base metals into gold — is the topic of a new episode in the American Chemical Society Bytesize Science video series. The video, from the world's largest scientific society, is at http://www.BytesizeScience.com. It features Laurence Principe, Ph.D., a noted historian of science and expert on alchemy, which, far from being solely a misguided pseudoscience, helped set the stage for the emergence of modern ...

Biomedical research revealing secrets of cell behavior

2013-07-02

TEMPE, Ariz -- Knowing virtually everything about how the body's cells make transitions from one state to another – for instance, precisely how particular cells develop into multi-cellular organisms – would be a major jump forward in understanding the basics of what drives biological processes. Such a leap could open doors to far-reaching advances in medical science, bioengineering and related areas. An interdisciplinary team of researchers at Arizona State University, with a partner at Imperial College London, report on taking at least a step toward better comprehension ...

Researchers find 2 new methods to determine ALK status

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: