Research News

A novel formulation of the prostate cancer drug abiraterone acetate - currently marketed as Zytiga - will dramatically improve the quality of life for people suffering from prostate cancer, as pre-clinical trials by the University of South Australia show the new formulation improves the drug's effectiveness by 40 per cent.

Caption : A novel formulation of the prostate cancer drug abiraterone acetate - currently marketed as Zytiga - will dramatically improve the quality of life for people suffering from prostate cancer. Credit : Hayley Schultz/UniSA

New research indicates that taking vitamin D supplements may help prevent a potentially serious side effect of a revolutionary form of anti-cancer therapy. The findings are published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society (ACS).

The Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow, has received permission from Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) for carrying out Phase III clinical trials to test the efficacy, safety and tolerability of the antiviral drug Umifenovir. The Phase III activities will be carried out at King George's Medical University (KGMU), Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS) and ERA's Lucknow Medical College and Hospital, Lucknow.

In the darkest parts of the world where light fails to block out the unfathomable bounty of the stars, look up. There are still fewer specks illuminating the universe than there are bacteria in the world, hidden from sight, a whole universe inside just one human gut.

New modelling research, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, suggests the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19 may spread more easily among people living together and family members than severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The estimates are the first of their kind to quantify symptomless transmission.

Caption  : Cancer cells gobble up lipids. Prostate cells are stained with Oil-Red O to detect lipid droplets. Our work shows that redistribution of lipids from prostate cancer microenvironment triggers inflammation and drives prostate cancer metastasis. Credit : Nick (Jin-Yih) Low

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers from the Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences identified a lipid-regulating protein that conveys what the researchers describe as "superpowers" onto prostate cancer cells, causing them to aggressively spread.

Schematic of the main protease of SARS CoV-2 (left), the protein residue network of the main protease of SARS CoV-2 (center), and a zoomed-in view of the region around the binding site as detected by Estrada (right). CREDIT: Ernesto Estrada

As the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread around the world, many researchers are studying epidemiological models to predict its propagation.

In the current pandemic scenario, global supplies of nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs are not dependable resulting in supply chain delays, escalating prices and variable quality. CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL), Pune, has developed an indigenous NP swab for collecting samples from the throat cavity of COVID-19 patients. The need for making available domestic technology for NP swabs was flagged by CSIR to NCL in mid-April.

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM), Jammu, have identified a potent compound that has shown cancer-inhibiting activity in their primary studies on pancreatic cancer. For this compound, they have received Investigational New Drug (IND) approval from the New Drugs Division of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO). It has been recognized as a potent anti-cancer, New Chemical Entity (NCE) effective against pancreatic cancer after completion of preclinical development and IND submission.

A team of researchers from IIT Madras, Cancer Institute, Sree Balaji Dental College and Hospital, Chennai, and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru have identified a specific microRNA (miRNAs) called ‘miR-155’ that is over-expressed in tongue cancer. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small Ribo Nucleic Acid. They are non-coding RNAs involved in the regulation of a variety of biological and pathological processes, including the formation and development of cancer. This finding is important in that molecular strategies can potentially be devised to manipulate miR-155 expression to develop therapeutics for tongue cancer.