LONDON, July 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market: Overview

Rigorous scaling down of the metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) has occurred for improvement of electronic appliance performances. However, it has come to a stage where further scaling of these devices are no longer possible due to their physical and fabrication limitation. The nano-magnetic devices are useful in these scenarios as they can reduce size of electronics considerably and also increase its efficiency. These devices also helps in reduction of size and increase in product longevity. Nano-magnetic devices have multiple advantages like low static power dissipation, high density, robustness towards thermal noise room temperature operation, and radiation hardened nature. Radiation-resistant is another feature of nano-magnetic devices.

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Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market: Top Drivers and Key Restraints

One of the major driving force for nano-magnetic devices market is the growing demand for nanotechnology and increasing usage of sensors across various sectors such as building automation and HVAC system. Nano-magnetic devices are also anticipated to be used in building automation, HVAC systems, and communication system. Also, the augmented use of nano-magnetic devices in industrial applications is also forecasted to primarily drive the global nano-magnetic devices market over the next few years to come. Increasing industrialization and manufacturing industries require high end technologies which are highly efficient and low energy consuming, nano-magnetic devices helps in full filling this requirement. The demand for these devices are more prominent in the developed countries due to their expensive nature and high implementation cost. However, its extensive usage in a variety of applications across various advanced manufacturing processes is driving this market during the forecast period from 2016 to 2024. These devices are constantly being incorporated in several segments and also its application in new segments are increasingly driving global demand for this market. Increasing usage of nano-magnetic devices in sensors, medical and genetics segments is forecasted to increase the global market of nano-magnetic devices over the forecast period of 2016-2024.

The increase in demand for the nano-magnetic devices is also driven by the increasing usage of nano technology-enabled sensors that are used in chemical, physical, and biological sensing. These sensors empower increased recognition specificity, multiplexing capability, sensitivity, and portability for a wide variety of health, safety, and environmental assessments.

Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market: Geographic Analysis

Nano-magnetic devices market is segmented on the basis of type and region. On the basis of type, the market is divided as sensors, separation, data storage, medical and genetics, imaging and others. On the basis of regional segmentation, nano-magnetic devices market is segmented into five regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (MEA) and Latin America. Regionally, North America accounted for the largest market share in 2015 thereby leading the market due to its extensive usage in building automation and advanced manufacturing, followed by the regions of Europe and Asia-Pacific. The region of Asia Pacific is forecasted to grow with the highest growth rate over the forecast period. Asia Pacific has been maintaining the constant adaptation of these nano-magnetic devices owing to the rapid increase in demand for consumer electronics and growing awareness over environmental issues.

Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market: Competitive Landscape

In this report, nano-magnetic devices have been analyzed in a very detailed manner. Major players of this market have been incorporated into this report. Their financial details and strategic overview have been studied here. This strategic overview showcase agenda and development of these key players in this market segment. With it, competitive outlook of these key players have been studied as well. SWOT analysis of key players have also been incorporated in this report. In this report, global nano-magnetic devices market have been analyzed on the basis of revenue and the projection period runs from 2016 to 2024.

Some of the major players operating in Nano-magnetic devices market are Intel Corporation (the U.S.), Samsung Electronics (South Korea), LG Electronics Inc. (South Korea), among others.

Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market, 2016 2024: By Product Type

Sensors Biosensors and bioassays Giant magneto resistive (GMR) sensors Separation Data Storage Hard disks MRAM Others Medical and Genetics Imaging Others

Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market, 2015 2023: By End-User Industry

Electronics & IT Medical & Healthcare Energy Environment

Global Nano-magnetic Devices Market, 2015 2023: By Geography

North America Europe Asia Pacific (APAC) Middle East & Africa Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4743088/

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VOL. 132 | NO. 135 | Monday, July 10, 2017

A pair of scientists in Memphis is using almost $2 million in grant money to make improvements to an online database and open-source software system called GeneNetwork, used by researchers to study genetic differences and evaluate disease risk.

Drs. Robert Williams and Saunak Sen, both part of the faculty at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, won a grant from the National Institutes of Health for the project. GeneNetwork was launched in 2001 as part of a NIH Human Brain Project grant to UTHSC and was one of the first websites designed for gene mapping.

Williams, who chairs the Department of Genetics, Genomics and Informatics at UTHSC, said the grant money will be used to support major upgrades for the software infrastructure for gene mapping and analysis for the system. One of the systems main uses, he said, is being able to predict more accurate health outcomes from genetic and environmental data.

The system itself is like a combination of Microsofts popular Excel spreadsheet software paired with large amounts of financial data. Except in this case, its biological rather than financial data, combined with a sophisticated spreadsheet that allows users to perform their analyses.

Those users include undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral students. The biggest slice of users is scientists, Williams said, who are interested in understanding the relationship between genetic differences and health status.

The grant has four major aims that will be stretched out over four years, Williams said. The first is to make this more useful to a larger community of users. Getting data in and out of GeneNetwork is quite a bit of work, so were going to be building some software that allows easier data entry into GeneNetwork.

The team at UTHSC which is where the GeneNetwork hub exists also wants to make some statistical improvements to the system. Theyll also be developing new analytical methods as well as tools so that the system is accessible not only to students and scientists but also professional statisticians, computer scientists and users at big pharmaceutical companies who Williams said need a different type of interface than what exists now.

The team supporting GeneNetwork actually extends beyond Memphis, spanning the globe, in fact. Other key members include Dr. Pjotr Prins, a computer programmer based in the Netherlands whos responsible for the software architecture. Dr. Karl Broman, a statistical geneticist from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is also contributing to the project. And at UTHSC, Dr. Yan Cui, a computational biologist in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Biochemistry, is also working on the project.

According to Dr. Sen, GeneNetwork will facilitate reproducible research because of the way it gives researchers open access to both the data and the software code used to process it. Reproducibility, he said, is essential to the scientific method, and were proud to be part of the open science movement.

The second generation of the service, called GeneNetwork 2, can be accessed at http://gn2.genenetwork.org/.

There are exponentially growing databases on humans and mice and rats and plants, Williams said. And its really difficult to handle all those huge data sets. So what we need are online tools for analyzing and integrating those data sets, and GeneNetwork is a tool for doing just that.

It provides access to a lot of data sets and the genotypes of subjects, and it allows you to analyze what the relationship is between genetic differences and outcome measurements. Like, how much do you weigh, are you likely to have diabetes, how long will you live, things like that.

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Memphis Researchers Planning Big Upgrades to Online Genetics Database - Memphis Daily News

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A chart shows the dominant and recessive traits inherited in successive generations of guinea pigs.

Genetics is the study of how heritable traits are transmitted from parents to offspring. Humans have long observed that traits tend to be similar in families. It wasnt until the mid-nineteenth century that larger implications of genetic inheritance began to be studied scientifically.

Natural selection

This is one of the last photographs taken of Charles Darwin, who developed the theory of evolution whereby changes in species are driven, over time, by natural and sexual selection.

In 1858, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russell Wallace jointly announced their theory of natural selection. According to Darwins observations, in nearly all populations individuals tend to produce far more offspring than are needed to replace the parents. If every individual born were to live and reproduce still more offspring, the population would collapse. Overpopulation leads to competition for resources.

Darwin observed that it is very rare for any two individuals to be exactly alike. He reasoned that these natural variations among individuals lead to natural selection. Individuals born with variations that confer an advantage in obtaining resources or mates have greater chances of reproducing offspring who would inherit the favorable variations. Individuals with different variations might be less likely to reproduce.

Darwin was convinced that natural selection explained how natural variations could lead to new traits in a population, or even new species. While he had observed the variations existent in every population, he was unable to explain how those variations came about. Darwin was unaware of the work being done by a quiet monk named Gregor Mendel.

Inheritance of traits

In 1866, Gregor Mendel published the results of years of experimentation in breeding pea plants. He showed that both parents must pass discrete physical factors which transmit information about their traits to their offspring at conception. An individual inherits one such unit for a trait from each parent. Mendel's principle of dominance explained that most traits are not a blend of the fathers traits and those of the mother as was commonly thought. Instead, when an offspring inherits a factor for opposing forms of the same trait, the dominant form of that trait will be apparent in that individual. The factor for the recessive trait, while not apparent, is still part of the individuals genetic makeup and may be passed to offspring.

Mendels experiments demonstrated that when sex cells are formed, the factors for each trait that an individual inherits from its parents are separated into different sex cells. When the sex cells unite at conception the resulting offspring will have at least two factors (alleles) for each trait. One inherited factor from the mother and one from the father. Mendel used the laws of probability to demonstrate that when the sex cells are formed, it is a matter of chance as to which factor for a given trait is incorporated into a particular sperm or egg.

We now know that simple dominance does not explain all traits. In cases of co-dominance, both forms of the trait are equally expressed. Incomplete dominance results in a blending of traits. In cases of multiple alleles, there are more than just two possible ways a given gene can be expressed. We also now know that most expressed traits, such as the many variations in human skin color, are influenced by many genes all acting on the same apparent trait. In addition, each gene that acts on the trait may have multiple alleles. Environmental factors can also interact with genetic information to supply even more variation. Thus sexual reproduction is the biggest contributor to genetic variation among individuals of a species.

Twentieth-century scientists came to understand that combining the ideas of genetics and natural selection could lead to enormous strides in understanding the variety of organisms that inhabit our earth.

Mutation

Historically, scientists have defined living creatures by the presence of DNA, but how living creatures process information may be a better hallmark of life, a new study argues

Scientists realized that the molecular makeup of genes must include a way for genetic information to be copied efficiently. Each cell of a living organism requires instructions on how and when to build the proteins that are the basic building blocks of body structures and the workhorses responsible for every chemical reaction necessary for life. In 1958, when James Watson and Francis Crick described the structure of the DNA molecule, this chemical structure explained how cells use the information from the DNA stored in the cells nucleus to build proteins. Each time cells divide to form new cells, this vast chemical library must be copied so that the daughter cells have the information required to function. Inevitably, each time the DNA is copied, there are minute changes. Most such changes are caught and repaired immediately. However, if the alteration is not repaired the change may result in an altered protein. Altered proteins may not function normally. Genetic disorders are conditions that result when malfunctioning proteins adversely affect the organism. [Gallery: Images of DNA Structures]

In very rare cases the altered protein may function better than the original or result in a trait that confers a survival advantage. Such beneficial mutations are one source of genetic variation.

Gene flow

Another source of genetic variation is gene flow, the introduction of new alleles to a population. Commonly, this is due to simple migration. New individuals of the same species enter a population. Environmental conditions in their previous home may have favored different forms of traits, for example, lighter colored fur. Alleles for these traits would be different from the alleles present in the host population. When the newcomers interbreed with the host population, they introduce new forms of the genes responsible for traits. Favorable alleles may spread through the population. [Countdown: Genetics by the Numbers 10 Tantalizing Tales]

Genetic drift

Genetic drift is a change in allele frequency that is random rather than being driven by selection pressures. Remember from Mendel that alleles are sorted randomly into sex cells. It could just happen that both parents contribute the same allele for a given trait to all of their offspring. When the offspring reproduce they can only transmit the one form of the trait that they inherited from their parents. Genetic drift can cause large changes in a population in only a few generations especially if the population is very small. Genetic drift tends to reduce genetic variation in a population. In a population without genetic diversity there is a greater chance that environmental change may decimate the population or drive it to extinction.

Mary Bagley, LiveScience Contributor

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Genetics: The Study of Heredity - Live Science

WASHINGTON (AP) Colon cancer. Uterine cancer. Pancreatic cancer.

Whatever the tumor, the more gene mutations lurking inside, the better chance your immune system has to fight back.

Thats the premise behind the recent approval of a landmark drug, the first cancer therapy ever cleared based on a tumors genetics instead of the body part it struck first.

Now thousands of patients with worsening cancer despite standard treatment can try this immunotherapy as long as genetic testing of the tumor shows theyre candidates.

Its like having a lottery ticket, said Johns Hopkins oncologist Dr. Dung Le, who helped prove the new use for the immunotherapy Keytruda. Weve got to figure out how to find these patients, because its such a great opportunity for them.

Today, doctors diagnose tumors by where they originate breast cancer in the breast, colon cancer in the colon and use therapies tested specifically for that organ.

In contrast, the Food and Drug Administration labeled Keytruda the first tissue-agnostic treatment, for adults and children.

Seemingly unrelated cancers occasionally carry a common genetic flaw called a mismatch repair defect. Despite small studies, the FDA found the evidence convincing that for a subset of patients, that flaw can make solid tumors susceptible to immunotherapy doctors otherwise wouldnt have tried.

We thought these would be the hardest tumors to treat, but its like an Achilles heel, said Hopkins cancer geneticist Bert Vogelstein.

Last month, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb told a Senate subcommittee his agency will simplify drug development for diseases that all have a similar genetic fingerprint even if they have a slightly different clinical expression.

Its too early to know if whats being dubbed precision immunotherapy will have lasting benefits, but heres a look at the science.

WHOS A CANDIDATE?

Hopkins estimates about 4 percent of cancers are mismatch repair-deficient, potentially adding up to 60,000 patients a year.

Widely available tests that cost $300 to $600 can tell whos eligible.

The FDA said the flaw is more common in colon, endometrial and gastrointestinal cancers but occasionally occurs in a list of others.

Say, have I been tested for this? is Les advice for patients.

MUTATIONS AND MORE MUTATIONS

Most tumors bear 50 or so mutations in various genes, Vogelstein said. Melanomas and lung cancers, spurred by sunlight and tobacco smoke, may have twice as many. Tumors with a mismatch repair defect can harbor 1,500 mutations.

Why? When DNA copies itself, sometimes the strands pair up wrong to leave a typo a mismatch. Normally the body spell checks and repairs those typos.

Without that proofreading, mutations build up, not necessarily the kind that trigger cancer but bystanders in a growing tumor.

THE PLOT THICKENS

Your immune system could be a potent cancer fighter except that too often, tumors shield themselves.

Mercks Keytruda and other so-called checkpoint inhibitors can block one of those shields, allowing immune cells to recognize a tumor as a foreign invader and attack. Until now, those immunotherapies were approved only for a few select cancers Keytruda hit the market for melanoma in 2014 and they work incredibly well for some patients but fail in many others.

Learning whos a good candidate is critical for drugs that can cost $150,000 a year and sometimes cause serious side effects.

In 2012, Hopkins doctors testing various immunotherapies found the approach failed in all but one of 20 colon cancer patients. When perplexed oncologists told Vogelstein, a light bulb went off.

Sure enough, the one patient who fared well had a mismatch repair defect and a mind-boggling number of tumor mutations. The more mutations, the greater the chance that at least one produces a foreign-looking protein that is a beacon for immune cells, Vogelstein explained.

It was time to see if other kinds of cancer might respond, too.

WHATS THE DATA?

The strongest study, published in the journal Science, tested 86 such patients with 12 different cancers, including some who had entered hospice. Half had their tumors at least shrink significantly and 18 saw their cancer become undetectable.

Its not clear why the other half didnt respond. Researchers found a hint, in three patients, that new mutations might form that could resist treatment.

But after two years of Keytruda infusions, 11 of the complete responders have stopped the drug and remain cancer-free for a median of eight months and counting.

Catherine Katie Rosenbaum, 67, is one of those successes. The retired teacher had her uterus removed when endometrial cancer struck, but five years later tumors returned, scattered throughout her pelvis and colon.

She tried treatment after treatment until in 2014, her doctor urged the Hopkins study.

Rosenbaum took a train from Richmond, Virginia, to Baltimore for infusions every two weeks and then, after some fatigue and diarrhea side effects, once a month. Then the side effects eased and her tumors started disappearing.

A year into the study she was well enough to swim a mile for a Swim Across America cancer fundraiser.

Nothing else had worked, so I guess we could say it was a last hope, said Rosenbaum, who now wants other patients to know about the option.

Original post:
Immunotherapy drug targets tumor's genetics instead of body part - Monroe Evening News

UPDATE 1-Tesla April registrations drop in key California market

SAN FRANCISCO, July 6 Registrations of Tesla Inc vehicles in California, by far the largest market of the luxury electric car maker, fell 24 percent in April from a year ago, according to data from IHS Markit.

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BRIEF-Seattle Genetics reports 8.2 percent stake in Immunomedics as of June 29, 2017 - Reuters

July 07, 2017 07:00 ET | Source: NewLink Genetics Corporation

AMES, Iowa, July 07, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NewLink Genetics Corporation(NASDAQ:NLNK), today announced that it will release its second quarter 2017 financial results onFriday, July 28, 2017. The company has scheduled a conference call for8:30 AM ETthe same day to discuss the results and to give an update on its clinical and development activities.

NewLink Genetics'senior management team will host the conference call, which will be open to all listeners. There will also be a question and answer session following the prepared remarks.

Access to the live conference call is available by dialing (855) 469-0612 (U.S.) or (484) 756-4268 (international) five minutes prior to the start of the call. The conference call will be webcast live and a link can be accessed through theNewLink Geneticswebsite athttp://edge.media-server.com/m/p/mqa6eh65. A replay of the call will be available for two weeks from the date of the call and can be accessed by dialing (855) 859-2056 (U.S.) or (404) 537-3406 (international) and using the passcode 51432155.

AboutNewLink Genetics Corporation

NewLink Geneticsis a late-stage biopharmaceutical company focusing on discovering, developing and commercializing novel immuno-oncology product candidates to improve the lives of patients with cancer.NewLink Genetics'IDO pathway inhibitors are designed to harness multiple components of the immune system to combat cancer.Indoximod is being evaluated in combination with treatment regimens including anti-PD-1 agents, cancer vaccines, and chemotherapy across multiple indications such as melanoma, prostate cancer, acute myeloid leukemia, and pancreatic cancer. For more information, please visithttp://www.newlinkgenetics.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements ofNewLink Geneticsthat involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, contained in this press release are forward-looking statements, within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "target," "potential," "will," "could," "should," "seek" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These forward-looking statements include any statements other than statements of historical fact. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements thatNewLink Geneticsmakes due to a number of important factors, including those risks discussed in "Risk Factors" and elsewhere inNewLink Genetics'Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year endedDecember 31, 2016and other reports filed with theU.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The forward-looking statements in this press release representNewLink' Genetics'views as of the date of this press release.NewLink Geneticsanticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause its views to change. However, while it may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, it specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. You should, therefore, not rely on these forward-looking statements as representingNewLink Genetics'views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

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Sessions/Tracks

Track 1:Molecular Biology

Molecular biologyis the study of molecular underpinnings of the processes ofreplication,transcription,translation, and cell function. Molecular biology concerns themolecularbasis ofbiologicalactivity between thebiomoleculesin various systems of acell,gene sequencingand this includes the interactions between theDNA,RNAand proteinsand theirbiosynthesis. Inmolecular biologythe researchers use specific techniques native to molecular biology, increasingly combine these techniques and ideas from thegeneticsandbiochemistry.

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

2nd World Congress onHuman Genetics&Genetic Disorders, November 02-03, 2017 Toronto, Canada; 9th International Conference onGenomicsandPharmacogenomics, June 15-16, 2017 London, Uk; 6th International Conference and Exhibition onCellandGene Therapy, Mar 27-28, 2017 Madrid, Spain; Gordon Research Conference,Viruses&Cells, 14 - 19 May 2017, Lucca, Italy;Human Genome Meeting(HGM 2017), February 5-7 2017, Barcelona, Spain; Embl Conference:Mammalian GeneticsAndGenomics:From Molecular Mechanisms To Translational Applications, Heidelberg, Germany, October 24, 2017;GeneticandPhysiological Impacts of Transposable Elements, October 10, 2017, Heidelberg, Germany.

American Society for Cell Biology;The Society for Molecular Biology & Evolution;American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology;The Nigerian Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology;Molecular Biology Association Search Form - CGAP.

Track 2:Gene Therapy and Genetic Engineering

Thegenetic engineeringis also called asgenetic modification. It is the direct manipulation of an organism'sofgenomeby usingbiotechnology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of the cell and including the transfer of genes across species boundaries to produce improved novelorganisms. Genesmay be removed, or "knocked out", using anuclease.Gene is targetinga different technique that useshomologousrecombinationto change anendogenous gene, and this can be used to delete a gene, removeexons, add a gene, or to introducegenetic mutations. There is an dna replacement therapy, Genetic engineering does not normally include traditional animal and plant breeding, gene sequencing, in vitro fertilization, induction of polyploidy,mutagenesisand cell fusion techniques that do not use recombinant nucleic acids or a genetically modified organism in the process,diseases treated with gene therapywas initially meant to introduce genes straight into human cells, focusing on diseases caused by single-gene defects, such as cystic fibrosis, hemophilia, muscular dystrophy and sickle cell anemia

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

8thWorld Congress onMolecular Pathology, June 26-27, 2017 San Diego, USA; 11thInternational Conference onSurgical Pathology& Practice, March 27-28, 2017, MADRID, SPAIN; 13th EuropeanPathologyCongress, Aug 02-03, 2017, MILAN, ITALY; 28th Annual Meeting, Austrian Society ForHuman GeneticsAnd The Swiss Society OfMedical GeneticsCombined Meeting 2017 march 29, 2017 - March 31, 2017, bochum , Germany.

Association for Clinical Genetic Science;Genetics Society of America | GSA;Association of Genetic Technologists;Molecular Genetics - Human Genetics Society of Australasia;Genetic Engineering - Ecological Farming Association.

Track 3:Cell & Gene Therapy

Cell therapy is also calledcellular therapyorCyto therapy, in which cellular material is injected into patient this generally means intact, living cells. The first category iscell therapyin mainstream medicine. This is the subject of intense research and the basis of potential therapeutic benefit. Such research can be controversial when it involves human embryonic material. The second category is in alternative medicine, and perpetuates the practice of injecting animal materials in an attempt to cure disease.Gene therapyis the therapeutic delivery of nucleic acid polymers into a patient's cells as a drug to treat disease. Gene therapy is a way to fix agenetic problemat its source. The polymers are either translated into proteins, interfere with targetgene expression, or possibly correct genetic mutations. The most common form uses DNA that encodes a functional,therapeutic gene to replace a mutated gene. The polymer molecule is packaged within a "vector", which carries the molecule inside cells. Vectors used in gene therapy, the vector incorporates genes intochromosomes. The expressed nucleases then knock out and replace genes in the chromosome. The Center forCell and Gene Therapyconducts research into numerous diseases, including but not limited to PediatricCancer, HIV gliomaandCardiovascular disease.

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

2nd World Congress onHuman Genetics&Genetic Disorders, November 02-03, 2017 Toronto, 27 Canada ; 7th International Conference onPlant Genomics, July 03-05, 2017, Bangkok, Thailand ; American Society ofGeneandCell Therapy(ASGCT) 20th Annual Meeting, 10 - 13 May 2017, Washington, DC;Genomic Medicine for Clinicians(course), January 25-27, 2017, Hinxton , Cambridge, UK; Embo Conference:ChromatinandEpigenetics, Heidelberg, Germany, May 3, 2017; 14th International Symposium on Variants in theGenomeSantiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain, June 5 - 8, 2017;

Genetics and Molecular Medicine - American Medical Association;Genetics Society of America / Gsa;British Society for Genetic Medicine;British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy; Australasian Gene Therapy Society.

Track 4:Cell Cancer Immunotherapy

Immunologydeals with the biological and biochemical basis for the body's defense against germs such as bacteria, virus and mycosis (fungal infections) as well as foreign agents such asbiological toxinsand environmental pollutants, and failures and malfunctions of these defense mechanisms. Cancer immunotherapy is the use of the immune system to treat cancer. Immunotherapies can be categorized as active, passive or hybrid (active and passive). Antibodies are proteins produced by the immune system that bind to a target antigen on the cell surface. The immune system normally uses them to fight pathogens. A type of biological therapy that uses substances to stimulate or suppress the immune system to help the body fight cancer, infection, and other diseases. Some types of immunotherapy only target certain cells of the immune system. Others affect the immune system in a general way. Types of immunotherapy include cytokines, vaccines, bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), and some monoclonal antibodies.

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

9thAnnual Meeting onImmunologyandImmunologist, July 03-05, 2017 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; 8th MolecularImmunology&ImmunogeneticsCongress, March 20-21, 2017 Rome, Italy; 8th EuropeanImmunologyConference, June 29-July 01, 2017 Madrid, Spain; July 03-05, 2017; B Cells and T Follicular Helper Cells Controlling Long-Lived Immunity (D2), April 2017, 2327, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada; Mononuclear Phagocytes in Health,Immune Defense and Disease, 304 May, Austin, Texas, USA;Modeling Viral Infections and ImmunityMAY 2017, 14, Estes Park, Colorado, USA; IntegratingMetabolism and Immunity(E4)292 June, Dublin, Ireland.

The American Association of Immunologists;Clinical Immunology Society ; Indian Immunology Society;IUIS - International Union of Immunological Societies;American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics.

Track 5:Clinical Genetics

Clinical geneticsis the practice of clinical medicine with particular attention tothe hereditary disorders. Referrals are made togenetics clinicsfor the variety of reasons, includingbirth defects,developmental delay,autism,epilepsy, and many others. In the United States, physicians who practice clinical genetics are accredited by theAmerican Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics(ABMGG).In order to become a board-certified practitioner of a Clinical Genetics, a physician must complete minimum of 24 months of his training in a program accredited by the ABMGG. Individual seeking acceptance intoclinical geneticstraining programs and should hold an M.D. or D.O. degree (or their equivalent)and he/she have completed a minimum of 24 months of their training in ACGME-accredited residency program internal medicine, pediatrics and gynecology or other medical specialty.

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

Belgian Society OfHuman GeneticsMeeting 2017 february 17, 2017, Belgium; American College Of Medical Genetics 2017 AnnualClinical GeneticsMeeting march 21-25 2017, phoenix , United States; German Society Of Human Genetics 28th Annual Meeting, Austrian Society ForHuman GeneticsAnd The Swiss Society OfMedical GeneticsCombined Meeting 2017 march 29, 2017 - March 31, 2017, bochum , Germany; Spanish Society OfHuman GeneticsCongress 2017april 25, 2017 - April 28, 2017 madrid , Spain;

Clinical Genetics Associates;Clinical Genetics Society(CGS);The genetic associate;International Conference on Clinical and Medical Genetics;Association for Clinical Genetic Science;The American Society of Human Genetics.

Track 6:Pharmacogenetics

Pharmacogeneticsis the study of inherited genetic differences in drug metabolic pathways which can affect individual responses towards the drugs, both in their terms of therapeutic effect as well as adverse effects. In oncology, Pharmacogenetics historically is the study ofgerm line mutations(e.g., single-nucleotide polymorphisms affecting genes coding forliver enzymesresponsible for drug deposition and pharmacokinetics), whereaspharmacogenomicsrefers tosomatic mutationsin tumoral DNA leading to alteration in drug response.

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

Spanish Society OfHuman GeneticsCongress 2017april 25, 2017 - April 28, 2017, madrid , Spain; 8th World Congress onPharmacology, August 07-09, 2017 Paris, France; World Congress onBio therapeutics, May 22-23, 2017, Mexico City, Mexico; 8th World Congress OnPharmacologyAndToxicology, July 24-26, 2017, Melbourne, Australia; German Society Of Human Genetics 28th Annual Meeting, Austrian Society ForHuman GeneticsAnd The Swiss Society OfMedical GeneticsCombined Meeting 2017march 29, 2017 - March 31, 2017 bochum , Germany.

Pharmacogenomics - American Medical Association;Associate Principal Scientist Clinical Pharmacogenetics;European Society of Pharmacogenomics and Personalised Therapy;Genome-wide association studies in pharmacogenomics.

Track 7:Molecular Genetic Pathology

Molecular genetic pathologyis an emerging discipline withinthe pathologywhich is focused in the study and diagnosis of disease through examination of molecules within the organs, tissues or body fluids. A key consideration is more accurate diagnosis is possible when the diagnosis is based on both morphologic changes in tissuestraditional anatomic pathologyand onmolecular testing. Molecular Genetic Pathology is commonly used in diagnosis of cancer and infectious diseases. Integration of "molecular pathology" and "epidemiology" led tointerdisciplinaryfield, termed "molecular pathological epidemiology" (MPE),which representsintegrative molecular biologicand population health science.

RelatedMolecular Biology Conferences| Genetics Conferences|Gene Therapy Conferences|Biotechnology Conferences| Immune Cell Therapy Conferences

8th World Congress OnMolecular Pathology, June 26-27, 2017 San Diego, USA; 11th International Conference OnSurgical Pathology& Practice, March 27-28, 2017, Madrid, Spain; 13th EuropeanPathologyCongress, Aug 02-03, 2017, Milan, Italy; Embl Conference:Mammalian GeneticsAndGenomics, Heidelberg, Germany, October 24, 2017; Embo|Embl Symposium: TheMobile Genome: Genetic And Physiological Impacts Of Transposable Elements, Heidelberg, Germany, October 10, 2017.

Clinical Pathology Associates Molecular Pathology; Association mapping Wikipedia;Association for Molecular Pathology(AMP);Molecular Pathology - Association of Clinical Pathologists;SELECTBIO - Molecular Pathology Association of India.

Track 8:Gene Mapping

Genomemappingis to place a collection of molecular markers onto their respective positions ongenome.Molecular markerscome in all forms. Genes can be viewed as one special type of genetic markers in construction ofgenome maps, and the map is mapped the same way as any other markers. The quality ofgenetic mapsis largely dependent upon the two factors, the number of genetic markers on the map and the size of themapping population. The two factors are interlinked, and as larger mapping population could increase the "resolution" of the maps and prevent the map being "saturated". Researchers begin a genetic map by collecting samples of blood or tissue from family members that carry a prominent disease or trait and family members that don't. Scientists then isolate DNA from the samples and closely examine it, looking for unique patterns in the DNA of the family members who do carry the disease that the DNA of those who don't carry the disease don't have. These unique molecular patterns in the DNA are referred to as polymorphisms, or markers.

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3rd WorldBio Summit&Expo, Abu Dhabi, UAE, June 19-21, 2017; 9th International Conference onGenomicsandPharmacogenomicsJune 15-16, 2017 London, Uk; Keystone Symposium: Mononuclear Phagocytes in Health,Immune DefenseandDisease, 304 May 2017, Austin, Texas, USA;Molecular Neurodegeneration(course) Hinxton, Cambridge, UK, January 9-14, 2017;

Association for Clinical Genetic Science;Genome-wide association study Wikipedia;Gene mapping by linkage and association analysis NCBI;Gene mapping by linkage and association analysis | Springer Link.

Track 9:ComputationalGenomics

Computational genomics refers to the use of computational and statistical analysis to decipherbiologyfromgenome sequencesand related data, including DNA and RNA sequence as well as other "post-genomic" data. This computational genomics is also known asComputational Genetics. These, in combination with computational and statistical approaches to understanding the function of the genes and statistical association analysis, this field is also often referred to as Computational and Statistical Genetics/genomics. As such, computational genomics may be regarded as a subset of bioinformatics and computational biology, but with a focus on using whole genomes rather than individual genes to understand the principles of how the DNA of a species controls its biology at the molecular level and beyond. With the current abundance of massive biological datasets, computational studies have become one of the most important means to biological discovery.The field is defined and includes foundations in thecomputer sciences,applied mathematics, animation, biochemistry, chemistry, biophysics,molecular genetics,neuroscienceandvisualization. Computational biology is different from biological computation, which is a subfield of computer engineering using bioengineering and biology to build computers, but is similar tobioinformatics.

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Modeling Viral Infections and Immunity,10. MAY 2017, 14, Estes Park, Colorado, USA;Integrating Metabolism and Immunity(E4)292 June, Dublin, Ireland; EMBL Conference:Mammalian GeneticsandGenomics, Heidelberg, Germany, October 24, 2017; EMBO|EMBL Symposium: The Mobile Genome:GeneticandPhysiological Impacts of Transposable Elements, Heidelberg, Germany, October 10, 2017;

American Association of Bio analysts - Molecular/Genetic Testing;ISCB - International Society for Computational Biology;International Society for Computational Biology Wikipedia;Bioinformatics societies OMICtools;Towards an Australian Bioinformatics Society.

Track 10:Molecular Biotechnology

Molecular Biotechnologyis the use of living systems and organisms to develop or to make products, or "any technological application that uses the biological systems, living organisms or derivatives, to make or modify products or processes for specific use. Molecular biotechnology results from the convergence of many areas of research, such as molecular biology, microbiology, biochemistry, immunology, genetics and cell biology. It is an exciting field fueled by the ability to transfer genetic information between organisms with the goal of understanding important biological processes or creating a useful product. The completion of the human genome project has opened a myriad of opportunities to create new medicines and treatments, as well as approaches to improve existing medicines. Molecular biotechnology is a rapidly changing and dynamic field. As the pace of advances accelerates, its influence will increase. The importance and impact of molecular biotechnology is being felt across the nation. Depending on the tools and applications, it often overlaps with the related fields of bioengineering,biomedical engineering, bio manufacturing andmolecular engineering.Biotechnologyalso writes on the pure biological sciences animalcell culture, biochemistry,cell biology, embryology, genetics, microbiology, andmolecular biology.

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8th EuropeanImmunologyConference, June 29-July 01, 2017 Madrid, Spain; World Congress onBio therapeutics, May 22-23, 2017, Mexico City, Mexico;Human Genome Meeting(HGM 2017), February 5-7 2017, Barcelona, Spain;Integrating MetabolismandImmunity (E4), 292 June, Dublin, Ireland.

Biotech Associations - Stanford University;Indian Society of Genetics, Biotechnology Research & Development;Genetics and Molecular Medicine - American Medical Association;Genetics Society of America | GSA, British Society for Genetic Medicine;Heritability in the Era of Molecular Genetics - Association for Psychological science.

Track 11:Genetic Transformation

Genetic Transformationis the genetic alteration of cell resulting from the direct uptake and incorporation ofexogenous genetic materialfrom its surroundings through thecell membrane. Transformation is one of three processes for horizontal gene transfer, in which exogenous genetic material passes from bacterium to another, the other two being conjugation transfer of genetic material between two bacterial cells in direct contact andTransductioninjection offoreign DNAby a bacteriophage virus into thehost bacterium. And about 80 species of bacteria were known to be capable of transformation, in 2014, about evenly divided betweenGram-positiveandGram-negative Transformation" may also be used to describe the insertion of new genetic material into non-bacterial cells, including animal and plant cells.

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13th EuropeanPathologyCongress, Milan, Italy; Embl Conference:Mammalian GeneticsAndGenomics, Heidelberg, Germany, October 24, 2017; Embo|Embl Symposium: TheMobile Genome: Genetic And Physiological Impacts Of Transposable Elements, Heidelberg, Germany, October 10, 2017; 2nd World Congress onHuman Genetics&Genetic Disorders, November 02-03, 2017 Toronto, Canada; 9th International Conference onGenomicsandPharmacogenomics, June 15-16, 2017 London, Uk;

American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy: ASGCT;Gene Therapy Societies and Patient Organizations - Gene Therapy Net;European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT);British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy;Gene Therapy - American Medical Association.

Track 12:Genetic Screening

Genetic screenis an experimental technique used to identify and select the individuals who possess a phenotype of interest inmutagenized population. A genetic screen is a type ofphenotypic screen. Genetic screen can provide important information on gene function as well as the molecular events that underlie a biological process or pathway. While thegenome projectshave identified an extensive inventory of genes in many different organisms, genetic screens can provide valuable insight as to how thosegenes function.

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13th EuropeanPathologyCongress, Aug 02-03, 2017, Milan, Italy; 2nd World Congress onHuman Genetics&Genetic Disorders, November 02-03, 2017 Toronto, 27 Canada; 7th International Conference onPlant Genomics, July 03-05, 2017, Bangkok, Thailand; Embl Conference:Mammalian GeneticsAndGenomics, Heidelberg, Germany, October 24, 2017; Embo|Embl Symposium: TheMobile Genome: Genetic And Physiological Impacts Of Transposable Elements, Heidelberg, Germany, October 10, 2017, 10 - 13 May 2017, American Society ofGeneandCell Therapy(ASGCT) 20th Annual Meeting, Washington, DC;

Association for Clinical Genetic Science; Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP);Mapping heritability and molecular genetic associations with cortical;Genetics and Molecular Medicine - American Medical Association.

Track 13:Regulation of Gene Expression

Regulation of Gene expressionincludes a wide range of mechanisms that are used by cells to increase or decrease the production of specific gene products (protein or RNA), and is informally termed gene regulation. Sophisticated programs of gene expression are widely observed in biology, Virtually any step of gene expression can be modulated, fromtranscriptional initiation,RNA processing, and post-translational modificationof a protein. Often, one gene regulator controls another in a gene regulatory network. Any step of gene expression may be modulated, from theDNA-RNA transcriptionstep to post-translational modification of a protein.

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Gene Therapy Societies and Patient Organizations - Gene Therapy Net;European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT);British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy;Gene Therapy - American Medical Association

Track 14: Cancer Gene Therapy

Cancer is an abnormal growth of cells the proximate cause of which is an imbalance in cell proliferation and death breaking-through the normal physiological checks and balances system and the ultimate cause of which are one or more of a variety of gene alterations. These alterations can be structural, e.g., mutations, insertions, deletions, amplifications, fusions and translocations, or functional (heritable changes without changes in nucleotide sequence). No single genomic change is found in all cancers and multiple changes (heterogeneity) are commonly found in each cancer generally independent of histology. In healthy adults, the immune system may recognize and kill the cancer cells or allow non-detrimental host-cancer equilibrium; unfortunately, cancer cells can sometimes escape the immune system resulting in expansion and spread of these cancer cells leading to serious life threatening disease. Approaches to cancer gene therapy include three main strategies: the insertion of a normal gene into cancer cells to replace a mutated (or otherwise altered) gene, genetic modification to silence a mutated gene, and genetic approaches to directly kill the cancer cells. Pathway C represents immunotherapy using altered immune cells. Another unique immunotherapy strategy facilitated by gene therapy is to directly alter the patient's immune system in order to sensitize it to the cancer cells. One approach uses mononuclear circulating blood cells or bone marrow gathered from the patient.

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Biotech Associations - Stanford University;Indian Society of Genetics, Biotechnology Research & Development;Genetics and Molecular Medicine - American Medical Association;Genetics Society of America | GSA, British Society for Genetic Medicine;Heritability in the Era of Molecular Genetics - Association for Psychological science.

Track 15:Genetic Transplantation

Transplantation genetics is the field of biology and medicine relating to the genes that govern the acceptance or rejection of a transplant. The most important genes deciding the fate of a transplanted cell, tissue, or organ belong to what is termed the MHC (the major histocompatibility complex). Genetic Transplantation is the moving of an organ from one body to another or from a donor site to another location on the person's own body, to replace the recipient's damaged or absent organ. Organs and/or tissues that aretransplantedwithin the same person's body are calledauto grafts. Transplants that are recently performed between two subjects of the same species are calledallografts. Allografts can either be from a living or cadaveric source Organs that can be transplanted are the heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas, intestine, and thymus. The kidneys are the most commonlytransplanted organs, followed by the liver and then the heart. The main function of the MHC antigens is peptide presentation to the immune system to help distinguish self from non-self. These antigens are called HLA (human leukocyte antigens). They consists of three regions: class I (HLA-A,B,Cw), class II (HLA-DR,DQ,DP) and class III (no HLA genes)

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American society of Transplantation;American Society of Transplant Surgeons: ASTS; Patient associations. Donation and transplantation;American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy ASGCT;Gene Therapy Societies and Patient Organizations - Gene Therapy Net.

Track 16:Cytogenetics

Cytogeneticsis a branch ofgeneticsthat is concerned withstudy of the structure and function of the cell, especially thechromosomes. It includes routine analysis of G-banded chromosomes, othercytogenetic banding techniques, as well as molecular Cytogenetics such as fluorescent in suitable hybridization FISH and comparativegenomic hybridization.

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Molecular Biology 2016

Molecular Biology 2016 Report

2ndWorld Bio Summit & Molecular Biology Expowas organized during October 10-12, 2016 at Dubai, UAE. The conference was marked with the attendance ofEditorial Board Members of supporting journals, Scientists, young and brilliant researchers, business delegates and talented student communities representing more than 25 countries, who made this conference fruitful and productive.

This conference was based on the theme Recent advances in Bio Science which included the following scientific tracks:

Molecular Biology

Microbiology

Analytical Molecular Biology

Bioinformatics

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Molecular Biology and Biotechnology

Cancer Molecular Biology

Computational Biology

Molecular Biology of the Cell

Molecular biology of the cardiovascular system

Molecular Biology in Cellular Pathology

Molecular Biology of Diabetes

Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering

Enzymology and Molecular Biology

Molecular Biology of the Gene

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Molecular Genetics - Genetics Conferences

The influence of genes on personality and behavior is of great interest to people who love dogs as well as to scientists studying the genetics of animal behavior. Since dogs personalities play a major role in their ability to function as our companions as well as to carry out a variety of tasks as working dogs, its important to understand the contribution of genetics on behavior. It is well established that genetics plays a large role, as evidenced by behavioral differences between breeds. Even substantial differences in behavior within breeds can be accounted for by genetic variation.

One of the challenges to studying behavioral genetics is that large sample sizes are required because there are so many factors that influence behavior (e.g. early environment, training methods, various lifestyle factors). To achieve adequately large sample sizes in research is both expensive and time consuming, sometimes prohibitively so. A recent study called Genetic Characterization of Dog Personality Traits took a creative approach to meet this challenge.

The scientists were interested in genetic contributions to personality, defined as individual consistency in behavioral responsiveness to stimuli and situations. Researchers took advantage of the substantial knowledge people have about their own dogs personalities to explore genetic contributions to personality traits. Their work shows that it is possible to detect genetic variation in dog personality traits by using questionnaires to collect large quantities of useful data.

In this recent study, researchers used the C-BARQ (Canine Behavioral Assessment Research and Questionnaire) as well as a separate questionnaire about demographics to study 1975 UK Kennel Club-registered Labrador Retrievers. The C-BARQ allowed each dog to be scored for the following personality traitsAgitated When Ignored, Attention-Seeking, Barking Tendency, Excitability, Fetching, Fear of Humans and Objects, Fear of Noises, Non-Owner Directed Aggression, Owner-Directed Aggression, Separation Anxiety, Trainability and Unusual Behavior.

The additional questionnaire collected data about the dogs age, coat color, sex, neuter status, housing, health status, exercise, daily exercise and the role of the dog. (The various roles were gun dog, show dog and pet dog.) To gather genetic information, the study took advantage of the dogs pedigrees, which involved 29 generations and 28,943 dogs. Further genetic data on the dogs were obtained as part of a different study using standard genomic methods and genetic markers, with 885 dogs from that study also participating in the C-BARQ portion of the research. In the analysis, the researchers estimated heritability of personality traits based on both the pedigree and on the genomic data.

The researchers found that fetching has a higher heritability rating than any other personality trait. Interestingly, some previous studies have lumped trainability with fetching ability, which results in lower heritability scores for both of them. This study also revealed a considerable genetic component to the fear of noises. Aggression directed towards owners showed no genetic component at all, while aggression towards strangers had a moderate genetic component.

Many behavioral traits are polygenic (influenced by a large number of genes, with each one often having a small effect) and also have significant environmental influences, which means that it is difficult to determine genomic associations. Estimates of heritability are likely to increase with technological advances in genetic work.

The importance of this study is that it shows that genetic variance can be detected and studied with the use of questionnaires filled out by owners. It also reveals that grouping responses into behavioral factors may make it harder to detect the genetic influence on various traits.

Read more here:
Genetics of Canine Personality Traits - The Bark (blog)

Family photo provided by Katie Rosenbaum via AP

WASHINGTON Colon cancer. Uterine cancer. Pancreatic cancer. Whatever the tumor, the more gene mutations lurking inside, the better chance your immune system has to fight back.

Thats the premise behind the recent approval of a landmark drug, the first cancer therapy ever cleared based on a tumors genetics instead of the body part it struck first. Now thousands of patients with worsening cancer despite standard treatment can try this immunotherapy as long as genetic testing of the tumor shows theyre a candidate.

Its like having a lottery ticket, said Johns Hopkins oncologist Dr. Dung Le, who helped prove the new use for the immunotherapy Keytruda. Weve got to figure out how to find these patients, because its such a great opportunity for them.

Today, doctors diagnose tumors by where they originate breast cancer in the breast, colon cancer in the colon and use therapies specifically tested for that organ. In contrast, the Food and Drug Administration labeled Keytruda the first tissue-agnostic treatment, for adults and children.

The reason: Seemingly unrelated cancers occasionally carry a common genetic flaw called a mismatch repair defect. Despite small studies, FDA found the evidence convincing that for a subset of patients, that flaw can make solid tumors susceptible to immunotherapy doctors otherwise wouldnt have tried.

We thought these would be the hardest tumors to treat. But its like an Achilles heel, said Hopkins cancer geneticist Bert Vogelstein.

And last month FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb told a Senate subcommittee his agency will simplify drug development for diseases that all have a similar genetic fingerprint even if they have a slightly different clinical expression.

Its too early to know if whats being dubbed precision immunotherapy will have lasting benefits, but heres a look at the science.

WHOS A CANDIDATE?

Hopkins estimates about 4 percent of cancers are mismatch repair-deficient, potentially adding up to 60,000 patients a year. Widely available tests that cost $300 to $600 can tell whos eligible. The FDA said the flaw is more common in colon, endometrial and gastrointestinal cancers but occasionally occurs in a list of others.

Say, have I been tested for this?' is Les advice for patients.

MUTATIONS AND MORE MUTATIONS

Most tumors bear 50 or so mutations in various genes, Vogelstein said. Melanomas and lung cancers, spurred by sunlight and tobacco smoke, may have twice as many. But tumors with a mismatch repair defect can harbor 1,500 mutations.

Why? When DNA copies itself, sometimes the strands pair up wrong to leave a typo a mismatch. Normally the body spell checks and repairs those typos. Without that proofreading, mutations build up, not necessarily the kind that trigger cancer but bystanders in a growing tumor.

THE PLOT THICKENS

Your immune system could be a potent cancer fighter except that too often, tumors shield themselves. Mercks Keytruda and other so-called checkpoint inhibitors can block one of those shields, allowing immune cells to recognize a tumor as a foreign invader and attack. Until now, those immunotherapies were approved only for a few select cancers Keytruda hit the market for melanoma in 2014 and they work incredibly well for some patients but fail in many others. Learning whos a good candidate is critical for drugs that can cost $150,000 a year and sometimes cause serious side effects.

In 2012, Hopkins doctors testing various immunotherapies found the approach failed in all but one of 20 colon cancer patients. When perplexed oncologists told Vogelstein, a light bulb went off.

Sure enough, the one patient who fared well had a mismatch repair defect and a mind-boggling number of tumor mutations. The more mutations, the greater the chance that at least one produces a foreign-looking protein that is a beacon for immune cells, Vogelstein explained.

It was time to see if other kinds of cancer might respond, too.

WHATS THE DATA?

The strongest study, published in the journal Science, tested 86 such patients with a dozen different cancers, including some who had entered hospice. Half had their tumors at least shrink significantly, and 18 saw their cancer become undetectable.

Its not clear why the other half didnt respond. Researchers found a hint, in three patients, that new mutations might form that could resist treatment.

But after two years of Keytruda infusions, 11 of the complete responders have stopped the drug and remain cancer-free for a median of eight months and counting.

Catherine Katie Rosenbaum, 67, is one of those successes. The retired teacher had her uterus removed when endometrial cancer first struck, but five years later tumors returned, scattered through her pelvis and colon. She tried treatment after treatment until in 2014, her doctor urged the Hopkins study.

Rosenbaum took a train from Richmond, Virginia, to Baltimore for infusions every two weeks and then, after some fatigue and diarrhea side effects, once a month. Then the side effects eased and her tumors started disappearing. A year into the study she was well enough to swim a mile for a Swim Across America cancer fundraiser.

Nothing else had worked, so I guess we could say it was a last hope, said Rosenbaum, who now wants other patients to know about the option.

___

This Associated Press series was produced in partnership with the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Read more from the original source:
Getting tumors tested for genetics is the latest theory to help drugs target cancer - The Denver Post