Even in this market meltdown, seasoned biotech innovators with decades of experience know that strong novel science in the hands of experienced teams will eventually succeed. We’re in a painful, protracted biotech market correction. The XBI index is down 39% YTD and 60% over the past 14 months. But I contend that this is not …
Twentieth-century health activist Mary Lasker, who devoted her life to securing greater research funding for cancer, is quoted as saying: “If you think research is expensive, try disease.” That battle for adequate cancer research funding is never-ending. Indeed, it’s not just cancer that needs greater funding. Despite advances through the tireless efforts of numerous organizations, …
Inactivation of the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is common across many cancer types and serves as a critical initiating event in most sporadic colorectal cancers (CRC). APC-deficiency activates WNT signaling which remains an elusive target for cancer therapy, prompting us to apply the synthetic essentiality framework to identify druggable vulnerabilities for APC-deficient cancers. Tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase …
Synthetic Essentiality of Tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase 2 in APC-Mutated Colorectal Cancer Read More »
Inactivation of the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is common across many cancer types and serves as a critical initiating event in most sporadic colorectal cancers (CRC). APC-deficiency activates WNT signaling which remains an elusive target for cancer therapy, prompting us to apply the synthetic essentiality framework to identify druggable vulnerabilities for APC-deficient cancers. Tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase …
Synthetic Essentiality of Tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase 2 in APC-Mutated Colorectal Cancer Read More »
Paradigmatic work from PJ Dey’s Lab reveals the co-conspiratory roles of oncogenic KRAS and intratumoral fungi in promoting immune modulating cytokine IL33 in pancreas cancer. This study, published February 3, 2022 in Cancer Cell, expands the therapeutic points of attack for this dreaded disease. Summary: TH2 cells and innate lymphoid cells 2 (ILC2) can stimulate …
Fungal Mycobiome Drives IL-33 Secretion and Type 2 Immunity in Pancreatic Cancer Read More »
TH2 cells and innate lymphoid cells 2 (ILC2) can stimulate tumor growth by secreting pro-tumorigenic cytokines such as interleukin-4 (IL-4), IL-5, and IL-13. However, the mechanisms by which type 2 immune cells traffic to the tumor microenvironment are unknown. Here, we show that oncogenic KrasG12D increases IL-33 expression in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells, which …
Fungal Mycobiome Drives IL-33 Secretion and Type 2 Immunity in Pancreatic Cancer Read More »
2021 marked the 20th anniversary of the first human genome draft sequence, which led to such revolutionary landmarks as The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Program and the birth of Spatial single-cell multi-omics. We also witnessed victories against hard-to-treat drug targets, FDA approval of Amgen’s sotorasib to treat non-small-cell lung cancer, novel therapeutic strategies such as …
Amyloid-induced neurodegeneration plays a central role in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathogenesis. Here, we show that telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) haploinsufficiency decreases brain-derived neurotrophic factor and increases amyloid-β precursor in the murine brain. Moreover, before disease onset, the TERT locus sustains accumulation of repressive epigenetic marks in murine and human AD neurons, implicating TERT repression in …
In this study, we observed that Tert haploinsufficiency affected the expression of genes integral to AD pathogenesis and that neurons from amyloid-based AD models exhibited early epigenetic repression of neuronal TERT expression. We established that physiological increases in TERT levels resulted in a marked reduction of Aβ levels in neurons in the brains of two …
Alzheimer’s Disease Research Makes a Paradigm Shift Read More »
According to life sciences publisher Fierce Biotech, what sets Tvardi Therapeutics apart from other early-stage biotech startups is that “it actually has the data to back up its science.” The company’s first asset is TTI-101 is wrapping up a phase 1 clinical trial in advanced solid tumors and will soon be moving into phase 2. …
Tvardi Therapeutics: Fiercely Focused on STAT3 Inhibitors Read More »
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