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Novel genetics research advances possibility of HIV vaccine

A pioneering collaborative study has discovered how the HIV virus evades the human body's immune system. The research collaborative -- involving scientists from the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, Massachusetts General Hospital, Microsoft Research and Los Alamos National Laboratory -- used highly computer-intensive, cutting-edge statistical research methods to investigate how the HIV virus mutates to escape the body's immune system.

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Keywords: novel, genetics, research, advances, possibility, hiv, vaccine, genetic, advance

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1. Journal theme issue highlights advances in eye disease genetics
   02-12-2007 · EurekAlert!
   Research on the genetic basis of eye diseases is enabling rapid progress in the diagnosis and treatment of these conditions, according to a series of articles on ophthalmic genetics in the February issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
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2. Einstein researchers' prototype vaccine could provide improved protection against tuberculosis
   08-01-2007 · EurekAlert!
   Using a novel approach, researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have developed a prototype vaccine against tuberculosis, that works better in animal models than the only TB vaccine now available. In this era of multi-drug resistant TB and growing numbers of people with active TB due to coinfection with HIV, the advance could herald a needed breakthrough against one of the world's leading killers.
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3. Researchers identify genetic mutation that may alter tumor cell proliferation
   07-04-2007 · EurekAlert!
   Researchers from Eli Lilly & Company and the Phoenix-based Translational Genomics Research Institute today announced finding a novel recurring mutation of the gene AKT1 in breast, colorectal and ovarian cancers. The altered form of AKT1 appears to cause tumor cell proliferation and may play a role in making cells resistant to certain types of therapies. The findings are reported in an advance online publication of the journal Nature.
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4. Advance in understanding of blood pressure gene could lead to new treatments
   02-04-2007 · EurekAlert!
   Research by scientists at UCL (University College London) has clearly demonstrated for the first time the structure and function of a gene crucial to the regulation of blood pressure. The discovery could be important in the search for new treatments for illnesses such as heart disease, the UK's biggest killer. In a paper published online today in Nature Medicine, the team, led by Professor Patrick Vallance and Dr James Leiper, UCL Department of Medicine, reveal the role of the human gene dimethylarginine dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH), showing that loss of DDAH activity disrupts nitric oxide (NO) production. NO is critical in the regulation of blood pressure, nervous system functions and the immune system. The role of DDAH is to break down modified amino acids (Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and monomethyl arginine (L-NMMA)) that are produced by the body and have been shown to inhibit NO synthase. These molecules accumulate in various disease states including diabetes, renal failure and pulmonary and systemic hypertension, and their concentration in plasma (the fluid component of blood) is strongly predicative of cardiovascular disease and death. In a healthy human body, the majority of ADMA is eliminated through active metabolism by DDAH. Scientists have hypothesised that if DDAH function is impaired, NO production is reduced, and that this could be an important feature of increased cardiovascular risk. To examine this pathway in more detail, the researchers deleted the DDAH gene in mice. These mice went on to develop hypertension, or high blood pressure. They also designed specific inhibitors (small molecules) which bind to the active site of human DDAH. These small molecule inhibitors also induced hypertension in mice, confirming the importance of DDAH in the regulation of blood pressure. Dr Leiper, UCL Medicine, said: “These genetic and chemical approaches to disrupt DDAH showed remarkably consistent results, and provide compelling evidence that loss of DDAH function increases the concentration of ADMA and thereby disrupts vascular NO signalling. “There has been considerable scientific interest in this pathway and the role of ADMA as a novel risk factor, but so far there's been little evidence to support the idea that it's a cause of disease, rather than just a marker. Genes and their pathways are crucial to our understanding of cardiovascular disease and a better understanding of DDAH-1 could lead to important new treatments. “It could help us to establish if genetic variation predisposes certain people to these diseases, or whether environmental factors exert some of their effects through modulation of DDAH activity. “Our research also shows that this pathway could be harnessed therapeutically to limit production of NO in certain situations where too much nitric oxide is a bad thing; for example, hypotension and septic shock. These are some of the biggest problems in intensive care medicine and there is a huge unmet need for drug treatments.” The study, which was carried out at UCL's Rayne Institute, was funded by grants from the British Heart Foundation, the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council. Professor Jeremy Pearson, Associate Medical Director of the British Heart Foundation, said: "The unexpected finding in the 1980s that a simple gas, nitric oxide (NO), is made by cells in the blood vessel wall and is a powerful control of blood vessel relaxation led to the award of the Nobel Prize in 1998 to its discoverers. "More recently, there has been increasing evidence that impairment of NO production is likely to be an important factor in the development of heart and circulatory disease, but the mechanisms responsible are not fully understood. "This study suggests for the first time that the loss of the activity of the enzyme DDAH-1 leads to reduced NO production and may cause heart and circulatory disease. These findings are likely to be important in the search for new ways to optimise the health of our blood vessels." ### Notes for Editors 1. For more information, please contact Ruth Metcalfe in the UCL Media Relations Office on tel: +44 (0)20 7679 9739, mobile: +44 (0)7990 675 947, out of hours: +44 (0)7917 271 364, e-mail: r.metcalfe@ucl.ac.uk2. 'Disruption of methylarginine metabolism impairs vascular homeostasis' is published in the February issue of the journal Nature Medicine. Advance online publication is embargoed to 18.00 GMT (13.00 US Eastern) Sunday 4 February 2007. Journalists can obtain copies of the paper by contacting the UCL Media Relations Office.3. The study was funded by the British Heart Foundation, the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council. About UCL Founded in 1826, UCL was the first English university established after Oxford and Cambridge, the first to admit students regardless of race, class, religion or gender, and the first to provide systematic teaching of law, architecture and medicine. In the government's most recent Research Assessment Exercise, 59 UCL departments achieved top ratings of 5* and 5, indicating research quality of international excellence. UCL is the fourth-ranked UK university in the 2006 league table of the top 500 world universities produced by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University. UCL alumni include Mahatma Gandhi (Laws 1889, Indian political and spiritual leader); Jonathan Dimbleby (Philosophy 1969, writer and television presenter); Junichiro Koizumi (Economics 1969, Prime Minister of Japan); Lord Woolf (Laws 1954, Lord Chief Justice of England & Wales); Alexander Graham Bell (Phonetics 1860s, inventor of the telephone), and members of the band Coldplay.
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5. New research into plant colors sheds light on antioxidants
   10-02-2007 · EurekAlert!
   Scientists have made an important advance in understanding the genetic processes that give flowers, leaves and plants their bright colors. The knowledge could lead to a range of benefits, including better understanding of the cancer-fighting properties of plant pigments and new, natural food colorings. The research is highlighted in the new issue of Business from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
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6. Genetics determine optimal drug dose of common anticoagulant
   08-21-2007 · EurekAlert!
   Genetic testing can be used to help personalize the therapeutic dosage of warfarin, a commonly-used anticoagulant, according to research published in the Sep. 1, 2007, issue of Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematology. This result represents one of the first applications of using an individual's genetic information to guide personal medical care.
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7. Pediatric AIDS Vaccine Research Could Help Prevent Mother-to-child Transmission Through ...
   10-13-2006 · ScienceDaily
   Scientists at Makerere University, in Kampala, Uganda, along with scientists from Johns Hopkins and other institutions worldwide, have begun the first clinical safety trial in Africa of a vaccine to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV through breastfeeding.
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8. First new multiple sclerosis gene found in 30 years
   07-29-2007 · EurekAlert!
   A newly identified gene may hold the promise of guiding future research into therapies for multiple sclerosis in what its discoverers say is the first major genetic advance in 30 years for understanding this nervous system disease.
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9. Genetic map offers new tool for malaria research
   12-11-2006 · Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
   An international research team has completed a map that charts the genetic variability of the human malaria parasite. The work has already unearthed novel genes that may underlie resistance to current drugs against the disease.
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10. Scientists identify gene that may indicate predisposition to schizophrenia
    01-24-2007 · EurekAlert!
    In a study from the January issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics, a research team lead by Xinzhi Zhao and Ruqi Tang (Shanghai Jiao Tong University) present evidence that genetic variation may indicate predisposition to schizophrenia. Specifically, their findings identify the chitinase 3-like 1 gene as a potential schizophrenia-susceptibility gene and suggest that the genes involved in biological response to adverse conditions are likely linked to schizophrenia.
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