Penn Medicine at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy 27th Annual Meeting

Researchers from the Gene Therapy Program (GTP) at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania will present ten research abstracts, two invited talks, and a workshop presentation highlighting their translational science and discovery research on gene therapy, gene editing, and adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector technology at the American Society of Cell and Gene Therapy (ASGCT) 27th Annual Meeting on May 7 – 11, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Names Miriam Merad, MD, PhD, as Dean for Translational Research and Therapeutic Innovation

Miriam Merad, MD, PhD, a world-renowned immunologist, has been appointed Dean for Translational Research and Therapeutic Innovation of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The appointment reaffirms Icahn Mount Sinai’s commitment to pioneering medical progress and catalyzing the rapid advancement of research innovation. Dr. Merad, the Mount Sinai Professor in Cancer Immunology, will also continue to serve as the founding Chair of the Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Director of the Marc and Jennifer Lipschultz Precision Immunology Institute, and Director of the Human Immune Monitoring Center.
As Dean, Dr. Merad aims to elevate early clinical trials at Icahn Mount Sinai, streamline the clinical trial process, cultivate a culture of mechanistic clinical trials throughout the campus, and forge stronger partnerships with the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors.

Rockland Launches Novel Analytical Tools to Assess Drug Delivery: Revolutionizing Oligonucleotide Therapeutic Development

The first and only panel of specialty reagents designed to detect PS modifications independent of sequence, format, or location, streamlining candidate triage for unparalleled cost and time savings in non-clinical/pre-clinical discovery assessment of oligonucleotide drug candidates, clinical trials for immunogenicity studies, and other applications.

Major Ovarian Cancer Discovery; Findings Published in Cell

The Birrer Laboratory at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute helped discover a proteogenomic signature in ovarian cancer that may improve the way the disease is treated around the world. The discovery, which identifies a 64-protein-gene signature that can predict primary treatment resistance in patients with high grade ovarian cancer, was published Aug. 3 in the journal Cell.

Penn Research Provides Better Understanding into How Genes Make Us Prone To Allergies

New research is bolstering scientific understanding behind why some people are more prone to allergies than others. Researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania identified how genetic differences that alter a specific protein called ETS1 can affect our body’s response to allergies. They found that small changes in ETS1 in an animal model can lead to an increased likelihood for allergic reactions that cause inflammation. The findings were published recently in Immunity.

CUVET Successfully Developed the First Stem Cell Transplantation Technology to Treat Pet Diabetes

For the first time in Thailand, a research team from Chula’s Faculty of Veterinary Science (CUVET) is the first to have successfully developed a method to culture dog pancreatic cells from stem cells and cell transplantation technology. They aim to test the method in the lab and sick animals suffering from diabetes.

Phase separation found in immune response within cells

Protein complexes that play a critical role in launching an immune response assemble in droplets that form within the liquid environment in cells much like oil droplets in water, UT Southwestern scientists report in a new study. The findings, published in Molecular Cell, could lead to new interventions to regulate immunity in individuals with overactive or underactive immune responses.

Could neutrophils be the secret to cancer’s Achilles’ heel?

A study published in the June 10, 2021 issue of Cell describes a remarkable new mechanism by which the body’s own immune system can eliminate cancer cells without damaging host cells. The findings have the potential to develop first-in-class medicines that are designed to be selective for cancer cells and non-toxic to normal cells and tissues.

Pioneering method reveals dynamic structure in HIV

The method reveals that the lattice, which forms the major structural component of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), is dynamic. The discovery of a diffusing lattice made from Gag and GagPol proteins, long considered to be completely static, opens up potential new therapies. The method can be applied to biomedical structure.

Life could have emerged from lakes with high phosphorus

Life as we know it requires phosphorus, which is scarce. How did the early Earth supply this key ingredient? A University of Washington study, published Dec. 30 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, finds answers in certain types of carbonate-rich lakes.