SALK NEWS

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Salk News


Potential Link Found Between Breast Cancer Drug and Cardiac Failure

La Jolla, CA – A team led by Salk scientists has identified the probable link between the breast cancer drug Herceptin and cardiac failure, one of its common side effects. The results may also explain why a common combination drug regimen including Herceptin is particularly toxic.


Salk Scientists Demonstrate For The First Time That Newly Born Brain Cells Are Functional In The Adult Brain

La Jolla, CA – Salk Institute scientists have observed for the first time that new cells in the adult brain grow and mature over time, functioning just like any of their neighboring neurons.


New View of Brain’s Inner Workings Opens Research Into Autism, Other Disorders

La Jolla, CA – According to accepted dogma, the brain responds to sensory experiences somewhat like an electronic bucket brigade, with incoming signals passed from one region to the next in a somewhat linear fashion.


Global Plant Study by Salk Scientists Identifies Light-Adjusting Gene

La Jolla, CA – In the first global survey of its kind, scientists at The Salk Institute have isolated a genetic switch that controls how plants growing at different latitudes respond to light. The variation ensures that plants in northern climes near the poles, for example, are more sensitive to light than their counterparts closer to the equator.


Salk scientists find new potential target for diabetes treatment

La Jolla, CA – Salk scientists have identified a new potential drug target for type II diabetes that may offer a specific treatment to complement existing therapies. The new target, a protein called CREB (for cyclic AMP response binding), acts in a pathway independent of that targeted by the thiazolidinediones, currently considered the most effective drugs for managing the condition.


The Romeros To Perform at “Symphony At Salk”

La Jolla, CA – The classical guitar family, the Romeros, will perform with the San Diego Symphony, under the direction of Jung-Ho Pak, in a concert under the stars Saturday, August 25 at this year’s “Symphony at Salk.”


Salk Scientists Provide New Mouse Model For Autoimmunity

La Jolla, CA – Salk scientists have created an animal model for autoimmune diseases that closely mirrors the perplexing patterns of symptoms observed in human autoimmunity, including an increased susceptibility of females over males.


Study Led By Salk Scientists Answers Long-Sought Question: Where Do Flowers Come From?

La Jolla, CA – Though a rose, carnation or tulip each has its own distinguishing feel, look and smell, they all share one common trait: the flower’s petals adorn its perimeter while the reproductive organs sit in the flower’s center.


Neural Progenitor Cells Recovered From Postmortem And Adult Tissue

La Jolla, CA – Salk Institute scientists have isolated cells from the brains of human cadavers that can grow, divide and form specialized classes of brain cells. Their findings indicate that postmortem tissue may be a potential source of multipotent stem cells, with a variety of uses and applications.


Synapse Formation Triggered By Muscle, Salk Scientists Show

La Jolla, CA – Sometimes nerve is all you need. But nerves have needs, too, including the use of synapses – tiny junctions that coordinate communication between nerves and the muscles they control.


New Potential Drug Target In HIV Enzyme

La Jolla, CA – A Salk Institute-led team of scientists has identified a new site on the HIV enzyme integrase for potential drug therapy. Integrase is the only HIV enzyme not targeted by current drugs; reverse transcriptase and protease are blocked by drugs such as AZT and the protease inhibitors.


Salk Scientists Find Genes That Control Limb Formation In Vertebrates

La Jolla, CA – Whether they’re wings, fins or legs, those appendages generally known as limbs play a critical role for lifting, grasping, moving and other activities needed to sustain life.


Running Boosts Brain Cell Numbers in Neurodegenerative Disease Model

La Jolla, CA – Scientists at The Salk Institute have shown that running can boost brain cell survival in animals with neurodegenerative disease.


First Plant Genome Sequenced: Salk Scientists Part Of International Effort

La Jolla, CA – The first complete genome sequence of a plant appears in the current issue of Nature. Salk Professor Joseph R. Ecker, co-director of one of six contributing sequencing groups, expects the sequence to greatly accelerate efforts to improve the yield and hardiness of crop plants.


Vitamin A Deficiency Impairs Learning Functions In Reversible Manner

La Jolla, CA – Removing Vitamin A from the diets of mice diminishes chemical changes in the brain considered the hallmarks of learning and memory. When vitamin A is added back to their diets, the impairment is reversed.


“Gene Chips” Offer First Look at Genetic Behavior In Brain

La Jolla, CA – Salk scientists have obtained the first snapshot of how gene behavior varies among mammalian brains. The study employed “gene chip” technology to simultaneously compare the activities of approximately 13,000 genes in two inbred strains of mice.


Richard A. Murphy Appointed President and CEO of The Salk Institute

La Jolla, CA – Richard A. Murphy, director of the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), has been named president and chief executive officer of The Salk Institute, effective October 1.


Humanized Mouse To Become Basic Tool To Test Drug-Drug Interactions

La Jolla, CA – A genetically engineered mouse, equipped with a human gene that senses potentially toxic substances in the body, including drugs, has been created by scientists at The Salk Institute.


Cancer “Survival” Structure Deciphered By Salk Scientists

La Jolla, CA – It’s a molecule that endows cancer cells with their pernicious ability to persevere.


Chromosome Copying: Salk Scientists Identify Unique Mechanism

La Jolla, CA – Before the moment of conception, living organisms experience another distinct birth – the creation of healthy eggs and sperm. Salk scientists recently obtained a peek at how genetic material is copied during the process, called meiosis, that produces these sex cells.