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Touching Base: the Speed and Accessibility of Next Generation Sequencing

When German engineer Carl Benz took the world’s first automobile out for a spin in 1886, most observers were underwhelmed. With an engine that generated 0.75 horsepower and a top speed of 10 miles per hour, not many people rushed out to buy Benz’s first car. The $1000 price tag, an outrageous sum at the time, also discouraged all but the wealthiest would-be auto enthusiasts.  But subsequent generations of cars not only got faster, they also became more affordable. By 1914 the Ford Model T had a...

Nature’s Antifreeze Holds the Answer to Preserving Human Organs

Arctic creatures have a variety of adaptations for surviving subzero temperatures. Now, science is hoping to borrow a few of their techniques to extend the shelf life of human organs. Some creatures head south to survive the winter, but the North American wood frog stays put, enduring subzero temperatures by transforming into a frozen “frogsicle.” With no heartbeat or breathing for prolonged periods, the partially frozen amphibian gradually thaws and hops back to life as spring emerges. The...

Breathing New Life Into Lung Cancer Research

The story of cancer was long seen as a single narrative: a cell acquires genetic mutations, starts to divide uncontrollably and then spreads.But in recent years, this tale has become more complex. Scientists are increasingly aware that a tumor’s microenvironment — its surrounding healthy cells, including fibroblasts that form connective tissues, as well as blood vessels and immune cells — are more than just innocent bystanders, they actively contribute to the developing tumor and can play a role...

The Evolution of Inflammation

Hunting wooly mammoths with stone age technology took guts. If the archaeological record is to be believed, it also took an incredible ability to bounce back from serious injuries. Stone age burial sites are filled with examples of early humans who recovered from broken bones, dislocated limbs and infected wounds, all without any help from modern medicine. The active lifestyle required to feed oneself led to frequent injuries and infections, which means that the people who survived to pass...

Purpose & Ideals

The Value of Cancer Medicines Worldwide

A new wave of discovery in the cancer community.

The Good, the Bad and the Strange of Physical Pain

Most people struggle with pain at some point in their life, and when it gets bad enough it can be a debilitating condition. However, while pain has its obvious and sometimes devastating downside, our ability to feel physical pain is also part of maintaining our health. For a time, physicians even referred to pain as “the fifth vital sign,” because it can be important to understanding the state of a person’s health and point to the presence of disease. When our pain receptors are working...

5 Tips to Chat Up the Next Scientist You Meet

Maybe you’ve been in this situation before: You’re at a dinner party, or on a cross-country flight, and find yourself seated next to a scientist. Perhaps she’s researching the latest cancer therapy or on the hunt for an elusive subatomic particle, and you’re left tongue-tied, assuming you just won't be able to keep up. But instead of avoiding the unknown, think about the potential for an engaging conversation— and where that chat goes might surprise you. Here are five things to keep in mind...

Scientific ‘Swap Meet’: Pharma Competitors Form Novel Consortium to Share Materials

Just as an amazing meal often begins with the best ingredients, the most innovative compounds are likely to emerge when scientists have access to diverse and high-quality chemical building blocks. But what are chemical building blocks? To understand that, first, you should know that one way in which chemists synthesize compounds is by combining smaller compounds. These smaller compounds are sometimes referred to as “building blocks” because they can be used to build larger compounds...

Unlocking the Secrets of a Protein “Superfamily"

Large families can be complex. And while you may know some of its members individually, you can’t really gain a true understanding of their relationships and dynamics without considering the group in its totality. Such is the case for solute carrier (SLC) transporters, a “superfamily” of some 400 proteins found in our cell membranes responsible for shuttling nutrients, neurotransmitters, medicines and other molecules in and out of cells. Despite their importance, they remain largely...

Matching Drugs to Diseases: Advances in Targeting JAKs Leading to New Autoimmune Therapies

Janus kinases (JAKs) named after Janus, the Roman two-faced god of duality, are enzymes with two “faces,” or domains, that play a key role in signal transduction of cytokines, the molecular messengers that trigger the inflammatory and immune responses. Scientific discoveries related to JAKs in recent years have led to novel treatments for autoimmune diseases and myeloproliferative disorders, a group of conditions where the bone marrow produces too many blood cells.   In the early 2010s, the...

Using DNA ‘Barcodes’ in the Search for New Drugs

Organic lettuce, endangered sharks, and now, new medicines. In recent years, DNA ‘barcoding’ technology has exploded as a tool to quickly identify and track plants, animals and the tiniest of molecules. Just as barcodes are used to identify products at the grocery checkout, DNA ‘barcodes’ are small bits of DNA code that can be used to quickly recognize and monitor materials. In pharmaceutical labs around the world, scientists are using DNA-encoded compound libraries to screen billions of...

A Drug Safety Scientist Inspired by the Migrant Farmers of California

Sometimes it only takes one inspiring educator to set you on your career path. As an undergrad at UC Davis in the late 1970s, Jon Cook had a charismatic professor who sparked his interest in the field of toxicology, which studies the safety effects of drugs and chemicals on living organisms. “This guy was huge; he was 6 feet, 6 inches tall and 300 pounds and played football in college. He was so jovial and had so much enthusiasm,” says Cook, Chief Toxicology Scientist at Pfizer’s Groton...