Day: 7 May 2012

Philipp Holliger, of the UK Medical Research Council’s Laboratory of Molecular Biology, and his team of scientists have taken a new approach to the molecule of life and developed ‘synthetic DNA’. The ladder-like structure of the DNA double helix has bases that make up the rungs and sugar-phosphates as the sides. The synthetic version has been developed to have the same bases but different sugars, giving rise to its name xeno-nucleic acids (XNA), xeno being Greek for foreign.

Naturally occurring enzymes called polymerases carry out the copying of DNA molecules and scientists have engineered polymerases that can carry out this process to produce XNA from DNA in the laboratory, with 95 percent accuracy.

What’s got scientists excited is that this molecule shows the ability to evolve, in an experiment where a particular protein target was made that would specifically attach to XNA of certain sequences – the right order of rungs in the ladder – and the other XNA would wash away. As multiple copies of the attached XNA were made by the engineered polymerases, variations in the sequences of bases occurred to produce XNAs that could attach even more tightly to their protein target.

This discovery has shown that DNA is not unique in being able to evolve, which exobiologists (who study the idea of how life could occur on planets other than earth) believe has implications in their studies.

XNA has much potential in pharmaceutical research, as the body cannot break down its novel structure. The reason this is such a useful property is because current use of nucleic acids as antiviral and anticancer drugs has many pitfalls as enzymes in the bloodstream often rapidly break down the drugs, which would not be the case with XNA-based alternatives. The future of XNA and its uses is bright and could lead to some life-changing therapies.

Excitement over breakthrough drugs in the treatment of obesity, hopeful to enter the market over the next few years, may be short-lived due to possible side effects.

Throughout history, one of the greatest challenges man faced was finding enough food to satisfy the body’s demand for energy. In contrast, our greatest task now is keeping excess weight at bay.

Statistics show that at least one in three adults in the US is classed as obese, which is mirrored worldwide. Carrying excess weight increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes and cancer, as well as burdening the economy. With a rise in obesity, there has never been a greater demand for a ‘quick fix’ for weight loss.

Currently, no ideal weight loss treatment exists that comes unburdened with side effects. Early weight loss remedies stretch as far back as the 1800’s, when arsenic and pills containing soap were used to slim down, with side effects such as vomiting and convulsions. Amphetamines later became popular due to their actions curbing appetites and boosting activity levels, but this was short lived due to the development of heart problems.

Drugs have come onto the market since the 1930’s, but few have stayed the distance. One drug, Orlistat, blocked fat absorption in the gut producing a modest weight loss, but was tarred by side effects.

Qnexa, one of the hopeful candidates set to reach clinics in the near future, is a combination of two drug compounds with dangerous side effects, that when combined, lowers the risk.  In a yearlong trial, patients taking the drug lost on average 9.3 percent of their total body weight, a significant loss.

Another drug, Lorcaserin, set to come onto the market if approved by the FDA, works by binding to serotonin receptors in the brain, shown to produce a 3.6 percent loss of body weight.

Whilst both these drugs look set to reach the clinic in the near future, a new class of drugs is upcoming which offers less broad effects, by mimicking hormones in the gut to regulate appetite. They work by telling the brain to slow down the speed that food moves through the gut, making you feel fuller for longer, leading to an average loss of six percent total body weight. However, research has found that these drugs may inflame the pancreas and may increase the risk of thyroid cancer.

The third and final class of upcoming drugs aims to boost metabolism and promote the depletion of fat stores, leading to weight loss.

Even if these drugs are found to be effective at reducing weight and are safe, there are other considerations. Although new research is pushing for the production of so called ‘diet-pills’, there is controversy as to whether they have a place in society. Many doctors believe that willpower, exercise and healthy eating are key to maintaining a healthy weight, with the use of weight loss drugs alongside simple lifestyle changes.

Over a third of all reported data breaches in the UK are committed by private sector organisations, which only account for less than one percent of the resulting fines.

The figures, requested by satellite system-maker Viasat, were released by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which claimed that the discrepancies are due to the strict criteria that must be met before civil monetary penalties can be imposed.

The chief executive of Viasat stated that whilst the ICO should be praised for their policing of data breaches in the public sector, the private sector has “relatively free rein”. Viasat believe that further breaches go unreported by private sector organisations.

In the last year, the private sector accounted for 263 out of a total of 730 data breaches reported to the ICO, with the NHS and local Governments making up the majority of the public sector cases.

However, during that period a single £1,000 fine was issued against a private sector firm. In the same period the ICO issued a total of £790,000 fines to local councils for breaches of personal data.

Amongst this total was a £140,000 fine, the heaviest ever by the ICO, handed to Midlothian Council for sending sensitive personal data about children and their carers to the wrong addresses on five occasions during the 12 month period.

Most data breaches involve documents being emailed to the wrong address; the second most common cause is theft of data or hardware.

A statement from the ICO said “Effective regulation is about getting the best result in the public interest. There are several types of enforcement action we can take, all of which help drive compliance with the Data Protection Act. The course we choose will always depend on the circumstances of the individual case”.

Breast cancer should now be thought of as 10 completely separate diseases, reports a landmark study on the disease.

Sorting breast cancer into 10 different types could help predict survival rates, as well as improving treatments by offering more specific drugs for each different type.

Researchers compared breast cancer to a map of the world, with different types of breast cancer currently separated into “continents” for treatment. This new research will allow breast cancer to be split into “countries”, which will help treatment be more precise.

“Breast cancer is not one disease, but 10 different diseases,” said researcher Prof. Carlos Caldas. “Our results will pave the way for doctors in the future to diagnose the type of breast cancer a woman has, the types of drugs that will work and those that won’t, in a much more precise way than is currently possible.”

Scientists decided on the 10 different types by looking at which genes were working overtime in the breast cancer cells and which genes were no longer working properly. They also looked at what kinds of receptor the tumour cells had – for example, if cells have the Her2 receptor then they can be treated with the drug Herceptin.

Around 2,000 frozen breast cancer samples were analysed in this groundbreaking study, published in the scientific journal Nature. However, researchers still need to prove that there are benefits to treating patients according to this classification. This means that it will be at least three years until the study changes the way hospitals and clinics treat breast cancer.

This study could “revolutionise the way breast cancer is diagnosed and treated” says Baroness Delyth Morgan, chief executive of Breast Cancer Campaign. “Being able to tailor treatments to the needs of individual patients is considered the Holy Grail for clinicians and this extensive study brings us another step further to that goal”.