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The following research breakthroughs are only a selection of the achievements made by UHN Researchers this year. For more research stories see Net Results and Net Results EXPRESS.
February
Doctors at PMH are the first in Canada to use robotic laparoscopic technology to perform a radical prostatectomy. The procedure uses a voice-activated robotic arm to remove a cancerous prostate without major surgical invasion. The organ is removed through a small puncture in the patient's navel, a method which dramatically reduces blood loss, recovery time, scarring and length of hospital stay.
March
Dr. Tak Mak (OCI/PMH) shows that Chk2, a kinase activated in response to DNA damage, can stabilize p53. Chk2 phosporylates p53, interfering with Mdm2 binding and protecting p53 from ubiquitination and degradation. The ultimate result may be protection from carcinogenesis as p53 accumulation can lead to the removal of damaged cells from the population. (PubMed abstract)
June
A team of TWRI/TWH neurologists led by Drs. Andres Lozano and Anthony Lang reveal the results of the first long-term follow-up study of a new treatment for Parkinson's Disease. Pallidotomy, a surgical treatment which destroys a part of the brain implicated in adverse side effects to Parkinson's medication, is successful in reducing these effects over the long term. (PubMed abstract)
June
Dr. Gary Rodin, TGRI/TGH, publishes a study which reports that 10% of diabetic teen girls risk complications like blindness and kidney complications in order to look good. By deliberating mismanaging their disease, they are able to prevent weight gain but risk more dangerous side effects in the future. (PubMed abstract)
June
UHN researchers make a breakthrough discovery that could lead to improved ways of preventing rejection after transplantation. Led by TGRI/TGH scientist Dr. Li Zhang, this team discovers a subtype of immune cells that can be trained to accept foreign proteins and counteract the effects of cells which would otherwise destroy the transplanted organ. The ability to control these cells may also hold the key to new treatments for autoimmune diseases. (PubMed abstract)
July
Researchers in the lab of Dr. Jim Woodgett (OCI/PMH) show that the gene for glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3) may act to control the immune system. GSK-3 was shown to regulate the transciption factor NF kappa B. (PubMed abstract)
July
Dr. Myron Cybulsky (TGRI/TGH) reveals that the NF kappa B signalling pathway plays an important role in athlerosclerosis. Activation of the NF kappa B pathway seems to predispose the endothelial cells lining blood vessels to plaque formation, the first step in the formation of athlerosclerotic blockages. (PubMed abstract)
August
The results of a large-scale, randomised, double-blind trial conducted by TGRI/TGH researcher and Head of Cardiology (UHN and Mt. Sinai Hospital) Dr. Jean Rouleau have implications for patients suffering from congestive heart failure. The drug omapatrilat is shown to have a significant advantage in certain cases, suggesting a potentially important change in standard treatment. (PubMed abstract)
September
Researchers in the OCI/PMH laboratory of Dr. Sam Benchimol identify a protein that may be involved in p53's tumour suppressor activity. p53—commonly mutated in human cancers—is known to promote cell death of pre-malignant cells, and thus to suppress the development of tumours. The new protein, named p53-induced protein with a death domain, or PIDD, may explain p53's apoptotic function and is a good candidate for gene therapy of cancer. (PubMed abstract)
October
OCI/PMH researchers complete a pilot study showing the feasibility of structural proteomics approaches in functional genomics studies. A team including Dr. Cheryl Arrowsmith, Aled Edwards and Emil Pai purified 424 proteins from Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum and used x-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy techniques for structural studies. (PubMed abstract)
December
In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, a team led by Dr. Jenny Heathcote (TWRI/TWH) reports that a modified interferon compound is more effective than the unmodified form in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus infection accompanied by cirrhosis. (PubMed abstract)
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