Disease

Hidden carbon: Fungi and their 'necromass' absorb one-third of the carbon emitted by burning fossil fuels every year

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Gaps, Photosynthesis, Mycorrhiza, Partnership, Solution, Sugar, Nutrient, Plant, Research, Carbon, Forest, Fungus, Climate change, Soil, Risk, Water, Carbon cycle, Climate, Bacteria, System, Nitrogen, Disease, Truffle, Coal, Agriculture, Seaweed

These mycorrhizal fungi live in partnership with plants, offering nutrients, water and protection from pests in exchange for carbon-rich sugars.

Key Points: 
  • These mycorrhizal fungi live in partnership with plants, offering nutrients, water and protection from pests in exchange for carbon-rich sugars.
  • Now, new research shows this single group of fungi may quietly be playing a bigger role in storing carbon than we thought.
  • These microscopic filaments take up the equivalent of more than a third (36%) of the world’s annual carbon emissions from fossil fuels – every year.

This fungi-plant partnership is 400 million years old

    • They thread networks of microscopic filaments through the soil and into the roots of almost every plant on earth.
    • They’ve been partnering with plants for more than 400 million years.
    • In return, plants pump sugars and fat made by photosynthesis in their leaves down through their roots to the fungi.

How do these fungi fit into the carbon cycle?

    • Now we know the carbon transfer from plants to mycorrhizal fungi isn’t a side note – it’s a substantial part of this equation.
    • By analysing almost 200 datasets, the researchers estimate the world’s plants are transferring a staggering 3.58 billion tonnes of carbon per year to this underground network.
    • Here's what the evidence says

      To be clear, fungal carbon doesn’t present a climate solution by itself.

What does this mean for the climate?

    • Once in the soil, these compounds can be used by other soil microorganisms, such as bacteria.
    • In fact, other studies suggest this fungal necromass might contribute more to the carbon content of soil than living fungi.
    • What does this mean for climate change?
    • While atmospheric CO₂ concentrations keep rising, it doesn’t necessarily mean fungi are storing more of it.

Protecting our fungal networks

    • When we cut down forests or clear land, we not only disrupt life above the ground, but underground as well.
    • We need to safeguard these hidden fungal networks which give our plants resilience – and play a key role in the carbon cycle.
    • But as we learn more about how fungi and plants cooperate and store carbon, it’s well past time for that to change.

Interpace Expects to Stop Offering PancraGEN® Test Due to CMS Decision to End Reimbursement as of July 17, 2023

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Pancreatic cancer, Form 1095, CMS, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CEA, Glucose, Novita, Genetic testing, LCD, Medicare, MAC, Patient, Physician, Risk, Disease, Diagnosis, Mortality, Pancreatic cyst, Franciscan Ceramics, Pharmaceutical industry

The important information provided by PancraGEN helps support the differential diagnosis of pancreatic cancer by integrating the results of first-line tests and procedures with molecular test results.

Key Points: 
  • The important information provided by PancraGEN helps support the differential diagnosis of pancreatic cancer by integrating the results of first-line tests and procedures with molecular test results.
  • For the past decade, CMS has provided reimbursement for PancraGEN, and over that time nearly 70,000 patients have been tested on orders from physicians across the country.
  • We are extremely disappointed that CMS, through its Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC), Novitas, is ending coverage for PancraGEN—an important and widely utilized test.
  • Yet, studies have shown that 60% to 80% of surgeries reveal indolent cysts that did not necessarily require surgery.

IASO Bio and Innovent Updated Efficacy and Safety Clinical Data of Equecabtagene Autoleucel（BCMA CAR-T Cell Therapy）for Multiple Myeloma at the 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Tongji Hospital station, DNA, Fragment crystallizable region, Pi, Biotechnology, SCR, CRS, Hook effect, DOR, B-cell maturation antigen, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Bone marrow, Huachung University, Cmax, Doctor of Philosophy, PFS, Trial of the century, MTTR, ASCO, MRD, CAR, Tongji Medical College, CR, Congress, Multiple myeloma, MD, Patient, Cytokine release syndrome, SAN, EMM, Annual general meeting, Immunotherapy, EHA, MM, RRMM, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Proteasome inhibitor, Society, ADA, ORR, BCMA, Safety, Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics, Disease, Vaccine, Pharmaceutical industry

The updated data showed long-term follow-up efficacy and safety of the phase 1b/2 study (FUMANBA-1) conducted in 14 centers in China.

Key Points: 
  • The updated data showed long-term follow-up efficacy and safety of the phase 1b/2 study (FUMANBA-1) conducted in 14 centers in China.
  • Among the 103 patients, 68.9% (71/103) had high-risk cytogenetic abnormalities per mSMART 3.0, 12.6%（13/103）had extramedullary multiple myeloma (EMM), and 11.7%（12/103）had received prior CAR-T therapy.
  • Equecabtagene Autoleucel demonstrated a favorable and manageable safety profile: Among the 103 patients, 93.2% (96/103) experienced cytokine release syndrome (CRS).
  • These results are encouraging and entails an opportunity to advance Equecabtagene Autoleucel to earlier lines of treatment to benefit more MM patients."

Census data in West Africa is badly out of date: 5 reasons fresh population statistics are crucial

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Pressure, Goal, Private sector, Technology, Employment, Food, Welfare, Marital status, Education, Disability, Public, Policy, Sustainable Development Goal 11, Population Council, Telephone numbers in Hungary, African, Research, Risk, Privacy, Drought, ECOWAS, Economic development, Population, Hospital, Climate change, Flood, Sickness, Investment, Nature, Emergency, Occupation, Water, Income, Sustainable Development Goals, Adolescence, Climate, Population density, Census, Health, Sustainable development, Death, Population growth, Disease, Agriculture, Renewable energy, Risk management, Nursing, Maintenance (technical)

The region has a population of over 350 million, a five-fold increase since 1950 when 73 million people lived there.

Key Points: 
  • The region has a population of over 350 million, a five-fold increase since 1950 when 73 million people lived there.
  • The region’s urban population rose from 8.3% of the total in 1950 to almost 44% in 2015.
  • Population size, composition and distribution all have implications for what a society needs - including food, water, energy and infrastructure – and how to provide it.
  • Without census data, countries are not able to measure or understand patterns of population growth or urbanisation.
  • As a public health and demography expert at the Population Council, which generates adolescent and demographic modelling data across west Africa, I’ve listed five reasons why the region needs up to date censuses.

Five ways a census helps a country

    • Allocation of resources and political power: With growing populations and economies, fresh census data helps governments allocate resources, target services, plan infrastructure projects, and direct investments.
    • Economic development: The census asks households for information about their income, employment and demographic characteristics such as age or sex.
    • Disaster response and risk reduction: Census data is also used in disaster planning, response and risk reduction efforts.
    • The census can identify burden of disease, patterns of sickness and death and the distribution of risk factors.

Challenging but worth it

    • Accurate and timely census data is critical for west Africa to achieve its potential and mark progress.
    • Conducting a census takes time, money and people, and it can be challenging to collect accurate data in certain settings.

Canada’s leading OBGYNs to discuss Maternal Mortality, Abortion, Menopause and Ovarian Cancer at annual conference

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Obstetrics and gynaecology, Mother, Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, Mortality, Death, Episcopal conference, Physician, Disease, Menopause, Mental health, Summit, Conference, Nursing, Birth control, MD

This 4-day event will include discussion panels, workshops, and a multitude of plenary sessions on key issues for Women’s Health.

Key Points: 
  • This 4-day event will include discussion panels, workshops, and a multitude of plenary sessions on key issues for Women’s Health.
  • “We believe this is a wonderful opportunity to showcase what the SOGC does to improve women’s sexual and reproductive health.
  • Doctors will discuss prevention toolkits, trends in severe maternal morbidity, impact on mental health, what are UK and USA doing, etc.
  • Website for the conference schedule: ACSC 2023
    The SOGC is one of Canada’s oldest national specialty organizations and has been a leader of the advancement of women’s health since 1944.

Surrozen Publishes Study in Nature Communications Demonstrating the Promise of a Fzd4 Wnt Antibody in Treating Ischemic Stroke

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Columbia University, Central nervous system, Therapy, Senior, Doctor of Philosophy, Li Yang, Disability, Stroke, Nature Communications, Tissue plasminogen activator, Antibody, CNS, Incidence, BBB, Regeneration, MD, Division, Central nervous system disease, Stanford University School of Medicine, Death, Disease, Pharmaceutical industry, Vaccine, Hematology, Frizzled-4, WNT, Biology

Many central nervous system (CNS) disorders are characterized by abnormal BBB function, including ischemic stroke.

Key Points: 
  • Many central nervous system (CNS) disorders are characterized by abnormal BBB function, including ischemic stroke.
  • Adult ischemic stroke is a serious and prevalent health problem with a substantial incidence of stroke-related death and disability.
  • The importance of Fzd4 signaling for therapeutic BBB modulation is well known, although successful pharmacologic Fzd4 activation has remained elusive.
  • This publication describes 1) overcoming the challenges of systemic pharmacologic Fzd4 stimulation to develop an optimized, Fzd4 selective –Wnt mimetic antibody, and 2) results from administering this Fzd4 Wnt surrogate (L6-F4-2) in preclinical models of ischemic stroke.

FogPharma Announces First Patient Dosed in Phase 1/2 Clinical Trial of First-in-class TCF-blocking β-catenin Inhibitor, FOG-001, in Advanced Solid Tumors

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Biotechnology, Health, Pharmaceutical, Clinical Trials, Oncology, Clinical trial, Cancer, Malignancy, Pharmacokinetics, Therapy, CRC, Patient, Prevalence, Colorectal cancer, Disease, Safety, Medicine, Pharmaceutical industry

FOG-001 represents the first development candidate arising from FogPharma’s pioneering Helicon™ therapeutics, a new class of drugs capable of modulating protein-protein interactions that may otherwise be challenging to drug.

Key Points: 
  • FOG-001 represents the first development candidate arising from FogPharma’s pioneering Helicon™ therapeutics, a new class of drugs capable of modulating protein-protein interactions that may otherwise be challenging to drug.
  • “Metastatic colorectal cancer is a devastating malignancy with increasing prevalence and few approved therapies directly targeting oncogenic driver mutations.
  • The Phase 1 portion aims to enroll 60 patients and will assess the safety and tolerability of FOG-001 across a range of dose levels to determine the best doses to progress to the Phase 2 portion.
  • The Phase 2 portion will aim to enroll up to 140 patients to further characterize the safety, tolerability and anti-tumor activity of single-agent FOG-001 at the recommended Phase 2 dose.

Datopotamab Deruxtecan Combinations Showed Encouraging Tumor Responses in Patients with Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer in TROPION-Lung02 Phase 1b trial

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Oncology, Health, Hospitals, Clinical Trials, Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, Progression-free survival, DCR, AGAS, Journal of Thoracic Oncology, Platinum, Trae Waynes, Outer ring road, ILD, NSCLC, Lung cancer, Immunotherapy, AstraZeneca, PFS, Lung, ALK, Dor, HIV disease progression rates, MD, Patient, Stomatitis, EGFR, DXD, Division, Daiichi Sankyo, Anemia, Internal medicine, Nausea, ADC, Merck, Spacecraft, Merck & Co., Pembrolizumab, PD-L1, ORR, TSE, Fatigue, Disease, Pharmaceutical industry, Medical imaging

In patients receiving triplet datopotamab deruxtecan plus pembrolizumab and platinum chemotherapy, an ORR of 49% was observed (95% CI: 37-61).

Key Points: 
  • In patients receiving triplet datopotamab deruxtecan plus pembrolizumab and platinum chemotherapy, an ORR of 49% was observed (95% CI: 37-61).
  • Disease control rates (DCR) of 84% and 87% were observed in the doublet and triplet cohorts, respectively.
  • Grade 3 or greater treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) occurred in 31% of patients receiving doublet therapy and 58% of patients receiving triplet therapy.
  • As of the April 7, 2023 data cut-off, 36% and 46% of patients remained on the doublet and triplet therapy, respectively.

Atara Biotherapeutics Presents Updated Tab-cel® Clinical Effectiveness Data at ASCO 2023

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Science, Biotechnology, Research, Pharmaceutical, Oncology, General Health, Health, Clinical Trials, Lymphoma, Northwest Biotherapeutics, EAP, Epstein–Barr virus, PRS, Symantec Endpoint Protection, EBV, PCNS, Cancer, HCT, SOT, ASCO, TTR, American Society of Clinical Oncology, MD, Patient, Microsoft Access, PTLD, Annual general meeting, ATRA, CR, Partial-response maximum-likelihood, Safety, Society, ORR, Disease, PR, Vaccine, Pharmaceutical industry

The results will be featured in a poster presentation at the 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting taking place June 2-6 in Chicago.

Key Points: 
  • The results will be featured in a poster presentation at the 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting taking place June 2-6 in Chicago.
  • Atara supported 27 EAP requests in Europe for patients with relapsed or refractory (r/r) Epstein-Barr virus-positive post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (EBV+ PTLD) following solid organ transplant (SOT) or hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT).
  • “These data provide important insights on the effectiveness of EBVALLO™ in the real-world treatment setting,” said Dr. Sylvain Choquet, Head of the Clinical Hematology Department at Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France.
  • Detailed results on baseline demographics and disease characteristics, and additional safety data including tab-cel exposure details, will be shared at the conference.

Sir Elton John Joins Forces with Donatella Versace and Other Notable Philanthropists to Announce $125 Million Rocket Fund to End AIDS For All

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Monday, June 5, 2023
Elton, HIV/AIDS, Gilead Sciences, Partnership, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention timeline, Education, HIV, Infection, Invisible Man, COVID-19, Ford Foundation, Social media, Saks Fifth Avenue, Movement, JoJo Siwa, Epidemic, Elton John AIDS Foundation, AIDS, Investment, Risk, Love, Let, Shaw Rocket Fund, BCW, Disease, Pharmaceutical industry, Tourism

NEW YORK, June 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sir Elton John, global superstar and Founder of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, has announced the launch of The Rocket Fund, a $125 million, three-year initiative to accelerate the Foundation's life-saving work to tackle the growing rates of HIV infections in vulnerable communities.

Key Points: 
  • The Rocket Fund will turbo-charge our mission and reach those most at risk from this terrible disease.
  • Sir Elton John and the Elton John AIDS Foundation would like to thank the co-chairs of The Rocket Fund for their contributions to the Foundation and today's announcement, including Donatella Versace, Tani Austin, David Furnish, and David Geffen.
  • Throughout Pride Month, Sir Elton John and the co-chairs of The Rocket Fund are challenging supporters to let their #InnerElton out.
  • If left unchecked, they only worsen with devastating impacts on the most vulnerable," said Anne Aslett, Chief Executive Officer of the Elton John AIDS Foundation.