Publications

Platinum Publications as of June 25, 2014

Platinum Publications are selected from articles by NCI at Frederick scientists published in 21 prestigious science journals. This list represents new publications generated from PubMed as of the date shown above.

Articles designated as Platinum Highlights are noteworthy articles selected by Dr. Craig Reynolds, associate director, National Cancer Institute, from among the most recently published Platinum Publications.

Monomeric CH3: A Small, Stable Antibody Domain with Therapeutic Promise

By Ashley DeVine, Staff Writer

Antibody domains are emerging as promising biopharmaceuticals because of their relatively small size compared to full-sized antibodies, which are too large to effectively penetrate tumors and bind to sterically restricted therapeutic targets.

In an article published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry, Tianlei Ying, Ph.D., Dimiter Dimitrov, Ph.D., and their colleagues in the Protein Interactions Group, Cancer and Inflammation Program, Center for Cancer Research, reported their design of a novel antibody domain, monomeric CH3 (mCH3).

Platinum Publications as of March 6, 2014

Platinum Publications are selected from articles by NCI at Frederick scientists published in 21 prestigious science journals. This list represents new publications generated from PubMed as of the date shown above.

Articles designated as Platinum Highlights are noteworthy articles selected by Dr. Craig Reynolds, associate director, National Cancer Institute, from among the most recently published Platinum Publications.

Platinum Publications as of December 3, 2013

Platinum Publications are selected from articles by NCI at Frederick scientists published in 21 prestigious science journals. This list represents new publications generated from PubMed as of the date shown above.

Articles designated as Platinum Highlights are noteworthy articles selected by Dr. Craig Reynolds, associate director, National Cancer Institute, from among the most recently published Platinum Publications.

Gut Microorganisms Found Necessary for Successful Cancer Therapy

By Nancy Parrish, Staff Writer

Humans play host to trillions of microorganisms that help our bodies perform basic functions, like digestion, growth, and fighting disease. In fact, bacterial cells outnumber the human cells in our bodies by 10 to 1.1

The tens of trillions of microorganisms thriving in our intestines are known as gut microbiota, and those that are not harmful to us are referred to as commensal microbiota. In a recent paper in Science, NCI scientists described their discovery that, in mice, the presence of commensal microbiota is needed for successful response to cancer therapy.

New Approach for Producing and Purifying IL-15 Heterodimers That Have Potent Immune Effect

By Nancy Parrish, Staff Writer

Cytokines are proteins that play a crucial role in the human immune system by delivering messages that trigger the activation of immune cells to fight off attacks from viruses or other invaders.

Cristina Bergamaschi, Ph.D., NCI Center for Cancer Research, has been studying the mechanism of expression and function of a cytokine known as interleukin-15 (IL-15) for the last five years, in collaboration with Elena Chertova, Ph.D., and other researchers in the Retroviral Protein Chemistry Core (RPCC) of the AIDS and Cancer Virus Program (ACVP), Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research.

IL-27 Found to Play Significant Role in Conferring HIV Resistance

By Nancy Parrish, Staff Writer

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) targets specific immune cells in the body known as macrophages because these are the cells that eliminate foreign material such as bacteria or viruses. HIV is able to reproduce and spread throughout the body if it can avoid destruction by macrophages.

A recent study by Lue Dai, Ph.D., and colleagues revealed that the human cytokine IL-27 helps promote the body’s production of macrophages that are resistant to HIV. The study further found that IL-27 suppresses a gene known as SPTBN1, which facilitates the survival of HIV cells. This breakthrough research was recently published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.