The Role of an Energy-Producing Enzyme in Treating Parkinson’s Disease
August 21, 2024
An enzyme called PGK1 has an unexpectedly critical role in the production of chemical energy in brain cells, according to a preclinical study led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine. The investigators found that boosting its activity may help the brain resist the energy deficits that can lead to Parkinson’s disease.
The study, published Aug. 21 in Science Advances, presented evidence that PGK1 is a “rate-limiting”...
Cell Division: Before Commitment, a Very Long Engagement
June 26, 2024
Before a cell commits fully to the process of dividing itself into two new cells, it may ensure the appropriateness of its commitment by staying for many hours—sometimes more than a day—in a reversible intermediate state, according to a discovery by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine. Their revelation of this fundamental feature of biology includes details of its mechanisms and dynamics, which may inform the development of future therapies targeting cancers and other diseases.
In...
Breakthrough in Understanding Cell Migration
June 12, 2024
Interactions between two key structures within cells help establish the front-to-back “polarity” that is essential to cell migration, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine researchers. These migrations occur in organ development, wound healing, cancer metastasis and many other processes, but how moving cells respond to environmental cues and set up internal structures that enable them to keep going in one direction has not been fully clear.
As the researchers...
New Molecular Sensor Tracks Energy Use at the Subcellular Level
May 16, 2024
A molecule called adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the basic unit of biochemical energy that fuels the activities of all cells. Now a team led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Janelia Research Campus has developed and tested a high-resolution sensor for tracking the real-time dynamics of ATP levels in cells and within subcellular compartments. The new tool represents a major advance over prior ATP sensor technology, and the researchers...
Dr. Timothy Ryan Elected to National Academy of Sciences
May 1, 2024
Dr. Timothy Ryan, professor of biochemistry in anesthesiology at Weill Cornell Medicine, has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences, one of the highest honors a scientist can receive.
Dr. Ryan was among 120 new scientists in the United States and 24 internationally named this year to the National Academy of...
Gene Signature May Predict Response to Immunotherapy for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
February 23, 2024
A new study identified a set of 140 genes that may help predict enhanced disease-free survival in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with a combination of immunotherapy and low-dose radiation. The results, published in Cell Medicine Reports on Feb. 23, suggested that this “gene signature” could be used to identify a subclass of lung tumors that is more likely to be eradicated by...
Immunotherapy and Radiation Combo Shows Improved Outcomes for Non-small Cell Lung Cancer
January 11, 2024
A new study reported that patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with a combination of low-dose radiation and immunotherapy had higher progression-free survival compared to patients who received immunotherapy alone two years after treatment. The findings from researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons offer hope to those affected by NSCLC, the most common type of lung cancer in the United ...
Specific Genetic Variant May Help Prevent Obesity
December 7, 2023
A preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators shows that a specific human genetic variant of a receptor that stimulates insulin release may help individuals be more resistant to obesity. The researchers discovered that this variant behaves differently in the cell which may contribute to more efficient metabolism.
The study, posted online in Molecular Metabolism on Nov. 2, provides new insight into how human...
Cancers in Distant Organs Alter Liver Function
May 24, 2023
Cancers often release molecules into the bloodstream that pathologically alter the liver, shifting it to an inflammatory state, causing fat buildup and impairing its normal detoxifying functions, according to a study from investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine. This discovery illuminates one of cancer’s more insidious survival mechanisms and suggests the possibility of new tests and drugs for detecting and reversing this process.
In the...
Dr. David Simon Wins Pershing Square Sohn Prize for Young Investigators in Cancer Research Studying Melanoma
May 16, 2023
Dr. David Simon, the Fernholz Foundation Research Scholar in Neuroscience and an assistant professor of biochemistry at Weill Cornell Medicine, was awarded the 2023 Pershing Square Sohn Prize for Young Investigators in Cancer Research on May 16.
The prize, now in its 10th year, is given annually to at least six early-career scientists based in the New York City area by The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance....
