Faculty of Medicine scientists have uncovered seven new subtypes of ovarian cancer, which could result in new treatment strategies for some ovarian cancer patients including those that do not respond well to chemotherapy. The discovery, published in Nature Genetics, analyzed the genetic information of more than 100 ovarian cancer patients in order to identify abnormalities in the DNA of ovarian cancer…
Cancer-causing gene mutations were found in the pelvic lesions of women with a typically non-cancerous gynecological disorder called endometriosis, a study by Vancouver scientists published Wednesday by the New England Journal of Medicine shows. Endometriosis causes intense pelvic pain, menstrual abnormalities and even infertility. It is characterized by tissue that normally lines the uterus migrating outside the organ, causing lesions throughout the pelvic cavity. The bumpy…
(Left to right) Dr. Fabio Rossi, William Kennedy, Roza Vaez Ghaemi, Dr. Katharina Rhothe, Stephanie Campbell, Sanam Shafaatablab, and Dr. Allen Eaves at the BC Regenerative Medicine Symposium. On May 10th, scientists and trainees in the field of stem cell biology attended the first ever BC Regenerative Medicine Symposium at the UBC Pharmaceutical Sciences building. The full day event featured…
Zymeworks Inc. today announced the closing of its initial public offering of 4,500,000 common shares at an initial offering price of U.S.$13.00 per share, for a total of U.S.$58,500,000 in aggregate gross proceeds. Zymeworks expects to use the net proceeds from the offering to further develop and advance its pipeline of product candidates and to increase its liquidity. In addition,…
UBC Faculty of Medicine researchers have found that reducing twin and triplet pregnancies to singleton or twin pregnancies was associated with a substantial reduction in complications, such as pre-term birth and very pre-term birth. Although rates of death and serious illness were not lower among all multi-fetal pregnancies that were reduced, pregnancies that resulted from fertility treatments did show a…
Scientists in Vancouver have developed a new screening tool that reveals the genetic signature of an individual’s hepatitis C virus so that doctors can customize their treatment. The tool, funded by Genome B.C. and devised by researchers at the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, could save money and lives, said Anita Howe, scientific lead for the hepatitis C program.…
New research from Dr. Catharine Winstanley‘s lab confirms for the first time that even mild brain injury can result in impulse control problems in rats. The study, published in the Journal of Neurotrauma, also found that the impulsivity problems may be linked to levels of an inflammatory molecule in the brain, and suggest that targeting the molecule could be helpful for…
Vaccines have rightly come to be regarded as one of modern medicine’s greatest accomplishments, having prevented millions of cases of smallpox, yellow fever, polio, tetanus and other debilitating, often deadly diseases. But UBC vaccine expert Tobias Kollmann would be one of the last people to declare victory. He sees all of the diseases caused by pathogens for which no vaccine…
The Centre for Drug Research and Development (CDRD), Canada’s national drug development and commercialization engine is pleased to announce the appointment of Matthew J. Carlyle, CFA, as Chief Financial Officer effective immediately. Mr. Carlyle brings extensive experience and relationships across global biotechnology and venture capital to CDRD, having been a partner of a national venture capital firm, CFO of a…
Nearly 1 in 150 Canadians are infected with Hepatitis C (HCV). British Columbia has an even higher average, affecting nearly 1 in every 50 residents. While antiviral drugs can lead to effective cures in more than 90% of patients, their efficacy is challenged by drug resistant strains of the virus leading to viral relapse after therapy. Considering the extremely high…