Research News

October 26, 2009

Jamming cell’s protein disposal shows how system works
Whitehead Institute scientists have determined that a protein known as YOD1 plays a critical role in the disposal of misfolded cellular proteins. The researchers identified YOD1’s role by blocking its function, a manipulation that halts the elimination of errant proteins entirely. The finding should help bring greater understanding to this vital but complex cellular process.

September 29, 2009

Whitehead Member David Sabatini receives Paul Marks Prize
Whitehead Institute Member David Sabatini has been awarded the Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research in recognition of his discovery of a key pathway regulating cell growth and survival.

September 22, 2009

Whitehead Member Rudolf Jaenisch awarded Ernst Schering Prize
Whitehead Member Rudolf Jaenisch received today the 2009 Ernst Schering Prize, one of the most prestigious German awards for scientists.

September 14, 2009

Figuring out the heads or tails decision in regeneration
Wounds trigger regeneration in planaria, a flatworm commonly studied for its regenerative capabilities. Until now, no molecular connection between wounding and the onset of the regeneration of an entire head or tail in planaria had been identified.

September 10, 2009

RNA interference found in budding yeasts
Some budding yeast species have the ability to silence genes using RNA interference (RNAi). Until now, most researchers thought that no budding yeasts possess the RNAi pathway because Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the protoypical model budding yeast does not.

September 3, 2009

“Achilles’ heel” in Y chromosome linked to sex disorders
The unique mechanism behind the evolutionary survival of the human Y chromosome may also be responsible for a range of sex disorders, from failed sperm production to sex reversal to Turner Syndrome.

August 26, 2009

Gene mutation alone causes transmissible prion disease
Whitehead Institute researchers have shown definitively that mutations associated with prion diseases are sufficient to cause a transmissible neurodegenerative disease. Deciphering the origins of prion diseases could help farmers and policy-makers determine how best to control a prion disease outbreak in livestock and to prevent prion transmission to humans.

August 26, 2009

Whitehead mourns loss of Senator Kennedy
Whitehead Institute, along with the greater scientific research community, lost a great advocate and friend with the passing of Senator Edward M. Kennedy late Tuesday night. 

August 20, 2009

The ends of mRNAs may prevent the beginnings of cancer
The tail ends of cellular protein templates, regions often thought relatively inconsequential, may actually play a role in preventing normal cells from becoming cancerous.

August 18, 2009

New NIH Director cites Whitehead Fellows program as a model for young investigators
Newly appointed National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins said Monday he has contemplated the NIH’s piloting a program for exceptional young investigators modeled after Whitehead Institute’s Fellows program.

August 13, 2009

New method takes aim at aggressive cancer cells
A multi-institutional team of Boston-area researchers has discovered a chemical that works in mice to kill the rare but aggressive cells within breast cancers that have the ability to seed new tumors.

August 13, 2009

Technique enables efficient gene targeting in human embryonic stem cells
A novel technique allows researchers to efficiently and precisely modify or introduce genes into the genomes of human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, according to Whitehead scientists.

July 13, 2009

New method may accelerate drug discovery for difficult diseases like Parkinson’s
Whitehead Institute scientists have developed a rapid, inexpensive drug-screening method that could be used to target diseases that until now have stymied drug developers, such as Parkinson’s disease.  This technique uses baker’s yeast to synthesize and screen the molecules, cutting target discovery and preliminary testing time to a matter of weeks.

June 29, 2009

NASA taps Whitehead scientist for astronaut duty
Whitehead Fellow Kate Rubins is among nine men and women selected by NASA for the 2009 astronaut candidate class.

June 11, 2009

RNA snippet suppresses spread of aggressive breast cancer
Low levels of a tiny RNA fragment in cells are associated with metastatic breast cancer in humans and increases the aggressive spread of breast cancer in mice, according to researchers at Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research.

May 27, 2009

Multiple myeloma cells get what they want
Researchers at Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research have identified a protein in multiple myeloma cells, called DEPTOR, that indirectly activates a signaling pathway commonly turned on in cancer cells. Known as the PI3K/PTEN/Akt pathway, this signaling pathway controls cell survival, and when altered, keeps cancer cells from dying.

May 11, 2009

Whitehead Member Iain Cheeseman named Searle Scholar
Whitehead Member Iain Cheeseman has been selected as a 2009 Searle Scholar. He is one of 15 award recipients chosen from 178 recently appointed assistant professors in the chemical and biological sciences.

May 4, 2009

Opening the primary mouth with Wnt antagonists
Whitehead researchers have identified a novel mechanism that operates during formation of the “primary mouth”, the first opening between the outside of the embryo and the intestine.

April 2, 2009

Redefining what it means to be a prion
Whitehead Institute researchers have found a large number of new prions, greatly expanding scientists’ notion of how important prions might be in normal biology and demonstrating that they play many and varied roles in the inheritance of biological traits.

March 26, 2009

Whitehead Member Peter Reddien named HHMI Early Career Scientist
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) has awarded Whitehead Member Peter Reddien an Early Career Scientist appointment, a six-year funded position that allows him to pursue his innovative biomedical research.

March 25, 2009

Protein complex plays catchy number during cell division
Whitehead Institute researchers have identified a protein complex that harnesses energy from protein filaments, called microtubules, to pull chromosomes to opposite ends of a cell during cell division. The protein complex, known as Ska1, is a component of the kinetochore, a larger protein complex that hitches the microtubule ends to the chromosome.

March 18, 2009

MicroRNA undermines tumor suppression
Scientists at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and the National University of Singapore have discovered the first microRNA (miRNA) capable of directly tamping down the activity of the well known tumor-suppressor gene, p53. While p53 functions to prevent tumor formation, the p53 gene is thought to malfunction in more than 50% of cancerous tumors.

March 11, 2009

Cell pathway on overdrive prevents cancer response to dietary restriction
Whitehead Institute researchers have pinpointed a cellular pathway that determines whether cancerous tumors are susceptible to dietary restriction during their development. When this pathway, known as PI3K is permanently turned “on” via mutation, tumors grow and proliferate independent of the amount of food consumed. However, when the PI3K pathway operates normally, tumors respond to dietary restriction—defined as food consumption limited to 60% of normal--and become smaller in size.

March 5, 2009

Breakthrough method produces Parkinson’s disease patient-specific stem cells free of harmful reprogramming genes
Deploying a method that removes potentially cancer-causing genes, Whitehead Institute researchers have “reprogrammed” human skin cells from Parkinson’s disease patients into an embryonic-stem-cell-like state. Whitehead scientists then used these so-called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells to create dopamine-producing neurons, the cell type that degenerates in Parkinson’s disease patients.

February 23, 2009

Rudolf Jaenisch awarded 2008 Cozzarelli Prize from PNAS
Whitehead Member Rudolf Jaenisch has been awarded the 2008 Cozzarelli Prize from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

February 23, 2009

Whitehead Institute named best place for postdocs to work
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research is the top place to work for postdoctoral researchers, according to The Scientist’s seventh annual survey of research institutions nationwide, released today.

February 22, 2009

Calculating gene and protein connections in a Parkinson’s model
Researchers have created an algorithm that meshes existing data to produce a clearer step-by-step flow chart of how cells respond to stimuli. Using this new method, Whitehead Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientists have analyzed alpha-synuclein toxicity to identify genes and pathways that can affect cell survival. Misfolded copies of the alpha-synuclein protein in brain cells are a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease.

February 9, 2009

The Hsp90-antifungal combo, please: Compromising fungi in the immunocompromised
Even the most drug-resistant fungi can be eradicated in multiple in vitro and in vivo models using a lethal combination of an antifungal agent and inhibition of a specific heat shock protein (Hsp90). Such findings could point to a novel approach for the development of future antifungal therapies for patients with compromised immune systems, including HIV, chemotherapy, and organ transfer patients.

February 9, 2009

Study suggests possible treatment for neurological disorder Rett syndrome
Injecting the small protein insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) into the bloodstream reduces Rett syndrome symptoms in mice, including lethargy, breathing and heart rhythm irregularities, reduced brain size, and stalled nerve cell development. Rett syndrome is an inherited neurological disease that affects one out of 10,000 girls born.

February 2, 2009

Preventing prostate cancer the complex way
Blocking a specific protein complex (mTORC2) prevents prostate tumor formation in mice with a deleted PTEN gene. Inhibition of this complex in normal prostate cells, however, appears to have no effect, suggesting that the protein complex may be a future target for drug development.

February 1, 2009

Study reveals connection between genetic and environmental causes of Parkinson’s disease
Scientists at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research have found that a single gene, known as PARK9, protects cells from manganese toxicity and rescues neurons from over-expression of the protein alpha-synuclein. Misfolded alpha-synuclein is the hallmark of Parkinson’s disease.

January 20, 2009

Novel cell lines propel the search for safer stem cell induction
Whitehead Institute researchers have reliably produced mice and mouse cell lines with identical configurations of the specific factors needed to reprogram adult cells to an embryonic-stem-cell-like state. These cell lines may be used to screen for potential drug substitutions for the virally-inserted reprogramming genes and as a tool to enhance understanding of how reprogramming works.

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Last updated October 26, 2009.