On April 4, 2011 researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center presented a study at the American Association for Cancer Research 102^nd Annual Meeting held in Orlando, Florida, which detailed their findings on a protein test that may be used to detect early-stage, asbestos-related pulmonary disease.  According to researchers, the test can accurately identify proteins secreted from cancerous tumors caused by asbestos exposure.

Dr Harvey Pass, director of the Division of Thoracic Surgery and Thoracic Oncology at NYU Langone Medical Center and the NYU Cancer Institute, spoke about a novel biomarker test that is believed to be the most accurate yet in detecting proteins secreted from tumors caused by exposure to asbestos. In a blinded test the proteomic assay could detect 15 of 19 cases of malignant pleural mesothelioma that were in stage 1 or stage 2, making the test about 80 percent sensitive, a measure of how accurately a test can identify disease. In addition, the specificity of the test was 100 percent.

“The goal of a new diagnostic test is to find the cancer early enough to effectively treat it”, according to Harvey I. Pass, MD.

To read the full article visit:   http://communications.med.nyu.edu/news/2011/new-test-detects-early-stage-asbestos-related-pulmonary-cancer

As reported in http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/124975.php

Alfacell Corporation (Nasdaq: ACEL) announced that a paper published in Cell Cycle (2008; Vol. 7, Issue 20) reports that ONCONASE (ranpirnase) targets small interfering RNA (siRNA), likely within the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) of the RNA interference (RNAi) mechanism.

The paper is the result of research conducted by collaborators at the Brander Cancer Research Institute and Department of Pathology at New York Medical College and Alfacell. The study demonstrated that silencing the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene (an abundant and ubiquitously expressed housekeeping gene) in human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells by siRNA was effectively prevented by ONCONASE. While transfection of cells with GAPDH siRNA reduced expression of this protein by nearly 70 percent, the expression was restored in the cells exposed to ONCONASE for 48 or 72 hours. The data thus provide evidence that one of the targets of ONCONASE (ranpirnase) is siRNA.

"This data provide further evidence of the impact of ONCONASE on the RNAi mechanism," said Kuslima Shogen, Alfacell’s chief executive officer. "Furthermore, the data may provide the explanation for the preferential effectiveness of ONCONASE toward tumor cells as well as its ability to sensitize cells to other antitumor agents. As seen in our Phase III clinical trial results, ONCONASE has demonstrated significant efficacy in patients with malignant mesothelioma that failed prior chemotherapy."