Taste Receptors Discovered In Pancreatic Beta Cells Can Sense Fructose And Stimulate Insulin Secretion
Taste receptors on the tongue help us distinguish between safe food and food that's spoiled or toxic. But taste receptors are now being found in other organs, too. In a study published online the week of February 6 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) discovered that beta cells in the pancreas use taste receptors to sense fructose, a type of sugar. According to the study, the beta cells respond to fructose by secreting insulin, a hormone that regulates the body's response to dietary sugar...

Breast Cancer Drug Exemestane Causes Substantial Bone Loss
A recent study published in The Lancet Oncology shows how exemestane (Aromasin), a drug that prevents the development of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, may significantly worsen age-related bone loss. As an aromatase inhibitor, exemestane works by blocking the synthesis of estrogen, slowing down the growth of cancers that have estrogen receptors. Whilst the drug is effective at preventing the development of cancer, there has been an increasing concern about its effects on bone density and fracture risk...

New Prostate Cancer Drug Target Identified
Research led by Wanguo Liu, PhD, Associate Professor of Genetics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, has identified a new protein critical to the development and growth of prostate cancer. The findings are published online in the Early Edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, available the week of February 6, 2012. Dr. Liu and his team discovered a protein called ARD1 which is involved with the male hormone, androgen, and its receptor. Prostate cancer is a hormone-regulated disease and the main hormone is androgen...