Protein translation, 2008

The important role that regulation of protein translation plays in determining longevity in invertebrate organisms became widely appreciated in 2007, with the publication of several papers discussed in last year's review. During 2008, several studies have further strengthened the idea that regulation of translation is one component of a highly evolutionarily conserved pathway that modifies longevity. Importantly, studies published this year also began to provide insights into specific mechanisms by which altered mRNA translation does (and in some cases does not) slow aging in invertebrate model organisms.     

4th European Antibody Congress 2008: December 1-3, 2008, Geneva,Switzerland

The Fourth European Antibody meeting, organized by Terrapin Ltd, was held in Geneva, a center of the European biopharmaceutical industry. Merck-Serono, NovImmune, Pierre Fabre, and Therapeomic are located nearby, as are R&D centers of Boehringer-Ingelheim, Novartis, Roche and Sanofi-Aventis. Over 40 speakers and more than 200 delegates attended the event. Companies represented included Abbott, Ablynx, Adnexus/ BMS, Astra-Zeneca/ CAT/ Medimmune, BiogenIdec, BioRad, Centocor (Johnson & Johnson), Crucell/ DSM, Domantis, Dyax, Genmab, Genzyme, Glycart/ Roche, Haptogen, Immunogen, Kyowa-Kirin, LFB, Medarex, Merck-Serono, Micromet, Novartis, Pierre Fabre Laboratories, Roche, Sanofi-Aventis, Seattle-Genetics, Transgene, UCB Celltech, and Wyeth. Other attendees included those based in academe or government (University of Amsterdam, University of Zurich, Univeristy Hospital-Lyon, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, INSERM, Tufts University, US National Institutes of Health), consultants, and patent attorneys (Edwards, Angell, Palmer & Dodge). The meeting was very interactive, and included exchanges during the many scheduled networking times (exhibitions, speed-networking, lunches, and evening receptions). The first day of the 3-day conference was dedicated to advances in understanding antibody structure-function relationships. Challenges and opportunities in antibody development were the focus of the second day, and the third day featured discussion of innovative antibodies and antibody alternatives.     

Aging and cancer cell biology, 2008

There is increasing support for the idea that aging and cancer are intimately connected by the activity of specific genes and the cellular responses to potentially oncogenic insults. This Hot Topics review discusses some recently published articles that shed light on both the commonalities--and intricacies--of the cancer-aging relationship. These articles reveal the expected complexities, but also surprising conservation, in mechanisms that link cancer and aging.