We often hear the science corrects itself in the long run, but how efficient is this mechanism? Jonathan Jarry reports that reproducibility in the scientific literature is not always a given. (Des sous-titres en français seront bientôt disponibles!) Just so you are not too demoralized, the landscape may be changing: http://www.nature.com/news/journals-u… http://www.nature.com/news/metascienc… Continue reading
Oncogene: a gene whose regular function is to promote the division of a cell. When the expression of this gene is increased, the cell divides much more than it should, which can lead to cancer. A useful analogy is that of a car. When the expression of an oncogene is disrupted, it can be like … Continue reading
Tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI): a drug which blocks the action of a type of protein called a “tyrosine kinase”, which can otherwise be stuck in the “on” position in certain types of cancers. An overactive tyrosine kinase can lead to uncontrolled cell growth (i.e. cancer); a TKI can be used to reduce this undesired activity. … Continue reading
A word you may keep on reading if you are a cancer patient interested in what new anticancer drugs do is “protein”. We’ve all heard of proteins in a nutritional context: we know, for example, that eating meat and legumes will greatly increase our intake of proteins, and that proteins are necessary to build muscles. … Continue reading
Cracked Science 