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The inventors have isolated and characterized an alkaloid, phantasmidine, from the skin of the Ecuadoran poison frog E. anthonyi. Phantasmidine is selective for beta4-containing receptor subtypes, unlike many nicotinic receptor agonists currently in development, which target beta2-containing receptor subtypes.

The global market for cancer therapeutics is over $40 billion and is anticipated to continue to rise in the future. There remains a significant unmet need for therapeutics for cancers that affect blood, bone marrow, and lymph nodes and the immune system, such as leukemia, multiple myeloma, and lymphoma. The proteasome inhibitor bortezomib, which may prevent degradation of pro-apoptotic factors permitting activation of programmed cell death in neoplastic cells dependent upon suppression of pro-apoptotic pathways, has been a successful mode of treatment for such cancers.

Researchers at NIDDK have developed polyclonal antibodies against the Regulator of G Protein Signalling (RGS) protein, RGS7. RGS7 binds tightly to Gbeta5, a unique and highly specialized G protein that exhibits much less homology than other Gbeta isoforms (~50%). RGS7 is preferentially expressed in brain and neuroendocrine tissue. Like Gbeta5, RGS7 is expressed prominently in the cell membrane, as well as in the cytosol.

Scientists at NIDDK have developed a fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (Fgfr1) conditional knock out mouse. Fgfr1 is a member of the Fgfr family of transmembrane protein receptors with intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. Fgfr1 is important in multiple biological processes, including mesoderm induction and patterning, cell growth and migration, organ formation and bone growth. Fgfr1 is highly expressed in central nervous system tissues and plays a critical role in proliferation, migration, and survival of neurons and glial cells.

Attempts to manage body weight are often unsuccessful or only temporary. This is, in part, due to antiquated dieting methods that attempt to address calorie consumption while ignoring metabolic and physical changes. Personalized and more comprehensive methods to track and manage body weight may be more effective.

mEpoR-/- hEpoR+: The mouse Erythropoietin Receptor knockout that contains a human Erythropoietin Receptor transgene can be used to define the potency of recombinant erythropoietin preparations used to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease.

Cre-recombinase under the control of mouse mammary tumor virus long terminal repeat (MMTV) was expressed in the salivary gland and mammary epithelial cells of adult mice, and induced recombination in all tissues.

M5 muscarinic receptor knockout: Deficiency of M5Rs reduces drug-seeking behavior.

The five Muscarinic Acetylcholine (ACh) receptors are G-protein coupled receptors (M1R-M5R). M1R, M3R and M5R selectively couple to Gq/G11; M2R and M4R selectively couple to Gi/Go. M5R knockout mice are viable and fertile, and have no major morphological abnormalities.

Conditional knockout of Stat5a and Stat5b: Combined deletion of conserved Stat5a and Stat5b in mammary epithelium at different times during pregnancy reveal multiple distinct functions.

Generation of a floxed Gnsa gene for the G-protein Gs alpha (G_salpha) for the construction of conditional knockout mice. The heterotrimeric G protein G_salpha couples many receptors to adenylyl cyclase and is essential for hormone-stimulated cAMP generation. Previous mouse models with germ-line mutations in Gnas, the gene that encodes G_salpha had limited usefulness in trying to decipher the role of G_salpha pathways in specific tissues since only heterozygotes were viable and could be analyzed.