Recent Serendipitous Articles

In Search of Proteins That Are Important for Synaptic Functions in Drosophila Visual System.

J Neurogenet. 2012 Jan 27;

Authors: Kim E, Shino S, Yoon J, Leung HT

Abstract
Abstract: This is the second of two reviews that include some of the studies we, members of the Pak laboratory and collaborators, did from 2000 to 2010 on the mutants that affect synaptic transmission in the Drosophila visual system. Of the five mutants we discuss, two turned out to also play roles in the larval neuromuscular junction. This review complements the one on phototransduction to give a fairly complete account of what we focused on during the 10-year period, although we also did some studies on photoreceptor degeneration in the early part of the decade. Besides showing the power of using a genetic approach to the study of synaptic transmission, the review contains some unexpected results that illustrate the serendipitous nature of research.

PMID: 22283835 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Ferruccio Ritossa's scientific legacy 50 years after his discovery of the heat shock response: a new view of biology, a new society, and a new journal.

Cell Stress Chaperones. 2012 Jan 18;

Authors: De Maio A, Santoro MG, Tanguay RM, Hightower LE

Abstract
The pioneering discovery of the heat shock response by the Italian scientist Ferruccio Ritossa reached maturity this year, 2012. It was 50 years ago that Professor Ritossa, through an extraordinary combination of serendipity, curiosity, knowledge and inspiration, published the first observation that cells could mount very strong transcriptional activity when exposed to elevated temperatures, which was coined the heat shock response. This discovery led to the identification of heat shock proteins, which impact many areas of current biology and medicine, and has created a new avenue for more exciting discoveries. In recognition of the discovery of the heat shock response, Cell Stress Society International (CSSI) awarded Professor Ritossa with the CSSI medallion in October 2010 in Dozza, Italy. This article is based on a session of the Fifth CSSI Congress held in Québec commemorating Professor Ritossa and his discovery.

PMID: 22252402 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Serendipity in anticancer drug discovery.

World J Clin Oncol. 2012 Jan 10;3(1):1-6

Authors: Hargrave-Thomas E, Yu B, Reynisson J

Abstract
It was found that the discovery of 5.8% (84/1437) of all drugs on the market involved serendipity. Of these drugs, 31 (2.2%) were discovered following an incident in the laboratory and 53 (3.7%) were discovered in a clinical setting. In addition, 263 (18.3%) of the pharmaceuticals in clinical use today are chemical derivatives of the drugs discovered with the aid of serendipity. Therefore, in total, 24.1% (347/1437) of marketed drugs can be directly traced to serendipitous events confirming the importance of this elusive phenomenon. In the case of anticancer drugs, 35.2% (31/88) can be attributed to a serendipitous event, which is somewhat larger than for all drugs. The therapeutic field that has benefited the most from serendipity are central nervous system active drugs reflecting the difficulty in designing compounds to pass the blood-brain-barrier and the lack of laboratory-based assays for many of the diseases of the mind.

PMID: 22247822 [PubMed - in process]

The discovery and development of belimumab: the anti-BLyS-lupus connection.

Nat Biotechnol. 2012;30(1):69-77

Authors: Stohl W, Hilbert DM

Abstract
For the first time in more than 50 years, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved a drug specifically for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This drug, belimumab (Benlysta), is a human monoclonal antibody that neutralizes the B-cell survival factor, B-lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS). The approval of belimumab combined a pioneering approach to genomics-based gene discovery, an astute appreciation of translational medicine, a disciplined clinical strategy, a willingness to take calculated risks, a devoted cadre of patients and physicians and a healthy dose of serendipity. Collectively, these efforts have provided a model for the development of a new generation of drugs to treat the broad manifestations of SLE. However, as a substantial percentage of SLE patients do not respond to belimumab, further research is needed to better characterize the pathogenetic mechanisms of SLE, identify additional therapeutic targets, and develop effective and nontoxic novel agents against these targets.

PMID: 22231104 [PubMed - in process]

Serendipity, the humble case report and modern health science challenges.

Middle East Afr J Ophthalmol. 2011 Oct;18(4):303-4

Authors: Meyer D

PMID: 22224019 [PubMed - in process]

Catastrophic floods may pave the way for increased genetic diversity in endemic artesian spring snail populations.

PLoS One. 2011;6(12):e28645

Authors: Worthington Wilmer J, Murray L, Elkin C, Wilcox C, Niejalke D, Possingham H

Abstract
The role of disturbance in the promotion of biological heterogeneity is widely recognised and occurs at a variety of ecological and evolutionary scales. However, within species, the impact of disturbances that decimate populations are neither predicted nor known to result in conditions that promote genetic diversity. Directly examining the population genetic consequences of catastrophic disturbances however, is rarely possible, as it requires both longitudinal genetic data sets and serendipitous timing. Our long-term study of the endemic aquatic invertebrates of the artesian spring ecosystem of arid central Australia has presented such an opportunity. Here we show a catastrophic flood event, which caused a near total population crash in an aquatic snail species (Fonscochlea accepta) endemic to this ecosystem, may have led to enhanced levels of within species genetic diversity. Analyses of individuals sampled and genotyped from the same springs sampled both pre (1988-1990) and post (1995, 2002-2006) a devastating flood event in 1992, revealed significantly higher allelic richness, reduced temporal population structuring and greater effective population sizes in nearly all post flood populations. Our results suggest that the response of individual species to disturbance and severe population bottlenecks is likely to be highly idiosyncratic and may depend on both their ecology (whether they are resilient or resistant to disturbance) and the stability of the environmental conditions (i.e. frequency and intensity of disturbances) in which they have evolved.

PMID: 22205959 [PubMed - in process]