General

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is progressive, but slow to develop — or at least to reveal itself. In a new study, published in the journal Biological Psychiatry, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues elsewhere, report that early, subtle differences in cognitive performance, such as fewer […]

Bioengineers are on the brink of developing artificial organisms that will open up new applications in medicine and industry. Beat Christen discusses their risks and benefits. Every living creature on earth has parents, grandparents, great-​grandparents and so on – representing an unbroken line of ancestry all the way back to […]

A type of fatty liver disease that commonly affects patients with HIV can be safely treated with vitamin E, a McGill-led study has found. Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a severe form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and is characterized by liver inflammation and cell damage. It is a potentially […]

Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Several previous studies have reported an increased risk of colorectal cancer in patients with Crohn's disease, but these studies are older and have often shown uncertain risk estimates. Now researchers from Karolinska Institutet, Örebro University and Aarhus University, Denmark, published the […]

Experts have been unable to explain why cells from bacteria to humans leak essential chemicals necessary for growth into their environment. New mathematical models reveal that leaking metabolites — substances involved in the chemical processes to sustain life with the production of complex molecules and energy — may provide cells […]

There are more than 100 different autoimmune diseases. But what unites them all is that they arise from an individual’s own cells – rare and mysterious immune cells that target not external viruses and bacteria but the body’s own healthy organs and tissues. For the first time, a team led […]

Biologists have discovered a way to stop cells from one of the most aggressive types of breast cancer spreading in the lab. The study points towards new avenues of research to combat the devastating disease. The results of the study of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer by the team from the Universities […]

After 12 million measurements, new drug targets emerge A study published Feb. 13 in Cell provides an unprecedented look at the dozens of molecular steps that occur to bring about endometrial cancer, commonly known as uterine cancer. The study offers insights about how physicians might be able to better identify […]

In the United States, the medical community has made great strides in preventing and controlling cervical cancer. Screening can effectively detect the disease in its earliest, pre-cancerous stages, while the HPV vaccine is highly effective at preventing cervical cancer. That combination has led to a 50% drop in cervical cancer […]

How to detect diseases at the earliest stages of development? This is the problem raised by most scientists and physicians, focusing on new biomarkers, such a microRNAs. Indeed, a growing number of publications link microRNA levels inside biological liquids to several diseases including some cancers. However, these microRNA molecules are […]

There is a growing consensus that the gut microbiome is involved in many aspects of physical and mental health, including the onset of Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, and even some behaviors. The microbiota of the small intestine, in particular, are likely to have important effects on human health because most nutrients and drugs […]

In the largest study of skin cancer rates among gay, lesbian or bisexual individuals, investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital report important differences in skin cancer prevalence among sexual minorities. Rates of skin cancer were higher among gay and bisexual men compared to heterosexual men but lower among bisexual women than heterosexual […]

A Caenorhabditis elegans worm squirms its way through a compost heap, sensory neurons in its nose helping it navigate oxygen and carbon dioxide cues as it searches for food. The lab of Harvard Medical School geneticist Max Heiman studies these neurons to illuminate nervous system development and uncover clues about how things go awry […]

Missing a single ophthalmology appointment over a two-year period was associated with decreased visual acuity for patients with macular degeneration — a leading cause of permanent vision loss in the elderly — according to a new Penn Medicine study. The findings, published in JAMA Ophthalmology, suggest that more attention should be […]

In trout, the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine’s J. Oriol Sunyer and colleagues discovered that a particular type of primitive antibody is essential for fighting microbes that cause disease while preserving others that make up a healthy microbiome. While many immunologists use mouse models to conduct their research, […]

Optimeos Life Sciences, a startup founded by two Princeton University faculty members, has reached agreements with six pharmaceutical companies to develop therapeutics using a Princeton-developed drug delivery technology. The collaborations have the potential to improve the effectiveness of medications for the treatment of diseases, ranging from cancer to diabetes. Optimeos, […]

A surprising discovery about a rare form of childhood brain cancer suggests a new treatment approach for that cancer – and potentially many others. Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have determined that the supposedly simple cancer, called medulloblastoma, forms an unexpectedly intricate network to drive its […]

Materials with special electric properties can help promote bone's natural healing processes. Some materials show promise promoting bone regeneration by enhancing its natural electrical properties, according to a review in the journal Science and Technology of Advanced Materials. Some solids, including bone, enamel and quartz, form an electric field when […]

Glioblastomas are relentless, hard-to-treat, and often lethal brain tumors. Yale scientists have enlisted a most unlikely ally in efforts to treat this form of cancer — elements of the Ebola virus. “The irony is that one of the world’s deadliest viruses may be useful in treating one of the deadliest […]

An international clinical trial evaluating whether two investigational drugs can slow memory loss and cognitive decline in people in the early stages of a rare, inherited form of Alzheimer’s disease has yielded disappointing results, an initial analysis of the data has shown. However, the researchers continue to explore data from […]

Like breathing or blinking, behaviors regulated by our circadian rhythms, such as digestion and sleep-wake cycles, go unnoticed by most people. But when circadian rhythms malfunction, the result can be any one of a broad range of serious, chronic disorders, from insomnia and depression to obesity, diabetes, and bipolar disorder. […]

Altering the gut microbiome might become a therapy for improving growth during infancy in cystic fibrosis patients. The composition of the gut microbiome may make a difference in height gain in infants with cystic fibrosis during their first year of life, according to a new study. Many babies with cystic […]

As the second-leading cause of death in the United States, cancer is a public health crisis that afflicts nearly one in two people during their lifetime. Cancer is also an oppressively complex disease. Hundreds of cancer types affecting more than 70 organs have been recorded in the nation’s cancer registries—databases […]

Our microbiomes — the complex communities of microbes that live in, on and around us — are influenced by our diets, habits, environments and genes, and are known to change with age. In turn, the makeup of our microbiomes, particularly in the gut, is well-recognized for its influence on our […]

Oxford University scientist have discovered the molecular ‘first responder’ which detects disturbances in the flow of blood through the arteries, and responds by encouraging the formation of plaques which can lead to serious problems, including heart attack, stroke and even death. The study, published in the journal Nature, found that mice […]

SC scientists have developed a new tool to peer more deeply and clearly into living things, a visual advantage that saves time and helps advance medical cures. It’s the sort of foundational science that can be used to develop better diagnostics and treatments, including detecting lung cancer or damage from […]

Researchers from the University of Toronto Engineering and Sunnybrook Hospital have developed a novel type of handheld 3D printer capable of depositing uniform sheets of skin to cover large burn wounds, while its “bio ink” has been shown to accelerate the healing process. Writing in the journal Biofrabrication, the researchers […]

A fungus that attacks almond and peach trees may be key to identifying new drug targets for cancer therapy. A team of Florida State University researchers from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry found that a natural product from the fungus Fusicoccum amygdali stabilizes a family of proteins in the […]

Most memories fade in a matter of days or weeks, while some persist for months, years, or even for life. What allows certain experiences to leave such a long-lasting imprint in our neural circuits? This is an age-old question in neurobiology that has never been resolved, but new evidence is […]

Rutgers biomedical engineers have developed a “bio-ink” for 3D printed materials that could serve as scaffolds for growing human tissues to repair or replace damaged ones in the body. The study was published in the journal Biointerphases. Bioengineered tissues show promise in regenerative, precision and personalized medicine; product development; and basic research, […]