General

Most living things have a suite of genes dedicated to repairing their DNA, limiting the rate at which their genomes change through time. But scientists at Vanderbilt University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered an ancient lineage of budding yeasts that appears to have accumulated a remarkably high load […]

By the time someone gets diagnosed with diabetes — in either of its forms — the insulin-making factory inside their body has ground to a halt, or at least a slow crawl. And in people with obesity, insulin supply often struggles to keep up with demand — especially if the […]

New research from the University of Missouri identifies potential therapies for metabolic disease associated with diet and exercise. Despite countless fad diets, both obesity and metabolic diseases continue to plague communities across the U.S. Now, researchers from the University of Missouri believe that the clue to treatment might be related to estrogen […]

Environmental conditions, lifestyle choices, chemical exposure, and foodborne and airborne pathogens are among the external factors that can cause disease. In contrast, internal genetic factors can be responsible for the onset and progression of diseases ranging from degenerative neurological disorders to some cancers. A team led by Ivaylo Ivanov of […]

Scientists have identified the first chemical compounds able to inhibit and regulate CRISPR systems, which could ultimately make CRISPR gene-editing technologies more precise, efficient, and safe. To identify these compounds, the researchers developed a new platform for rapidly finding small molecules that suppress CRISPR enzymes. Sometimes referred to as “anti-CRISPRs,” […]

Gastric cancer, Q fever, Legionnaires' disease, whooping cough—though the infectious bacteria that cause these dangerous diseases are each different, they all utilize the same molecular machinery to infect human cells. Bacteria use this machinery, called a Type IV secretion system (T4SS), to inject toxic molecules into cells and also to […]

The desire to own a dog is not a choice, it’s in your DNA, according to a new study involving researchers from the University of Liverpool. A team of Swedish and British scientists have studied the heritability of dog ownership using information from 35,035 twin pairs from the Swedish Twin […]

Your mother was right: Broccoli is good for you. Long associated with decreased risk of cancer, broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables—the family of plants that also includes cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, Brussels sprouts and kale—have now been found to contain a molecule that inactivates a gene known to play a […]

Instead of searching for a needle in a haystack, what if you were able to sweep the entire haystack to one side, leaving only the needle behind? That’s the strategy researchers in the University of Georgia College of Engineering followed in developing a new microfluidic device that separates elusive circulating tumor […]

A University of Bristol researcher who discovered that cooling babies who have suffered a lack of oxygen at birth improves their survival without brain damage in later childhood, is named by Universities UK as one of the ‘Nation’s Lifesavers’. One in 1,000 babies born at full term in the UK […]

As spring arrives in the northern hemisphere, many people are cursing ragweed, a primary culprit in seasonal allergies. But scientists might have discovered a promising new use for some substances produced by the pesky weed. In ACS’ Journal of Natural Products, researchers have identified and characterized ragweed compounds that could help […]

A new way to cleanly separate out cancer cells from a blood sample enables comprehensive genetic profiling of the cancer cells, which could help doctors target tumors and monitor treatments more effectively. It is a dramatic improvement over current approaches because it also encompasses the variation among cancer cells within […]

If a tumour is made up of cells with many different genomes, a single drug might not kill them all. A technique developed by a team of DTU researchers makes it possible to identify cancer cells on the genetic level—potentially paving the way for tailored and more effective treatments. “The […]

Ever cracked a joke about old people? It might seem funny, but in a world where the population aged 60 or over is growing faster than all younger age groups, ageism is no laughing matter, says a University of Alberta researcher. “Ageism is now thought to be the most common […]

Not all cells are destined for greatness. Deemed unfit to serve in the body, some are killed off during early development through a process called cell competition. This phenomenon has previously been documented in flies and is now turning out to occur in mammals as well. In a recent study, […]

University at Buffalo researchers have identified the first human-specific fusion gene—a hybrid of two genes—implicated in Alzheimer’s disease. The finding suggests that a neurotransmitter receptor, previously successful in animal studies but that failed in human trials for Alzheimer’s, might still turn out to be a valuable therapy. In a paper published in […]

Machine Learning Tool Automates Pathologists’ Work to Identify Disease Markers. Researchers at UC Davis and UC San Francisco have found a way to teach a computer to precisely detect one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease in human brain tissue, delivering a proof of concept for a machine-learning approach capable […]

A jawless parasitic fish could help lead the way to more effective treatments for multiple brain ailments, including cancer, trauma and stroke. One major challenge in treating cancers and other disorders of the brain is ensuring that medicines reach their targets. A team of biomedical engineers and clinician-scientists at the […]

The average Dane will gain a health benefit from substituting part of the red and processed meat in their diet with fish, according to calculations from the National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark. Men over 50 and women of childbearing age in particular would benefit from such a change […]

According to researchers at Yale Cancer Center, a cancer drug thought to be of limited use possesses a superpower of sorts: It is able to stop certain cancer cells from repairing their DNA in order to survive. The study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, suggests that combining this drug, cediranib, […]

In its role as a unique orbiting laboratory, the International Space Station provides a broad range of equipment for conducting health and life sciences research. However, the equipment available for cellular and molecular biology is limited compared to capabilities found in laboratories on Earth. To address this limitation, the Canadian […]

By studying a rare form of dementia, researchers might have found a way to detect neurodegeneration before brain cells are lost for good. Earlier detection could provide therapeutic drug treatments a chance to work. Scientists might have found an early detection method for some forms of dementia, according to new […]

By injecting cells that support blood vessel growth into muscles depleted by inactivity, researchers say they are able to help restore muscle mass lost as a result of immobility. The research, conducted in adult mice, involved injections of cells called pericytes (PERRY-sites), which are known to promote blood vessel growth […]

Babies exposed to opioids while their mothers were pregnant with them may need special care even before they start to experience withdrawal symptoms, according to Penn State research. Researchers from Penn State College of Medicine found that as soon as 24 and 48 hours after birth, babies who were exposed […]

The human gut microbiome is a complex microbial ecosystem that plays an important role in our health. For example, these microbes — bacteria, viruses, fungi — help regulate metabolism, fend off infections, produce essential vitamins and break down dietary fiber. They may also be biomarkers of health and disease. A […]

By the time type 1 diabetes is diagnosed, most of the insulin-producing beta cells have already been destroyed. Now, using an innovative transplantation technique, researchers at Karolinska Institutet and University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have been able to intervene to save the beta cells in mice by discovering […]

The same sources thought to inflict oxidative stress on cells—pollution, diesel exhaust, smoking and obesity—also are associated with shorter telomeres, the protective tips on the ends of the chromosomal shoelace. A new study from the University of Pittsburgh, published in Molecular Cell, provides the first smoking gun evidence that oxidative […]

Though much of the human genome has been sequenced and assembled, scientists have hit road blocks trying to map unassembled regions of DNA that consist mostly of repetitive sequences. One of these regions, found in every cell, is the centromere. Researchers from the University of Rochester, along with their colleagues […]

These days, scientists can collect a few skin or blood cells, wipe out their identities, and reprogram them to become virtually any other kind of cell in the human body, from neurons to heart cells.   The journey from skin cell to another type of functional cell involves converting them into induced pluripotent […]

Obesity is a growing problem among toddlers, children and adolescents in the United States. Gaining weight and fat mass rapidly during the first six months of life is one risk factor that can lead to obesity in children. A University of Minnesota School of Public Health study, recently published in the journal Nutrients, […]