General

A new method for monitoring interactions between cells, dubbed LIPSTIC by its creators, is much more than a cosmetic improvement over existing techniques. The breakthrough, led by The Rockefeller University assistant professor Gabriel Victora, offers scientists in a wide range of disciplines a powerful new tool for studying complex biological events […]

UC San Francisco scientists have invented a technique that lets them precisely and reversibly disrupt the action of specific cellular proteins at a microscopic scale by making them split apart when illuminated with blue light. The researchers envision a vast number of applications for the technique in the study of […]

Neurologist and neuroscientist Dena Dubal, MD, PhD, is taking an innovative approach to battling neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Rather than trying to understand the specific mechanisms that cause each disease, she took a step back and asked, “What do all these conditions have in common?” The answer: old […]

Researchers at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute (VTCRI) are partnering with INSIGHTEC to develop noninvasive treatments for brain disorders using Exablate Neuro focused ultrasound and Siemens MR imaging. Through this collaboration, the institute became INSIGHTEC's first nonclinical research site. “There is considerable basic research to be done in order to develop […]

A recent Penn State College of Medicine physician’s study review suggests that shorter courses of radiation are preferable to longer ones for older patients receiving treatment for slow-growing skin cancers. Skin basal and squamous cell cancers are common among patients over 60 years old and are rarely fatal. These cancers — which […]

Growing old is not easy. Your mental health is likely to suffer too just because you have to notice your body fall apart. Furthermore, you become excluded from the normal social life and it can be very painful. However, now scientists say that 85 year old women are actually happier […]

Sleep apnoea is a bizarre condition when people stop breathing when sleeping or their breathing becomes really shallow. It can get so bad that people experience hypoxia, cannot get a good night sleep and sometimes have to get treatment. Now scientists from the University of Queensland found that low levels […]

A team of researchers at the University of Georgia has developed a non-invasive method of delivering drugs directly to cancerous tissue using magnetic forces, a form of treatment that could significantly reduce the toxic side effects of chemotherapy. “We showed that we can deliver anti-cancer drugs exactly in the area […]

University of California, Irvine scientists have created a new chemical tool that can analyze RNA structures within living cells. The technique could facilitate a better grasp of how RNA structures fold and form in cells, as well as help in the design of drugs targeting RNA. Robert Spitale, assistant professor […]

Inadequate oxygen levels during sleep can damage the brain and increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, University of Queensland researchers have found. Scientists from UQ’s Queensland Brain Institute and School of Biomedical Sciences are now initiating a clinical study of patients with sleep apnoea to determine whether treatment lowers the risk of developing […]

We live in a strange world. Everyone is ageing and it is accepted, but somehow older people find themselves excluded from the society.  So much so that World Health Organization is promoting programmes that encourage age-friendly environments. Now scientists from Newcastle and Liverpool universities conducted a research to evaluate effectiveness […]

Taking five or more prescription medications increases the risk of hospitalization and death in older adults infected with HIV and comparable adults without HIV. The findings of this Yale-led study highlight the potential risks of prescribing additional drugs to patients with multiple medical conditions. The research was published online in the […]

Scientists from the University of Zurich have redesigned an adenovirus for use in cancer therapy. To achieve this they developed a new protein shield that hides the virus and protects it from being eliminated. Adapters on the surface of the virus enable the reconstructed virus to specifically infect tumor cells. […]

A new anti-cancer strategy wields light as a precision weapon. Unlike traditional light therapy — which is limited to the skin and areas accessible with an endoscope — this technique can target and attack cancer cells that have spread deep inside the body, according to researchers at Washington University School […]

The European Cancer Stem Cell Research Institute, based with Cardiff University, has repurposed a current cancer therapy, TRAIL, to find a new treatment for advanced cancers that are resistant to anti-hormone therapy. Up to 75% of women diagnosed with breast cancer will have a cancer driven by oestrogen signalling and […]

Recent studies indicate that infants born prematurely have a higher risk of developing heart disease later in life. Now, researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle have shown that, in preterm animal models, inflammation due to infection can disrupt the activity of genes crucial for normal […]

Wound healing process is something we all are familiar with. The wound fills up with blood, which coagulates and seals it. Then new cells have to rebuild what was lost. However, there are many various cells in our skin and their relation in wound healing process is only partially understood. […]

A new study on the mechanics of aging and longevity finds that fruit flies inhibited from producing the protein Sirt4 — which is also found in humans — are short-lived, while flies modified to make extra Sirt4 are long-lived. In addition, flies lacking Sirt4 display increased sensitivity to starvation, decreased fertility […]

Researchers from the University’s Institute of Translational Medicine have found an explanation for how breast cancer spreads to the lungs, which could potentially hold the key to preventing the progression of the disease. Breast cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death in women due to metastasis (the spread of a cancer […]

Cancer researchers have made great strides in developing targeted therapies that treat the specific genetic mutations underlying a patient's cancer. However, many of the most common cancer-causing genes are so central to cellular function throughout the body that they are essentially 'undruggable'. Now, researchers at UC San Francisco have found […]

Researchers at Oregon State University have taken an important step toward a more convenient, less expensive means of preserving mammalian cells for in vitro fertilization, species conservation, cell therapy and other purposes. The method is desiccation – removing water from cells – and shows promise as an alternative to cryopreservation […]

Hard to detect in its early stages, and hard to treat as it advances, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality around the world, with an estimated 1.6 million deaths each year. New treatments, however, are bettering the odds for people with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which […]

More than 400,000 Canadians aged 65 and over live with diagnosed dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, which accounts for approximately 70 percent of cases. The cause of this degenerative brain disease is largely unknown and no effective treatment exists. The disease has a devastating effect on individuals and their families. To […]

The molecular mechanisms enabling plants to quickly adapt their rate of flower production in response to changing nutrient levels in soil have been revealed by researchers at the Sainsbury Laboratory. A team of plant scientists examined the processes through which plants are able to pass on information about the external […]

On the hunt for genes involved in regenerating critical nerve fibers called axons, biologists at the University of California San Diego came away with a surprise: The discovery of a new genetic pathway that carries hope for victims of traumatic injuries—from stroke to spinal cord damage. UC San Diego Biological […]

The study, led by Dr Gunnel Halldén and funded by the charity Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund, suggests that the new technique could potentially become a promising new treatment for patients with the aggressive disease, and could be combined with existing chemotherapy to improve chances of survival. First author Dr Stella Man […]

The planarian flatworm Schmidtea mediterranea is an extraordinary animal. Even when cut into tiny pieces, each piece can regenerate back into a complete and perfectly proportioned miniature planarian. Key to this ability are fascinating adult stem cells, a single one of which can restore a complete worm. But how Schmidtea mediterranea achieves these feats […]

A team of researchers led by scientists in Vienna, Dresden and Heidelberg has decoded the entire genetic information of the Mexican salamander axolotl. The axolotl genome, which is the largest genome ever to be sequenced, will be a powerful tool to study the molecular basis for regrowing limbs and other […]

The oncogene RAS is the most frequently mutated gene of its type in human cancer. Active mutants are found in 60 to 90 percent of cases of pancreatic cancer, and a significant portion of colorectal and lung cancers. Among all RAS-driven cancers, the most frequently mutated gene is KRAS. Two […]

Working with mouse tissue, the research team discovered that fluid pressure felt by embryonic lungs helps control the rate of development of the organ. This pressure coordinates the contraction of the smooth muscles girding the airways, which in turn spurs the sprouting of new branches throughout the fledgling lung. The […]