Related Science News

September 29, 2020

Researchers uncover epigenetic drivers for Alzheimer’s disease

New findings suggest that late-onset Alzheimer’s Disease is driven by epigenetic changes—how and when certain genes are turned on and off—in the brain. Results were published in Nature Genetics. Research led by Raffaella Nativio, a former research associate of epigenetics, Shelley Berger, a professor of genetics, biology and cell and developmental diology and director […]
September 29, 2020

Women could conceive after ovarian tumours

Women receiving fertility-sparing surgery for treatment of borderline ovarian tumours were able to have children, a study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in Fertility & Sterility shows. Natural fertility was preserved in most of them and only a small proportion required assisted reproductive treatment such as in vitro fertilization. […]
September 29, 2020

Cancer's Hidden Vulnerabilities

One of the biggest challenges to the development of medical treatments for cancer is the fact that there is no single kind of cancer. Cancers derive from many kinds of cells and tissues, and each has their own characteristics, behaviours, and susceptibilities to anti-cancer drugs. A treatment that works on […]
September 28, 2020

Insomnia, sleeping less than six hours may increase risk of cognitive impairment

Middle-aged adults who report symptoms of insomnia and are sleeping less than six hours a night may be at increased risk of cognitive impairment, according to a study by Penn State College of Medicine researchers. The results may help health care professionals understand which patients who report insomnia are at […]
September 28, 2020

Team IDs gene that drives ovarian cancer

High-grade serious ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) is the fifth-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women in the United States, yet little is known about the origins of this disease. Now, scientists at the College of Veterinary Medicine have collaborated on a study that pinpoints which specific genes drive – or delay […]
September 28, 2020

Study tracks how milk nutrients shape infant microbiome

A new study in mice helps explain why gut microbiomes of breastfed infants can differ greatly from those of formula-fed infants. The study, “Dietary Sphinganine Is Selectively Assimilated by Members of the Mammalian Gut Microbiome,” was published in the Journal of Lipid Research. The paper describes an innovative technique developed […]
September 28, 2020

Study finds that high levels of a growth factor increases risk for several cancers

A study of almost 400,000 British participants has identified a new link between raised levels of the growth factor IGF-1 and increased thyroid cancer risk and has confirmed associations with breast, prostate and colorectal cancer. This could lead to new preventative strategies, including diet and lifestyle interventions. IGF-1 (insulin-like growth […]
September 28, 2020

Architecture of the heart different between women and men and with age

Differences in the shape and texture of men and women's hearts could potentially explain why their risk of heart disease differs, according to research funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF). The findings were presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress. Researchers at Queen Mary University of London, […]
September 28, 2020

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Heart Failure: Is There a Connection?

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, or HFpEF, occurs when the contraction of the heart muscle is able to pump blood normally and subsequently has a preserved ejection fraction, but the heart chambers are too stiff to relax and fill properly. In the United States, HFpEF numbers are on the […]
September 28, 2020

Aging and the costs that come with it

As a high school student, junior Darcey Hookway spent time volunteering on a dementia ward at a local hospital. “The social aspect of their condition really struck me,” says Hookway, who is from London. “They struggled immensely with social isolation. And now with COVID exacerbating that more than ever, I […]
September 28, 2020

Scientists trace severe COVID-19 to faulty genes and autoimmune condition

More than 10 per cent of people who develop severe COVID-19 have misguided antibodies that attack not the virus, but the immune system itself, new research shows. Another 3.5 per cent, at least, carry a specific kind of genetic mutation. In both groups, the upshot is basically the same: The […]
September 28, 2020

Grant facilitates research on behavioral development and cognitive aging over lifespan

The National Institute on Aging, or NIA, has awarded psychologists Chandra A. Reynolds of the University of California, Riverside, and Sally J. Wadsworth of the University of Colorado-Boulder a grant of more than $11 million to continue studying lifespan behavioural development and cognitive aging as individuals transition to mid-adulthood. In 2015, the researchers […]
September 28, 2020

UNH Receives $1.8 Million For Biomolecular Research in Diabetes and Cancer

The University of New Hampshire will receive $1.8 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that will further molecular research to better understand drug interactions at the cellular level and help lead to the development of new targeted drugs to treat wide-spread metabolic, growth, neurological and visual disorders including […]
September 27, 2020

The web of death

Scientists around David Ng, group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, are approaching cancer therapy from an entirely new angle – targeted and localized disruption of the cancer cells' structure in order to activate their self-destruction mechanism. In laboratory experiments, the researchers have already demonstrated initial successes. […]
September 27, 2020

Placenta is initiated first, as cells of a fertilised egg divide and specialise

The first stages of placental development take place days before the embryo starts to form in human pregnancies. This new finding highlights the importance of healthy placental development in pregnancy, and could lead to future improvements in fertility treatments such as IVF, and a better understanding of placental-related diseases in pregnancy. In […]
September 27, 2020

Common Class of Drugs Linked to Increased Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease

A team of scientists, led by researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, report that a class of drugs used for a broad array of conditions, from allergies and colds to hypertension and urinary incontinence, may be associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline, particularly in […]
September 27, 2020

Add human-genome produced RNA to the list of cell surface molecules

Bioengineers at UC San Diego have shown that human-genome produced RNA is present on the surface of human cells, suggesting a more expanded role for RNA in cell-to-cell and cell-to-environment interactions than previously thought. This new type of membrane-associated extracellular RNA (maxRNA) is found in human cells that are not […]
September 27, 2020

Exercise Improves Learning and Memory in Young Adults

Just a single exercise workout has positive effects on learning and memory in young adults, according to a recent review of published studies. The review, which is published in Translational Sports Medicine, included 13 relevant studies. The types of exercise that were studied involved walking, running, and bicycling in individuals […]
September 26, 2020

Sleep Apnea Linked with Higher Spine Fracture Risk Among Women

Emerging evidence suggests that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may negatively affect bone health. Results from a new study published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research now indicate that women with history of OSA may face a higher risk of spine, or vertebral, fractures. Using information from the Nurses’ […]
September 24, 2020

New technology causes body to fight cancer at full strength

One of the key mechanisms that cancer cells use to avoid being detected by the patient’s immune system is to build a micro-environment that inhibits immune system activity. Specifically, the cancer cells stimulate specific immune cells to directly stop their attack on the cancer cells. Thus, in a very large […]
September 24, 2020

Ultra-Low-Cost Hearing Aid Could Address Age-Related Hearing Loss Worldwide

Using a device that could be built with a dollar’s worth of open-source parts and a 3D-printed case, researchers want to help the hundreds of millions of older people worldwide who can’t afford existing hearing aids to address their age-related hearing loss. The ultra-low-cost, proof-of-concept device known as LoCHAid is […]
September 24, 2020

Using AI/IoT and robotics for ultra-early diagnosis and rehabilitation in Parkinson's disease – Research video

Parkinson's disease is a disease where motor function is impaired due to the degeneration of nerve cells. At Tokyo Tech, researchers in materials science, ultra-sensitivity sensing, measurement, diagnosis, and rehabilitation are collaborating to develop ways of detecting Parkinson's disease and support rehabilitation. Two innovations showing particular promise are a measurement […]
September 23, 2020

Parkinson's disease is not one, but two diseases

Researchers around the world have been puzzled by the different symptoms and varied disease pathways of Parkinson’s patients. A major study from Aarhus University has now identified that there are actually two types of the disease. Although the name may suggest otherwise, Parkinson's disease is not one but two diseases, […]
September 23, 2020

New vaccine strategy harnesses ‘foot soldier’ T-cells to provide protection against influenza

As Americans begin pulling up their sleeves for an annual flu vaccine, researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison have provided new insights into an alternative vaccine approach that provides broader protection against seasonal influenza. In a study published in Cell Reports Medicine, scientists describe a T-cell-based vaccine strategy that is effective […]
September 23, 2020

First immune-evading cells created to treat type 1 diabetes

Salk researchers develop transplantable human cells that make insulin, controlling blood sugar without immunosuppressants in mouse models Salk Institute scientists have made a major advance in the pursuit of a safe and effective treatment for type 1 diabetes, an illness that impacts an estimated 1.6 million Americans with a cost […]
September 23, 2020

New Insights into How the Drug Pomalidomide Fights Cancer

Scientists from the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo Medical University, and Saitama Medical University have published findings that offer insights into how the drug pomalidomide benefits some patients with a cancer called multiple myeloma. Clinicians use pomalidomide to treat cases of multiple myeloma resistant to the more established drug lenalidomide, […]
September 22, 2020

Repulsion mechanism between neurons governs fly brain structure

Researchers at Kanazawa University report in Nature Communications the discovery that in the developing fly brain, neurons stemming from the same parent cell experience repulsion. This lineage-dependent repulsion is regulated by a protein known as Dscam1. The brain’s structure has columnar features, which are hypothesized to arise from nerve cells […]
September 22, 2020

SMART researchers develop fast and efficient method to produce red blood cells

Researchers from Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), MIT’s research enterprise in Singapore, have discovered a new way to manufacture human red blood cells (RBCs) that cuts the culture time by half compared to existing methods and uses novel sorting and purification methods that are faster, more precise, and less costly. […]