Related Science News

March 4, 2019

Icefish genome may offer insights into age-related health issues

White-blooded Antarctic icefishes live with anemia, oversized hearts and low bone mineral density, traits that in people would normally signal disease. These adaptations, however, help the fish survive in cold water and may offer a window on human aging, says a UO biologist. That potential human health payoff comes with […]
March 4, 2019

Researchers ‘Bait’ Proteins Behind Neurodegeneration

A single misbehaving protein – called TDP-43 – is behind 97 percent of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cases and 45 percent of frontotemporal dementia diagnoses. It also is found in 80 percent of chronic traumatic encephalopathy and 60 percent of Alzheimer’s disease cases. Now, University of Pittsburgh researchers have found a way […]
March 4, 2019

Embryos’ signaling proteins go with the flow

Rice University scientists say context rules dynamic mechanisms that turn cells into tissues. How cells in developing embryos communicate depends a great deal on context, according to scientists at Rice University. They found that a protein signaling pathway known as WNT and its interactions are far more dynamic than once thought as the response […]
March 4, 2019

New biomaterial could improve bone grafting

A new biomaterial-based bone graft extender created by Vanderbilt and U.S. Army researchers has the potential to improve treatment of critical orthopedic conditions. While a graft using a patient’s own bone  – typically from the pelvis or femur – for re-implantation is considered the standard technique to repair, replace or […]
March 2, 2019

Drinking during pregnancy leads to mental illness in children

Drinking is not good for your body and health and you know it. Everyone knows it at this point. However, it can also affect other person’s body as well. A team of scientists led by the University of Bristol found that women who drink during pregnancy put their children in […]
March 2, 2019

When kidney failure starts at the heart

OHSU, PNNL collaboration pinpoints protein in blood linked to compromised kidney function One of the most common and deadly complications from a heart attack is kidney failure. New research indicates that a specific protein in the bloodstream created after cardiac arrest may be the culprit. Led by Oregon Health & […]
March 1, 2019

Brain Protein Crucial to Stroke Recovery Identified

Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States suffers a stroke and available therapies, such as clot busting drugs or clot removal devices, are focused on limiting the extent of brain damage. Now, research from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System shows that a brain protein called […]
March 1, 2019

Pesticide Exposure Contributes to Faster ALS Progression

A new study helps determine the role of pesticides and pollutants during the course of the progressive neurodegenerative disease that has no cure. While exact causes of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) remain unknown, new research shows pesticides and other environmental pollutants advance the progression of the neurodegenerative disease. The latest study […]
March 1, 2019

Older biologic age linked to elevated breast cancer risk

Biologic age, a DNA-based estimate of a person’s age, is associated with future development of breast cancer, according to scientists at the National Institutes of Health. Biologic age was determined by measuring DNA methylation, a chemical modification to DNA that is part of the normal aging process. The study showed […]
March 1, 2019

Watching TV leads to a decline in memory in people over 50

There is nothing we value more than our mind. We want to be smart and we want to surround ourselves with smart people. We would do anything to make our minds healthy, but there are certain things that do not help our cognitive function and memory. Scientists from UCL found […]
February 28, 2019

Better together: Mitochondrial fusion supports cell division

Mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cell. And for mitochondria, much like for double-header engines stacked together in a steam train, working in multiples has its benefits. New research from Washington University in St. Louis shows that when cells divide rapidly, their mitochondria are fused together. In this configuration, the […]
February 28, 2019

A Single Dose of a PD-1 Inhibitor Before Surgery Predicts Outcomes in Melanoma Patients

A single dose of a PD-1 inhibitor before surgery for melanoma can put patients in remission. Researchers from the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, who documented this finding in the largest cohort of patients to be treated with anti-PD-1 drugs before surgery, also showed that immune responses brought […]
February 28, 2019

Using anti-cancer immunotherapy to fight HIV

Researchers at the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM) have shown that immunotherapy treatments against cancer could reduce the amount of virus that persists in people on triple therapy. In a study published in the journal Nature Communications, they show, in the cells of people living with HIV, how these therapies reveal […]
February 28, 2019

Radiation-resistant E. coli evolved in the lab give view into DNA repair

Scientists in the University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Biochemistry are watching evolution happen in real time. In a recent study published online in the Journal of Bacteriology, biochemistry professor Michael Cox and his team describe blasting E. coli bacteria with ionizing radiation once a week, causing the bacteria to become radiation resistant. In doing so, they […]
February 28, 2019

Do risk assessments of endocrine disruptors provide sufficient protection?

Both in Denmark and internationally, there is political agreement on the need to minimize the exposure of people and the environment to endocrine disruptors. In order to legislate in a way that protects both humans and the environment, it is crucial for lawmakers to know what dose is safe. Risk […]
February 28, 2019

New clue for cancer treatment could be hiding in microscopic molecular machine

Buried deep within the dazzlingly intricate machinery of the human cell could lie a key to treating a range of deadly cancers, according to a team of scientists at Florida State University. In a new study, researchers discovered a critical missing step in the production of proteasomes — tiny structures […]
February 28, 2019

Why people with Laron dwarfism are pretty much immune to diabetes and cancer?

There are certain diseases that are so difficult to treat that you definitely would want to have an immunity from them. Like cancer or type 2 diabetes. However, most of us are not protected from these conditions. Except people with a certain type of dwarfism. Now scientists from University of […]
February 27, 2019

Genetic targets for AMD offer the opportunity for new treatments

Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is the third cause of visual impairment worldwide and the leading cause of blindness in higher income countries with aging populations. It is estimated that by 2020 196 million people will suffer AMD. Several years ago, treatment of AMD had a breakthrough with the application […]
February 27, 2019

Oxygen-tracking method could improve diabetes treatment

Transplanting pancreatic islet cells into patients with diabetes is a promising alternative to the daily insulin injections that many of these patients now require. These cells could act as a bioartificial pancreas, monitoring blood glucose levels and secreting insulin when needed. For this kind of transplantation to be successful, scientists need […]
February 27, 2019

Long-term benefits from intensive therapy in early stages of MS

New findings by researchers at Cardiff University suggest that intensive therapy during the early stages of multiple sclerosis (MS) leads to better long-term outcomes for patients, despite it often being viewed as a riskier option than other first line treatments. Dr Emma Tallantyre, from Cardiff University’s Division of Psychological Medicine […]
February 27, 2019

Improved outlook for people of African descent with treatment-resistant schizophrenia

A study led by researchers at Cardiff University means that more people of African descent who have treatment-resistant schizophrenia could be safely given the drug best proven to manage their symptoms. The team identified a genetic and benign cause in people of African descent for lower neutrophil levels: a condition […]
February 27, 2019

Newly identified drug targets could open door for esophageal cancer therapeutics

Blocking two molecular pathways that send signals inside cancer cells could stave off esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), the most common esophageal malignancy in the United States, according to new research from a team led by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. The group identified the pathways using advanced computational and […]
February 27, 2019

New skeletal disease found and explained

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered a new and rare skeletal disease. In a study published in the journal Nature Medicine they describe the molecular mechanism of the disease, in which small RNA molecules play a role that has never before been observed in a congenital human disease. The results […]
February 27, 2019

Pioneering trial offers hope for restoring brain cells damaged in Parkinson's

Results from a pioneering clinical trials programme that delivered an experimental treatment directly to the brain offer hope that it may be possible to restore the cells damaged in Parkinson's. The multimillion-pound study, funded by Parkinson's UK with support from The Cure Parkinson's Trust and in association with the North […]
February 26, 2019

UVA discovers secret to making immune cells better cancer killers

Scientists at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have discovered a defect in immune cells known as “killer T cells” that explains their inability to destroy cancer tumors. The researchers believe that repairing this defect could make the cells much better cancer killers. Further, they predict their discovery could be used […]
February 26, 2019

Yale researchers develop modular approach to engineering immune cells

Yale researchers have developed a new way to efficiently engineer immune cells, an advance which enhances the ability to fend off cancer and other diseases, they report in the issue of the journal Nature Methods. A number of new life-saving therapies rely on reconfiguring human immune cells to act as living […]
February 26, 2019

Scientists tackle rare retinal disease in unique research project

Researchers at the Lions Eye Institute (LEI) and The University of Western Australia have pioneered a study of the world’s first and only laboratory model of a rare type of retinal disease, paving the way for new treatment pathways. Cone dystrophy with supernormal rod response (CDSRR) is an inherited disease […]
February 26, 2019

Researchers discover why Laron dwarfs don’t get diabetes

University of Queensland researchers have discovered a hidden metabolic advantage that prevents people with a specific type of dwarfism from developing type 2 diabetes or cancer. UQ Diamantina Institute researcher Dr Yash Chhabra said the findings could pave the way for new diabetes treatments for all. “We set out to understand why, unlike most […]
February 26, 2019

Novel 5-minute workout improves blood pressure, may boost your brain

A five-minute workout called Inspiratory Muscle Strength Training (IMST) has been shown to lower blood pressure as much as aerobic exercise and more than some medications. Participants breathe in vigorously 30 times, five days a week, through a device that provides resistance. Preliminary findings suggest it may also boost cognitive […]