Related Science News

November 29, 2018

Surprising discovery about neurons, our irreplaceable nerve cells

Meticulous new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine has changed a well-accepted scientific belief about neurons, the vital nerve cells that allow us to experience the world and record those experiences as memories in our brains. UVA’s new discovery reveals that these unique cells recycle and dispose […]
November 28, 2018

Cancer Researchers ID ‘Achilles Heel’ of Drug-Resistant Tumors

UC San Francisco scientists have figured out why some lung cancers become drug-resistant after initially responding to targeted therapies. In the process, they devised a new two-pronged approach that yields an effective treatment for these cancers in the laboratory and holds tremendous promise for the future of precision medicine, they […]
November 28, 2018

Discovery opens new opportunities to slow or reverse MS

Nerve cells stripped of their insulation can no longer carry vital information, leading to the numbness, weakness and vision problems often associated with multiple sclerosis. A new study shows an overlooked source may be able to replace that lost insulation and provide a new way to treat diseases like MS. […]
November 28, 2018

New biomedical gel could ease pain in cervical cancer treatment

A unique partnership between a Virginia Tech scientist and a University of Virginia oncologist could result in a solution to reduce discomfort during cancer treatment for women. Tim Long, a professor of chemistry with the Virginia Tech College of Science, and Tim Showalter, a radiation oncologist at UVA’s Cancer Center, are testing […]
November 28, 2018

Keeping aging brains healthy: lessons from genes

Do any genes protect against Alzheimer’s disease? And do any predispose a person to its ravages? The answer is yes to both, according to work led by U of M researcher Lisa James. Along with colleagues at the U of M and the Minneapolis VA Health Care System, James is […]
November 27, 2018

Study in mice suggests drug to turn fat ‘brown’ could help fight obesity

Our bodies contain two types of fat: white fat and brown fat. While white fat stores calories, brown fat burns energy and could help us lose weight. Now, scientists at the University of Cambridge have found a way of making the white fat ‘browner’ and increasing the efficiency of brown […]
November 27, 2018

AI system may accelerate search for cancer discoveries

Searching through the mountains of published cancer research could be made easier for scientists, thanks to a new AI system. The system, called LION LBD and developed by computer scientists and cancer researchers at the University of Cambridge, has been designed to assist scientists in the search for cancer-related discoveries. It is […]
November 27, 2018

Citrate-based biomaterial fuels bone healing with less rejection

A material based on a natural product of bones and citrus fruit, called citrate, provides the extra energy that stem cells need to form new bone tissue, according to a team of Penn State bioengineers. Their new understanding of the mechanism that allows citrate to aid in bone regeneration will […]
November 27, 2018

Brain Responses to Language in Toddlers with Autism Linked to Altered Gene Expression

An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of Cyprus and University of California San Diego School of Medicine, have identified a previously unknown, large-scale association between molecular gene expression activity in blood leukocyte cells and altered neural responses to speech in toddlers with autism as measured […]
November 27, 2018

Cells beneath the skin explain differences in healing

Differences in the cells that give skin its resilience and strength during wound repair may explain why individuals heal differently, according to a new Yale study published in the journal Science. Fibroblasts, the cells that form the protein structure beneath the surface of the skin, were once thought to be […]
November 26, 2018

Early gut bacteria shape intestinal ecosystem

The study suggests that the order in which bacterial species stake out unclaimed territory in the gut can shape an intestinal ecosystem for a lifetime, potentially shifting the odds of certain health outcomes in the process. Though timing wasn’t everything, multiple experiments showed that species given early access to the […]
November 26, 2018

Researchers stop ‘sneaky’ cancer cells in their tracks

A new study by University of Minnesota biomedical engineers shows how they stopped cancer cells from moving and spreading, even when the cells changed their movements. The discovery could have a major impact on millions of people undergoing therapies to prevent the spread of cancer within the body. The research […]
November 26, 2018

Dementia Study First in a Series on Health Needs and Challenges of LGBTQ Seniors

In the first paper to emerge from a series of research projects aimed at understanding the health needs of older adults who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ), Jason Flatt of the Institute for Health & Aging at the UC San Francisco School of Nursing found that nearly 25 percent of the LGBT adults aged […]
November 23, 2018

Fish genes hold key to repairing damaged hearts

The Mexican tetra fish can repair its heart after damage — something researchers have been striving to achieve in humans for years. Now, new research funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) published in Cell Reports suggests that a gene called lrrc10 may hold the key to this fish’s remarkable ability. Around 1.5 million […]
November 23, 2018

Cutting the legs off cancer

Melanoma skin cancer tumors grow larger and are more likely to metastasize due to interactions between a pair of molecules, according to experiments in mice and human cells. The results may restore the potential for a type of cancer therapy previously abandoned in clinical trials. The results also implicate one […]
November 23, 2018

Modeling the most common form of vision loss in older adults

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) affects roughly 200,000 individuals in the United States each year. In most, it comes on slowly, gradually blurring the central field of vision used for activities like reading and driving. While treatments exist to slow its progression, there is no cure. A team led by Kathleen Boesze-Battaglia of […]
November 23, 2018

Researchers discover a new gear in life's clock: Vitamin D

New research from Portland State University finds vitamin D, or a lack thereof can trigger or suspend embryonic development in a species of fish. The study also provides evidence suggesting the vitamin is critical to the early development of vertebrates generally. The annual killifish Austrofundulus limnaeus lives its entire life in seasonal ponds […]
November 23, 2018

New blood test detects early stage ovarian cancer

Research on a bacterial toxin first discovered in Adelaide has led to the development a new blood test for the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer – a disease which kills over 1000 Australian women and 150,000 globally each year. The new blood test has the potential to dramatically improve early […]
November 22, 2018

Researchers hope to be able to replace dysfunctional brain cells

A new study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet supports the theory that replacement of dysfunctional immune cells in the brain has therapeutic potential for neurodegenerative diseases like ALS and Alzheimer’s disease. The study, which involved repopulating the brain with new immune cells in an experimental disease model, is published in Nature […]
November 22, 2018

Immunotherapies linked to specific heart complications

In the first large-scale analysis of cardiovascular complications linked to immune checkpoint inhibitors, Vanderbilt researchers have shown that heart and vessel complications include myocarditis, pericarditis, vasculitis and arrhythmias, and that they occur early in the course of treatment. The study, published online in The Lancet Oncology, augments previous work by Vanderbilt […]
November 22, 2018

Scientists identify new genetic causes linked to abnormal pregnancies and miscarriages

A team of scientists at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) and McGill University have identified three genes responsible for recurrent molar pregnancies, a rare complication that occurs when a non-viable pregnancy with no embryo implants in the uterus. The results of this study could have […]
November 22, 2018

Out of one, two

The Department of Microbiology and Immunobiology at Harvard Medical School will form two independent preclinical departments—Microbiology and Immunology. The creation of two stand-alone academic units is the natural result of the rapidly evolving understanding of the complexity and importance of each of these fields and their numerous intersections with many […]
November 22, 2018

Cancer Caveat

Epigenetic therapies, which target enzymes that alter the genes that are turned on or off in a cell, are of growing interest in oncology as a way to make cancers less aggressive or less malignant. But now, at least one epigenetic therapy that had looked promising for lung cancer appears […]
November 22, 2018

Target Acquired

Cancer involves unchecked cell growth. A biological pathway known as Hippo, which regulates organ size, is also involved in cancer, and a major player in this pathway, YAP, drives many types of tumors. Now, researchers at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital have solved an ongoing problem: how to […]
November 21, 2018

MRI scans shows promise in predicting dementia

One day, MRI brain scans may help predict whether older people will develop dementia, new research suggests. In a small study, MRI brain scans predicted with 89 percent accuracy who would go on to develop dementia within three years, according to research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. […]
November 21, 2018

New strategy discovered toward possible prevention of cancers tied to mono, the “kissing disease”

Researchers from the University of Minnesota, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and the University of Toronto have discovered a possible path forward in preventing the development of cancers tied to two viruses, including the virus that causes infectious mononucleosis—more commonly known as mono or the “kissing disease”—that infects millions of people around the […]
November 21, 2018

Researchers Create a More Effective Hydrogel For Healing Wounds

Researchers at the University of New Hampshire have created an easy-to-make, low-cost injectable hydrogel that could help wounds heal faster, especially for patients with compromised health issues. Wound healing can be complex and challenging, especially when a patient has other health obstacles that seriously impede the process. Often injectable hydrogels […]