2021

The humble lab mouse has provided invaluable clues to understanding diseases ranging from cancer to diabetes to COVID-19. But when it comes to psychiatric conditions, the lab mouse has been sidelined, its rodent mind considered too different from that of humans to provide much insight into mental illness. A new […]

Scientists are struggling with public misconceptions on what embryoids are and what research on them entails, the confusion that leads to policy decisions restricting access to important scientific exploration, according to a new paper by experts at Rice University — who blame the use of terms like synthetic or artificial […]

A couple of years ago, Joseph Shrager, MD, professor of cardiothoracic surgery at Stanford School of Medicine, noticed a statistical anomaly in his practice. It seemed that patients were diagnosed with lung cancer at a surprisingly higher rate at 65 years old than, say, at 64 or 66. “There were no reason […]

A new analysis of the entire genetic makeup of more than 53,000 people offers a bonanza of valuable insights into heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders, paving the way for new and better ways to treat and prevent some of the most common causes of disability and death. The analysis […]

A team of researchers at the University of Alberta has uncovered a long-sought link in the battle to control cholesterol and heart disease. The protein that interferes with low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors that clear “bad” cholesterol from the blood was identified in findings recently published in Nature Communications by Dawei Zhang, associate professor of pediatrics […]

Over evolutionary time scales, a single gene may acquire different roles in diverging species. However, revealing the multiple hidden roles of a gene was not possible before genome editing came along. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory scientists Zach Lippman and Anat Hendelman collaborated with Idan Efroni of Hebrew University in Israel to reveal […]

COVID-19 vaccine is what will pull us out of this pandemic. However, some people are not sure about the timing. If you are waiting for an elective surgery, should you get a vaccine shot before the procedure? Or should you wait and get the jab after the surgery? Scientists at […]

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) increases intracranial pressure around the brain and causes blindness. Scientists are not sure what causes IIH, because the pressure builds up without the presence of tumour or disease. As the mechanism is unknown treatment for IIH is not yet developed. But now researchers at the University […]

Cocoa is delicious, warming and cosy, but it can also be healthy. Scientists at the University of Birmingham found that drinking cocoa can actually benefit you, despite its desert-like character. Researchers found that consumption of cocoa could protect people from mental stress-induced cardiovascular events – it might be life saving. […]

Triple-negative breast cancer cells engage in a “glutamine steal” — outcompeting T cells for the nutrient glutamine and impairing their ability to kill tumor cells, Vanderbilt researchers have discovered. The team found that an inhibitor of glutamine transport selectively targeted tumor cells and enhanced the antitumor immune response, suggesting it […]

While deadly, gliosarcomas are a rare central nervous system tumor often overshadowed in research by more common tumors. These sarcomas can occur either in the brain or the spine (the latter is much less common). A team of Yale researchers saw an opportunity to expand on the limited knowledge available […]

Tooth pain has been notoriously difficult to study. But now, researchers at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital report in a study published in Science Advances that they have uncovered a new function for odontoblasts. These cells form dentin, the shell beneath the tooth’s enamel that encases the soft dental […]