General

People who consume high levels of vitamin C and E in their diet may have a lower risk of Parkinson’s disease than people who get only small amounts of these nutrients, according to a new study from University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy, and Karolinska Institutet. The study was published in Neurology. […]

It is estimated that the majority of pregnancies that fail do so within the first seven days after fertilization, before the embryo implants into the uterus. In this time period, a complicated cascade of events occurs with precise timing. One particularly important process is called polarization, when the individual cells […]

Naturopathic medicine, or herbal medicine, is all the rage, especially among young people. But how much of this is supported by science? Ginger is known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects, making it a popular herbal supplement to treat inflammatory diseases. And according to a Michigan Medicine led study published […]

Researchers have successfully used a DNA-editing technique to extend the lifespan of mice with the genetic variation associated with progeria,  a rare genetic disease that causes extreme premature aging in children and can significantly shorten their life expectancy. The study was published in the journal Nature, and was a collaboration between the National Human Genome Research […]

The nucleus of a cell is well-shielded by a double membrane to protect its most sensitive possession—its DNA. Anything that enters or exits must pass through the nuclear pores, cylindrical structures made of hundreds of proteins. Scientists have made great advances in figuring out the architecture of the pore by reconstructing each […]

Six UC San Francisco researchers have won an Endeavor Award to build a new research collaborative at the university focused on decoding the “rulebook” of metastatic cancer as a pathway to new treatments. The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research established the awards to support research challenges that are too far-reaching for a single […]

Tea is a cosy drink. It reduces stress, calms you down, helps concentrating and sleeping. Tea is especially delicious when it’s cold outside. And, as you may know, people in the UK drink a lot of tea, which is why scientists from the Newcastle University conducted a study to see […]

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated isolation and fears for one very vulnerable group of Americans: the 4.3 million older adults with cognitive impairment, who live alone. As the coronavirus continues to claim more lives and upend others, researchers led by UC San Francisco are calling for tailored services and support for […]

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health are breaking new ground to make cancer cells more susceptible to attack by the body’s own immune system. Working in mice, a team led by Jamey Weichert, professor of radiology, and Zachary Morris, professor of human oncology, is combining two […]

A scalpel-free alternative to brain surgery has the potential to benefit people with Parkinson’s disease symptoms that are much more severe on one side of the body, new research suggests. More testing is needed, but the approach, which uses a technology called focused ultrasound, could offer a new option for […]

A new class of protein material that interacts with living cells without being absorbed by them can influence cell signalling by binding and sequestering cell surface receptors, a new study shows. This breakthrough could have far-reaching implications for stem cell research and enable the development of new materials designed to […]

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University and partners in the United States and India are applying the investigative and predictive capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) to help physicians customize treatments for patients with oral squamous cell carcinomas. Research shows that oral squamous cell carcinomas cancer is already the eighth-most common […]

Brown fat is that magical tissue that you would want more of. Unlike white fat, which stores calories, brown fat burns energy and scientists hope it may hold the key to new obesity treatments. But it has long been unclear whether people with ample brown fat truly enjoy better health. […]

Although some artificial intelligence software tested reasonably well, only one met the performance of human screeners, researchers found. Diabetes continues to be the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults in the United States. But the current shortage of eye-care providers would make it impossible to keep up with the demand […]

Scientists at the University of California, Irvine have developed a new deep-learning framework that predicts gene regulation at the single-cell level. Deep learning, a family of machine-learning methods based on artificial neural networks, has revolutionized applications such as image interpretation, natural language processing and autonomous driving. In a study published […]

The microbiome comprises trillions of microorganisms living on and inside each of us. Historically, some researchers have guessed at its role in human health, but in the last decade or so genetic sequencing techniques have illuminated this galaxy of microorganisms enough to study it in detail. As researchers unravel the […]

Michael Green, M.D., PhD, noticed that when his patients had cancer that spread to the liver, they fared poorly – more so than when cancer spread to other parts of the body. Not only that, but transformative immunotherapy treatments had little impact for this patient. Uncovering the reason and a […]

Researchers at Oregon State University have found that a few organisms in the gut microbiome play a key role in type 2 diabetes, opening the door to possible probiotic treatments for a serious metabolic disease affecting roughly one in 10 Americans. “Type 2 diabetes is in fact a global pandemic […]

The simple act of breathing is among the most familiar ways we convert nutrients to energy – inhaling molecules of oxygen and harmlessly breathing out unwanted material. But when our usual disposal mechanisms fail, the accumulated electrons can produce the kind of toxic event that causes many diseases, including cancer. […]

High blood pressure appears to accelerate a decline in cognitive performance in middle-aged and older adults, according to new research published today in Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal. Nearly half of American adults have high blood pressure or hypertension. Having high blood pressure is a risk factor for cognitive […]

A Washington state woman is recovering after a landmark organ transplant that she hopes will end her nearly decade-long bout with cancer. Kris Anderson, 51, of Redmond, received a lobe of liver from her daughter Lauren, 26, on Dec. 8. It was the Pacific Northwest’s first living-donor liver transplant for metastatic colorectal […]

Resveratrol and derived molecules were for a time excessively hyped as a means to trigger some of the beneficial metabolic response produced by calorie restriction, by acting on sirtuins, and thus have a positive impact on aging. The company Sirtris was founded to develop this area of research into a […]

Senolytic drugs are those capable of selectively destroying senescent cells. A range of such therapies are at various stages of development, including those that have reached initial human clinical trials. Senescent cell accumulation is an important cause of degenerative aging, and the removal of such cells via senolytic treatments has […]

Axin is a VIP – a Very Important Protein. It’s essential to the development of an embryo. It’s a key player in allowing the body’s cells to divide without going haywire and forming a tumour. It regulates the body’s production of lipids, or fats, which can affect aging. Essentially, it […]

The introduction of computer simulation to the identification of symptoms in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has potential to provide an additional objective tool to gauge the presence and severity of behavioural problems, Ohio State University researchers suggest in a new publication. Most mental health disorders are diagnosed and treated based […]

In an in-depth study of how COVID-19 affects a patient’s brain, National Institutes of Health researchers consistently spotted hallmarks of damage caused by thinning and leaky brain blood vessels in tissue samples from patients who died shortly after contracting the disease. In addition, they saw no signs of SARS-CoV-2 in […]

Experiments with mice and humans showed that exercise training increased the expression in adipose tissue of a key enzyme for the organism's metabolic health, combating the harmful effects of aging and obesity. Adipose tissue is not just a simple reservoir of energy for periods of food scarcity. It contributes significantly […]

Women awaiting liver transplants in the United States are known to be about one-third more likely than men to become too ill to undergo surgery or die before receiving a liver. Now a study headed by UC San Francisco and Columbia University highlights the role that frailty plays in this […]

The human body is filled with friendly bacteria. However, some of these microorganisms, such as Veillonella parvula, may be too nice. These peaceful bacteria engage in a one-sided relationship with pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis, helping the germ multiply and cause gum disease, according to a new University at Buffalo-led study. The […]

Small studies have suggested that a group of medications called RAS inhibitors may be harmful in persons with advanced chronic kidney disease, and physicians therefore often stop the treatment in such patients. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet now show that although stopping the treatment is linked to a lower risk of […]