General

Scientists from the University of Cambridge, in collaboration with the Hubrecht Institute in The Netherlands, have developed a new model to study an early stage of human development using human embryonic stem cells. The model resembles some key elements of an embryo at around 18-21 days old and allows the […]

Essential processes in mammalian cells are controlled by proteins called transcription factors. For example, the transcription factor HIF-1 is triggered by a low-oxygen situation to cause the cell to adapt to decreased oxygen. Transcription factors operate in healthy cells, but cancer cells can co-opt transcription factors such as HIF-1 into […]

The first few days of embryonic development are a critical point for determining the failure or success of a pregnancy. Because relatively few cells make up the embryo during this period, the health of each cell is vital to the health of the overall embryo. But often, these young cells […]

Humans and dogs share many aspects of their lives: food, homes, and a deep bond of mutual affection. Although these common bonds bring joy and comfort, one connection between the two species is decidedly not positive. Both dogs and humans are uniquely susceptible to a devastating, aggressive brain tumor referred […]

For the past several years, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists and engineers have made significant progress in development of a three-dimensional “brain-on-a-chip” device capable of recording neural activity of human brain cell cultures grown outside the body. Now, LLNL researchers have a way to computationally model the activity and structures of neuronal communities […]

Researchers from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research have uncovered a new precision approach for treating the most common type of lung cancer, in a proof-of-principal laboratory study. The researchers discovered that blocking a specific enzyme in some lung adenocarcinoma cells could improve the efficacy of a common existing therapy. […]

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have discovered that excessive degradation of the power plants of our cells plays an important role in the onset of mitochondrial disease in children. These inherited metabolic disorders can have severe consequences such as brain dysfunction and neurological impairment. The study is published in EMBO Molecular […]

With a surprisingly simple approach in which cancer cells are first grown, ruptured and converted into nanoparticles, and then used as a vaccine, Vanderbilt researchers have developed what appears to be a promising treatment for breast cancer metastasis. Research led by Jenna Dombroski, Ph.D. student and National Science Foundation Graduate Research […]

Almost overnight, the sleep and wake patterns of nearly four billion people may have changed because of COVID-19-spurred lockdowns. A free app built by University of Michigan researchers will help users understand their own sleep rhythms, shedding light on how their biological clock is responding to lockdowns, and give tips […]

Scientists have developed a new test that can help identify people who are likely to develop hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer. The approach uses a simple blood test to check for the patient’s previous exposure to certain viruses. A study of the new approach was […]

A new project supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) aims to design and develop new radiotherapy technologies to give more cancer patients in Sub-Saharan Africa access to treatment and to save lives. The project, ‘Innovative Technologies towards building Affordable and equitable global Radiotherapy capacity’ (ITAR), will contribute […]

A new study that looks closely at the cardiac health of flies provides new evidence that liver dysfunction may lead to deterioration of the heart. The research fills in gaps in how scientists understand the links between heart health and other tissues and could inform the development of new therapies […]

Despite researchers’ efforts to understand pregnancy — both healthy and high-risk — the human placenta remains something of a mystery. Tissue samples are nearly impossible to obtain until after birth, making it difficult to study the placenta’s role in pregnancy complications. Now, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in […]

African Americans who smoke are nearly 2.5 times more likely to have a stroke than those who never smoked, while former smokers show a similarly lower risk as never smokers, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The findings from the Jackson Heart Study suggest […]

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet uncover surprising features of mitochondrial protein synthesis. The study, published in Nature Communications, sheds light on the fundamental mechanisms used by the cell’s power plant. Mitochondria are essential organelles containing their own genome and the machinery for its expression. Defects in mitochondrial protein synthesis result in […]

Human eggs use chemical signals to attract sperm. New research from Stockholm University, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust and The University of Manchester shows that eggs use these chemical signals to “choose” sperm. Different women’s eggs attract different men’s sperm – and not necessarily their partners. Humans spend a lot […]

Cancer can adapt its metabolism in a way that could overcome lipid-focused therapies being developed by drug companies, a University of Toronto study has found. “Several clinical trials have failed because metabolism is such an adaptive process by which cancer cells gain drug resistance,” says Michael Aregger, a co-lead author and research associate […]

Bone-dissolving cells called osteoclasts are derived from a type of immune cells called macrophages. They are necessary for the maintenance and renewal of bones. But the intracellular mechanisms through which macrophages convert to osteoclasts are not fully understood. Recently, scientists at the Tokyo University of Science uncovered the role of […]

Cancers cells use a special technique to propagate; they delete their “programmed death” gene through mutation, “forget” to die when their lifetime is over and continue to grow instead. A research team from Tokyo University of Science has developed a method through which a fungal compound capable of rearming the […]

Contrary to common medical guidance, chemotherapy does not appear to be the only culprit in neuropathy, a neurological side effect of cancer treatment, a new study says. Cancer itself contributes heavily, too, and the stresses on neurons appear far worse than the sum of the two causes. “There was some distress caused […]

According to a new study, people with small airways relative to the size of their lungs may have a lower breathing capacity and, consequently, an increased risk for COPD—even if they don’t smoke or have any other risk factors. The study, funded in part by the National Heart, Lung, and […]

Maya Chilbert, PharmD, clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice in the University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, received a Cardiology Practice and Research Network seed grant from the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP). The award will support research on the safety and effectiveness of triple therapy […]

Adolescents who have poor cardiorespiratory fitness or are obese have an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease later in life, serious enough to qualify them for disability pension due to a chronically reduced work capacity. The findings also suggest that a small improvement in fitness is associated with a lower […]

A team led by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine researchers has made two major discoveries involving psoriasis, a chronic and debilitating skin disease with no known cure. The researchers found that an overabundance of a protein known as KLK6 can produce and worsen the skin inflammation characteristic of […]

Some bacterial pathogens cause damage in the genomes of their infected cells which could lead to the initiation of cancer. While it is difficult to link an infection with an onset of cancer that arises many years later in life, researchers have been looking for definitive proof that such links […]

Plant biologists have long sought a deeper understanding of foundational processes involving kinases, enzymes that catalyze key biological activities in proteins. Analyzing the processes underlying kinases in plants takes on greater urgency in today’s environment increasingly altered by climate warming. Certain “SnRK2” kinases (sucrose-non-fermenting-1-related protein kinase-2s) are essential since they […]

For more than 40 years, scientists and commercial companies have been recreating human skin in laboratories around the world. Yet all of these products lack important aspects of normal skin–hair, nerves, and fat. In new research, cultured human skin cells embedded with fat and nerves and capable of growing hair […]

With few exceptions, the worldwide community of clinics offering first generation stem cell therapies is not usually a source of reliable data. They don't tend to conduct trials or even much report on the results of their work. Further, the stem cell therapies used can vary enormously in effectiveness. Cells are fickle […]

One of the many interesting approaches to targeting cancer cells for destruction is the use of viruses that are largely innocuous to humans, but replicate preferentially in cells exhibiting the characteristics of cancer, such as continual cellular replication. Researchers here demonstrate a way to engineer a virus to require the biochemistry of […]

Today I'll point out an example of drug reuse and autophagy upregulation. The processes of autophagy are responsible for recycling molecular waste and broken cellular structures. Autophagy is upregulated in response to stress placed upon cells, whether by heat, cold, lack of nutrients, a toxic local environment, and so forth. This is […]