General

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found that neural signatures in sleeping zebrafish are analogous to those of humans, suggesting that the brain activity evolved at least 450 million years ago, before any creatures crawled out of the ocean. Scientists have known for more than 100 years that fish […]

An injection of nanoparticles can prevent the body’s immune system from overreacting to trauma, potentially preventing some spinal cord injuries from resulting in paralysis. The approach was demonstrated in mice at the University of Michigan, with the nanoparticles enhancing healing by reprogramming the aggressive immune cells—call it an “EpiPen” for […]

A new type of therapeutic food, specifically designed to repair the gut microbiomes of malnourished children, is superior to standard therapy in an initial clinical trial conducted in Bangladesh. An interdisciplinary team of investigators from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease […]

For patients with prostate cancer, treating the disease with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is linked to a higher likelihood of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, compared to patients who do not receive the therapy, according to a study from researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the […]

It’s possible to take precancerous cells back in time, so to speak, revealing individual DNA mutations in their earliest state and the likely sequence in which those mutations were acquired, according to scientists in Seattle. The discovery could shed light on the natural rules that govern how cancers evolve through […]

Sequencing a genome is getting cheaper, but making sense of the resulting data remains hard. Researchers have now found a new way to extract useful information out of sequenced DNA. By cataloging subtle evolutionary signatures shared between pairs of genes in bacteria, the team was able to discover hundreds of previously […]

Researchers at Trinity College Dublin have identified, for the first time in oesophageal cancer, the cancer killing capability of a lesser-known type of immune cell, presenting a new potential therapeutic target. Their research has been published in the international journal Frontiers in Immunology. Oesophageal cancer is a very aggressive type […]

When it comes to killing cancer cells, two drugs are often better than one. Some drug combinations offer a one-two punch that kills cells more effectively, requires lower doses of each drug, and can help to prevent drug resistance. MIT biologists have now found that by combining two existing classes […]

New research from the University at Buffalo provides pathophysiologic evidence of the effect of air pollution on cardiovascular disease in China. The findings also suggests that China may need to revise its standard for one type of pollutant. Researchers found that long-term exposure to particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide, as […]

A new study from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center found that children born to obese mothers were more likely to develop cancer in early childhood. Using Pennsylvania birth records, the researchers found a correlation between pre-pregnancy body-mass index (BMI) in mothers and subsequent cancer diagnosis […]

Certain plants, insects, crustaceans and fish possess the uncanny ability to change the sex of their offspring before they are born. Mammals have never before demonstrated this genetic skill, until now. A new Tel Aviv University study reveals a genetic system in mammals that enables two animals to mate and produce only […]

Their findings, published in Nature Ecology and Evolution, come from a detailed assessment of 121 species ranging from humans to sponges, may have important implications for conservation strategies and for predicting which species will be the winners and losers from the global environment crisis. “Pace of life” relates to how […]