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Arriving early or late can have big consequences for early-stage cells that gather to form a new kidney, USC researchers discovered. The scientists showed how progenitor cells that form the kidney’s filtering units, called nephrons, mature into entirely different types of cells based on when they reach the scene of […]

Using a novel imaging method, Harvard Medical School investigators based at Massachusetts General Hospital have shed light on the mechanisms behind a potential targeted treatment for a form of the deadly brain tumors called gliomas. In a report published in Nature Communications, the research team describes using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) imaging to […]

Risk factors for heart disease and stroke appear to hasten the risk of cognitive decline in normal older individuals with evidence of very early Alzheimer’s disease-associated changes in the brain, according to a new study by Harvard Medical School investigators based at Massachusetts General Hospital. Vascular risk factors increase the […]

Stem cell researchers at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital have, for the first time, profiled a highly elusive kind of stem cell in the early embryo—a cell so fleeting that it makes its entrance and exit within a 12-hour span. They described this “poised pluripotent” cell in the […]

A novel approach to immunotherapy developed by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has led to the complete regression of breast cancer in a patient who was unresponsive to all other treatments. This patient received the treatment in a clinical trial led by Steven A. Rosenberg, M.D., Ph.D., chief […]

Homeowners know that one little termite can lead to big problems: while termites are efficient at gnawing away at wood, they can do even more damage if the wood is already broken or has another defect. Mechanical engineers at Washington University in St. Louis have found the same effect in […]

Most people with the deadly brain cancer glioblastoma die less than 18 months after diagnosis. But a multicenter clinical trial of a personalized vaccine that targets the aggressive cancer has indicated improved survival rates for such patients. The study appears in the Journal of Translational Medicine. The phase three clinical […]

People who take drugs that suppress the immune system are less likely to develop Parkinson’s disease, according to a study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The findings, published in Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology, suggest that a person’s own immune system helps nudge him or […]

Green tea could hold the key to preventing deaths from heart attacks and strokes caused by atherosclerosis, according to research funded by the British Heart Foundation and published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Scientists from Lancaster University have discovered that a compound found in green tea, currently being studied for […]

A strong social network could be the key to preserving memory. New research from The Ohio State University found that mice housed in groups had better memories and healthier brains than animals that lived in pairs. The discovery bolsters a body of research in humans and animals that supports the […]

The American Cancer Society has announced significant new guidelines for colorectal cancer screenings, and a major contributor to the new protocol is the University of Virginia School of Medicine’s Dr. Andrew Wolf. The previous recommendation for adults was to begin getting regular colorectal cancer screenings at the age of 50. […]

Writing in the journal Cell Stem Cell, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine report that a first-in-human phase I clinical trial in which neural stem cells were transplanted into participants with chronic spinal cord injuries produced measurable improvement in three of four subjects, with no serious adverse […]