Related Science News

February 17, 2020

Herringbone pattern in plant cell walls critical to cell growth

Plant cells tend to grow longer instead of wider due to the alignment of the many layers of cellulose that make up their cell walls, according to a new study that may have implications for biofuels research. The study, which appeared in the Journal of Experimental Botany, reveals that the protein CSI1 […]
February 17, 2020

Subtle Decline in Cognition Predicts Progression to Alzheimer’s Pathology

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is progressive, but slow to develop — or at least to reveal itself. In a new study, published in the journal Biological Psychiatry, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues elsewhere, report that early, subtle differences in cognitive performance, such as fewer […]
February 17, 2020

There will be organisms without biological parents

Bioengineers are on the brink of developing artificial organisms that will open up new applications in medicine and industry. Beat Christen discusses their risks and benefits. Every living creature on earth has parents, grandparents, great-​grandparents and so on – representing an unbroken line of ancestry all the way back to […]
February 17, 2020

Vitamin E effective, safe for fatty liver in HIV patients

A type of fatty liver disease that commonly affects patients with HIV can be safely treated with vitamin E, a McGill-led study has found. Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a severe form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and is characterized by liver inflammation and cell damage. It is a potentially […]
February 17, 2020

Crohn's disease linked to increased risk of colorectal cancer

Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Several previous studies have reported an increased risk of colorectal cancer in patients with Crohn's disease, but these studies are older and have often shown uncertain risk estimates. Now researchers from Karolinska Institutet, Örebro University and Aarhus University, Denmark, published the […]
February 17, 2020

Leaking away essential resources isn’t wasteful, actually helps cells grow

Experts have been unable to explain why cells from bacteria to humans leak essential chemicals necessary for growth into their environment. New mathematical models reveal that leaking metabolites — substances involved in the chemical processes to sustain life with the production of complex molecules and energy — may provide cells […]
February 14, 2020

Research pinpoints rogue cells at root of autoimmune disease

There are more than 100 different autoimmune diseases. But what unites them all is that they arise from an individual’s own cells – rare and mysterious immune cells that target not external viruses and bacteria but the body’s own healthy organs and tissues. For the first time, a team led […]
February 14, 2020

Scientists stop breast cancer cells from spreading in the lab

Biologists have discovered a way to stop cells from one of the most aggressive types of breast cancer spreading in the lab. The study points towards new avenues of research to combat the devastating disease. The results of the study of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer by the team from the Universities […]
February 14, 2020

New, Detailed Molecular Roadmap Boosts Fight Against Endometrial Cancer

After 12 million measurements, new drug targets emerge A study published Feb. 13 in Cell provides an unprecedented look at the dozens of molecular steps that occur to bring about endometrial cancer, commonly known as uterine cancer. The study offers insights about how physicians might be able to better identify […]
February 14, 2020

The Global Incidence of Cervical Cancer is a ‘Tragedy’

In the United States, the medical community has made great strides in preventing and controlling cervical cancer. Screening can effectively detect the disease in its earliest, pre-cancerous stages, while the HPV vaccine is highly effective at preventing cervical cancer. That combination has led to a 50% drop in cervical cancer […]
February 14, 2020

DNA nanotechnology to detect cancer biomarkers

How to detect diseases at the earliest stages of development? This is the problem raised by most scientists and physicians, focusing on new biomarkers, such a microRNAs. Indeed, a growing number of publications link microRNA levels inside biological liquids to several diseases including some cancers. However, these microRNA molecules are […]
February 13, 2020

Poop Matters: Making the Mouse Gut Microbiome More Human-Like

There is a growing consensus that the gut microbiome is involved in many aspects of physical and mental health, including the onset of Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, and even some behaviors. The microbiota of the small intestine, in particular, are likely to have important effects on human health because most nutrients and drugs […]
February 13, 2020

Gay and Bisexual Men Have Higher Rate of Skin Cancer

In the largest study of skin cancer rates among gay, lesbian or bisexual individuals, investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital report important differences in skin cancer prevalence among sexual minorities. Rates of skin cancer were higher among gay and bisexual men compared to heterosexual men but lower among bisexual women than heterosexual […]
February 13, 2020

Retro Style: Growth of Sensory Neurons

A Caenorhabditis elegans worm squirms its way through a compost heap, sensory neurons in its nose helping it navigate oxygen and carbon dioxide cues as it searches for food. The lab of Harvard Medical School geneticist Max Heiman studies these neurons to illuminate nervous system development and uncover clues about how things go awry […]
February 13, 2020

For Aging Patients, One Missed Doctor’s Visit Can Lead to Vision Loss

Missing a single ophthalmology appointment over a two-year period was associated with decreased visual acuity for patients with macular degeneration — a leading cause of permanent vision loss in the elderly — according to a new Penn Medicine study. The findings, published in JAMA Ophthalmology, suggest that more attention should be […]
February 13, 2020

Answers to microbiome mysteries in the gills of rainbow trout

In trout, the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine’s J. Oriol Sunyer and colleagues discovered that a particular type of primitive antibody is essential for fighting microbes that cause disease while preserving others that make up a healthy microbiome. While many immunologists use mouse models to conduct their research, […]
February 13, 2020

It’s all in the delivery — nanoparticle platform could transform medical treatments

Optimeos Life Sciences, a startup founded by two Princeton University faculty members, has reached agreements with six pharmaceutical companies to develop therapeutics using a Princeton-developed drug delivery technology. The collaborations have the potential to improve the effectiveness of medications for the treatment of diseases, ranging from cancer to diabetes. Optimeos, […]
February 13, 2020

Childhood brain tumor discovery may unlock new treatments for many cancers

A surprising discovery about a rare form of childhood brain cancer suggests a new treatment approach for that cancer – and potentially many others. Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have determined that the supposedly simple cancer, called medulloblastoma, forms an unexpectedly intricate network to drive its […]
February 13, 2020

Using bone's natural electricity to promote regeneration

Materials with special electric properties can help promote bone's natural healing processes. Some materials show promise promoting bone regeneration by enhancing its natural electrical properties, according to a review in the journal Science and Technology of Advanced Materials. Some solids, including bone, enamel and quartz, form an electric field when […]
February 13, 2020

Scientists find ally in fight against brain tumors: Ebola

Glioblastomas are relentless, hard-to-treat, and often lethal brain tumors. Yale scientists have enlisted a most unlikely ally in efforts to treat this form of cancer — elements of the Ebola virus. “The irony is that one of the world’s deadliest viruses may be useful in treating one of the deadliest […]
February 13, 2020

Investigational drugs didn’t slow memory loss, cognitive decline in rare, inherited Alzheimer’s, initial analysis indicates

An international clinical trial evaluating whether two investigational drugs can slow memory loss and cognitive decline in people in the early stages of a rare, inherited form of Alzheimer’s disease has yielded disappointing results, an initial analysis of the data has shown. However, the researchers continue to explore data from […]
February 13, 2020

Novel melatonin receptor molecules make possible therapies that adjust biological clocks to our environments

Like breathing or blinking, behaviors regulated by our circadian rhythms, such as digestion and sleep-wake cycles, go unnoticed by most people. But when circadian rhythms malfunction, the result can be any one of a broad range of serious, chronic disorders, from insomnia and depression to obesity, diabetes, and bipolar disorder. […]
February 13, 2020

Gut microbe imbalance may stunt CF babies’ growth

Altering the gut microbiome might become a therapy for improving growth during infancy in cystic fibrosis patients. The composition of the gut microbiome may make a difference in height gain in infants with cystic fibrosis during their first year of life, according to a new study. Many babies with cystic […]
February 12, 2020

Scientists uncover molecular ‘first responder’ that triggers heart-attacking causing plaques

Oxford University scientist have discovered the molecular ‘first responder’ which detects disturbances in the flow of blood through the arteries, and responds by encouraging the formation of plaques which can lead to serious problems, including heart attack, stroke and even death. The study, published in the journal Nature, found that mice […]
February 12, 2020

Handheld 3D Printer Accelerates the Healing of Severe Skin Burns

Researchers from the University of Toronto Engineering and Sunnybrook Hospital have developed a novel type of handheld 3D printer capable of depositing uniform sheets of skin to cover large burn wounds, while its “bio ink” has been shown to accelerate the healing process. Writing in the journal Biofrabrication, the researchers […]