Related Science News

November 27, 2019

Technique identifies T cells primed for certain allergies or infections

When your immune system is exposed to a vaccine, an allergen, or an infectious microbe, subsets of T cells that can recognize a foreign intruder leap into action. Some of these T cells are primed to kill infected cells, while others serve as memory cells that circulate throughout the body, […]
November 27, 2019

Vicious Circles: Ring-shaped DNA Provides Cancer Cells with a Malignant Twist

Deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA encodes information, not only in its sequence but also in its shape. Building upon previous revelatory work, a team of scientists, led by researchers at University of California San Diego, the UC San Diego branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Stanford University and the […]
November 27, 2019

Blood test for deadly eye melanoma

A simple blood test could soon become the latest monitoring tool for the early detection of melanoma in the eye. University of Queensland scientists have discovered markers in the blood that can differentiate between a benign mole and a melanoma, while also identifying if the cancer has spread to other areas […]
November 27, 2019

MS linked to variant of common herpes virus through new method

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a new method to separate between two different types of a common herpes virus (HHV-6) that has been linked to multiple sclerosis. By analyzing antibodies in the blood against the most divergent proteins of herpesvirus 6A and 6B, the researchers were able to show […]
November 27, 2019

Annual Over Biennial Mammograms Linked to Less Advanced Breast Cancer

How often should women get a mammogram? A new study makes a case for getting screened every year instead of every other year. Women diagnosed with breast cancer after receiving yearly mammograms had smaller tumors and less-advanced disease than women who had mammograms every other year, researchers from the University of […]
November 27, 2019

Cerebral organoid model provides clues about how to prevent virus-induced brain cell death

Scientists have determined that La Crosse virus (LACV), which can cause inflammation of the brain in children, affects brain cells differently depending on their developmental stage. Neurons—the primary brain cells of the central nervous system—evolve from neural stem cells and during development “commit” to becoming neurons. A new National Institutes […]
November 27, 2019

Autism-Related Genetic Mutations Occur in Aging Brains of Alzheimer's Patients

Researchers believe that autism is caused by mutations that occur sporadically in the egg or sperm or during pregnancy. Activity-dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP) is a dominant gene whose de novo (during pregnancy) mutations are known to cause autism-related intellectual disabilities. A new Tel Aviv University study has found that ADNP mutations continue to occur […]
November 27, 2019

Newborn Immune System Detects Harmful Skin Bacteria

The immune system must learn from early in life to tolerate bacteria that normally populate healthy skin, while still defending against more dangerous “bugs,” but how immune cells make this distinction has long been a mystery. In a study of young mice, UC San Francisco scientists found that an early-life […]
November 27, 2019

Living in an area with strong air pollution increases the risk of glaucoma

More and more people choose to live in cities. They are looking for more opportunity, bigger salaries and a different standard of living. However, they are putting themselves in harms way of pollution. A new  UCL-led study revealed that people who live in areas with greater air pollution are at […]
November 26, 2019

Study paves way to better understanding, treatment of arthritis

Oregon State University research has provided the first complete, cellular-level look at what’s going on in joints afflicted by osteoarthritis, a debilitating and costly condition that affects nearly one-quarter of adults in the United States. The study, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, opens the door to better understanding how interventions […]
November 26, 2019

Babies in the womb may see more than we thought

By the second trimester, long before a baby’s eyes can see images, they can detect light. But the light-sensitive cells in the developing retina — the thin sheet of brain-like tissue at the back of the eye — were thought to be simple on-off switches, presumably there to set up […]
November 26, 2019

Gut microbes alter characteristics of norovirus infection

The highly contagious norovirus causes diarrhea and vomiting and is notorious for spreading rapidly through densely populated spaces, such as cruise ships, nursing homes, schools, and daycare centers. Each year, it is responsible for some 200,000 deaths, mostly in the developing world. There are no treatments for this intestinal virus, […]
November 26, 2019

Next-Gen Medicine

From gene therapies to cancer immunotherapies to cancer vaccines, recent biomedical advances have redefined what is possible in medicine. Yet, despite the advent of such transformative therapies, bottlenecks in the discovery pipeline and backlogs in production remain pressing challenges that hamper the rapid and widespread delivery of new lifesaving treatments […]
November 26, 2019

Intestinal Stem Cell Genes May Link Dietary Fat and Colon Cancer

Two genes that appear to help stem cells in the intestine burn dietary fat may play a role in colon cancer, according to a Rutgers study. The study, published in the journal Gastroenterology, describes a new connection between the way cells consume fat and how genes regulate stem cell behavior in the […]
November 26, 2019

Cellular origins of pediatric brain tumors identified

Researchers make a breakthrough by identifying that several aggressive pediatric brain tumors are the result of stalled development in embryonic cells. A research team led by Dr. Claudia Kleinman, an investigator at the Lady Davis Institute at the Jewish General Hospital, together with Dr. Nada Jabado, of the Research Institute […]
November 26, 2019

Tendon stem cells could revolutionize injury recovery

The buildup of scar tissue makes recovery from torn rotator cuffs, jumper’s knee, and other tendon injuries a painful, challenging process, often leading to secondary tendon ruptures. New research led by Carnegie’s Chen-Ming Fan and published in Nature Cell Biology reveals the existence of tendon stem cells that could potentially […]
November 25, 2019

Using Artificial Intelligence to determine whether immunotherapy is working

Scientists from the Case Western Reserve University digital imaging lab, already pioneering the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to predict whether chemotherapy will be successful, can now determine which lung-cancer patients will benefit from expensive immunotherapy. And, once again, they’re doing it by teaching a computer to find previously unseen […]
November 25, 2019

Shared Vulnerability: Alzheimer's disease and delirium

Gene linked to Alzheimer’s disease plays indirect role in risk for delirium, study finds. Delirium is the most common post-surgical complication in older adults. Marked by acute temporary confusion, disorientation and/or agitation, it strikes as many as half of adults over 65 who undergo high-risk procedures such as cardiac surgery […]
November 25, 2019

Analyzing characteristics of fine particles in the air from space

It is well known that fine particulates in the air are associated with cardiovascular disease, respiratory diseases and cancer. What are not yet known are the different types of pollution that contribute to this fine particulate matter and which are most harmful to human health. Randall Martin, professor of energy, […]
November 25, 2019

New Approach to Treating Incurable Leukemia in Children Discovered

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia is the most common form of cancer affecting children in Switzerland and, unfortunately, is often incurable. Researchers from the University of Zurich and the University Children’s Hospital Zurich have now found a way to stop the driving force behind this type of leukemia at a molecular level […]
November 25, 2019

A new study confirms – an early removal of slow-growing brain tumours is the way to go

Low-grade glioma is a slow-growing brain tumour. Although it develops very slowly, it is still deadly. Worse still, it drastically limits people’s independence and quality of life, because it causes seizures. But advancements in medicine and new treatment practices drastically improved the prognosis for people with the low-grade glioma. Back […]
November 22, 2019

Rapid evolution: Researchers discover remarkable variation in genetic mechanisms that drive sexual differentiation of frogs

Researchers have discovered striking variation in the underlying genetic machinery that orchestrates sexual differentiation in frogs, demonstrating that evolution of this crucial biological system has moved at a dramatic pace. A team of biologists examined more than two dozen species of Pipidae, a family of frog found in tropical South […]
November 22, 2019

Non-coding DNA located outside chromosomes may help drive glioblastoma

Extra DNA scooped up and copied alongside cancer-causing genes helps keep tumors going—elements that could represent new drug targets for brain tumors and other cancers notoriously difficult to treat. One of the ways a cancer-causing gene works up enough power to turn a normal cell into a cancer cell is […]
November 22, 2019

Sleep problems in children with genetic condition linked to mental health issues, clumsiness and impaired planning ability

The researchers found nearly two thirds (60%) of the group aged 17 and under experienced insomnia or restless sleep and in turn, a higher proportion of these had conditions such as ADHD, anxiety disorders and conduct disorder. Furthermore, those with sleep problems were also more likely to have movement problems, […]
November 22, 2019

Researchers discover potential new treatment for rare muscle-wasting disease

A team of Cardiff University researchers has uncovered a potential new way to treat a very rare genetic disorder that causes muscles in the arms and legs to become increasingly weak. GNE myopathy is a debilitating condition that affects young adults in their 20s or 30s, typically leaving them in […]
November 22, 2019

Breastfeeding and Infant Mortality

A new study published by The Journal of Pediatrics shows increased rates of implementation of hospital-based breastfeeding initiatives are associated with decreased rates of infant deaths in the first six days after birth, dispelling speculation that such practices might increase infant death. The authors of the study examined trends in the percentage of births […]
November 22, 2019

New blood test can help catching deadly eye melanoma early

Melanoma is a deadly form of skin cancer. It is not easy to notice, because people are not paying attention. You have to look after your moles and skin pigmentation – this is the only way to catch melanoma early. However, it is even more difficult to recognize and identify […]