Related Science News

September 26, 2019

We Are All Mutants, More or Less

Everyone is a mutant but some are prone to diverge more than others, report scientists at University of Utah Health. At birth, children typically have 70 new genetic mutations compared to their parents (out of the 6 billion letters that make both parental copies of DNA sequence). A new study published […]
September 26, 2019

Scientists identify potential way to prevent type 1 diabetes

Researchers believe they have identified a way to prevent type 1 diabetes by restoring the immune system’s natural balance. The approach may also prove effective for battling other autoimmune diseases such as lupus and eczema, they hope. It could also have benefits for people who have already developed diabetes: The […]
September 26, 2019

Yale researchers identify rare inherited immune disease

When a 9-year-old girl with anemia, breathing problems, and recurrent infections sought help for her mysterious ailments, Yale researchers and their collaborators at the National Institutes of Health sequenced her genes to pinpoint a cause. What they discovered was not only a new disease but unexpected new roles for a […]
September 26, 2019

USC researchers discover how to reprogram cells, potentially unlocking new treatments

USC scientists have surmounted a big roadblock in regenerative medicine that has so far constrained the ability to use repurposed cells to treat diseases. The researchers figured out how to reprogram cells to switch their identity much more reliably than present capabilities allow. The technique uses enzymes to untangle reprogramming […]
September 26, 2019

Mammals’ enhanced capacity to see emerges early in development

The way we see the world around us is the result of a marriage of two neural pathways — one shared by all vertebrates and one that evolved in mammals more recently. It has been a mystery to scientists how these two networks emerge in development to help us form […]
September 26, 2019

Cellular aging is linked to structural changes in the brain

Telomeres are the protective caps of our chromosomes and play a central role in the ageing process. Shorter telomeres are associated with chronic diseases and high stress levels can contribute to their shortening. A new study now shows that if telomeres change in their length, that change is also reflected […]
September 26, 2019

New, improved human genome reference in the works

A completely new, comprehensive human genome reference will be created in a National Institutes of Health-funded, multi-institutional initiative. The Human Pangenome Project will be based on the complete genome sequences of 350 individuals from a variety of the world’s populations. The international Human Genome Project in 2000 produced the first working draft […]
September 25, 2019

Yale researchers use immune system to attack glioblastoma

The Yale laboratory of Sidi Chen, assistant professor of genetics in the Systems Biology Institute and Yale Cancer Center, has developed advanced gene-editing and screening technology to find new targets for cancer immunotherapy. In a new study published in Nature Biotechnology, Chen and colleagues report that using T cells containing […]
September 25, 2019

NIH funds centers for advancing the reference sequence of the human genome

New grants totaling approximately $29.5 million will enable scientists to generate and maintain the most comprehensive reference sequence of the human genome. The awards, made over five years pending the availability of funds, are managed by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of the National Institutes of Health. […]
September 25, 2019

Study shows the biological clock influences immune response efficiency

According to a recent study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, the biological clock influences immune response efficacy. Indeed, CD8 T cells, which are essential to fight infections and cancers, function very differently according to the time of day. The study was […]
September 25, 2019

Achilles’ heel identified in several neurodegenerative diseases

Many neurodegenerative diseases have a common feature that may make them amenable to the same treatment, investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found. “We’ve identified a potential new way to reduce nerve-cell death in a number of diseases characterized by such losses,” said Daria Mochly-Rosen, PhD, professor of chemical and […]
September 25, 2019

Sparking new autism discoveries

Over the past three years, in hopes of accelerating research on the genetic causes and treatments for autism, University of Miami psychology faculty have recruited nearly 700 children affected by the neurodevelopmental disorder, and both of their parents, to join the world’s largest autism research project. This month they began […]
September 25, 2019

Psoriasis drug target offers potential for osteosarcoma

A treatment for psoriasis could be repurposed to treat a rare but aggressive form of youth cancer, new findings from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research suggest. In an animal model, researchers demonstrated that the immune molecule IL23 is central to the development of osteosarcoma, a cancer of the bone. […]
September 24, 2019

A fish in the service of science

Which treatment will benefit this patient best? Which substances are most promising for pharmaceuticals companies to develop? These are questions that scientists at Linköping University are seeking to answer with the aid of the tiny zebrafish embryo. Zebrafish embryos are colourless transparent balls. We see some only a few days […]
September 24, 2019

Sleep deprivation may lead to slower metabolism, weight gain

Restricting sleep for just several days alters how we metabolize fats and changes how satisfied we are by a meal, according to new research conducted at Penn State and published in the Journal of Lipid Research. According to Orfeu Buxton, researcher on the project and professor of biobehavioral health at Penn […]
September 24, 2019

Exploding Shells Boost Immune Response to Brain Cancer

For patients diagnosed with a certain type of brain cancer called glioblastoma, long-term survival is rare. Surgery can remove tumors visible to the surgeon’s eye. It cannot, however, take out the diseased tendrils of tumor cells that extend beyond what the doctor sees. While current immunotherapy drugs are effective for […]
September 24, 2019

Leukemia Drug Shows Promise for Treating a Childhood Brain Cancer

A drug used to treat chronic myeloid leukemia appears to be more effective at stopping a type of medulloblastoma in mouse models than existing treatments for the deadly pediatric brain tumor, reports a multi-institutional team led by researchers at Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at University of California […]
September 24, 2019

Perturbed Genes Regulating White Blood Cells Linked to Autism Genetics and Severity

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine say they are getting closer to identifying the mechanisms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and biomarkers that can aid in early diagnosis and predictions of symptom severity. A team of scientists analyzed blood gene expression data from 302 one- to […]
September 24, 2019

Drug target for Alzheimer’s disease has dual action

UQ researchers have discovered a potential drug target for Alzheimer’s disease — an enzyme which has effects on both the immune and nervous systems. Dr Ramón Martínez-Mármol and Professor Frédéric A. Meunier from the Queensland Brain Institute Clem Jones Centre for Ageing Dementia Research found that targeting one enzyme could combat the disease on two fronts. […]
September 24, 2019

Combining cardio, resistance training best for breast cancer patients, study suggests

Despite confirming that benefits of exercise for breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy wear off quickly once they stop, a new University of Alberta study also showed that patients prescribed a training regimen with a resistance-training component were more likely to continue exercising once their treatment ended. In the study, led by U […]
September 24, 2019

Onions and garlic may be recipe for reducing breast cancer risk

Onions and garlic are key ingredients in sofrito, a condiment that’s a staple of Puerto Rican cuisine. They may also be a recipe for reducing the risk of breast cancer. That’s according to the findings of a study led by University at Buffalo and University of Puerto Rico researchers. It’s […]
September 24, 2019

Probes shed new light on Alzheimer’s cause

Rice University researchers have found a way to track the formation of soluble amyloid beta peptide aggregates implicated in the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. The Rice lab of Angel Martí reported its development of a ruthenium-based fluorescent complex that binds to soluble, oligomeric amyloid beta peptides. As the peptides come together to form the […]
September 24, 2019

Light-activated metal catalyst destroys cancer cells' vital energy source

A space-age metal that formed part of the asteroid that destroyed the dinosaurs could provide a new method of treating cancer tumours selectively using light. Scientists at the University of Warwick in collaboration with colleagues in China, France, Switzerland and Heriot-Watt University have developed a technique that uses light to […]
September 23, 2019

Bathroom Scale Could Monitor Millions with Heart Failure

“Good morning. Bill. Please. Step onto the scale. Touch the metal pads.” The device records an electrocardiogram from Bill’s fingers and – more importantly – circulation pulsing that makes his body subtly bob up and down on the scale. Machine learning tools compute that Bill’s heart failure symptoms have worsened. […]
September 23, 2019

Basic Cell Discovery Could Lead to Improved Drugs for Heart Failure

Michigan Medicine researchers determine that receptors inside heart cells could be targets for better beta blockers. Beta blockers are versatile drugs that have been around since the 1960s that can help slow heart rate and lower blood pressure – a fact that isn’t lost on certain musical soloists who take them […]
September 23, 2019

Capturing cancer cells in 3-D

What makes cancer so deadly is its ability to spread, a process called metastasis. This doesn’t take place on a flat surface like a petri dish; it happens in the 3-D world of the human body. Stopping or even slowing it holds promise for extending the lives of cancer patients. […]
September 23, 2019

A Child’s Shattered Chromosomes Illustrate the Value of Supportive Therapies

To a trained eye, the chromosome chart (karyotype) above has 4 irregularities, circled in red. They’re chromosome pairs of uneven size. The chromosomes represent genetic material missing or extra, but also a beautiful girl. Her father contacted me after he read my recent post about a friend’s child with a rare mutation […]
September 20, 2019

Eisai and Meiji Announce Parkinson's Disease Treatment Equfina Tablets (Safinamide Mesilate) Approved In Japan

Eisai Co., Ltd. and Meiji Seika Pharma Co., Ltd. has announced the manufacturing and marketing approval in Japan for the indication of improvement of wearing-off phenomenon in patients with Parkinson's disease under treatment with a drug containing levodopa for Equfina TABLETS (safinamide mesilate, “safinamide”), which was developed for use in […]