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Nerve cells, or neurons — specifically the “workhorse cells” involved in walking, breathing and chewing — can adjust to changes in the body, but they never stop working unless there is an fatal injury. What exactly signals neurons to keep acting and operating normally has not been known until now. […]

Could a blood cell type responsible for scarring and diseases such as pulmonary fibrosis be repurposed to help engineer healthy tissue? A new study by a University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health researcher shows that someday, fibrocytes may be used for regenerative therapies for people who need […]

Adults with lupus who report having had adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as abuse, neglect and household challenges, report higher disease activity, depression and poorer overall health compared to those without such experiences, according to a study by researchers at UC San Francisco. “Our results support the notion that stress […]

Penn doctoral student Michael Barnett admits he was “obsessed” with Pokémon as a child, spending hours with Pikachu and the gang. So, as he and former Stanford colleague Jesse Gomez discussed a paper about which brain regions light up when young macaques view letters, cartoons, and Tetris pieces, they had an idea. “We […]

Earth’s atmosphere shields life on the ground from cosmic radiation that can damage DNA.  Astronauts in space have no such protection, and that puts them at risk. An investigation on the International Space Station examines DNA damage and repair in space in order to help protect the long-term health of […]

In 2009, disagreement in the health community arose following a recommendation from the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) against routine mammogram screening for women ages 40-49 who are at average risk for breast cancer. Then, in 2015, the American Cancer Society (ACS) updated its 2003 breast cancer screening […]

Technology reveals previously undetectable protein signaling activity in diabetes, cancer Proteins are the workhorses of the cell. Their activity is often controlled by adding or removing chemicals called phosphates, like switching an electrical current on or off. Measuring how many proteins are phosphorylated, or turned on, has been a roadblock […]

Some research suggests that one reason people with obesity overeat is because they don’t enjoy food—especially sweets—as much as lean people. But it’s not understood if obesity itself or eating certain foods causes taste changes, or how those changes impact appetite and obesity. For clues, University of Michigan researchers turned […]

Several years ago, MIT neuroscientists showed that they could dramatically reduce the amyloid plaques seen in mice with Alzheimer’s disease simply by exposing the animals to light flickering at a specific frequency. In a new study, the researchers have found that this treatment has widespread effects at the cellular level, […]

A new algorithm developed by MIT researchers takes cues from panoramic photography to merge massive, diverse cell datasets into a single source that can be used for medical and biological studies. Single-cell datasets profile the gene expressions of human cells — such as a neurons, muscles, and immune cells — to […]

MIT researchers have performed the first comprehensive analysis of the genes that are expressed in individual brain cells of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. The results allowed the team to identify distinctive cellular pathways that are affected in neurons and other types of brain cells. This analysis could offer many potential […]

Research into an intricate toxin delivery system found in bacteria could overcome the problem of pesticide resistance in insects, and might even lead to new cancer treatments. An international team led by Dr Michael Landsberg at The University of Queensland has revealed the detailed inner workings of the newest member of a […]

Oncologists may soon have an accurate and inexpensive way of differentiating between types of ovarian cancer that will improve how patients are treated, thanks to findings from a national research study co-led out of the University of Alberta. “One of the issues with ovarian cancer is that we cannot fully decipher between […]

Repetition can be useful if you’re trying to memorize a poem, master a guitar riff, or just cultivate good habits. When this kind of behavior becomes compulsive, however, it can get in the way of normal life—an impediment sometimes observed in psychiatric illnesses like Tourette’s syndrome and autism spectrum disorders. […]

While it’s reported that chronic disruptions of circadian rhythms, or internal body clocks, can lead to an increased risk of cancer, the underlying mechanisms by which the disturbances promote tumor growth had been largely unknown. In a study published in the journal PLOS Biology, researchers at Penn Medicine show circadian disruptions trigger […]

Cleft lip and palate (CL/P) is the second most common birth defect in the world, affecting 1 in 700 live born babies. While the exact cause of CL/P is not well understood, investigators think it could be the result of a combination of genetics and environment. Cleft lip and palate […]

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are among the most important tools in modern biomedical research, leading to new and promising possibilities in precision medicine. To create them requires transforming a cell of one type, such as skin, into something of a blank slate, so it has the potential to become […]

Mac, an 8-year-old boxer, lay sedated on a table in the gleaming new radiation treatment room at the Hixson-Lied Small Animal Hospital at Iowa State University. Mac had undergone one treatment in the new facility before, for the mast cell tumor near his tail. Radiation therapists, along with an anesthesiologist, carefully positioned […]

A new study from the University of Georgia pinpoints lifestyle factors that could lead to hardened arteries. One of the largest of its kind, the study performed an untargeted metabolomics profile of over 1,200 participants of the Bogalusa Heart Study to identify metabolites linked to the hardening of arteries. Hardening arteries, […]

Coming on the heels of two failed major studies on promising antibodies designed to fight Alzheimer’s, a new report by researchers from Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB), published in the March 2019 edition of the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment and Disease Monitoring, introduce a new technique. “This has paved the […]

There are few topics that have gained enough attention to be considered the next big thing. Exosome is one of those topics. They were initially considered waste products and were ignored as such. Nowadays it’s well-established that they play key role in cell communication and they have linked to several […]

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified blood-based biomarkers that may determine which patients will benefit from continued hormonal therapy for advanced prostate cancer. The results are published in the journal JAMA Oncology. The researchers envision that this discovery may eventually result in a test that contributes to a more […]

Bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) is better than a tape measure for assessing a woman’s risk for developing lymphedema after breast cancer surgery, according to interim results of a study led by Sheila Ridner, PhD, RN, Martha Ingram Professor and director of the PhD in Nursing Science Program at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing. The […]

Researchers identify genetic variants that lead to a severe developmental syndrome. The findings could mean better screening and diagnosis for patients with inherited syndromes. New discoveries from an international team of scientists help explain how protein synthesis gone wrong in developing brains can result in birth defects — including microcephaly, […]

Advancing technology is allowing scientists increasingly to search for tiny signs of cancer and other health issues in samples of patients’ blood and urine. These “liquid biopsies” are less invasive than a traditional biopsy, and can provide information about what’s happening throughout the body instead of just at a single […]

Two proteins central to the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease act as prions — misshapen proteins that spread through tissue like an infection by forcing normal proteins to adopt the same misfolded shape — according to new UC San Francisco research. Using novel laboratory tests, the researchers were able to detect […]

The very first dog received the very first vaccine intended to protect her from cancer. And soon after the 9-year-old Gordon setter named Trilly received her shot, so, too, did Norton, a 9-year-old rat terrier mix. “We’re testing a totally novel way of creating an anti-cancer immune response,” says David Vail, […]

Bioengineers have cleared a major hurdle on the path to 3D printing replacement organs with a breakthrough technique for bioprinting tissues. The new innovation allows scientists to create exquisitely entangled vascular networks that mimic the body’s natural passageways for blood, air, lymph and other vital fluids. The research is featured on the […]

Sperm start their sprint to the ovum when they detect changes in the environment through a series of calcium channels arranged like racing stripes on their tails. A team of Yale researchers has identified a key molecule that coordinates the opening and closing of these channels, a process that activates […]

About a third of us are walking around with the bacteria that causes tuberculosis (TB) in our bodies, but most don’t actually end up with TB. For children living with HIV – about 2 million at last estimate – it’s a different story. They’re much more likely to develop TB, […]