Related Science News

March 29, 2019

Clear Advance for Corneal Regeneration

An adhesive gel packed with light-activated chemicals can seal cuts or ulcers on the cornea, the clear surface of the eye, and then encourage the regeneration of corneal tissue, according to a preclinical study by Harvard Medical School researchers at Massachusetts Eye and Ear published online in Science Advances. The new […]
March 29, 2019

Personalized in vitro model enables drug screening for kidney cancer

A new UW Carbone Cancer Center study, published online in EBioMedicine, has developed a model that mimics the tumor’s blood supply on a three-dimensional  platform designed in the laboratory of Dr. David Beebe, professor of biomedical engineering and pathology. The authors of the study, led by Drs. Jose “Tony” Jimenez-Torres and Maria […]
March 29, 2019

Engineered Vessels Evolve into Living Tissue

In one of the longest follow-up studies of its kind, researchers found that their specially bioengineered blood vessels evolved into living tissue after human implantation. Researchers from Yale and the North Carolina-based company Humacyte published results in Science Translational Medicine on the progress of their bioengineered human vessels (HAVs). The results show […]
March 28, 2019

Study: Brain Stem Cells Age Faster in MS Patients

Brain stem cells in people with the most severe form of multiple sclerosis look much older than they really are, according to a study led by UConn Health and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The prematurely old cells act differently in the brain than normal ones, […]
March 28, 2019

Study gives new perspective on production of blood cells and immune cells

A healthy adult makes about 2 million blood cells every second, and 99 percent of them are oxygen-carrying red blood cells. The other one percent are platelets and the various white blood cells of the immune system. How all the different kinds of mature blood cells are derived from the […]
March 28, 2019

Study in mice examines impact of reused cooking oil on breast cancer progression

A new study in mice suggests that consuming the chemical compounds found in thermally abused cooking oil may trigger genetic changes that promote the progression of late-stage breast cancer. Thermally abused frying oil – cooking oil that has been repeatedly reheated to high temperatures – may act as a toxicological […]
March 28, 2019

Lab grown "brains" successfully model disease

The human brain is one of the most complex organs. Its complexity challenges our ability to study its structure and function. As a result, many brain-related diseases are not fully understood and adequate treatments are often lacking. Scientists from Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry were able to model a developmental […]
March 28, 2019

Obesity and emotional problems develop together as children age, study shows

High BMI and mental ill-health go increasingly hand-in-hand to present a combined health risk for children from mid-childhood, according to a new study. Researchers from the University of Liverpool and University College London analysed data on more than 17,000 children born across the UK in 2000-01, who are taking part […]
March 28, 2019

Tumor-Associated Immune Cells Hinder Frontline Chemotherapy Drug in Pancreatic Cancer

A frontline chemotherapy drug given to patients with pancreatic cancer is made less effective because similar compounds released by tumor-associated immune cells block the drug’s action, research led by the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center found.The chemotherapy drug gemcitabine is an anti-metabolite. It’s similar to normal metabolites taken up by the […]
March 28, 2019

New Study Identifies Causative Genes in Osteoporosis

Researchers identified two novel genes that affect bone-formation cells relevant to fractures and osteoporosis; understanding these genes could lead to more effective treatments. Examining a person’s DNA can help scientists understand if the individual is at risk for osteoporosis, the chronic bone-weakening condition that affects millions of Americans. In a […]
March 28, 2019

Exercising is good for your brain, but how?

Physical exercise is good for you. You already know that and if you are not exercising is just because you are too lazy. However, it is still quite strange that exercising is not only good for your body, but for your brain as well. How? An international team from The […]
March 28, 2019

Scientists uncover genetic reasons why many Border Collies go blind

Border Collies are considered to be one of the smartest breeds of dogs on Earth. They are fun, playful and easy to train. However, some of them suffer from various health conditions. For example, a condition called goniodysgenesis or gonio causes sudden blindness. Now scientists from the University of Edinburgh […]
March 27, 2019

Discovery of self-destruct mechanism in algae could have broad applications for antibiotics and biofuels

In a discovery that could have broad applications from the development of targeted antibiotics to the production of biofuels in industry, University of Alberta biologists discovered evidence of bacteria causing apoptosis, or programmed cell death, in algae. “It sounds odd, but programmed cell death is important to all large organisms. […]
March 27, 2019

Developing a blood test to screen for ovarian cancer

More than 16,000 women die from ovarian cancer each year in the United States. Ovarian cancer is often called the “silent killer” because the symptoms are so vague that women are often not diagnosed with ovarian cancer until the disease has progressed to advanced stages. Currently, no blood test exists […]
March 27, 2019

Can music slow mental decline? Rice researchers aim to find out

Can music therapy slow the progression of degenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia while promoting well-being? A grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) will fund a new lab at Rice University that will explore this possible new inroad in the fight against such disorders. […]
March 27, 2019

New CRISPR-powered device detects genetic mutations in minutes

A team of engineers at the UC Berkeley and the Keck Graduate Institute (KGI) of The Claremont Colleges combined CRISPR with electronic transistors made from graphene to create a new hand-held device that can detect specific genetic mutations in a matter of minutes. The device, dubbed CRISPR-Chip, could be used […]
March 27, 2019

Novel DNA repair mechanism maintains human genome

University of Tokyo researchers and their collaborators have demonstrated that a special structure that forms when DNA is damaged helps to restore it. Human cells have a mechanism for recognizing this structure, consisting of DNA and RNA, which promotes accurate repair of damaged DNA. The study’s findings point to a […]
March 27, 2019

Model learns how individual amino acids determine protein function

A machine-learning model from MIT researchers computationally breaks down how segments of amino acid chains determine a protein’s function, which could help researchers design and test new proteins for drug development or biological research. Proteins are linear chains of amino acids, connected by peptide bonds, that fold into exceedingly complex […]
March 27, 2019

How tumors behave on acid

Scientists have long known that tumors have many pockets of high acidity, usually found deep within the tumor where little oxygen is available. However, a new study from MIT researchers has found that tumor surfaces are also highly acidic, and that this acidity helps tumors to become more invasive and […]
March 27, 2019

New Study Reshapes Understanding of How the Brain Recovers from Injury

New research, which appeared in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, sheds light on how the damage in the brain caused by a stroke can lead to permanent vision impairment for approximately 265,000 Americans each year. The findings could provide researchers with a blueprint to better identify which areas […]
March 27, 2019

New 3-D printing approach makes cell-scale lattice structures

A new way of making scaffolding for biological cultures could make it possible to grow cells that are highly uniform in shape and size, and potentially with certain functions. The new approach uses an extremely fine-scale form of 3-D printing, using an electric field to draw fibers one-tenth the width […]
March 27, 2019

New oral drug to treat multiple sclerosis approved by FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Mayzent (siponimod) tablets to treat adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), to include clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting disease, and active secondary progressive disease. Billy Dunn, M.D., director of the Division of Neurology Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation […]
March 26, 2019

Scientists discover how Proteins interact along Metabolic Pathway

Life can depend upon the interaction of two proteins that come together along a metabolic pathway. There, they enable growth by creating fatty acids essential for ensuring that cell membranes form in a protective, fluid environment. While scientists have understood the basic enzymes involved in this fatty-acid biosynthesis, they have […]
March 26, 2019

Balance of Two Enzymes Linked to Pancreatic Cancer Survival

Protein Kinase C (PKC) enzymes are crucial for a number of cellular activities, including cell survival, proliferation and migration — functions that must be carefully controlled lest cells get out of control and form a tumor. Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine found that another enzyme, […]
March 26, 2019

Blood cells the missing link in post-exercise boost

A discovery about how exercise improves brain function could be harnessed for research into ageing, and boosting learning and memory. An international team from The University of Queensland and the Dresden University of Technology has identified what triggers the boost to brain function through exercise. Dr Tara Walker from UQ’s Queensland Brain Institutesaid the improvements […]
March 26, 2019

The Brain Grows New Nerve Cells in People up to 87 Years of Age

In a paper recently published in the journal Nature Medicine, a group of researchers from Spain detail their study of the brains of deceased people, indicating that our “neck-tops” are perfectly capable of growing brand new cells well into advanced age. This finding comes as somewhat of a surprise in […]
March 26, 2019

Like racecars and geese, cancer cells draft their way to new tumor sites

NASCAR has nothing on cancer cells when it comes to exploiting the power of drafting, letting someone else do the hard work of moving forward while you coast behind. Building on the relatively new discovery that metastatic cancer cells leave tumors and travel in clusters, not singles, a Vanderbilt University […]