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Patented IU discovery to treat ARDS has been optioned to Theratome Bio

A patented Indiana University School of Medicine discovery that uses proteins, lipids and nucleic acids secreted by adult stem cells to treat Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, or ARDS, has been optioned to Theratome Bio, an Indianapolis-based life sciences company.

17 Feb 2019

Study finds genetic vulnerability to use of menthol cigarettes

A genetic variant found only in people of African descent significantly increases a smoker's preference for cigarettes containing menthol, a flavor additive.

15 Feb 2019

MUSC researchers discover new mechanism for a class of anti-cancer drugs

Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina reveal a novel binding site for a class of anti-cancer drugs known as E1 inhibitors. This finding could lead to the design of more efficient E1 inhibitors.

15 Feb 2019

New technique using patients' own modified cells could help treat Crohn's disease

A new technique using patients' own modified cells to treat Crohn's disease has been proven to be effective in experiments using human cells, with a clinical trial of the treatment expected to start in the next six months.

15 Feb 2019

Blood clot discovery could lead to development of better treatments for blood diseases

Scientists have discovered new ways in which the body regulates blood clots, in a discovery which could one day lead to the development of better treatments that could help prevent and treat conditions including heart diseases, stroke and vascular dementia.

15 Feb 2019

UVA scientists find potential explanation for mysterious cell death in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s

Scientists at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have identified a potential explanation for the mysterious death of specific brain cells seen in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

15 Feb 2019

Castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer responds to combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors

Some patients with metastatic prostate cancer respond to a combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors after hormonal therapy and chemotherapy have failed, according to early results from a clinical trial led by investigators at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center presented today at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco.

15 Feb 2019

Immune checkpoint molecule protects against future development of cancer

A research team at the University of Louisville has discovered that an immune checkpoint molecule they developed for cancer immunotherapy, also protects against future development of multiple types of cancer when administered by itself.

15 Feb 2019

New method for improved visualization of single-cell RNA- sequencing data

Like going from a pinhole camera to a Polaroid, a significant mathematical update to the formula for a popular bioinformatics data visualization method will allow researchers to develop snapshots of single-cell gene expression not only several times faster but also at much higher-resolution.

15 Feb 2019

Discovery of weakness in a rare cancer could be exploited with drugs

Cancer cells are, in some respects, impressive: They can grow relentlessly, sidestep the aging process by becoming immortal, and evade the immune system's persistent attacks. But in the process of acquiring such superpowers, the cells must occasionally relinquish other, more mundane skills--including the ability to produce certain nutrients.

15 Feb 2019

New study seeks to understand how colibactin causes cancer

For more than a decade, scientists have worked to understand the connection between colibactin, a compound produced by certain strains of E. coli, and colorectal cancer, but have been hampered by their inability to isolate the compound.

15 Feb 2019

Newly developed stem cell technologies show promise for treating PD patients

Cell replacement may play an increasing role in alleviating the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) in future. Writing in a special supplement to the Journal of Parkinson's Disease, experts describe how newly developed stem cell technologies could be used to treat the disease and discuss the great promise, as well as the significant challenges, of stem cell treatment.

15 Feb 2019

Sausage mislabeling in Canada is down, new study finds

Sausage mislabelling in Canada is down, according to a new University of Guelph DNA barcoding study.

15 Feb 2019

Moffitt researchers shed light on how CAR T cells function mechanistically

The scientific community has made great strides over the past decade in the development of a new class of cancer therapy called immunotherapy, a treatment that activates a patient's own immune system to target cancer cells.

15 Feb 2019

New mechanism for lateral inhibition of cells discovered

"The winner takes it all, the loser standing small" - that's not just true in the famous ABBA song, but also in animal development. Frequently, a group of cells starts out all being the same. But then one cell puts the brake on its neighbors, sending inhibitory signals that stop their differentiation. The "winning" cell, in the end, is different from its neighbors.

15 Feb 2019

Researchers study animal venoms to identify new medicines for treating diseases

Animal venoms are the subject of study at research center based at the Butantan Institute in São Paulo. But in this case, the idea is not to find antidotes, but rather to use the properties of the venoms themselves to identify molecular targets of diseases and, armed with that knowledge, develop new compounds that can be used as medicines.

15 Feb 2019

Platinum nanoparticles show selective toxicity against liver cancer cells

In recent years, the number of targeted cancer drugs has continued to rise. However, conventional chemotherapeutic agents still play an important role in cancer treatment.

15 Feb 2019

New therapeutic molecules show promise in reversing memory loss related to depression, aging

New therapeutic molecules developed at Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health show promise in reversing the memory loss linked to depression and aging.

15 Feb 2019

Researchers use optogenetic tool to control, visualize receptor signals in neural cells

Using a novel optogenetic tool, researchers have successfully controlled, reproduced and visualized serotonin receptor signals in neural cells. To this end, they modified a photosensitive membrane receptor in the eye, namely melanopsin.

15 Feb 2019

Study: General anesthesia in early infancy unlikely to have lasting effects on developing brains

A single hour of general anesthesia in early infancy—longer than is necessary to perform the most common types of minor surgeries in childhood—does not result in measurable neurodevelopmental or behavioral problems up to the age of 5 years, according to the first randomized trial of its kind involving 722 infants in seven countries, published in The Lancet.

15 Feb 2019