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Mouse model could improve understanding of human brown fat’s role in metabolic processes

When it gets cold around you, your body turns up the heat to maintain its normal temperature. The heat is produced by brown adipose tissue, or brown fat, which also plays a role in how the body uses glucose and fat.

2 Jun 2017

UCSB biologists develop new antimicrobial susceptibility test to transform the way antibiotics are tested

When a patient is prescribed the wrong antibiotic to treat a bacterial infection, it's not necessarily the physician who is at fault. The current antibiotic assay -- standardized in 1961 by the World Health Organization and used worldwide -- is potentially flawed.

2 Jun 2017

New study establishes link between prenatal stress and onset of eating disorders

Stress affects the body and can trigger illness -- from psychiatric disorders to heart disease. Humans are exposed to stress at different intensities throughout life -- as children, in adolescence, and in old age. But when is the impact of stress on our systems most powerful? Many researchers maintain that the critical effect occurs prenatally, inside the womb.

1 Jun 2017

Researchers develop new mouse model that could lead to better treatment of kidney cancer

Research in the field of kidney cancer, also called renal cancer, is vital, because many patients with this disease still cannot be cured today.

30 May 2017

Researchers develop new method to predict potency of allergenic substances

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have developed a method which determines not only whether a chemical or substance is allergenic, but also how strong its potential for causing hypersensitivity is.

30 May 2017

Clinical study tests 100-year-old drug in children with autism spectrum disorder

In a small, randomized Phase I/II clinical trial (SAT1), researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine say a 100-year-old drug called suramin, originally developed to treat African sleeping sickness, was safely administered to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who subsequently displayed measurable, but transient, improvement in core symptoms of autism.

26 May 2017

Scientists identify key gene in 22q11.2 that contributes to genitourinary birth defects

The 22q11.2 region of human chromosome 22 is a hotspot for a variety of birth defects. Scientists learned about this region because it is deleted in about 1 in 4,000 births, causing the loss or duplication of up to 40 genes.

25 May 2017

Scientists to develop drugs for treating cognitive deficits in Huntington's disease sufferers

Scientists at the University of Sussex have started work on a multi-million pound project to develop drugs to treat the debilitating loss of cognitive function associated with Huntington's disease.

19 May 2017

Researchers discover innovative way to produce hematopoietic stem cells

A study published on May 17 in Nature, discovers an innovative method to produce infinite supply of healthy blood cells from the readily available cells that line blood vessels. This achievement by the researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine marks the first time that any research group has generated such blood-forming stem cells.

18 May 2017

Weekly doses of steroids help hasten recovery in muscle injuries

Weekly doses of glucocorticoid steroids, such as prednisone, help speed recovery in muscle injuries, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study. The weekly steroids also repaired muscles damaged by muscular dystrophy.

17 May 2017

Age-related macular degeneration could be arrested by switching to low-glycemic diet, study finds

A study in mice finds that development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) could be arrested by switching from a high-glycemic diet (starches as are found in white bread) to a low-glycemic (starches found in whole grains).

16 May 2017

Research could lead to development of new therapies that reduce pathological fear in PTSD

Research published by scientists at the University of California, Riverside on "fear memory" could lead to the development of therapies that reduce the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

16 May 2017

Diabetes medication could potentially help treat symptoms of Fragile X syndrome

Metformin, the most widely used drug to treat type 2 diabetes, could potentially be used to treat symptoms of Fragile X syndrome, an inherited form of intellectual disability and a cause of some forms of autism.

15 May 2017

Study sheds new light on inherent ability of normal cells to prevent cancer at the initial stage

A new study shows cells in the initial stage of cancer change their metabolism before getting eliminated by the surrounding normal cells, providing a novel target for developing cancer prevention drugs.

15 May 2017

Immunoreceptor promotes tumor growth in mouse models of liver cancer driven by inflammation

Boosting a part of the immune system known to have anti-tumor properties may actually help tumors grow in cancers linked to chronic inflammation.

12 May 2017

Study findings could help identify treatments for balding and hair graying

Researchers at the UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered the cells that are directly responsible for hair growth and the mechanism that causes gray hair. The study results could help in identifying feasible treatments for balding and hair graying.

9 May 2017

Novel approach cures diabetes in mice for one year without side effects

A potential cure for Type 1 diabetes looms on the horizon in San Antonio, and the novel approach would also allow Type 2 diabetics to stop insulin shots.

5 May 2017

Easing cellular traffic jams in Huntington’s disease may save brain cells

Working with mouse, fly and human cells and tissue, Johns Hopkins researchers report new evidence that disruptions in the movement of cellular materials in and out of a cell's control center - the nucleus- appear to be a direct cause of brain cell death in Huntington's disease, an inherited adult neurodegenerative disorder.

5 May 2017

New research uncovers role of mysterious molecule in skin cancer

New research from Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP) at Lake Nona uncovers the modus operandi of a mysterious molecule called SPRIGHTLY that has been previously implicated in colorectal cancer, breast cancer, and melanoma.

3 May 2017

Phthalate exposure linked to increased risk of allergies among children

Phthalates, which are used as plasticizers in plastics, can considerably increase the risk of allergies among children.