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Findings pave way for personalized probiotic therapies for obesity-related diseases

Our genetic makeup influences whether we are fat or thin by shaping which types of microbes thrive in our body, according to a Cornell-led study published today in the journal Cell.

7 Nov 2014

Regenerative medicine may offer new standard of advanced treatment for foot and leg ulcers

These are exciting times for regenerative medicine. Unlike conventional medicines, the regenerative approach can potentially work to restore the lost functionality of tissues or organs—the major reason for intensive focus on research and development in the field.

7 Nov 2014

Health benefits of modified formulation of curcumin supplements

The health benefits of over-the-counter curcumin supplements might not get past your gut, but new research shows that a modified formulation of the spice releases its anti-inflammatory goodness throughout the body.

7 Nov 2014

Researchers obtain detailed picture of how Gas5 RNA interacts with steroid hormone receptors

It arises from what scientists previously described as "junk DNA" or "the dark matter of the genome," but this gene is definitely not junk.

7 Nov 2014

Single mutation in beta-catenin gene can lead to infertility

Scientists from the RIKEN BioResource Center in Tsukuba, Japan, have discovered that a single mutation in the beta-catenin gene, which codes a protein known to be deeply involved in a number of developmental and homeostatic processes, can lead to infertility not through a disruption of the production of egg or sperm cells, but rather by leading to abnormalities in the morphology of the sexual organs, making natural reproduction impossible.

7 Nov 2014

McLean Hospital lab explores use of stem cell therapy to treat epilepsy

McLean Hospital and Harvard Stem Cell Institute scientists have new evidence that stem cell transplantation could be a worthwhile strategy to help epileptics who do not respond to anti-seizure drugs.

7 Nov 2014

Applying lessons learnt from failed Alzheimer's studies for future research

Disappointing results in clinical Alzheimer's studies discourage doctors and scientists from continuing their research into ɣ-secretases and a possible treatment against Alzheimer's disease. In the prestigious journal Cell, the Alzheimer's expert Bart De Strooper (VIB-KU Leuven) argues that these studies are not pointless, but merely indicate what the next steps should be for the Alzheimer's research.

7 Nov 2014

Researchers edging closer to first ever stem cell transplants for people with Parkinson's disease

A major breakthrough in the development of stem cell-derived brain cells has put researchers on a firm path towards the first ever stem cell transplantations in people with Parkinson's disease. A new study presents the next generation of transplantable dopamine neurons produced from stem cells. These cells carry the same properties as the dopamine neurons found in the human brain.

7 Nov 2014

Salk Institute researchers heal injured hearts of living mice

Researchers at the Salk Institute have healed injured hearts of living mice by reactivating long dormant molecular machinery found in the animals' cells, a finding that could help pave the way to new therapies for heart disorders in humans.

7 Nov 2014

New study explains role of cilia in type 2 diabetes

Tiny extensions on cells, cilia, play an important role in insulin release, according to a new study, which is published in Nature Communications. The researchers report that the cilia of beta cells in the pancreas are covered with insulin receptors and that changed ciliary function can be associated with the development of type 2 diabetes.

7 Nov 2014

U-M researchers show how neurons perform multiple functions

Researchers at the University of Michigan have shown how a single neuron can perform multiple functions in a model organism, illuminating for the first time this fundamental biological mechanism and shedding light on the human brain.

6 Nov 2014

Scientists develop human stem cell disease model of Parkinson's disease in a dish

A team of scientists led by The New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute successfully created a human stem cell disease model of Parkinson's disease in a dish. Studying a pair of identical (monozygotic) twins, one affected and one unaffected with Parkinson's disease, another unrelated Parkinson's patient, and four healthy control subjects, the scientists were able to observe key features of the disease in the laboratory, specifically differences in the patients' neurons' ability to produce dopamine, the molecule that is deficient in Parkinson's disease.

6 Nov 2014

Osteoporosis drugs may also benefit patients with tumours outside the skeleton

Australian researchers have shown why calcium-binding drugs commonly used to treat people with osteoporosis, or with late-stage cancers that have spread to bone, may also benefit patients with tumours outside the skeleton, including breast cancer.

6 Nov 2014

Scientists awarded grant to investigate new drug-based treatment for NF2

Scientists from Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry have been awarded a grant from young person's cancer charity The Laura Crane Youth Cancer Trust to investigate a new drug-based treatment for a multi-tumour brain and nervous system cancer which affects teenagers and young adults.

6 Nov 2014

Researchers develop 'smart bomb' to attack B-lineage ALL

Fatih Uckun, Jianjun Cheng and their colleagues have taken the first steps towards developing a so-called "smart bomb" to attack the most common and deadly form of childhood cancer — called B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

6 Nov 2014

Johns Hopkins researchers capture images of protein complex that keeps hearts beating

For years, a multidisciplinary team of Johns Hopkins researchers has tracked an elusive creature, a complex of proteins thought to be at fault in some cases of sudden cardiac death. As they report Nov. 5 in the online edition of Nature Communications, they have finally captured images of the complex.

6 Nov 2014

Study sheds light on DCIS recurrence

Work by University of Manchester scientists has explored what allows some cases of Ductal Carcinoma in Situ (DCIS), a non-invasive form of breast cancer, to resist treatment and come back, as well as identifying a potential new target to improve the effectiveness of radiotherapy.

6 Nov 2014

Joslin researcher identifies molecular pathway that causes neural tube defects in diabetic pregnancies

Mary R. Loeken, Ph.D., Investigator in the Section on Islet Cell and Regenerative Biology at Joslin Diabetes Center and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, has discovered a molecular pathway responsible for neural tube defects in diabetic pregnancies. Her latest research findings in this pathway were published in the October issue of Diabetes.

6 Nov 2014

EKF Molecular Diagnostics to present at AMP annual meeting

EKF, announces that senior executives from EKF Molecular Diagnostics including CEO, Andrew Webb, will be present at the Association for Molecular Pathology.

From EKF Diagnostics 6 Nov 2014

AZD3965 drug inhibits growth of tumours in the lab

Manchester scientists have shown that a new drug inhibits the growth of tumours in the lab and that its effectiveness is improved by combining it with radiotherapy - suggesting a new approach that could be used in the clinic.

6 Nov 2014