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Heparan sulfate aids COVID-19 virus to penetrate human lung cells

A molecule known as ACE2 sits like a doorknob on the outer surfaces of the cells that line the lungs. Since January 2020, researchers have known that SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, primarily uses ACE2 to enter these cells and establish respiratory infections.

16 Sep 2020

Digital phenotyping and machine learning can help assess severe mental illness

Digital phenotyping approaches that collect and analyze Smartphone-user data on locations, activities, and even feelings - combined with machine learning to recognize patterns and make predictions from the data - have emerged as promising tools for monitoring patients with psychosis spectrum illnesses, according to a report in the September/October issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry

16 Sep 2020

Researchers are testing the effectiveness of multiple treatments to prevent COVID-19

A study on the effectiveness of multiple treatments, including laboratory-made antibodies, at preventing mild COVID-19 from advancing to severe illness in the outpatient setting is underway by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

16 Sep 2020

Study finds synthetic and desiccated thyroid products to be equally effective in treating hypothyroidism

A study by researchers at Kaiser Permanente in Denver, Colorado evaluated the stability of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) in patients using synthetic medication versus those using desiccated thyroid products to treat hypothyroidism.

15 Sep 2020

Scientists unlock crucial molecular details regarding tau's activity

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is a type of dementia that appears earlier in life than Alzheimer's disease (AD).

15 Sep 2020

New x-ray microscopy technique could help accelerate efforts to map neural circuits

One of the grand quests in neuroscience is to build a precise map of the brain, charting all its neurons and the connections between them. Such a wiring diagram, called a connectome, promises to help shed light on how a collection of cells can together give rise to thoughts, memories, behaviors and myriad other functions.

14 Sep 2020

Researchers receive $2.5 million grant to develop and analyze breast tumor organoids

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer diagnosed in women in the United States after skin cancer, and women with comorbidities (the presence of more than one condition/disease) often fare worse in terms of their breast cancer.

14 Sep 2020

Study shows lack knowledge about colonoscopy among high-risk patients

Colorectal cancer is the third most common cause of cancer deaths in the United States and advanced colorectal polyps are a major risk factor.

14 Sep 2020

Efforts to control COVID-19 could create a health time bomb in slum communities

Efforts to stem the impact of COVID-19 in low to middle income countries could be creating a health time bomb in their slum communities by deepening existing inequalities, according to an international team of health researchers led by the University of Warwick.

14 Sep 2020

Cell signaling research rings warning bells over an emerging cancer drug target

Researchers at the Babraham Institute have used their understanding of cellular signalling to highlight a pitfall in an emerging treatment for cancer and inflammation.

14 Sep 2020

New poll highlights feelings of loneliness and isolation among older adults during COVID-19

Staying close to home and avoiding crowded places can help older adults reduce their risk of COVID-19. But a new national poll suggests it comes with a cost, especially for those with health challenges.

14 Sep 2020

Sleep apnea patients could be at increased risk of adverse outcomes from COVID-19

People who have been diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnoea could be at increased risk of adverse outcomes from COVID-19 according to a new study from the University of Warwick.

14 Sep 2020

Tobacco plant promotes tissue adhesion and can maintain grafts between different species

Grafting is a horticultural technique that joins plants together by means of tissue regeneration, combining desirable characteristics of both plants. Generally, grafts have been thought to be compatible only between the same or closely related species.

14 Sep 2020

UMSOM researchers determine role of protein in development of hearing hair cells

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine have conducted a study that has determined the role that a critical protein plays in the development of hair cells.

12 Sep 2020

Middle-aged adults may be in a perpetual state of H3N2 flu virus vulnerability

Penn Medicine researchers have found that middle-aged individuals -- those born in the late 1960s and the 1970s -- may be in a perpetual state of H3N2 influenza virus susceptibility because their antibodies bind to H3N2 viruses but fail to prevent infections, according to a new study led by Scott Hensley, PhD, an associate professor of Microbiology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

12 Sep 2020

Study identifies gene that could decrease chances of developing alcoholic cirrhosis

Researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine are learning more about how a person's genes play a role in the possibility they'll suffer from alcoholic cirrhosis with the discovery of a gene that could make the disease less likely.

12 Sep 2020

Researchers develop highly scalable, accurate antibody test for COVID-19

An antibody test for the virus that causes COVID-19, developed by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin in collaboration with Houston Methodist and other institutions, is more accurate and can handle a much larger number of donor samples at lower overall cost than standard antibody tests currently in use.

12 Sep 2020

Study sheds light on the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Blacks

In a study published in JAMA today, Mount Sinai researchers report findings that shed some light on the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Blacks, who have experienced rates of infection and death that are much greater, in some areas twice and three times more, than their proportion of the population.

11 Sep 2020

Comprehensive analysis of antibody responses in COVID-19 patients can help develop effective vaccine

A comprehensive analysis of antibody responses in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients could inform the development of an effective vaccine, according to a study published September 10 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by Chao Wu and Rui Huang of Nanjing University Medical School, and colleagues.

11 Sep 2020

Antibiotic molecule helps the body's own immune system to kill HIV infected cells

Ever since the first cases of a mysterious disease in the early 1980s exploded into the HIV/AIDS pandemic, researchers have been searching for ways to outsmart the deadly virus.

11 Sep 2020

Medical School News and Research

Heparan sulfate aids COVID-19 virus to penetrate human lung cells

Digital phenotyping and machine learning can help assess severe mental illness

Researchers are testing the effectiveness of multiple treatments to prevent COVID-19

Study finds synthetic and desiccated thyroid products to be equally effective in treating hypothyroidism

Scientists unlock crucial molecular details regarding tau's activity

New x-ray microscopy technique could help accelerate efforts to map neural circuits

Researchers receive $2.5 million grant to develop and analyze breast tumor organoids

Study shows lack knowledge about colonoscopy among high-risk patients

Efforts to control COVID-19 could create a health time bomb in slum communities

Cell signaling research rings warning bells over an emerging cancer drug target

New poll highlights feelings of loneliness and isolation among older adults during COVID-19

Sleep apnea patients could be at increased risk of adverse outcomes from COVID-19

Tobacco plant promotes tissue adhesion and can maintain grafts between different species

UMSOM researchers determine role of protein in development of hearing hair cells

Middle-aged adults may be in a perpetual state of H3N2 flu virus vulnerability

Study identifies gene that could decrease chances of developing alcoholic cirrhosis

Researchers develop highly scalable, accurate antibody test for COVID-19

Study sheds light on the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Blacks

Comprehensive analysis of antibody responses in COVID-19 patients can help develop effective vaccine

Antibiotic molecule helps the body's own immune system to kill HIV infected cells

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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