Zinc News and Research

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Zinc is an essential mineral that is naturally present in some foods, added to others, and available as a dietary supplement. Zinc is also found in many cold lozenges and some over-the-counter drugs sold as cold remedies.

Artificial sweetener could lead to development of cancer therapies with less side effects

Artificial sweeteners are used in diet drinks and foods but also could someday be used as treatments targeting carbonic anhydrase IX (CA IX), a protein associated with aggressive cancers.

24 Jan 2018

Specially prepared supplement helps women to run faster, study shows

A new study found that women who took a specially prepared blend of minerals and nutrients for a month saw their 3-mile run times drop by almost a minute.

22 Jan 2018

Heart failure patients who have anorexia have worse prognosis

Researchers of the German Centre for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK) have discovered that patients with heart failure who have anorexia are also more affected in their physical functional capacity and have worse prognosis.

12 Jan 2018

UCLA expert offers tips to reduce risk for catching a cold

As winter cold descends on the nation, people tend to hunker down for warmth, often in places where others are in close proximity. It's a recipe for spreading colds.

9 Jan 2018

Sangamo and Pfizer partner for development of new zinc finger protein gene therapy to treat ALS

Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc. and Pfizer Inc. today announced a collaboration for the development of a potential gene therapy using zinc finger protein transcription factors (ZFP-TFs) to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) linked to mutations of the C9ORF72 gene.

8 Jan 2018

Experts look for ways to end dietary deficiencies in essential micronutrients

One of the most ambitious programmes to provide lasting improvements in nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa begins today when a diverse multinational team of experts from agriculture to ethics start looking for ways to end dietary deficiencies in essential micronutrients.

3 Jan 2018

Research clarifies role of zinc transport mechanism in onset of obstructive pulmonary diseases

Obstructive pulmonary disease is a collective term for refractory respiratory diseases with chronic airway inflammation and excessive mucus retention that are accompanied by airway obstruction.

28 Dec 2017

Researchers develop nanowire device to detect urinary markers implicated in cancer

Researchers centered at Nagoya University develop a nanowire device able to detect microscopic levels of urinary markers potentially implicated in cancer.

26 Dec 2017

Zinc present in semen determines male fertility, study shows

Trace levels of zinc present in semen is a vital determinant of male fertility, a recent study in Bangladesh capital Dhaka concludes.

19 Dec 2017

TUM scientists build virus-sized structures using DNA origami technology

It is the double strands of our genes that make them so strong. Using a technique known as DNA origami, biophysicist Hendrik Dietz has been building nanometer-scale objects for several years at the Technical University of Munich.

7 Dec 2017

Gene editing within a living person for the first time

Genetic editing has been performed in the laboratory until now. Living cells within Petri-dishes have been put under the microscope while gene editing tools such as CRISPR were used to cut, nick and replace parts of the DNA or genome that is defective with bits of DNA that is correct in its sequence. Now doctors in California have attempted to edit cells within a living person.

19 Nov 2017

Specific way of spelling out genetic code likely allows viruses to evade our cellular defenses

For millions of years, humans and viruses have engaged in a constant tug of war: as our cells evolve new ways to defend us from our viral enemies, these pathogens in turn acquire new traits to sidestep those defenses.

13 Nov 2017

Waterborne disease outbreaks can be traced to plumbing systems in buildings

Traditional water treatment efforts have focused on water leaving the treatment plant, but a large number of recent waterborne disease outbreaks in the U.S. can be traced to plumbing systems in buildings.

9 Nov 2017

Special electric dressing can combat antibiotic resistance, biofilm infection

Researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center have shown - for the first time - that special bandages using weak electric fields to disrupt bacterial biofilm infection can prevent infections, combat antibiotic resistance and enable healing in infected burn wounds.

6 Nov 2017

Russian scientists design new compounds that can treat glaucoma

Glaucoma is a serious disease associated with increased intraocular pressure which often leads to blindness. One of the ways to treat glaucoma is to reduce aqueous humour secretion in the ciliary body of the eye by suppressing (inhibiting) activity of special enzymes - carbonic anhydrases.

3 Nov 2017

Ground-breaking eye health study offers new hope for AMD sufferers

Results from a two-year eye health study - the first of its kind in the world – have shown a new hope for people suffering from age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the most common cause of sight loss in the UK.

3 Nov 2017

CRISPRy bacon ! Genetically modified leaner low-fat pigs

Genetically modified leaner pigs are on the cards soon. Researchers in china used the gene-editing technology, CRISPR, to create pigs that are less fatty and leaner with more muscle. This could mean genetically modified bacon on the plates.

24 Oct 2017

Zinc-binding plays key role in sensing and regulation of brain’s pH levels

Researchers in Oslo, Norway, have discovered that Zinc-binding plays an important role in the sensing and regulation of pH in the human brain. The findings come as one of the first studies that directly link Zinc-binding with bicarbonate transporters.

17 Oct 2017

Rutgers scientists find efficient way to enhance nutritional value of corn

Rutgers scientists have found an efficient way to enhance the nutritional value of corn - the world's largest commodity crop - by inserting a bacterial gene that causes it to produce a key nutrient called methionine, according to a new study.

9 Oct 2017

Zinc may help stop growth of esophageal cancer

Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington have discovered that zinc targets and blocks a specific calcium channel in esophageal cancer cells, preventing them from proliferating.

2 Oct 2017