Toxin News and Research

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Protein once seen as promising anti-cancer compound helps to stabilize neural circuits

Researchers at UC San Francisco (UCSF) have discovered that endostatin, a protein that once aroused intense interest as a possible cancer treatment, plays a key role in the stable functioning of the nervous system.

25 Jul 2014

Effective way to fight against certain species of toxic grass fungus: moose saliva

Some sticky research out of York University shows a surprisingly effective way to fight against a certain species of toxic grass fungus: moose saliva (yes- moose saliva).

25 Jul 2014

Brown recluse spider bites increases this summer, say toxicologists

Vanderbilt medical toxicologists are reporting an increase in patients seen with brown recluse spider bites this summer.

24 Jul 2014

Astrocytes may be behind mental disorders, new research reveals

Astrocytes, the cells that make the background of the brain and support neurons, might be behind mental disorders such as depression and schizophrenia, according to new research by a Portuguese team from the ICVS at the University of Minho.

23 Jul 2014

Study of woodrats may impact farming practices in arid regions

Woodrats lost their ability to eat toxic creosote bushes after antibiotics killed their gut microbes. Woodrats that never ate the plants were able to do so after receiving fecal transplants with microbes from creosote-eaters, University of Utah biologists found.

21 Jul 2014

Researchers seek ways to prevent foodborne illnesses with cinnamon

Seeking ways to prevent some of the most serious foodborne illnesses caused by pathogenic bacteria, two Washington State University scientists have found promise in an ancient but common cooking spice: cinnamon.

18 Jul 2014

New way to protect crops from insect plagues in safe and environmentally responsible way

Using spider toxins to study the proteins that let nerve cells send out electrical signals, Johns Hopkins researchers say they have stumbled upon a biological tactic that may offer a new way to protect crops from insect plagues in a safe and environmentally responsible way.

11 Jul 2014

Samples from Chobani yogurt contain most virulent form of fungus

Samples isolated from Chobani yogurt that was voluntarily recalled in September 2013 have been found to contain the most virulent form of a fungus called Mucor circinelloides, which is associated with infections in immune-compromised people.

8 Jul 2014

Researchers find novel inhibitor that prevents cholera toxin from binding to carbohydrates

Cholera against cholera: a novel inhibitor prevents the cholera toxin from binding to carbohydrates found on the surface of intestinal cells.

7 Jul 2014

Personalized antibiotic therapy can help fight antibiotic-resistant infections

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned last fall that the U.S. faces "potentially catastrophic consequences" if it doesn't act quickly to combat the growing threat of antibiotic-resistant infections, which kill about 23,000 Americans a year.

27 Jun 2014

Researchers discover analgesic mechanism that prevents pain in Buruli ulcer patients

When the body receives an injury to the skin, a signal is sent to the brain, which generates a sensation of pain.

20 Jun 2014

New project improves techniques for detecting E. coli

Kansas State University diagnosticians are helping the cattle industry save millions of dollars each year by developing earlier and accurate detection of E. coli.

17 Jun 2014

New methods for detection of fecal pollution in Norwegian watercourses

The Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Bioforsk, has tested and implemented a set of methods for the detection of fecal pollution in Norwegian watercourses.

9 Jun 2014

Researchers take another promising step toward developing universal antidote for snakebite

A team of researchers, led by Dr. Matthew Lewin of the California Academy of Sciences and Dr. Stephen P. Samuel of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland has taken another promising step toward developing a universal antidote for snakebite.

29 May 2014

Researchers show how bacteria responsible for strep throat can be used to fight colon cancer

Researchers at Western University (London, Canada) have shown how the bacteria primarily responsible for causing strep throat can be used to fight colon cancer. By engineering a streptococcal bacterial toxin to attach itself to tumour cells, they are forcing the immune system to recognize and attack the cancer.

21 May 2014

Sanofi presents Phase II trial results for investigational vaccine for prevention of CDI

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of Sanofi, presented Phase II (H-030-012) trial results for an investigational vaccine for the prevention of Clostridium difficile infection at the 114th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

20 May 2014

Researchers show how cone snails venom inhibits neuronal calcium channels to reduce neuropathic pain

The venom from marine cone snails, used to immobilize prey, contains numerous peptides called conotoxins, some of which can act as painkillers in mammals. A recent study in The Journal of General Physiology provides new insight into the mechanisms by which one conotoxin, Vc1.1, inhibits pain.

15 May 2014

Researchers find two types of neurons that enable spinal cord to control skilled forelimb movement

Researchers have identified two types of neurons that enable the spinal cord to control skilled forelimb movement. The first is a group of excitatory interneurons that are needed to make accurate and precise movements; the second is a group of inhibitory interneurons necessary for achieving smooth movement of the limbs.

2 May 2014

Uncontrollable sweating of hyperhidrosis can have serious impact on person

Sweating is a natural function of the body to cool it down during physical exertion or from a warm environment or to even help cope with emotional situations.

23 Apr 2014

Freiburg researchers discover molecule that smuggles toxins from intestinal pathogens into human cells

Prof. Dr. Dr. Klaus Aktories and Dr. Panagiotis Papatheodorou from the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology of the University of Freiburg have discovered the receptor responsible for smuggling the toxin of the bacterium Clostridium perfringens into the cell.

17 Apr 2014