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Study shows oxidant hydrogen peroxide can actually slow down cell ageing

At high concentrations, reactive oxygen species - known as oxidants - are harmful to cells in all organisms and have been linked to ageing.

9 Nov 2020

Telemedicine appointment cancellations were almost zero during the COVID phase

New research presented at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology's annual meeting, shows that expanded use of telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic improved cancellation rates, no-shows and completed medical visits for rheumatology ambulatory clinics in one large Ohio health system.

9 Nov 2020

Researchers to develop new optogenetic tools for biology and medicine

The European Research Council (ERC) is providing 10 million euros in funding for an interdisciplinary, collaborative project in the structural and biophysical analysis of selected photoreceptors and their development into "OptoGPCRs", light-controlled molecular switches with a wide range of applications in biology and medicine.

8 Nov 2020

FDA authorizes marketing of new device intended to provide temporary relief from sleep disturbances

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration permitted marketing of a new device intended for the temporary reduction of sleep disturbance related to nightmares in adults 22 years or older who suffer from nightmare disorder or have nightmares from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

8 Nov 2020

Cats shed SARS-CoV-2 RNA for a shorter duration compared to humans, study finds

Since the emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there have been numerous reports of pets becoming infected. Both dogs and cats have been observed to exhibit symptoms of infection.

8 Nov 2020

Virginia Tech student receives NSERC award to develop minimally invasive treatment for glioblastoma

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) supports research that results in "breakthrough answers to timeless questions." When choosing awardees, the council looks for creativity and innovation, two qualities they see at the heart of all research advances.

6 Nov 2020

AI enables accurate detection of radiographic sacroiliitis in people with axial spondyloarthritis

New research presented at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology's annual meeting, shows that an artificial intelligence-based analysis model, called an artificial neural network, enables accurate detection of definite radiographic sacroiliitis in people with axial spondyloarthritis, an advance that could be useful for both diagnosis in the clinic and classification of patients for inclusion in clinical trials.

6 Nov 2020

VA joins Pentagon in recruiting volunteers for COVID vaccine trials

The Department of Veterans Affairs is recruiting 8,000 volunteers for the Phase 3 clinical trials of at least four COVID-19 vaccine candidates at 20 federal medical facilities across the U.S., according to officials with the VA and Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration's initiative to fast-track a coronavirus vaccine.

6 Nov 2020

How do low levels of oxygen damage the brain?

In this interview, Professor Paul Tesar and Kevin Allan speak to News-Medical about how low levels of oxygen damage the brain.

6 Nov 2020

Study shows iscan method could be effective for rapid COVID-19 testing

A simple COVID-19 test kit combines virus amplification with a CRISPR-Cas system for effective SARS-CoV-2 detection. The kit, called iSCAN, uses reagents that can be locally manufactured.

6 Nov 2020

Sterile spikelets improve yield in sorghum and related grasses, shows study

Much of the food we eat comes from grasses such as rice, wheat, corn, sorghum, and sugarcane. These crops still resemble the wild species from which they were derived. In all grasses the structures that contain the flowers and seeds are called spikelets.

5 Nov 2020

A digital CRISPR-based method for quick detection and absolute quantification of SARS-CoV-2

In a recent medRxiv* preprint manuscript, researchers from Singapore and the United States report the development of a digital CRISPR method for the sensitive, specific, and rapid detection of viral nucleic acids at a constant temperature, which could be exploited for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

5 Nov 2020

Llama antibodies could be a potent nanoweapon against COVID-19

Today in Science, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine describe a new method to extract tiny but extremely powerful SARS-CoV-2 antibody fragments from llamas, which could be fashioned into inhalable therapeutics with the potential to prevent and treat COVID-19.

5 Nov 2020

Genomic surveillance of yellow fever outbreak in São Paulo

Yellow fever virus is normally confined to the Amazon region, but the virus circulated in the Southeast of Brazil between 2016 and 2018, causing the worst epidemic and epizootic outbreaks there for decades.

5 Nov 2020

Report: 800 million children have dangerously high lead levels in blood

As many as 800 million children have dangerously high lead values in their blood. The neurotoxin can cause permanent brain damage.

5 Nov 2020

Nanobodies efficiently neutralize SARS-CoV-2 in cells

Two separate studies have identified nanobodies - which could be produced less expensively than monoclonal antibodies - that bind tightly to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and efficiently neutralize SARS-CoV-2 in cells.

5 Nov 2020

HKUST researchers identify new therapeutic targets for Alzheimer's disease

Researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology have identified new therapeutic targets for Alzheimer's disease (AD) by studying the patients' brain with a newly-developed methodology.

5 Nov 2020

Stanford researchers create a highly automated device that can detect COVID-19 in 30 minutes

Throughout the pandemic, infectious disease experts and frontline medical workers have asked for a faster, cheaper and more reliable COVID-19 test.

5 Nov 2020

Super-resolution images of functioning and pathologically altered nerve cells

Three experts for super-resolution microscopy jointly want to obtain better images of functioning and pathologically altered nerve cells. The European Research Council ERC is funding them with eleven million euros.

5 Nov 2020

Study describes the effects of a DPP3-knockout on the renin-angiotensin system

The role of the enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase 3 in the blood pressure-regulating renin-angiotensin system was investigated in the inter-university cooperation project BioTechMed-Graz. The results could pave the way for new therapies for cardio-renal diseases.

5 Nov 2020