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Researchers devise strategy to target Achilles heel of nervous system cancers

Virtually all cancer treatments used today also damage normal cells, causing the toxic side effects associated with cancer treatment.

21 Jul 2017

Developing software for cell and gene therapy supply chain tracking

The first thing is, to always remember that we're dealing with a living drug, cells, which are very sensitive to environmental conditions, such as temperature and humidity etc. All of those things can impact on the viability of the drug and its effectiveness.

18 Jul 2017

20 million engineered and bacteria charged mosquitoes to be released in California

Alphabet Inc.’s Verily Life Sciences unit has come up with a plan to release around 20 million bacteria-filled engineered mosquitoes in Fresno, California. These are male mosquitoes that have been reared by machines and the campaign begins this Friday.

17 Jul 2017

Researchers detect new gene mutation linked to Fanconi anemia

Fanconi anemia is a rare genetic disease characterized by bone marrow failure heralded by low platelet counts and unusually large red blood cells.

14 Jul 2017

FDA panel recommends new breakthrough gene therapy for B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel created history by recommending a gene therapy for patients with cancer. In this therapy the patient’s own genes would be modified to fight the cancer cells. The patient’s cells which are thus altered to treat the cancer would thus be termed as “living drugs” as they act as soldiers to treat the cancer. These cells boost up the immune system and help the body fight the cancer.

14 Jul 2017

Cord-blood-derived natural killer cells can be modified to destroy B-cell cancers

Immune cells with a general knack for recognizing and killing many types of infected or abnormal cells also can be engineered to hunt down cells with specific targets on them to treat cancer, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report in the journal Leukemia.

13 Jul 2017

MPFI researchers reveal new technique to probe function of cerebellar interneurons

The cerebellum is an area of brain at the back of your head involved in movement. Its neuronal circuitry is relatively simple compared to other areas, but scientists still have a lot left to learn regarding its role in motor control and motor learning.

13 Jul 2017

Natural compound found in strawberries may help prevent age-related diseases

Salk scientists have found further evidence that a natural compound in strawberries reduces cognitive deficits and inflammation associated with aging in mice.

11 Jul 2017

Scientists find single protein that controls genes essential for spermatogenesis

Scientists have found a single protein--Ptbp2--controls a network of over 200 genes central to how developing sperm move and communicate. The protein works by regulating how RNA is processed during each stage of sperm development.

10 Jul 2017

QUT researchers develop golden-orange bananas rich in pro-vitamin A

The decade-long research, led by Distinguished Professor James Dale, involved extensive laboratory tests at QUT as well as field trials in north Queensland.

7 Jul 2017

Zika: costs of prevention and control

They undertook a modelling study based on six states in the US in areas that are at risk of Zika emergence. The main finding of this study was that the total cost of Zika in these sates had a range that went from approximately 183.4 million dollars to 1.2 billion dollars.

6 Jul 2017

Sense of smell may play key role in how the body deals with calories

Our sense of smell is key to the enjoyment of food, so it may be no surprise that in experiments at the University of California, Berkeley, obese mice who lost their sense of smell also lost weight.

5 Jul 2017

First systematic genomic analysis of patients with T-ALL may aid development of new therapies

A consortium including St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Children's Oncology Group has performed an unprecedented genomic sequencing analysis of hundreds of patients with T-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL).

4 Jul 2017

Study sheds light on how key protein allows hearing to work

Although the basic outlines of human hearing have been known for years – sensory cells in the inner ear turn sound waves into the electrical signals that the brain understands as sound – the molecular details have remained elusive.

29 Jun 2017

Mildly stressing muscle metabolism reverses diabetes and obesity in mice

Mildly stressing muscle metabolism boosts levels of a beneficial hormone that prevents obesity and diabetes in mice, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Iowa.

28 Jun 2017

Wyss Institute researchers develop new capture technology for cancer diagnostics

Cancerous tumors are formidable enemies, recruiting blood vessels to aid their voracious growth, damaging nearby tissues, and deploying numerous strategies to evade the body's defense systems.

28 Jun 2017

Elevated levels of suPAR protein combine with genetic mutation to trigger CKD in black people

Between 15 and 20 percent of black people carry a genetic mutation that puts them at risk for certain chronic kidney disease, but only about half of them develop the illness – a variance that long has puzzled researchers.

27 Jun 2017

Research provides insights into how light may interact with the brain to affect sleep

Humans are diurnal animals, meaning that we usually sleep at night and are awake during the day, due at least in part to light or the lack thereof. Light is known to affect sleep indirectly by entraining--modifying the length of--our circadian rhythms and also rapidly and directly due to a phenomenon known as masking.

23 Jun 2017

Scientists discover link between sugar metabolism and peroxisomal biogenesis disorders

Meeting a young patient with Zellweger syndrome, a rare, life-threatening genetic disease, started a scientific investigation that culminated with an unexpected discovery.

23 Jun 2017

Researchers examine formation of functional amyloids by bacteria in real time

A team of scientists from the VIB lab of Han Remaut and the lab of Yves Dufrêne at UCL Louvain-La-Neuve collaborated on a study of functional amyloids -protein aggregates with the typical amyloid structure that do not lead to disease but rather serve a dedicated biological function.

21 Jun 2017