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New brain tumor research could improve patient diagnosis, treatment options

New research on brain tumours could improve patient diagnosis and treatment options as part of a precision medicine approach. Brain tumours are the leading cause of cancer deaths in children and adults under the age of 40, with 16,000 people in the UK diagnosed with a brain tumour each year.

7 Jan 2020

Dresden scientists identify newborn neurons in zebrafish

The zebrafish is a master of regeneration: If brain cells are lost due to injury or disease, it can simply reproduce them - contrary to humans where this only happens in the fetal stage. However, the zebrafish is evolutionarily related to humans and, thus, possesses the same brain cell types as humans.

7 Jan 2020

E-cigarette users have reported adverse health effects online for at least seven years

A team of researchers at the University of California, Riverside, used automated computer methods to mine a large online discussion forum for electronic cigarette users and found this group reported numerous adverse health effects for at least seven years.

6 Jan 2020

Discovery of cellular 'hands' could have implications in the fields of cell, developmental biology

The protein, called syndecan-4, combines with fellow cell membrane proteins, called integrins, to form protruding 'hands' that sense the environment outside the cell.

6 Jan 2020

Grizzly bears' strategy could help prevent muscle atrophy in humans

Grizzly bears spend many months in hibernation, but their muscles do not suffer from the lack of movement. In the journal "Scientific Reports", a team led by Michael Gotthardt reports on how they manage to do this.

30 Dec 2019

Study provides better understanding of mechanisms that limit cilia number in cells

One of the wonders of cell biology is its symmetry. Mammalian cells have one nucleus and one cell membrane, and most humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes.

30 Dec 2019

Study uncovers key protein that supports the growth of many colorectal cancers

Researchers at the University of Toronto have identified a key protein that supports the growth of many colorectal cancers.

28 Dec 2019

New 'fishing' technique to detect thousands of proteins

A new study published today in the journal Nature Cell Biology reports the use of a novel fishing method, under microscopy, to pick up thousands of proteins that are involved in supervising how the cell skeleton is assembled.

23 Dec 2019

Scientists develop 3D atlas of bone marrow to help study blood diseases

The bone marrow, which is the spongy and viscous tissue that fills the bone, is the site of blood cell formation or hematopoiesis. If the bone marrow doesn’t work properly, it can lead to many blood diseases, including leukemia, sickle cell anemia, and lymphoma, among others.

23 Dec 2019

Scientists unveil how Zika virus replicates

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Zika virus infection a global threat during the peak of its outbreak in 2016. Since then, scientists and health experts raced to understand the virus better to develop novel and effective vaccines and treatments for the disease. Now, a team of researchers in China revealed how a protein in the virus reshapes its host to boost viral replication.

23 Dec 2019

Jefferson researcher probes kidney cancer's genes for interactions with p53 pathway

p53 is the most famous cancer gene, not least because it's involved in causing over 50% of all cancers. When a cell loses its p53 gene -- when the gene becomes mutated -- it unleashes many processes that lead to the uncontrolled cell growth and refusal to die, which are hallmarks of cancer growth.

20 Dec 2019

Researchers discover new way to supercharge protein production

Medicines such as insulin for diabetes and clotting factors for hemophilia are hard to synthesize in the lab. Such drugs are based on therapeutic proteins, so scientists have engineered bacteria into tiny protein-making factories.

18 Dec 2019

Yale researchers identify cellular chicanery that jumpstarts cancer

The progression of cancer has been studied extensively, and the key steps in this journey have been well mapped, at least in some solid tumors: Lesions to genes that confer risk of cancer accumulate and alter normal cell behaviors, giving rise, scientists believe, to early stage cancer cells that eventually swamp normal cells and become deadly.

18 Dec 2019

Scientists use blue mushroom dye to develop fluorescent tool for detecting reactive oxygen species

A new fluorescent tool for detecting reactive oxygen species based on a chemical found in mushrooms has been developed by scientists at the University of Bath.

17 Dec 2019

Research finds key reason why brain connectivity goes awry in rare neurodevelopmental conditions

Axons are the long thread-like extensions of neurons that send electrical signals to other brain cells. Thanks to axonal connectivity, our brains and bodies can do all necessary tasks.

16 Dec 2019

Study sheds light on the origins of spinocerebellar ataxia type 7

New research has shed light on the origins of spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA7) and demonstrates effective new therapeutic pathways for SCA7 and the more than 40 other types of spinocerebellar ataxia.

16 Dec 2019

Salk researchers uncover new function of mitochondria

Mitochondria, tiny structures present in most cells, are known for their energy-generating machinery. Now, Salk researchers have discovered a new function of mitochondria: they set off molecular alarms when cells are exposed to stress or chemicals that can damage DNA, such as chemotherapy.

15 Dec 2019

Using new high-resolution imaging to track titin in real time

Using new high-resolution imaging techniques, MDC researchers and colleagues have tracked titin, the body's largest protein, in real time throughout its entire lifecycle. The method and results could provide new insight into muscle development as well as treating damaged muscles and heart disease.

14 Dec 2019

Holo-tomographic microscopy allows researchers to quantify new cell biology phenomena

Combining image analysis with a three-dimensional microscopy technique allows researchers to quantify new or little-understood cell biology phenomena, according to a new study publishing December 19 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Mathieu Frechin of the Swiss company Nanolive and colleagues.

13 Dec 2019

Study shows unexpected mechanism for lipid acquisition by breast cancer cells

High-fat diets and obesity have been shown to increase the risk of breast cancer and worsen outcomes and prognosis of breast cancer patients. A team of researchers from Dartmouth and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center led by William Kinlaw III, MD, sought to understand how fat from the diet might influence breast cancer cells.

12 Dec 2019