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UCL scientists identify new immunotherapy to combat hepatitis B virus

Scientists at UCL have identified a new immunotherapy to combat the hepatitis B virus (HBV), the most common cause of liver cancer in the world.

14 May 2021

Unique pre-clinical model enables study of HIV infection and testing of new therapies

A team led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and Children's National Hospital has developed a unique pre-clinical model that enables the study of long-term HIV infection, and the testing of new therapies aimed at curing the disease.

14 May 2021

Minorities substantially underrepresented in pancreatic cancer clinical trials

Despite the fact that certain racial and ethnic minorities get pancreatic cancer more often, are diagnosed at a younger age and die sooner, clinical trials fail to include representative proportions of non-White patients at every phase of study, according to research that was selected for presentation at Digestive Disease Week 2021.

14 May 2021

Lockdown has encouraged older people to embrace technology, reconnect and build new relationships

The COVID-19 lockdown was a catalyst for many older people to embrace technology, reconnect with friends and build new relationships with neighbors, according to University of Stirling research.

14 May 2021

What can ancient feces tell us about the evolution of the human gut microbiome?

Researchers at the Section on Pathophysiology and Molecular Pharmacology, Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, Massachusetts, analyzed microbial DNA found in indigenous human paleofeces (desiccated excrement) from dry caves in northern Mexico and Utah. They found that the ancient human gut microbiome is similar to those of modern-day people from non-industrialized populations.

14 May 2021

Farxiga approved in the US for the treatment of chronic kidney disease in patients at risk of progression with and without type-2 diabetes

Approval is the most significant advancement in the treatment of chronic kidney disease in more than 20 years. In DAPA-CKD Phase III trial, Farxiga demonstrated unprecedented reduction in the risk of the composite of worsening of renal function, end-stage kidney disease and cardiovascular or renal death.

From AstraZeneca 14 May 2021

Supercarriers: Just 2% of SARS-CoV-2 positive people carry 90% of the virus

A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that the vast majority of the viral load in a community at any given point is present in a very small minority of the infected population, underlining the vast differences in viral loads between individuals.

14 May 2021

Do labels on commercial kefir products report microbial levels correctly?

A recent study in the journal JDS Communications reports the results of an analysis of five brands of kefir on the US market, indicating the need for stricter regulation of this field.

14 May 2021

A look at how coronavirus disease (COVID-19) affects Parkinson's

Earlier, herpes simplex virus (HSV), influenza virus A, measles virus, cytomegalovirus (CMV), and mumps virus have all been associated with after-effects of the virus that includes Parkinson's disease (PD). This list may now include SARS-CoV-2.

14 May 2021

A SARS-CoV-2 ferritin nanoparticle vaccine elicits broad immunity

In a recent bioRxiv* preprint research paper, M. Gordon Joyce et al. designed engineered nanoparticle immunogens that recapitulate the structural and antigenic properties of prefusion Spike (S), S1 and receptor-binding domain (RBD). They demonstrated that these immunogens induced robust S-binding, ACE2 (angiotensin-converting enzyme)-inhibition, and authentic and pseudovirus neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in mice.

13 May 2021

A magnetofluidic platform for SARS-CoV-2 variant and respiratory pathogen detection

Recent research published on the medRxiv* server has developed a portable, magnetofluidic cartridge platform, for automated PCR testing in <30 min, for rapid multiplexed screening of pathogens. A multidisciplinary team of researchers at Johns Hopkins University and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine developed these cartridges for multiplexed detection of SARS-CoV-2 with distinctive variant mutations or with Influenza A and B.

13 May 2021

Three-way strategy employed by SARS-CoV-2 during infection

The study, published in the journal Nature, reveals a multi-pronged strategy that the virus employs to ensure its quick and efficient replication while evading the immune system. The study elucidated how the virus can quickly, in a matter of hours, take over the cell's protein-making machinery and parallelly neutralize the cell's antiviral signaling, thus delaying and muddling the immune response.

13 May 2021

Dominance of South African SARS-CoV-2 variant in the US is unlikely but possible

Researchers in the United States and Canada have conducted a study showing that the South African variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – is unlikely to become the dominant strain in the US.

13 May 2021

Antibodies generated by malaria cross-react with SARS-CoV-2

An international team of researchers has warned that individuals with acute malaria infection generate high levels of antibodies that cross-react with the viral spike protein of the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

13 May 2021

Researchers evaluate diagnostic criteria for anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis in Japanese children

Anti-NMDA receptor (NMDAR) encephalitis was first reported to develop in female young adults with ovarian teratoma.

13 May 2021

NK cells combined with bispecific antibody display potent anti-tumor activity against lymphoma cells

Cytokine-activated natural killer (NK) cells derived from donated umbilical cord blood, combined with an investigational bispecific antibody targeting CD16a and CD30 known as AFM13, displayed potent anti-tumor activity against CD30+ lymphoma cells, according to a new preclinical study from researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

13 May 2021

Study: Duloxetine may reduce cumulative opioid use after total knee arthroplasty

In a study conducted by researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), cumulative opioid use was reduced by 30% in a patient group that received duloxetine after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) compared with patients who received placebo.

13 May 2021

Immunity developed by SARS-CoV-2 infection can protect against E484K variants, suggests study

A team of scientists from Japan has recently investigated the neutralizing potency of convalescent sera against currently circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants with multiple spike mutations.

13 May 2021

Single dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine protective in previously infected recipients, suggests study

A recent report on the medRxiv* preprint server suggests that a single dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) vaccine could elicit higher titers of neutralizing antibodies, effectively acting as a booster dose, in people who have already been infected by the SARS-CoV-2.

13 May 2021

Insured cancer patients treated at Kaiser Permanente have better survival rates

Among cancer patients with health coverage in Southern California, those who were diagnosed and treated at Kaiser Permanente, an integrated health care organization, had better survival rates, especially Black and Latino patients, according to Kaiser Permanente research published in The American Journal of Managed Care.

13 May 2021

Medical Research News

UCL scientists identify new immunotherapy to combat hepatitis B virus

Unique pre-clinical model enables study of HIV infection and testing of new therapies

Minorities substantially underrepresented in pancreatic cancer clinical trials

Lockdown has encouraged older people to embrace technology, reconnect and build new relationships

What can ancient feces tell us about the evolution of the human gut microbiome?

Farxiga approved in the US for the treatment of chronic kidney disease in patients at risk of progression with and without type-2 diabetes

Supercarriers: Just 2% of SARS-CoV-2 positive people carry 90% of the virus

Do labels on commercial kefir products report microbial levels correctly?

A look at how coronavirus disease (COVID-19) affects Parkinson's

A SARS-CoV-2 ferritin nanoparticle vaccine elicits broad immunity

A magnetofluidic platform for SARS-CoV-2 variant and respiratory pathogen detection

Three-way strategy employed by SARS-CoV-2 during infection

Dominance of South African SARS-CoV-2 variant in the US is unlikely but possible

Antibodies generated by malaria cross-react with SARS-CoV-2

Researchers evaluate diagnostic criteria for anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis in Japanese children

NK cells combined with bispecific antibody display potent anti-tumor activity against lymphoma cells

Study: Duloxetine may reduce cumulative opioid use after total knee arthroplasty

Immunity developed by SARS-CoV-2 infection can protect against E484K variants, suggests study

Single dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine protective in previously infected recipients, suggests study

Insured cancer patients treated at Kaiser Permanente have better survival rates

Advancing Menopause Care: Non-Hormonal Treatments for Vasomotor Symptoms

Building quality into drug development for safer, faster medicines

How Pulp Fixin Is Turning Paper into High-Performance Sustainable Labware

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