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New research holds potential to improve fetal surgery outcomes

University of California, Berkeley engineer Phillip Messersmith is happy to be learning lessons from a lowly mollusk, with the expectation that the knowledge gained will enable him and fellow physicians to prevent deaths among their youngest patients -- those who haven't been born yet.

4 Jul 2016

Enzyme from fermented Japanese vegetable boosts colon health in rats

An enzyme produced by fermenting a vegetable common in Japanese cuisine may be responsible for increasing the amount of at least one beneficial bacterium associated with healthy colons in a study using rats.

4 Jul 2016

Study finds link between copper exposure and prion protein neurotoxicity

Iowa State University researchers have described with single-molecule precision how copper ions cause prion proteins to misfold and seed the misfolding and clumping of nearby prion proteins.

4 Jul 2016

Biosecurity Research Institute takes two-part approach in fighting Zika virus

Kansas State University is helping the fight against Zika virus through mosquito research.

4 Jul 2016

Study could offer new ways to enhance cancer immunotherapy

When an immune T cell divides into two daughter cells, the activity of an enzyme called mTORC1, which controls protein production, splits unevenly between the progeny, producing two cells with different properties.

4 Jul 2016

Inhalable ibuprofen holds potential to treat cystic fibrosis

Ibuprofen: You can buy it at any drug store, and it will help with that stabbing headache or sprained ankle. One of the ways it does so is by reducing inflammation, and it is this property that may also help patients with cystic fibrosis.

4 Jul 2016

New strategy treats fatal autoimmune disease without outward off-target effects

In a study with potentially major implications for the future treatment of autoimmunity and related conditions, scientists from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have found a way to remove the subset of antibody-making cells that cause an autoimmune disease, without harming the rest of the immune system.

4 Jul 2016

Novel blood coagulation analyzer may help detect stroke risk in AF patients

Researchers at Tokyo Medical and Dental University show that an analyzer recently developed to measure blood coagulability has the sensitivity to detect hypercoagulatibility associated with stroke risk in those without atrial fibrillation

4 Jul 2016

Scientists develop light-activated injectable device to stimulate nerve cells

In the campy 1966 science fiction movie "Fantastic Voyage," scientists miniaturize a submarine with themselves inside and travel through the body of a colleague to break up a potentially fatal blood clot. Right. Micro-humans aside, imagine the inflammation that metal sub would cause.

4 Jul 2016

Researchers design E. coli-based transport capsule to help fight pneumococcal disease

Most people recoil at the thought of ingesting E. coli. But what if the headline-grabbing bacteria could be used to fight disease?

4 Jul 2016

Brain vessel diseases may contribute to Alzheimer's dementia

While strokes are known to increase risk for dementia, much less is known about diseases of large and small blood vessels in the brain, separate from stroke, and how they relate to dementia.

4 Jul 2016

New report reveals commonly available chemicals endanger brain development in fetuses, children

In a new report, dozens of scientists, health practitioners and children's health advocates are calling for renewed attention to the growing evidence that many common and widely available chemicals endanger neurodevelopment in fetuses and children of all ages.

1 Jul 2016

Researchers use gelation chips to develop strong muscle fibers

USC researcher Megan L. McCain and colleagues have devised a way to develop bigger, stronger muscle fibers. But instead of popping up on the bicep of a bodybuilder, these muscles grow on a tiny scaffold or "chip" molded from a type of water-logged gel made from gelatin.

1 Jul 2016

Researchers develop computer model for speed analysis of TB's complex life-cycle

Tuberculosis (TB), caused by the pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is a serious global health problem accounting for 1.3 million worldwide deaths annually.

1 Jul 2016

New software tool could help routinely measure brain atrophy in MS patients

The loss of brain tissue, called brain atrophy, is a normal part of aging, but multiple sclerosis (MS) accelerates the process.

1 Jul 2016

Study links proteins involved in cell division to insulin signaling

Proteins that play key roles in the timing of cell division also moonlight in regulating blood sugar levels, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found.

1 Jul 2016

Stimulating the brain with mild electric current can improve vision

Stimulating the visual cortex of the brain for 20 minutes with a mild electrical current can improve vision for about two hours, and those with worse vision see the most improvement, according to a Vanderbilt University study published this week in Current Biology.

1 Jul 2016

Novel high-resolution method helps study which genes are active in tissues

Scientists at Karolinska Institutet and the Royal Institute of Technology have devised a new high-resolution method for studying which genes are active in a tissue.

1 Jul 2016

Scientists develop new vaccine to stimulate both innate and specific adaptive response

Though a variety of immunotherapy-based strategies are being used against cancer, they are often hindered by the inability of the immune response to enter the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and to effectively mount a response to cancer cells.

1 Jul 2016