Medical Science News

RSS

Rare DNA alteration may increase rsk of multiple sclerosis

Scientists at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health have proven that multiple sclerosis (MS) can be caused by a single genetic mutation - a rare alteration in DNA that makes it very likely a person will develop the more devastating form of the neurological disease.

6 Jun 2016

Intellectually challenging job linked to better memory, cognitive functioning

Working in a more intellectually challenging job is associated with better memory and other aspects of cognitive functioning, reports a study in the June Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

6 Jun 2016

Study finds link between stress hormone and stage of schizophrenia

JCU Associate Professor Zoltan Sarnyai said it was the first meta-analysis study to compare the level of cortisol in a waking patient's body with the stage of schizophrenia they are suffering.

6 Jun 2016

Early social deprivation may lower DNA methylation within stress-related genes

New research suggests that early severe social deprivation may impact DNA modifications that affect the expression of stress-related genes. These nongenetic (or epigenetic) modifications occur when molecules called methyl groups are added to components of DNA.

6 Jun 2016

Experts highlight need for change in neuroscience training

Call them the Brain Generation -- the tens of thousands of college and graduate students working toward degrees in neuroscience, and the high school students who want to join them someday.

6 Jun 2016

Gene dysregulation makes immune therapies less effective against metastatic melanoma

Patients who don't respond to treatments that use their own immune cells to destroy tumors, called tumor infiltrating lymphocytes, share changes in mechanisms that switch genes on or off in those cells, according to study results presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology on June 4 in Chicago.

6 Jun 2016

Gene alterations in WNT pathway may increase CRC risk in younger patients

While increased screening continues to drive down overall colorectal cancer rates, the rate of colorectal cancer in patients under age 50 is increasing, and the disease is commonly more aggressive in these young patients.

6 Jun 2016

Misuse of anabolic steroids may increase heart problems in ARVC patients

Research has already shown that taking anabolic steroids is associated with high blood pressure and an increased risk of developing heart conditions such as left ventricular hypertrophy.

6 Jun 2016

Researchers prove existence of olfactory receptor in pigment-producing skin cells

Researchers at Ruhr-Universität Bochum were the first ones to prove the existence of an olfactory receptor in pigment-producing cells in human skin, the so-called melanocytes. The team headed by Prof Dr Dr Dr habil. Hanns Hatt demonstrated that the violet-like scent Beta-Ionone can activate the receptor.

4 Jun 2016

New understanding of established link between glucose and improved self-control

In the age of the 'sugar tax', good news about glucose is hard to come by. But an Australian scientist has just proposed a new understanding of the established link between the sweet stuff and improved self-control.

4 Jun 2016

Study provides insight to gene shuffling process

Use of a new technique developed at the Babraham Institute has allowed researchers to take an in-depth look at the gene shuffling process that is responsible for our body's ability to recognise a vast range of foreign agents such as disease-causing microorganisms.

4 Jun 2016

New research pinpoints specific lncRNA that regulates neural development

Compared to other mammals, humans have the largest cerebral cortex. A sheet of brain cells that folds in on itself multiple times in order to fit inside the skull, the cortex is the seat of higher functions. It is what enables us to process everything we see and hear and think.

4 Jun 2016

Mice study provides new insights into links between sensory stimuli and behavior

Many types of sensory information enter the brain at a structure called the primary sensory cortex, where they are processed by different layers of cells in ways that ultimately influence an animal's perception and behavioral response.

4 Jun 2016

UZH scientists identify new class of protein compounds to treat HER2-positive breast cancer

In Switzerland alone, more than 5,700 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and almost 1,400 of those affected die of the disease. In many very invasive forms of breast cancer, the cells have too much of the receptor HER2 on their surface.

3 Jun 2016

New treatment shows promise against hard-to-treat eye cancer

Eye cancer took the life of author and neurologist Oliver Sacks last year, bringing attention to the rare and deadly disease. Scientists have tried to develop precision treatments against cancers like this one, but the mutations that cause them have proven difficult to block with drugs.

3 Jun 2016

Lower quantities of CD74 protein in placentas of preeclamptic women can impact fetal development

Preeclampsia is one of the most common complications to occur during pregnancy, yet its causes are still unknown. A new study involving patients, cell cultures and animal experiments has now shown that those affected by the disease have lower quantities of the placenta's immune protein CD74, and that certain inflammatory factors are higher. These factors disrupt the formation of the placenta and leave the fetus undernourished.

3 Jun 2016

Researchers explore how ALS develops from muscle perspective

In an effort to better understand what happens during Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), researchers at Umea University in Sweden have compared the impact of ALS on the eye and limb muscles.

3 Jun 2016

Accumulation of fat droplets makes cancer cells more aggressive

It has been established that not all cancer cells are equally aggressive - most can be neutralised with radiation and chemotherapy. Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have now discovered that some cancer cells can accumulate fat droplets, which appear to make them more aggressive and increase their ability to spread.

3 Jun 2016

Mayo study finds mechanism by which Pten safeguards against tumor formation

Pten (short for phosphatase and tensin homolog) is a tumor suppressor that is defective in about 20-25 percent of all patients with cancers. Mayo Clinic researchers now have discovered that Pten safeguards against tumor formation by keeping chromosome numbers intact when a cell splits into two daughter cells.

3 Jun 2016

DRD2 expression plays crucial role in protecting mice against kidney injury, hypertension

Dopamine signaling in the kidneys plays a critical role in blood pressure regulation and is responsible for nearly half of the salt and water excretion that occurs in response to increased dietary salt intake. Notably, genetic deletion of any of the 5 dopamine receptors expressed in the kidney causes hypertension in mice.

3 Jun 2016