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New COMPASS platform points directly to protein's likely structure

Searching for the precise, complexly folded three-dimensional structure of a protein can be like hacking through a jungle without a map: a long, intensive process with uncertain direction.

16 Oct 2015

Study shows why cancer anemia therapy stimulates tumor growth

Scientists have shown why a drug widely used to treat chemotherapy-induced anemia in ovarian and breast cancer patients also may shorten survival times in some patients by inadvertently stimulating tumor growth.

16 Oct 2015

Genomic analysis confirms sexual transmission of Ebola virus in Liberia

A suspected case of sexual transmission of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Liberia was confirmed using genomic analysis, thanks to in-country laboratory capabilities established by U.S. Army scientists in collaboration with the Liberian Institute for Biomedical Research (LIBR).

16 Oct 2015

International consortium provides standard protocol for using Oxford Nanopore's DNA-sequencing device

The MinION, a handheld DNA-sequencing device developed by Oxford Nanopore, has been tested and evaluated by an independent, international consortium coordinated by EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI).

16 Oct 2015

BAM Project authors propose creation of national network of neurotechnology centers

The authors of the original proposal for the Brain Activity Map (BAM) Project, which inspired the White House's BRAIN Initiative, issued today a position statement in Neuron proposing the creation of a national network of neurotechnology centers.

16 Oct 2015

Scientists use new technology to create gene expression map of inner ear cell development

Using a sensitive new technology called single-cell RNA-seq on cells from mice, scientists have created the first high-resolution gene expression map of the newborn mouse inner ear.

16 Oct 2015

Study finds link between microbial signatures and triple negative breast cancer

Cancer is a result of normal cellular functions going wildly awry on a genetic level. That fact has been known for some time, but increasing evidence is showing that the human microbiome, the diverse population of microorganisms within every person, may play a key role in either setting the stage for cancer or even directly causing some forms of it.

16 Oct 2015

US and German researchers team up to advance quality control of human stem cells

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in California, USA, and two German institutes, the Center for Integrated Psychiatry Kiel (ZIP) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME, have announced a partnership to advance the quality control of human stem cells.

16 Oct 2015

New manganese-based catalyst may accelerate drug discovery, development

Chemists have long believed that inserting nitrogen -- a beneficial ingredient for making many pharmaceuticals and other biologically active molecules -- into a carbon-hydrogen bond requires a trade-off between catalyst reactivity and selectivity.

15 Oct 2015

Researchers successfully convert skin cells into fully functional placenta-generating cells

Regenerative medicine is a new and expanding area that aims to replace lost or damaged cells, tissues or organs in the human body through cellular transplantation. Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent cells that are capable of long-term growth, self-renewal, and can give rise to every cell, tissue and organ in the fetus's body.

15 Oct 2015

Researchers uncover how small heat shock protein interacts with other proteins

In Alzheimer's disease proteins clump together to long fibrils causing the death of nerve cells. Small heat shock proteins can counteract this effect. Scientists, therefore, hope to deploy them as agents in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Using the example of a small heat shock protein, researchers at the Technical University of Munich and the Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen have now uncovered how the protein interacts with other proteins.

15 Oct 2015

Sleep deprivation can impact outcome of stem cell transplantation, study finds

Drowsy mice make poor stem cell donors, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

15 Oct 2015

New method uses advanced noninvasive neuroimaging to localize and identify epileptic lesions

Epilepsy affects more than 65 million people worldwide. One-third of these patients have seizures that are not controlled by medications. In addition, one-third have brain lesions, the hallmark of the disease, which cannot be located by conventional imaging methods.

15 Oct 2015

Neutrophils kill invading microorganisms, starve microbes to death

The most frequent immune cells in the human blood, so-called neutrophils, efficiently kill invading microorganisms and slowly starve microbes to death by removing crucial trace elements. This is shown by researchers from Umeå University in Sweden in a study published in a special issue of Metallomics.

15 Oct 2015

Researchers report weak association between brain size and IQ

As early as 1836, the German physiologist and anatomist Friedrich Tiedemann, in an article in the Philosophical Transactions, expressed his opinion that "there is undoubtedly a connection between the absolute size of the brain and the intellectual powers and functions of the mind". With the advent of brain imaging methods (e.g., MRI, PET), reliable assessments of in-vivo brain volume and investigations of its association with IQ are now possible.

15 Oct 2015

Drug interactions in placenta may increase risk of birth defects or stunting fetal growth

To date, studies in pregnant women examining transport of drugs across the placenta are rare and inadequate, said Tomo Nabekura, PhD. Such knowledge could be vital to preserving fetal health. In a new laboratory study, Nabekura and colleagues have illuminated a piece of this puzzle, and the results hint that mothers taking new anti-hepatitis C and/or anti-HIV drugs along with anti-hypertensives or non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) could be raising the risk of birth defects or stunting fetal growth, respectively.

15 Oct 2015

Gene therapy preserves vision in canine model of late-stage retinitis pigmentosa

Gene therapy preserved vision in a study involving dogs with naturally occurring, late-stage retinitis pigmentosa, according to research funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health. The findings contribute to the groundwork needed to move gene therapy forward into clinical trials for people with the blinding eye disorder, for which there is currently no cure.

15 Oct 2015

Poorly-designed animal study threatens validity of preclinical research

Badly designed studies may lead to the efficacy of drugs being overestimated and money being wasted on trials that prove fruitless, according to new a study from McGill University in Canada.

15 Oct 2015

Specific gene signature could help predict survival outcomes among children with intermediate-risk RMS

Among children with intermediate-risk rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) that is negative for a fusion gene, those who had a high score of a specific gene signature called MG5 had poorer survival outcomes compared with those who had a low score of MG5.

15 Oct 2015

UTHealth biochemists expose structures of IP3R calcium channels

Calcium is a crucial element in the body that controls thought, movement and other bodily functions. These events are directed by specialized proteins called ion channels that allow the flow of calcium ions in and out of cells and among cell compartments. For years, scientists have been unsure how calcium ion channels function.

15 Oct 2015

Medical Science News

New COMPASS platform points directly to protein's likely structure

Study shows why cancer anemia therapy stimulates tumor growth

Genomic analysis confirms sexual transmission of Ebola virus in Liberia

International consortium provides standard protocol for using Oxford Nanopore's DNA-sequencing device

BAM Project authors propose creation of national network of neurotechnology centers

Scientists use new technology to create gene expression map of inner ear cell development

Study finds link between microbial signatures and triple negative breast cancer

US and German researchers team up to advance quality control of human stem cells

New manganese-based catalyst may accelerate drug discovery, development

Researchers successfully convert skin cells into fully functional placenta-generating cells

Researchers uncover how small heat shock protein interacts with other proteins

Sleep deprivation can impact outcome of stem cell transplantation, study finds

New method uses advanced noninvasive neuroimaging to localize and identify epileptic lesions

Neutrophils kill invading microorganisms, starve microbes to death

Researchers report weak association between brain size and IQ

Drug interactions in placenta may increase risk of birth defects or stunting fetal growth

Gene therapy preserves vision in canine model of late-stage retinitis pigmentosa

Poorly-designed animal study threatens validity of preclinical research

Specific gene signature could help predict survival outcomes among children with intermediate-risk RMS

UTHealth biochemists expose structures of IP3R calcium channels

Membrane proteins in focus: Turning high-risk targets into routine workflows

How metabolic phenotyping can detect viral infections in minutes

Directed enzyme evolution and the Nobel Prize: Making enzymes evolve in the lab

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