Curated News: National Institutes of Health (NIH)

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A project using focused ultrasound is one of seven selected by the NIH, which also has received successful reviews from ABC’s “Shark Tank.” Researchers are developing a handheld probe to provide a noninvasive, non-opioid-based treatment for aggravated chronic pain for use in a physician’s office or potentially even at home. The device directs low-intensity ultrasound at the dorsal root ganglia – small bundles of nerves along the spine that control pain signals reaching the spinal cord – to provide means for precise treatment of back and leg pain.

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According to a new study published in Nursing Outlook, the journal of the American Academy of Nursing, chronic hospital nurse understaffing and poor hospital work environments that predated the Covid-19 pandemic largely explain the disruptions in nursing care seen during the pandemic and continuing today.

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Using models, researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues elsewhere, describe using RNA-targeting CRISPR/Cas13d technology to develop a new therapeutic strategy that specifically eliminates toxic RNA that causes Huntington’s Disease.

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Study uncovers the genomic features of Richter's and how it emerges from CLL Researchers identify molecular subtypes of Richter's and y show that, in some cases, Richter's can be detected in a blood test, rather than a biopsy, potentially leading to earlier treatment.

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Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have developed a computer model — dubbed quantitative fate mapping — that looks back in the developmental timeline to trace the origin of cells in a fully grown organism.

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Northwestern University researchers have discovered a previously unknown mechanism that drives aging.

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"This is a very striking and significant result that essentially separates LIGHT from any of the other inflammatory cytokines that have been implicated in the process in severe asthmatics."

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The University of Chicago Medicine has launched a novel partnership with Legal Aid Chicago, embedding two full-time lawyers within the health system’s Level 1 trauma center to provide civil legal support to patients who've been injured from intentional violence.

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From the excitable sheep dog to the aloof Shiba Inu, and all breeds in between, dogs have unique and diverse behavioral traits.

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Investigators at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Health System, Regenstrief Institute, and Indiana University School of Medicine have received an $11 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to evaluate an Einstein-developed test for assessing cognitive impairment and dementia.

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A landmark study by researchers at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University reveals how a tiny cellular machine called TRiC directs the folding of tubulin, a human protein that is the building block of microtubules that serve as the cell’s scaffolding and transport system.

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Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine say that a key to cellular movement is to regulate the electrical charge on the interior side of the cell membrane, potentially paving the way for understanding cancer, immune cell and other types of cell motion. 

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While use of insulin pumps to manage type 1 diabetes has grown over 20 years, there has been no improvement in racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in their use.

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Their older parents need care. Their kids are still under 18. And they probably have a job, too. They’re the “sandwich generation” – a longtime nickname for the mostly female, mostly middle-aged group of Americans who serve as caregivers for both older and younger family members at once. A new study estimates there are at least 2.5 million of them, while giving a detailed view into who they are, and which older adults rely on them.

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While people with cancer have options to participate in cancer clinical trials (CCTs), it can be challenging when they encounter difficulties enrolling and remaining in the trial. Trial withdrawal, although every participant’s right, can thwart study goals and hamper advancing novel treatments.

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UC San Diego scientists have identified a long-sought carbon dioxide sensor in plants, a discovery that holds implications for trees, crops and wildfires. The researchers found that two proteins work together to form the sensor, which is key for water evaporation, photosynthesis and plant growth.

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Low-intensity ultrasound therapies may one day rebuild stronger knees following injury or surgery, thanks to research by Dr. Anu Subramanian at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) that’s being supported by the National institutes of Health.

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Researchers aiming to predict which staph-infection patients might develop a related kidney disease have found a high frequency of gene mutations in the infecting bacteria of affected patients, which suggests these variants may play a role in the body’s initiation of the renal damage.

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Autoimmune diseases are thought to be the result of mistaken identity. Immune cells on patrol, armed and ready to defend the body against invading pathogens, mistake normal human cells for infected cells and turn their weapons on their own healthy tissues.

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Penn State researchers co-led a large genetic study that identified more than 2,300 genes predicting alcohol and tobacco use after analyzing data from more than 3.4 million people. They said a majority of these genes were similar among people with European, African, American and Asian ancestries.

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A newly discovered link between protein misfolding and liver cancer could help improve gene therapy for hemophilia.

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A newly discovered technique, reported in the journal Nanoscale, offers a low-cost way to enhance the effectiveness of existing drugs.

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Researchers at Tufts University have completed the first study examining levels of vitamin D in brain tissue, specifically in adults who suffered from varying rates of cognitive decline. They found that members of this group with higher levels of vitamin D in their brains had better cognitive function.

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"Vaccines such as JYNNEOS should be able to induce T cells that also recognize mpox and can provide protection from severe disease."

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Biomedical and genetic engineers at Duke University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine have designed a small fluorescent protein that emits and absorbs light that penetrates deep into biological tissue.

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Sleeping with a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure, or CPAP, machine is the most effective treatment for sleep apnea, yet getting patients to use the devices consistently remains a major challenge. Now, a development by University of Chicago Medicine and Northwestern University scientists gives both patients and physicians a new tool for monitoring adherence to therapy.

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A small molecule inhibitor that attacks the difficult to target, cancer-causing gene mutation KRAS, found in nearly 30 percent of all human tumors, successfully shrunk tumors or stopped cancer growth in preclinical models of pancreatic cancer, researchers from Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center showed.

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By simulating molecular dynamics, scientists from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital revealed how the selectivity or promiscuity of GPCR coupling relies on the location and duration of intermolecular interactions.

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Researchers can detect small "toxic" aggregates of a particular protein in the blood of individuals with Alzheimer's disease and in individuals who showed no signs of cognitive impairment at the time the blood sample was taken, but who developed it at a later date.

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A six-month study led by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers concludes that the use of portable home air purifiers can improve some markers of cardiovascular health in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD

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Immune T cells are continuing to target the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, although mutations are making some T cells less effective, according to new research.

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SARS-CoV-2 vaccines protected infant rhesus macaques against 1 severe lung disease after high dose challenge one year after vaccination.

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Researchers find that the anesthetic and fast-acting antidepressant switches natural patterns of neuronal activity in the cortex of mice

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A five-year, nearly $3.5 million grant to study the mechanisms of brain receptors involved in neurological disorders such as learning disabilities has been awarded to Vasanthi Jayaraman, PhD, of UTHealth Houston by the National Institutes of Health.

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The 2023 American Urological Association Gold Cystoscope Award has been awarded to Ranjith Ramasamy, M.D., associate professor and director of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine Reproductive Urology Program and urologist within the Desai Sethi Urology Institute. Dr. Ramasamy has earned the honor for his commitment to education and mentorship.

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An international team of researchers led by Mass Eye and Ear discovered a new genetic mutation that leads to childhood glaucoma, and in the process uncovered a new mechanism for causing the disease.

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Columbia researchers invent new method to treat obesity by using cationic nanomaterials that can target specific areas of fat and inhibit the unhealthy storage of enlarged fat cells. “Our studies highlight an unexpected strategy to treat visceral adiposity and suggest a new direction of exploring cationic nanomaterials for treating metabolic diseases,” said Columbia Engineering’s Biomedical Engineering Prof Kam Leong, a pioneer in using polycation to scavenge pathogens.

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In a study using a first-of-its kind mouse model of aging that mimics breast cancer development in estrogen receptor-positive post-menopausal women, investigators at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and colleagues have determined that over-expression, or switching on of the Esr1 gene, could lead to elevated risk of developing estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer in older women.

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Unnecessarily high concentrations of oxygen given to patients under general anesthesia may increase risk of injury to the kidneys, lungs and heart, according to a large Vanderbilt University Medical Center-led study published in The BMJ, the flagship journal of the British Medical Association.

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A roundup of the latest research discoveries and faculty news at Cedars-Sinai.

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Some people report a decline in their memory before any decline is large enough to show up on standard tests. This experience, called subjective cognitive decline, is associated with an increased risk of later developing dementia in white, Black and Latino people, according to a study published in the November 30, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Researchers have identified several genetic variants associated with increased risk of cancer in children with non-chromosomal birth defects, such as congenital heart disease and defects of the central nervous system. While the risk of developing cancer is not as high as children with chromosomal birth defects, it is significantly higher than children with no birth defects at all, and the findings may provide a basis for early detection in these understudied patients.

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Researchers have discovered a specific genetic variant in SCN1A, the most common genetic epilepsy, that leads to an earlier onset of epilepsy, with clinical features distinct from other epilepsies. The researchers also identified a potentially effective treatment strategy.

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Juan Salvador Bonifacino will present the Keith Porter Lecture Monday, December 5, at Cell Bio 2022 in Washington, DC.

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Irvine, Calif., Nov. 30, 2022 — Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have discovered that removal of cilia from the brain’s striatum region impaired time perception and judgment, revealing possible new therapeutic targets for mental and neurological conditions including schizophrenia, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases, autism spectrum disorder, and Tourette syndrome.

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With a new $3 million-plus grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Case Western Reserve University researchers are examining the next level of treatment for Candida auris (C.auris), a multidrug-resistant yeast that causes serious infection and, in some cases, death.