A toxic Alzheimer’s protein can spread through the brain via the extracellular space that surrounds the brain’s neurons, finds a study from Columbia University Medical Center.
Penn Medicine has established the Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center (PNGC) as a national focal point for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) genetics research. The Center, an interdisciplinary program that brings together faculty members in neurodegenerative disorders, human genetics, genomics, bioinformatics, and biostatistics.
A University of Utah School of Medicine-led study reports an advance that could increase the accuracy of liquid biopsies. The minimally invasive blood test monitors cancer progression by detecting pieces of circulating tumor DNA, but results can be obscured by abundant DNA from healthy cells. The research published in PLOS Genetics shows that the two types of DNA fragments are typically differently sized in cancer patients, a property that can be exploited to enhance the test’s sensitivity.
An international team of scientists has sequenced the whole genomes and epigenomes of more than 1,000 Arabidopsis thaliana plants, sampled from geographically diverse locations. The collection of 1,001 genomes and 1,001 epigenomes not only illuminates new aspects of its evolutionary history, but also provides a comprehensive, species-wide picture of the interaction between genetic and epigenetic variation in this important model plant.
Scientists at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP) have identified over 100 new genetic regions that affect the immune response to cancer. The findings, published in Cancer Immunology Research, could inform the development of future immunotherapies—treatments that enhance the immune system’s ability to kill tumors. By analyzing a large public genomic database, the scientists found 122 potential immune response drivers—genetic regions in which mutations correlate with immune cell infiltration into tumors.
Hospital admissions for a short-term and avoidable complication of diabetes have risen by 39 per cent in the last ten years, a new analysis has concluded.
The decade-long search by researchers worldwide for a gene, which is critical in controlling the formation of blood and blood vessels in the embryo, shows how fascinating science can be. It is more than 20 years since Didier Stainier, director at the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research in Bad Nauheim, discovered a zebrafish mutant named cloche. This mutant lacks development of both blood vessels and blood cells, and was, until now, a unique phenomenon. Now, his research group has succeeded in finding the gene responsible for it. It had quasi hidden itself at the very end of chromosome 13 and was discovered using the latest molecular biological methods. The discovery of the gene is not only of scientific interest, but could also become important for regenerative medicine
Every now and then in Earth's history, a pair of continents draws close enough to form one. There comes a time, however, when they must inevitably part ways.
Increasing oxygen delivery to muscles can help athletes perform better and give them the edge needed to win elite competitions. One of the best ways to increase oxygen supply is through blood manipulation, undergoing a blood transfusion that provides extra red blood cells and boosts oxygen levels. These blood transfusions, popularly known as "blood doping," are illegal for professional athletes. While some transfusions and stimulants are identifiable with current testing methods, autologous blood transfusion (ABT) is not. A new report in Transfusion Medicine Reviews looks at novel biomarkers to identify potential new testing protocols for ABT.
Researchers have discovered a regulatory system in the ulcer- and stomach cancer-causing bacteria, Helicobacter pylori, that can control the formation of biofilm – a “fortress-like” cluster of cells that can become resistant to antibiotics and cause major medical problems.
Researchers from the University of Houston have reported the first explanation for how a class of materials changes during production to more efficiently absorb light, a critical step toward the large-scale manufacture of better and less-expensive solar panels.
Research by post-doctoral fellow Alexander Dececchi challenges long-held hypotheses about how flight first developed in birds. Furthermore, his findings raise the question of why certain species developed wings long before they could fly.
Patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are often concerned that certain foods may trigger or worsen their symptoms, which can include abdominal pain, diarrhea, or constipation. In a new study, patients who ate rye bread that was low in so-called “FODMAPs” (fermentable oligo- di- and mono-saccharides and polyols) experienced milder IBS symptoms than patients who ate normal rye bread
The article demonstrates the effectiveness of teaching practice facilitators how to use cognitive task analysis to help them guide doctors's office staff in changing to a patient-centered model.
Columbia Engineering, Disney Research, and MIT researchers have developed a method to control sound waves, using a computational approach to inversely design acoustic filters that fit within an arbitrary 3D shape while achieving target sound filtering properties. They designed acoustic voxels, small, hollow, cube-shaped chambers through which sound enters and exits, as a modular system. Like LEGOs, the voxels can be connected to form a complex structure and can modify the structure’s acoustic filtering property.
Researchers have devised a new process to create lightweight, strong and super elastic 3-D printed metallic nanostructured materials with unprecedented scalability, opening the door for applications in aerospace, military and automotive industries.
No one knows for sure how they got there. But the discovery that bacteria that normally live in the gut can be detected in the lungs of critically ill people and animals could mean a lot for intensive care patients.
Scientists at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) and the Max F. Perutz Laboratories (MFPL) in Vienna have discovered a new way to turn the immune system’s weapons against fungal invaders. This knowledge could lead to the development of new and improved anti-fungal treatments.
A research team simulated in a computer model, for the first time, the realistic evolution of global mean surface temperature since 1900. In doing so, they also created a new method by which researchers can measure and monitor the pace of anthropogenic global warming
A new study on infantile memory formation in rats points to the importance of critical periods in early-life learning on functional development of the brain. The research, conducted by scientists at New York University’s Center for Neural Science, reveals the significance of learning experiences over the first two to four years of human life.
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