Health & Medical

Researchers have achieved a groundbreaking milestone by meticulously documenting the molecular transformations that convert a common form of prostate cancer into a rare and treatment-resistant small cell neuroendocrine (SCN) cancer. This revelation opens new avenues for understanding tumor evolution, potentially leading to innovative therapies to impede the development of SCN prostate cancers. Dr. Owen Witte … Read more

Microglia, immune-regulating brain cells, have long been implicated in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). A recent study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital delves into the genetic aspect of microglia and its contribution to neuroinflammation, a key factor in AD. The researchers identified that a reduction in INPP5D, a gene present in microglia, leads to … Read more

Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) represent a groundbreaking avenue in therapeutic innovation, particularly for rare and challenging cancers. These receptors offer a targeted approach, capable of delivering therapies directly to tumor cells, presenting a promising advancement in cancer treatment. Peptide-centric CARs (PC-CARs) introduce a unique dimension to this progress by relying on specific peptide “barcodes.” These … Read more

A placebo is a substance or treatment that appears identical to a real medical intervention but lacks any active component. It is often used in medical research and clinical trials to evaluate the effectiveness of a new treatment by comparing its results with those of a placebo. The term “placebo” is derived from the Latin … Read more

Exposure to persistent stressors can induce depression-like symptoms, even in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. This is evidenced by a decrease in motivation, diminished courtship behavior, reduced interest in sweet nutrients, and a reluctance to traverse experimental gaps. However, a collaborative study by researchers from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) in Germany and the BENFRA … Read more

Researchers from Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet have revealed that infants at 5 months of age exhibit distinct preferences for faces or non-social objects, and this inclination is largely influenced by genetic factors. The study, involving over 500 infant twins, utilized an infant-friendly eye tracker to measure gaze, finding that genetic differences played a significant … Read more

In a groundbreaking development, scientists have introduced a transformative technique, known as Secretion-Enabled Cell Ranking and Enrichment (SECRE), with the potential to revolutionize the discovery and development of therapeutics for prevalent autoimmune diseases like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). These conditions, as well as issues with transplanted cells, are rooted in altered … Read more

A new study from Gladstone Institutes suggests that the gene-editing technology CRISPR holds early promise as a therapeutic approach for the challenging brain cancer, primary glioblastoma. Published in Cell Reports, the research introduces a novel method termed “cancer shredding,” wherein CRISPR is programmed to target specific DNA sequences unique to recurrent tumor cells, effectively eliminating … Read more

From Ahab relentlessly pursuing Moby Dick to Wile E. Coyote’s futile chase of the Road Runner, these scenarios share a common thread with learning Latin, walking over hot coals, enduring long lines for boba tea, and splurging on luxury indulgences. They all exemplify the concept of “sunk costs” in economics—the irretrievable investment of time, money, … Read more

Annually, approximately 13,000 individuals in Germany receive a leukemia diagnosis, encompassing various forms of blood cancer, including many children and adolescents under 15. Among the aggressive leukemia types in adults is acute myeloid leukemia (AML), constituting about 4% of childhood and adolescent malignancies. Despite intensive chemotherapy, only 20-50% of AML patients survive the initial five … Read more