Health & Medicine

  • Novel assay finds new mechanism underlying red blood cell aging
    on September 21, 2021 at 1:17 pm

    A multifaceted microfluidic in vitro assay is helping to identify the role of hypoxia on red blood cell aging via the biomechanical pathways. It holds promise for investigating hypoxic effects on the metastatic potential and relevant drug resistance of cancer cells. It also can be a useful tool to predict the mechanical performance of natural and artificial red blood cells for transfusion purposes and to further extend to red blood cells in other blood diseases and other cell types.

  • Japanese Knotweed extract could cut cancer risk of processed meat
    on September 21, 2021 at 12:10 pm

    Scientists have developed processed red meat that includes added natural substitutes which reduces the carcinogenic compound nitrite added to preserve meats. The range of sausages and hams had a mixture of plants and fruits added to them which included rosemary, green tea, and resveratrol — an extract taken from Japanese Knotweed.

  • Pioneering EEG test could dramatically increase early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s
    on September 21, 2021 at 12:20 am

    Researchers have developed a two-minute passive-test, ‘Fastball EEG’, that measures people’s brain waves in response to a series of images and could help expand early dementia diagnosis.

  • Delirium is a common consequence of severe COVID-19, study finds
    on September 21, 2021 at 4:06 pm

    More than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers are revealing the many devastating consequences that patients can face both during and after hospitalization.

  • Scientists identify new therapeutic target in ovarian cancer subtype with poor prognosis
    on September 21, 2021 at 4:05 pm

    Mutations in the ARID1A gene are present in more than 50% of ovarian clear cell carcinomas (OCCC), for which effective treatments are lacking. Scientists at The Wistar Institute discovered that loss of ARID1A function enhances a cellular stress response pathway that promotes survival of cancer cells, which become sensitive to pharmacological inhibition of this pathway. These findings were published online in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, and point to a new therapeutic opportunity for this type of ovarian cancer for which new solutions are urgently needed.

  • Exploring a key to hepatitis C entry into cells
    on September 21, 2021 at 4:05 pm

    In a new paper published in Nature, scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, describe the structure of a key protein on the surface of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and how it interacts with its receptor found on some human cells. The findings provide new leads for developing an HCV vaccine. Hepatitis C is one of the most common bloodborne infections in the United States. Although it may not cause any symptoms in its early stages, untreated chronic infections can lead to severe liver damage, cancer, and death. Concerningly, infections are on the rise among young adults, largely due to exposure resulting from shared drug-injectables. No vaccine is available to prevent HCV infection.

  • New guidelines to improve reporting standards of studies that investigate causal mechanisms
    on September 21, 2021 at 4:04 pm

    A new guideline has been developed to help scientists publish their research accurately and transparently. Published in JAMA, the AGReMA Statement (A Guideline for Reporting Mediation Analyses) provides recommendations for researchers who want to describe mediation analysis in their paper. Mediation analysis is primarily used to understand how an intervention works or why it does not.