Tetanus toxin fragment may treat depression, Parkinson's disease and ALS
2021-07-09
(Press-News.org) Depression has been treated traditionally with inhibitors of serotonin reuptake in the central nervous system. These drugs do not come without side effects, such as lack of immediate therapeutic action, the need for daily doses and the danger of becoming addicted to some of these drugs. That is why scientists continue to work on new therapies to treat depression.
In 2019, an international group of researchers co-led by Dr Yousef Tizabe from the Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, D.C., and Professor José Aguilera from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Institut de Neurociències at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), observed that a non-toxic derivative of the tetanus neurotoxin (which causes tetanus infections) improved depression symptoms in rat animal models. "One intramuscular dosis of Hc-TeTx made depression symptoms disappear in less than 24 hours, and its effects lasted two weeks", explains Aguilera. Based on these findings, scientists began to work on discovering the mechanism through which this substance produces these effects.
In a recent study coordinated by Professor Aguilera and conducted in collaboration with the research group led by Dr Thomas Scior of the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP) in Mexico, researchers demonstrated that Hc-TeTx is capable of inhibiting the transport of serotonin within the central nervous system, by binding to neurotrophin receptors, proteins that induce the survival of neurons. These results, published in the journal Molecules, suggest that the drug may not only serve in treating depression, but also be useful in treating neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
According to researchers, the advantages of introducing Hc-TeTx as a new drug are evident. A biweekly or monthly dosis would allow medical professionals to control the progress. Since it is a recombinant product, there would be no problems with drug safety, production or high costs. Furthermore, in neurodegenerative cases, Hc-TeTx would stop the development of the pathology and at the same time eliminate any disease-related depressions.
Researchers recently patented the therapeutic use of Hc-TeTx for the treatment of depression, Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and are now looking for investors to be able to conduct clinical trials on humans. "This is an important advance in science, and even more so now when in addition to the high incidence in depression and alterations in behaviours, we see mental alterations as a result of COVID-19 and the negative environments of stress, self-isolation or fear", Aguilera concludes.
INFORMATION:
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2021-07-09
To splice or not to splice...
In an article published in the journal RNA, Karan Bedi, a bioinformatician in Mats Ljungman's lab, Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Michigan Medical School, investigated the efficiency of splicing across different human cell types. The results were surprising in that the splicing process appears to be quite inefficient, leaving most intronic sequences untouched as the transcripts are being synthesized. The study also reports variable patterns between the different introns within a gene and across cell lines, and it further highlights ...
2021-07-09
Researchers at the University of Freiburg and the University of Stuttgart have developed a new process for producing movable, self-adjusting materials systems with standard 3D-printers. These systems can undergo complex shape changes, contracting and expanding under the influence of moisture in a pre-programmed manner. The scientists modeled their development based on the movement mechanisms of the climbing plant known as the air potato (Dioscorea bulbifera). With their new method, the team has produced its first prototype: a forearm brace that adapts to the wearer and which can be further developed for medical applications. ...
2021-07-09
Recess quality, not just the amount of time spent away from the classroom, plays a major role in whether children experience the full physical, mental and social-emotional benefits of recess, a new study from Oregon State University found.
"Not all recess is created equal," said William Massey, study author and an assistant professor in OSU's College of Public Health and Human Sciences. With schools returning to full-time in-person classes this fall, he said, "Now is a good time to rethink, 'How do we create schools that are more child-friendly?' I think ensuring quality access to play time and space during the school day is a way we can do that." ...
2021-07-09
A research group including Kobe University's Professor TAKUMI Toru (also a Senior Visiting Scientist at RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research) and Assistant Professor TAMADA Kota, both of the Physiology Division in the Graduate School of Medicine, has revealed a causal gene (Necdin, NDN) in autism model mice that have the chromosomal abnormality (*1) called copy number variation (*2).
The researchers hope to illuminate the NDN gene's molecular mechanism in order to contribute towards the creation of new treatment strategies for developmental disorders including autism.
These research results were published in Nature Communications on July 1, 2021.
Main Points
The research ...
2021-07-09
Although Covid-19 affects men and women differently, the large majority of current clinical studies of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 makes no mention of sex/gender. Indeed, only a fraction, 4 percent, explicitly plan to address sex and gender in their analysis, concludes a new analysis of nearly 4,500 studies. 21 percent only take this variable into account when selecting participants while 5.4 % go as far as planning to have sex-matched or representative subgroups and samples. The article is published in Nature Communications.
During the corona pandemic, differences can be observed between men and women. Men are more vulnerable to a severe course of COVID-19; ...
2021-07-09
Tokyo, Japan - Scientists from The University of Tokyo Institute of Industrial Science have designed a machine learning algorithm to predict the size of an individual cell as it grows and divides. By using an artificial neural network that does not impose the assumptions commonly employed in biology, the computer was able to make more complex and accurate forecasts than previously possible. This work may help advance the field of quantitative biology as well as improve the industrial production of medications or fermented products.
As in all of the natural sciences, biology has developed mathematical models to help fit data and make predictions about the future. However, because of the inherent complexities of living ...
2021-07-09
Split liver transplantation (SLT) provides an opportunity to divide a donor liver and offer transplants to two small patients, one or both of whom could be a child. SLT, which is underused in the United States, could be used more widely to decrease the number of deaths of people on transplant waiting lists. In a new article, researchers address some of the ethical decisions that go into decisions to split a liver and provide a model to help hospitals make SLT decisions.
The article, by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), appears in The BMJ, which is published by the Institute of Medical Ethics.
"Should a large liver always be split if it is medically safe to do so?" asks Sridhar Tayur, Professor of Operations ...
2021-07-09
Tsukuba, Japan - A scientist from the Division of Quantum Condensed Matter Physics at the University of Tsukuba has formulated a new theory of superconductivity. Based on the calculation of the "Berry connection," this model helps explain new experimental results better than the current theory. The work may allow future electrical grids to send energy without losses.
Superconductors are fascinating materials that may look unremarkable at ambient conditions, but when cooled to very low temperatures, allow electrical current to flow with zero resistance. There are several obvious applications of superconductivity, such as lossless energy ...
2021-07-09
Researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) identify pathways that link a high-fat diet to atherosclerosis in mice
Tokyo, Japan - It's long been known that a high-fat diet can lead to clogged arteries, but we have only recently begun to learn in detail how the process works. A new study in experimental mice could go a long way to finding treatments to keep arteries open and flowing.
In a study published this month in JACC Basic To Translational Science, researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) have continued their research into how a high-fat diet causes atherosclerosis, the fatty buildup of plaques on the walls of blood vessels that can lead to heart attacks and other vascular disease. Atherosclerosis is not as simple as fats ...
2021-07-09
Research has shown that listening to music daily improves language recovery in patients who have experienced a stroke. However, the neural mechanisms underlying the phenomenon have so far remained unknown.
A study conducted at the University of Helsinki and the Turku University Hospital Neurocenter compared the effect of listening to vocal music, instrumental music and audiobooks on the structural and functional recovery of the language network of patients who had suffered an acute stroke. In addition, the study investigated the links between such changes and language recovery during a three-month follow-up period. The study was published in the eNeuro journal.
Based ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Tetanus toxin fragment may treat depression, Parkinson's disease and ALS
