Everyone experiences aging in their own way, and factors such as genetics, lifestyle and environment play a role in this process. Some individuals reach the age of 90 or even 100 in good health, without medications or brain disease. But how do these individuals maintain their health as they age? Luuk de Vries from Joost Verhaagen's group, and his colleagues Dick Swaab and Inge Huitinga, looked at brains from the Netherlands Brain Bank. The Netherlands Brain Bank stores brain tissue from more than 5,000 deceased brain donors with a wide range of different brain diseases. What makes the Netherlands Brain Bank so unique is that, in addition to the stored tissue with very precise ...

Background and Aims Acute liver failure (ALF) is a life-threatening clinical problem with limited treatment options. Administration of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) may be a promising approach for ALF. This study aimed to explore the role of hUC-MSCs in the treatment of ALF and the underlying mechanisms.   Methods A mouse model of ALF was induced by lipopolysaccharide and d-galactosamine administration. The therapeutic effects of hUC-MSCs were evaluated by assessing serum enzyme activity, histological appearance, and cell apoptosis in liver tissues. The apoptosis ...

Washington, D.C.— May 15, 2024—A small number of New York City wild birds carry highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Virology, a journal of the American Society for Microbiology. The work highlights that the interface between animals and humans that may give rise to zoonotic infections or even pandemics is not limited to rural environments and commercial poultry operations, but extends into urban centers.   “To my knowledge, this is the first large-scale U.S. study of avian influenza in an urban area, and the first with active ...

DALLAS, May 15, 2024 — Despite strides in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training, consumer research from the American Heart Association reveals only 1 in 4 Asian American individuals are confident they could correctly perform Hands-Only CPR, compared with a comparable confidence rate of more 1/3 of the general population. The same survey showed nearly 70% of Asian American adults are hesitant to perform Hands-Only CPR because they are worried they will hurt the person who has suffered ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA – Every year, beer breweries generate and discard thousands of tons of surplus yeast. Researchers from MIT and Georgia Tech have now come up with a way to repurpose that yeast to absorb lead from contaminated water. Through a process called biosorption, yeast can quickly absorb even trace amounts of lead and other heavy metals from water. The researchers showed that they could package the yeast inside hydrogel capsules to create a filter that removes lead from water. Because the yeast cells are encapsulated, they can be easily removed from the water once it’s ready ...

The National Foundation for Cancer Research proudly announces that our CEO, Dr. Sujuan Ba, was honored as one of the AAPI Women Leaders at the AAPI Women's Gala 2024 on May 14th in New York City.  This prestigious event was hosted by The Serica Initiative to spotlight the outstanding achievements and contributions of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women who are breaking barriers and making impacts in many sectors, enriching and adding value to our society. This 8th year's gala, themed "Resilience and Perseverance," honored Dr. Ba for her exemplary leadership at NFCR and other organizations she is part of and her ...

A paper published in the CABI Reviews journal has found that climate change is the most prominent threat to pollinators – such as bumblebees, wasps, and butterflies – who are essential for biodiversity conservation, crop yields and food security. The research, which is entitled ‘What are the main reasons for the world-wide decline in pollinator populations?’, suggests that many of the threats to pollinators result from human activities. Pollinator populations are declining worldwide and 85% of flowering plant species and 87 of the leading global crops rely on pollinators for seed production. The decline of ...

Cancer is a leading cause of death globally. One of the primary reasons why cancer is such a deadly disease is the ability of cancer cells to become drug-resistant. After decades of medical research, scientists came to understand that malignant tumors often harbor a special population of cells called cancer stem cells (CSCs). Much like normal stem cells, CSCs can self-renew and differentiate into various cell types within a tumor, playing important roles not only in tumor growth and metastasis but also in the development of drug resistance.   Unfortunately, developing therapies targeting CSCs directly ...

Although medications can often help patients find a cure or respite from their condition, millions of people worldwide suffer from unpredictable drug toxicities every year. In particular, drug eruptions which manifest through symptoms such as redness, blisters, and itching on the skin, are quite common. Severe drug eruptions can become life-threatening and can have long-lasting consequences. Thus, understanding how and why drug eruptions occur is an important area of research in medical science. To this end, previous studies have identified specific variants of certain genes as potential causal agents of drug eruptions. Scientists believe that ...

Physical activities like jogging, walking, cycling, and sprinting are activities known to engage the musculoskeletal system and result in the utilization of energy. Sprint interval training (SIT) is a type of sprinting exercise that involves cycles of intense exercise followed by a short duration of rest. How the durations of exercise and rest are structured can affect the impact of SIT on physiological responses. In recent years, the field of sports physiology has witnessed increased interest in optimizing SIT protocols. This surge can enhance the recognition of SIT’s efficacy in improving athletic performance and overall well-being, highlighting its versatility as a tool ...

Modified derivatives of natural products have led to significant therapeutic advances and commercial success in recent times. Menthol is a naturally occurring cyclic monoterpene alcohol found in various plants, particularly in members of the mint family such as peppermint and spearmint. It is a common ingredient found in a wide range of confectionaries, chewing gums and oral care products. Interestingly, menthol also has high medicinal value due to its analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer effects. In a recent study, a team of researchers led by Professor Gen-ichiro Arimura ...

Peer-reviewed – Observational Study - People  An important new study has advanced how heart failure is detected in women – meaning more female patients can be diagnosed and at an earlier stage.  Researchers led by teams from the Universities of East Anglia (UEA), Sheffield and Leeds, have been able to fine-tune how magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used to detect heart failure in women’s hearts, making it more accurate.  Lead author Dr Pankaj Garg, of the University of East Anglia’s Norwich Medical School and a consultant cardiologist at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, said: “By refining the method for women ...

Nanoparticles (NPs) are often used to reduce environmental pollution by targeting harmful chemicals in soil and water that are released by industrial and agricultural activities. These NPs are engineered to absorb, degrade, or neutralize these pollutants, providing a potential solution to environmental contamination. However, when released into the environment, they can be consumed by organisms and transferred through the food chain, resulting in widespread toxicity. To address this issue, a research ...

The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University announced today that Circe, a startup developed at the Institute and spun out of Harvard, has signed a worldwide, exclusive licensing agreement coordinated by Harvard’s Office of Technology Development (OTD) to commercialize a novel bioproduction technology that could significantly reduce the carbon emissions of industries from food to aviation fuel. Circe has raised more than $8 million to date from investors including Regen Ventures, Undeterred Capital, Ponderosa Ventures, Bee Partners, and Elementum Ventures. “One of the great challenges ...

PULLMAN, Wash. – A parasitic worm that can infest the brains of moose appears to be playing a role in the decline of the iconic animal in some regions of North America. Moose populations have been dwindling for years across the country due to many contributing factors, but new research at Washington State University has found the impact of Eleaophora schneideri, also known as the arterial worm, has likely been underestimated. Researchers examined recently deceased Shiras moose in Idaho between March 2020 and July 2022. While the parasitic roundworm E. schneideri was not detected in any of the animals found in north Idaho, it was present in 10 of ...

A new study demonstrated parity between a minimally invasive procedure to replace the aortic valve in the heart—transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)—and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). In the meta-analysis of seven randomized trials, published in JSCAI and presented at the 2024 EuroPCR conference in Paris, France, researchers compared the outcomes of 7,785 patients undergoing TAVR (a procedure that delivers a new aortic valve into the heart through a catheter) to those undergoing SAVR for severe aortic stenosis. ...

The study revealed unexpected and sex-specific effects of germline regulation on longevity and somatic repair in vertebrates. Contrary to classical evolutionary theories, it turns out that changing how the germline (the part responsible for reproduction) works can have different effects on males and females. This challenges conventional beliefs that reproduction and longevity are linked by a limited pool of resources. The research opens up new possibilities for understanding how our bodies age and the role of reproduction in that process. The findings ...

The SPECULOOS project, led by the astronomer Michaël Gillon from the University of Liège, has just discovered a new Earth-sized exoplanet around SPECULOOS-3, an "ultracool dwarf" star as small as Jupiter, twice as cold as our Sun, and located 55 light-years from Earth.  After the famous TRAPPIST-1, SPECULOOS 3 is the second planetary system discovered around this type of star. Ultra-cool dwarf stars are the least massive stars in our Universe, similar in size to Jupiter, more than twice as cold, ten times less massive and a hundred times less ...

Two Cancer Research UK-funded studies from Oxford Population Health have discovered proteins in the blood that could warn people of cancer more than seven years before it is diagnosed. Scientists identified 618 proteins linked to 19 different types of cancer, including 107 proteins in a group of people who blood was collected at least seven years before diagnosis. The team have discovered that these proteins could be involved at the very earliest stages of cancer, where it could be prevented. They ...

A new, Earth-sized planet orbiting an ultra-cool red dwarf star, has been detected by an international team of astronomers – just 55 light years away.  The planet is only the second of its kind to be discovered around this type of star. Called SPECULOOS-3 b, it takes around 17 hours to complete an orbit of the star which is more than twice as cold as our sun, as well as ten times less massive and a hundred times less luminous.  Days and nights on SPECULOOS-3 b seem to be endless: the planet is likely to be tidally locked, so the same side – the ‘dayside’ – always faces the star in a relationship similar to our moon and Earth.    The ...

A recent study led by the Molecular and Cellular Neurobiotechnology group at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) and the University of Barcelona has identified a new biomarker for Alzheimer's disease in asymptomatic stages of the disease. The molecule is miR-519a-3p, a microRNA directly linked to the expression of the cellular prion protein (PrPC), which is deregulated in people suffering from some neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. The search for biomarkers that are stable and easily detectable in biofluids, ...

New research has shed light in the complex interplay between cell proteins, and how they impact on neurons in neurodevelopmental disorders and Alzheimer’s disease. A new study led by the University of Exeter and published in Royal Society Open Biology has discovered the key role that the protein Contactin-4 (encoded by the gene CNTN4) plays in shaping neurons. The researchers began studying CNTN4 because it was known to have a role in autism, but its functional roles were not well understood. The team explored how CNTN4 functions within the brain, particularly its interactions with proteins involved in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's ...

Lifespan caps for passenger vehicles have limited effect on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and could drive up costs and material use finds a new study published in Environmental Research: Infrastructure and Sustainability. The research shows that although Light-Duty vehicles (LDVs) contribute 17% to the annual greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, imposing a 15-year lifespan cap on LDV fleets under a business-as-usual scenario will not lead to any meaningful reductions in GHG emissions.  To combat delayed uptake of Electric Vehicles (EVs), some have argued for limits on the vehicle’s ...

Paris, France, 14-17 May 2024. The Course Directors have selected 3 major Late Breaking Trials (LBTs) that will be presented for the first time during the 2024 edition of EuroPCR. These trials were selected on account of their design, outcomes and potential to influence daily clinical practice.  Among them is the NOTION-2 randomised clinical trial (RCT).  Background   Evidence comparing the use of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in low-risk patients with aortic ...

Paris, France, 14-17 May 2024. The Course Directors have selected 3 major Late Breaking Trials (LBTs) that will be presented for the first time during the 2024 edition of EuroPCR. These trials were selected on account of their design, outcomes and potential to influence daily clinical practice. Among them is the REC-CAGEFREE II trial.  Background and methods  The REC-CAGEFREE II trial is an open-label, investigator-initiated, non-inferiority, multicentre randomised trial comparing stepwise de-escalation of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) with standard DAPT in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) treated with paclitaxel-coated balloons (PCB). Eligible ...