IBD is a common chronic gastrointestinal disorder and current treatment strategies can cause adverse effects. Thus, there is a need to identify alternative compounds to treat IBD. Similarly, the dose-related toxicity and efficacy of anticancer drugs needs to be monitored accurately to improve the treatment outcomes. Moreover, over the years, plant-based therapeutic compounds and traditional Chinese medicine formulas have gained attention for their enhanced healing effects and are promising for various treatment regimens.   The recent issue of the JPA, published ...

Optoelectronic devices have found their way into many aspects of our daily lives, from OLED displays to photodetectors, security systems, and environmental monitoring. In all the applications, these devices utilize high refractive index polymers (HRIPs) to control light. In general, the optical properties of transparent HRIPs enable efficient light transmission and manipulation, allowing optoelectronics devices to guide and control the flow of light to improve their performance. However, there are no low-cost options for HRIPs that can guarantee good optical performance while being transparent and environmentally ...

It is possible to engineer increased mesophyll conductance in plants according to new research from the University of Illinois. Mesophyll conductance plays a key role in photosynthesis and refers to the ease with which CO2 can diffuse through a leaf’s cells before reaching the location where it is ultimately turned into sugar to feed the plant (carbon fixation). CO2 faces barriers as it moves through the leaf, including its own cell walls. Researchers from the Long Lab found that by increasing permeability and slightly reducing the thickness of cell walls, they could increase CO2 diffusion and uptake in a model crop. “This is one of the ...

Researchers at the University of Vienna, along with collaborators from France, Germany, Switzerland and the USA, have achieved a major breakthrough in understanding how genetic drivers influence the evolution of a specific photosynthesis mechanism in Tillandsia (air plants). This sheds light on the complex actions that cause plant adaptation and ecological diversity. The results of their study are now published in Plant Cell. Some plant species have evolved a water-saving trait called Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (CAM). CAM plants like most ...

Millions of working parents know the routine: bustle the kids off to childcare in the morning, work all day, then fight the daily traffic jams to get the kids back home. Something to drink, maybe a snack to munch, can help ease the commute.  Understandably, few parents take the time to think about the nutrients or calories involved, but experts at Cincinnati Children’s decided to take a closer look. Their eyebrow-raising findings were published April 27, 2024, in the journal Children’s Health Care. The researchers took a fresh look at older data contained in daily food journals kept by more than 300 families of children who attended 30 childcare ...

HOUSTON, SAN DIEGO and LONDON ― The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Replay today announced that the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a ‘safe to proceed’ for the Investigational New Drug (IND) application for PRAME TCR/IL-15 NK (SY-307), an engineered T cell receptor natural killer (TCR NK) cell therapy for relapsed/refractory myeloid malignancies. MD Anderson is the IND sponsor. PRAME TCR/IL-15 NK (SY-307) is being developed by Syena, an oncology-focused product company launched by Replay and MD Anderson based on the scientific discoveries of Katy ...

PULLMAN, Wash. -- Researchers have discovered a new mechanism of oil biosynthesis and found a way to genetically engineer a type of test plant to more efficiently produce different kinds of seed oil that it otherwise wouldn't make. While the engineering is proof-of-concept, this discovery could lead to improved production of valuable oils used in food and by a range of industries. The study, led by Washington State University researchers, was published in the journal Nature Communications. “Scientists have been working on producing ...

Anticoagulant treatments are crucial for managing many conditions, such as heart disease, stroke and venous thrombosis. Current options, however, carry an inherent risk of serious bleeding due to trauma or unforeseen events. A team from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the University of Sydney has developed a new anticoagulant, designed to have an on-demand reversible activity, with a fast-acting ‘‘antidote’’. This approach could revolutionise the use of anticoagulants in surgery or other applications. The mechanism of activation and deactivation of the active principle ...

Papua New Guinea (PNG) has a wide range of environments, each presenting unique challenges to human survival. Highlanders and lowlanders of PNG are striking examples of populations facing distinct environmental stress. Whereas the highlanders encounter low oxygen availability due to altitude, the lowlanders are exposed to specific pathogens that are absent in the highlands, such as malaria. Despite these strong environmental pressures, the specific adaptations of these populations have remained overlooked. A new study published in Nature Communications on Tuesday, 30 April 2024 sheds light on the genetic adaptations of Papua New Guineans in response to their unique environmental ...

According to a recent study published in Nature Geoscience, scientists have found that soil carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are more sensitive to climate warming in permafrost-collapsed areas than in non-collapsed areas. This study, based on field warming experiments combined with laboratory incubation of soils from a large-scale sampling, provides new insights about permafrost carbon–climate feedback in the context of future climate warming. Warmer temperatures have led to rapid permafrost thawing in high-latitude and -altitude permafrost regions. Abrupt permafrost thaw, ...

National Institutes of Health researchers and collaborators have discovered over 100 new regions of the human genome, also known as genomic loci, that appear to influence a person’s blood pressure. Results of the study also point to several specific genomic loci that may be relevant to iron metabolism and a type of cellular receptor known as adrenergic receptors.  The study, published in Nature Genetics, is one of the largest such genomic studies of blood pressure to date, including data from over 1 ...

The Queen Mary-led study reveals the most detailed picture yet of genetic contributors to blood pressure. The findings lead to improved polygenic risk scores, which will better predict blood pressure and risk for hypertension. Researchers led by Queen Mary University of London and supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) have discovered over a hundred new regions of the human genome, also known as genomic loci, that appear to influence a person’s blood pressure. In total, over 2,000 independent genetic signals for blood pressure are now reported, demonstrating that blood pressure is a highly complex trait influenced by thousands ...

Researchers have discovered that the smooth muscle cells that line the arteries of people with atherosclerosis can change into new cell types and develop traits similar to cancer that worsen the disease. Atherosclerosis is characterized by a narrowing of arterial walls and can increase risk of coronary artery disease, stroke, peripheral artery disease, or kidney disorders. The findings, supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), could pave the way for the use of anti-cancer drugs to counteract the tumor-like mechanisms ...

EL PASO, Texas (April 30, 2024) – An estimated 168 billion gallons of wastewater — or produced water — is generated annually by the Permian Basin fracking industry, according to a 2022 report by the Texas Produced Water Consortium. The major waste stream has proved both difficult and costly to treat because of the chemical complexity of the water. In a new study published in the journal Water, researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso have identified a novel means of treating the wastewater generated by oil and gas production: bacteriophages.  Ramón Antonio Sánchez, a doctoral candidate within UTEP’s chemistry ...

Open Targets, a public-private partnership dedicated to pre-competitive drug discovery research, today announced MSD, the tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, N.J., USA, as the latest partner to join the consortium. Open Targets aims to accelerate the development of safe and effective medicines by leveraging cutting-edge technologies to identify, prioritise, and validate potential drug targets. MSD’s expertise in drug discovery will complement the strengths of the current partners: EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), the Wellcome Sanger Institute, GSK, Sanofi, Pfizer, and Genentech, ...

Researchers at the University of Toronto have found a way to better control the preclinical generation of key neurons depleted in Parkinson’s disease, pointing toward a new approach for a disease with no cure and few effective treatments. The researchers used an antibody to selectively activate a receptor in a molecular signaling pathway to develop dopaminergic neurons. These neurons produce dopamine, a neurotransmitter critical to brain health. Researchers around the world have been working to coax stem cells to differentiate into dopaminergic ...

Leuven (Belgium) 30/04/2024 - For the first time, researchers from VIB-KU Leuven, UZ Leuven, Janssen Pharmaceutica and multiple international collaborators have introduced quantitative methods and extensive confounder control to discover microbiome biomarkers in colorectal cancer development. While multiple microbial taxa have been put forward as potential cancer-associated biomarkers in the past, this new study uncovers obscured contributions that may have resulted in incorrect associations. The results have been published in Nature Medicine. Cancer ...

A pioneering study highlights the importance of carrion and scavengers in wetlands on a global scale. A study by researchers from the Ecology area of the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH) and the Ecology department of the University of Alicante (UA) reveals the fundamental importance of scavengers and carrion in wetlands. The article, published in Biological Reviews, emphasizes that the benefits provided by scavengers far outweigh the potential drawbacks. Among their essential functions are the recycling and transportation of nutrients and the regulation of water quality, benefiting the entire ecosystem, from soil and plants to birds and mammals.  Historically, ...

As a result, the researchers recommend updating the information requirements in the EU legislation, REACH. They also propose various approaches for evaluating chemical substances to ensure that all available information is fully utilized. Researchers from DTU National Food Institute and the University of Southern Denmark have screened the scientific literature for the Danish Environmental Protection Agency to find substances showing signs of endocrine disrupting properties and thus being potentially harmful to humans and ...

A substantial proportion of the world’s population remains willing to get vaccinated against diseases including COVID-19, according to a new survey across 23 countries that represent more than 60% of the world’s population. The study, published in Nature Medicine, was co-led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by “la Caixa” Foundation, and the Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy of the City University of New York (CUNY SPH). The severe human impact of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the rapid research and development of safe and effective vaccines based on existing models, ...

An entirely new approach to inhibiting DNA-cleaving enzymes works through the aggregation of an otherwise non-toxic molecule. This Kobe University discovery may lead to a much-needed method for curbing Streptococcus growth. Enzymes are the body’s tools to make almost all reactions happen. But the same is true for bacteria like Streptococcus, which causes toxic shock syndrome, a rapidly progressing and deadly condition. When the body’s white blood cells try to capture the bacteria by casting nets made out ...

What do the flow of cars on a highway and the movement of bacteria towards a food source have in common? In both cases, annoying traffic jams can form. Especially for cars, we might want to understand how to avoid them, but perhaps we've never thought of turning to statistical physics, as Alexandre Solon, a physicist from Sorbonne Université, and Eric Bertin, from the University of Grenoble, both working for the Centre national de la recherche scientifique CNRS, have done. Their research, recently published in the Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment (JSTAT), has developed a one-dimensional mathematical model ...

New research demonstrates that seagrass habitat restoration can be enhanced by including other grasses in addition to the declining or lost species and – ultimately – that restoration efforts must proactively select species that can withstand current and intensifying stressors driven by human activities and climate change. Rising global temperatures combined with centuries of humans working within our seascapes has reshaped coastal ecosystems. Rebuilding or restoring coastal habitat is becoming ...

New research co-authored by a UC Riverside business professor provides some sound advice for managers of retail outlets that limit their product selection to a particular brand: Managers should factor in the strength of their brand when structuring the pay incentives for their sales staff. The study focused on what marketing scholars call “brand-managed” retail operations. These outlets include “stores within stores,” such as counters in major department stores with dedicated sales staff that offer just one brand of cosmetics such as Clinique. They can also be stores ...

The fearsome, saber-like teeth of Smilodon fatalis — California's state fossil — are familiar to anyone who has ever visited Los Angeles' La Brea Tar Pits, a sticky trap from which more than 2,000 saber-toothed cat skulls have been excavated over more than a century. Though few of the recovered skulls had sabers attached, a handful exhibited a peculiar feature: the tooth socket for the saber was occupied by two teeth, with the permanent tooth slotted into a groove in the baby tooth. Paleontologist Jack Tseng, associate professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley, doesn't think the double fangs ...