San Diego – Dec. 5, 2024 – Two studies published today in the American Journal of Human Genetics show the potential for genomic screening in newborns to address high rates of infant hospitalization and mortality in the United States. Presently, hundreds of genetic diseases are either preventable or treatable but currently are detected only after a child falls ill and endures a years-long “diagnostic odyssey,” often receiving diagnoses too late to achieve the best outcomes. The first study, titled “Prequalification of genome-based newborn screening for severe childhood genetic diseases ...

Researchers at the NYU Pain Research Center have found a new receptor for nerve growth factor that plays an important role in pain signaling, even though it does not signal on its own, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. The findings hold promise for finding new treatments for arthritis and other forms of inflammatory and cancer pain, without the side effects that led recent therapies to fail in clinical trials.  “Nerve growth factor is unusual because it’s one of the few patient-validated targets for pain,” said Nigel Bunnett, professor and chair of the Department of Molecular Pathobiology ...

Adding a new drug to standard care for stem cell transplant recipients may reduce a life-threatening side effect, according to an early-stage clinical trial conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The trial showed that patients being treated for various blood cancers tolerated the investigational drug — called itacitinib —and experienced lower-than-expected rates of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), in which the donor’s stem cells attack the patient’s healthy tissues. The study is online in the journal Blood. “We have to be cautious about interpreting the results of a small ...

In a new study published in Nature Communications, a team of researchers at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology report a new, robust computational toolset to extract biological relationships from large transcriptomics datasets. These efforts will help scientists better investigate cellular processes. Living organisms are governed by their genome—an instruction manual written in the language of DNA that dictates how an organism grows, survives, and reproduces. By regulating the abundance of different RNA transcripts, cells control their protein expression level, thereby shaping their functions ...

Alexandria, VA – Members of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR) have elected Margherita R. Fontana, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, as Vice-president, Julie Frantsve-Hawley, Temple University Kornberg School of Dentistry, Philadelphia, PA, as Treasurer, and Ariadne Letra, University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine, PA, as Representative to the IADR/AADOCR Publications Committee. Their terms will commence at the conclusion of the 54th Annual Meeting ...

Alexandria, VA, USA – Members of the International Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (IADR) have elected Raul I. Garcia, Boston University, USA, to serve as Vice-president. His term will commence at the conclusion of the 103rd General Session of the IADR, which will be held in conjunction with the 2025 IADR Pan European Regional Congress from June 25-28, 2025 in Barcelona, Spain. Garcia is Professor and Chair of the Department of Health Policy and Health Services Research at the Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine at Boston University. He received his DMD and MMedSc from the Harvard ...

Seven scientists affiliated with the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have been named Battelle Distinguished Inventors in recognition of being granted 14 or more United States patents. Since Battelle began managing ORNL in 2000, 104 ORNL researchers have reached this milestone. “These innovators have not only developed cutting-edge technologies, but they have also prioritized taking the steps to move them out into the marketplace, which is critical for adoption and broad impact,” said Susan Hubbard, ORNL deputy for science and technology. “The innovators are working on a range of strategies important for our ...

 The life of billions of people inhabiting Earth is owed to a temporary organ that supported and nourished them in a mother’s womb. The placenta, or afterbirth, is considered sacred by some cultures, its pivotal role in pregnancy recognized as far back as the raising of Egypt’s pyramids. It provides nutrients and oxygen to the fetus via the umbilical cord, acting like a gut, kidney, liver, and lungs. If the placenta fails, only one hazardous option remains — premature delivery through induced labor or cesarean delivery. Now, the first therapy to potentially ...

Within all complex, multicellular living systems such as plants and humans, there exists a set of genetic elements that can be likened to the blueprints, tools, and specialized personnel at a construction site for an expanding development. Plant biologists like Aman Husbands at the University of Pennsylvania study a family of skilled subcontractors, known as the HD-ZIPIII transcription factors (TFs). These subcontractors are tasked with deciding which blueprints, or genes, to follow as they guide the ...

The Africa-UBC Oceans and Fisheries Visiting Fellows Program is extremely pleased to announce the selection of its inaugural laureates: Dr. Cynthia A. Adinortey (Ghana) and Dr. Antony Otinga Oteng’o (Kenya). “We had many excellent applicants from across Sub-Saharan Africa. Ultimately, our Selection Committee selected these two exemplary scholars, and we are most happy with the result,” said Dr. William Cheung, professor and Director of UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries (IOF), which administers the Program. “These two exemplary scholars will now have the opportunity to collaborate ...

A groundbreaking phase one clinical trial exploring a novel cell-based immunotherapy for breast cancer has been accepted for publication in JAMA Oncology. The technology tested in the trial was co-developed by Gary Koski, Ph.D., professor in Kent State University’s Department of Biological Sciences, and Brian J. Czerniecki, M.D., Ph.D., chair and senior member in the Moffitt Cancer Center’s Department of Breast Oncology. The study focuses on a new treatment approach that aims to harness the body’s immune system to enhance patient responses ...

WASHINGTON -- White people in rural America have unique factors that drive worse health outcomes than their urban counterparts, prompting a team of public health researchers to label whiteness as a fundamental determinant of health.  They say while the health and well-being of racially minoritized populations should continue to be a research priority they urge researchers to consider factors that influence the health of majoritized populations. In an analytic essay, "Whiteness: A Fundamental Determinant of the Health of Rural White Americans,” published Dec. 5 in the American Journal of Public Health, Caroline Efird, PhD, MPH, ...

A new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis describes an innovative method of analyzing mammograms that significantly improves the accuracy of predicting the risk of breast cancer development over the following five years. Using up to three years of previous mammograms, the new method identified individuals at high risk of developing breast cancer 2.3 times more accurately than the standard method, which is based on questionnaires assessing clinical risk factors alone, such as age, race and family history of breast cancer. The study is published ...

More information, including a copy of the paper, can be found online at the Science press package at https://www.eurekalert.org/press/scipak. Molecular Zip Code Draws Killer T Cells Straight to Brain Tumors Researchers have found a way to program immune cells to attack glioblastoma and treat the inflammation of multiple sclerosis in mice. The technology will soon be tested in a clinical trial for people with glioblastoma. UCSF scientists have developed a “molecular GPS” to guide immune cells into the brain and kill tumors without harming healthy tissue.  This living cell therapy can navigate through the body to a specific organ, addressing ...

More information, including a copy of the paper, can be found online at the Science press package at https://www.eurekalert.org/press/scipak. Engineered Immune Cells May Be Able to Tame Inflammation Immune cells that are designed to soothe could improve treatment for organ transplants, type 1 diabetes and other autoimmune conditions. When the immune system overreacts and starts attacking the body, the only option may be to shut the entire system down and risk developing infections or cancer. But now, scientists at UC San Francisco may have found a more precise way to dial the immune system down. The technology ...

Rising sea levels, melting glaciers, heatwaves at sea – 2023 set a number of alarming new records. The global mean temperature also rose to nearly 1.5 degrees above the preindustrial level, another record. Seeking to identify the causes of this sudden rise has proven a challenge for researchers. After all, factoring in the effects of anthropogenic influences like the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, of the weather phenomenon El Niño, and of natural events like volcanic eruptions, can account for a major portion of the warming. But doing so still leaves a gap of roughly 0.2 degrees Celsius, which has never been satisfactorily ...

A single mutation in bovine influenza H5N1 – a clade of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus that has been increasingly detected among North American livestock herds – can cause the virus to switch affinity from animal-type receptors to human-type receptors, according to a new study. The findings highlight the crucial need for continuous surveillance of emerging H5N1 mutations, as even subtle genetic changes could increase the virus's capacity for human adaptation and transmission, potentially triggering a future influenza pandemic. In 2021, the highly pathogenic influenza H5N1 clade ...

Researchers have uncovered a previously unknown yet crucial role for thyrotropin-releasing hormone (Trh) in zebrafish hatching and reveal how this hormone activates a transient neuroendocrine circuit that controls when fish larvae are ready to leave the egg and swim free. For egg-born animals, hatching marks a pivotal shift, transitioning from the sheltered environment of an egg capsule to external conditions. This crucial event is not strictly hardwired into the embryo’s developmental program. Rather, hatching is a regulated ...

Climate change is driving global extinction risks, with 1.6% of species threatened at 1.3°C of warming and risks escalating to 29.7% at 5.4°C, according to a new meta-analysis encompassing more than 30 years of research. Climate change is reshaping ecosystems and biodiversity globally, altering species distributions, interactions, and population dynamics. While some species adapt or migrate to track shifting climates, others face population declines, shrinking ranges, and potential extinction. ...

Scientists, including those from Imperial College London, University of Oxford and CABI, have ‘turned up the heat’ on how repeated outbreaks of coffee wilt disease threatened arabica and robusta varieties of our favourite daily coffee brew. The scientists, who present their findings in the journal PLoS Biology, say the fungal pathogen Fusarium xylarioides continues to pose a significant threat to coffee production and incomes across sub-Saharan Africa. Their work supports earlier findings, based on DNA markers and crossing experiments which suggested that F. xylarioides is ...

New research has revealed that fish embryos actively control their hatching timing through a neurohormone, Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone (TRH), which triggers the release of enzymes that dissolve the egg wall. This groundbreaking discovery uncovers a previously unknown neural mechanism that governs a critical life-stage transition, showing that embryos are not passive but instead actively make life-or-death decisions. The finding has significant evolutionary implications, offering new insights into neurobiology, survival strategies, and environmental adaptation in vertebrates. Dr. ...

Northwestern University scientists have designed a new implantable device that can monitor fluctuating levels of proteins within the body in real time. Inspired by fruit shaking off the branches of a tree, the device comprises strands of DNA that stick to proteins, shake them off and then grab more proteins. This creative strategy enables the device to sample various proteins over time to measure changes in inflammatory markers. In proof-of-concept experiments, the sensors accurately and sensitively measured protein biomarkers of inflammation in diabetic rats. ...

LA JOLLA, CA—Avian influenza viruses typically require several mutations to adapt and spread among humans, but what happens when just one change can increase the risk of becoming a pandemic virus? A recent study led by scientists at Scripps Research reveals that a single mutation in the H5N1 “bird flu” virus that has recently infected dairy cows in the U.S. could enhance the virus’ ability to attach to human cells, potentially increasing the risk of passing from person to person. The findings—published in ...

A software tool developed by Queen Mary University of London’s Clinical Effectiveness Group (CEG) and used as part of a facilitated quality improvement programme has increased the number of children receiving their first MMR vaccination on time in North East London. The success of this programme highlights the potential of a learning health system and data-driven solutions to enhance public health and improve vaccination uptake across the UK.  An evaluation published in Vaccine revealed that the APL-Imms ...

Implantable Sensors Unlock Ability to Continuously Monitor Inflammation  The Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Chicago’s milestone achievement tracks protein levels in real time, enabling monitoring of inflammation at the cellular level   Proteins are the building blocks of life, and changes in protein levels can indicate improving health or impending illness, including signs of inflammation. While protein levels can be measured in periodic blood or urine tests, it has been an uphill challenge to figure out how to continuously monitor protein levels in the human body in real time. Now, a team of bioengineers at Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Chicago, supported by the ...