East Hanover, NJ – September 3, 2024 – Researchers at Kessler Foundation have published a new clinical protocol examining the combination of aerobic exercise and cognitive rehabilitation to improve learning and memory in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have mobility disability. The article, “Rationale and methodology for examining the combination of aerobic exercise and cognitive rehabilitation on new learning and memory in persons with multiple sclerosis and mobility disability: Protocol for a randomized controlled trial,” was published online and will appear in print in Contemporary Clinical Trials, ...

$75 million NIH grant could lead to the first effective drugs for a condition with few treatment options A clinical trial that will test three drugs concurrently, and could include more, represents new hope for patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), an incurable neurodegenerative disorder that usually kills within seven years after symptoms start.   Researchers hope the trial, which will be led by UC San Francisco and conducted at up to 50 sites nationwide, will lead to the development of new therapies. There are currently no drugs to stall the disease’s deadly progression. The ...

The Mass General Brigham Gene and Cell Therapy Institute (GCTI) today announced it has launched the RNA Therapeutics Core, a first-of-its-kind, state-of-the-art facility and resource to advance the use of RNA technologies within and beyond the Mass General Brigham research ecosystem. This new Core is dedicated to accelerating the exploration of novel therapeutic targets to effectively translate RNA-based medicines into clinical practice by leveraging advanced RNA vectors and delivery systems. Until now, a Core of this kind has not existed within an academic setting. With this launch, the RNA Therapeutics Core enables ...

Valley fever is an emerging fungal disease in the western United States that most often causes flu-like symptoms, but can also cause dangerous or even deadly complications. By analyzing data on reported cases of Valley fever in California, which have increased dramatically over the last two decades, researchers from University of California San Diego and University of California, Berkeley, have identified seasonal patterns that could help individuals and public health officials better prepare for future surges in Valley fever cases. The findings also have important implications for how the changing climate can exacerbate the threat of infectious diseases. The findings are published in The ...

Natural selection is an important evolutionary force that enables humans to adapt to new environments and fight disease-causing pathogens. However, the unique footprints of natural selection in our genome can be buried beneath those left by other evolutionary forces. Thus, by leveraging information about multiple evolutionary forces, researchers can identify signatures of natural selection in the human genome, and ultimately determine its role in human adaptation and disease. Low-cost DNA sequencing has ...

PULLMAN, Wash. -- When young adults first go off to college, more communication with parents generally leads to better relationships, but parents should avoid always initiating it, according to a study led by Washington State University researchers. In a paper published in the journal Emerging Adulthood, WSU Assistant Professor Jennifer Duckworth and co-authors found that phone, text, video or in-person communication made first-year students feel better about the relationship with their parents. Students also felt better about the relationship when parents offered support or advice, and when they discussed important topics, such as studying and friendships. However, researchers found ...

A modeling study suggests that one-sided interspecies cooperation can spontaneously emerge and persist over time, despite only one species benefitting. Evolutionary game theory, and the prisoner’s dilemma in particular, are often used to model the evolution of cooperation within a single species. In the prisoner’s dilemma, both parties benefit by cooperating, but the greatest benefit is earned by a defector who plays with a cooperator. The temptation to cheat tends to push players towards defection, ...

Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer among men worldwide, following lung cancer. In the United States alone, nearly 300,000 new cases are diagnosed annually. While reducing testosterone and other male hormones can be an effective treatment for prostate cancer, this approach becomes ineffective once the disease progresses to metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). At this stage, the cancer advances quickly and becomes resistant to conventional hormonal therapies and chemotherapy.   A clever strategy for fighting mCRPC is to exploit the ...

Around 4 billion years ago, an asteroid hit the Jupiter moon Ganymede. Now, a Kobe University researcher realized that the Solar System's biggest moon's axis has shifted as a result of the impact, which confirmed that the asteroid was around 20 times larger than the one that ended the age of the dinosaurs on Earth, and caused one of the biggest impacts with clear traces in the Solar System. Ganymede is the largest moon in the Solar System, bigger even than the planet Mercury, and is also interesting for the liquid water oceans beneath its icy surface. Like the Earth’s moon, it is tidally locked, meaning that it always shows the ...

A sweat-powered wearable has the potential to make continuous, personalized health monitoring as effortless as wearing a Band-Aid. Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed an electronic finger wrap that monitors vital chemical levels—such as glucose, vitamins, and even drugs—present in the same fingertip sweat from which it derives its energy. The advance was published Sept. 3 in Nature Electronics by the research group of Joseph Wang, a professor in the Aiiso Yufeng Li Family Department of Chemical and Nano Engineering ...

Who killed the pregnant porbeagle? In a marine science version of the game Cluedo, researchers from the US have now accused a larger shark, with its deciduous triangular teeth, in the open sea southwest of Bermuda. This scientific whodunnit is published in Frontiers in Marine Science. “This is the first documented predation event of a porbeagle shark anywhere in the world,” said lead author Dr Brooke Anderson, a former graduate student at Arizona State University. “In one event, the population not only lost a reproductive female that could contribute to population growth, but it also lost all her developing ...

Belching is a common bodily function, but when it escalates to a level that interferes with daily life, it is defined as belching disorders. International surveys have reported that approximately 1% of adults have belching disorders, but the percentage in Japan and the factors involved often elude medical professionals. To examine the relationship between the rate of belching disorders, comorbidities, and lifestyles in Japan, a research team led by Professor Yasuhiro Fujiwara of Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Medicine ...

Scientists from China have investigated how short peptide chains aggregate together in order to deepen our understanding of the process, which is crucial for drug stability and material development. Their study, published in JACS Au, provides valuable insights into how short proteins called peptides interact, fold, and function. These findings have significant implications for medicine, material science, and biotechnology. Peptides are short chains of amino acids that play essential roles in the body by building structures, speeding up chemical reactions, and supporting our immune system. The specific function of a protein is determined by how its amino acids interact with each other and ...

A national survey conducted as part of University of Exeter research has found huge variation in treatment for ADHD, highlighting the struggle many young adults face once they turn 18. Researchers have warned that the current system is failing many young adults as they transition from children’s to adult’s services - suddenly finding themselves unable to access treatment because services do not link up effectively. More than 750 people from across the country – including commissioners, healthcare professionals working ...

Embargoed for release until 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday 2 September 2024       Annals of Internal Medicine Tip Sheet        @Annalsofim       Below please find summaries of new articles that will be published in the next issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The summaries are not intended to substitute for the full articles as a source of information. This information is under strict embargo and by taking it into possession, media representatives are committing to the terms of the embargo not only on their own behalf, but also on behalf of the organization they represent.       ----------------------------       1. ...

Early detection of breast cancer through mammography screening continues to save lives. However, abnormal findings on mammograms can lead to women being recalled for additional imaging and biopsies, many of which turn out to be “false positives,” meaning they do not result in a cancer diagnosis. False positives can also have financial implications for patients and cause significant emotional anxiety. A major, new study led by the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that women who received a false-positive result that required additional imaging or biopsy were less likely to return ...

When you ask a rideshare app to find you a car, the company’s computers get to work. They know you want to reach your destination quickly. They know you’re not the only user who needs a ride. And they know drivers want to minimize idle time by picking up someone nearby. The computer’s job, says Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Associate Professor Saket Navlakha, is to pair drivers with riders in a way that maximizes everyone’s happiness. Computer scientists like Navlakha call this bipartite matching. It’s the same task handled by systems pairing organ donors with transplant candidates, medical students with residency ...

By Emily Greenhalgh One of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet is closer than you think — right inside your mouth. Your mouth is a thriving ecosystem of more than 500 different species of bacteria living in distinct, structured communities called biofilms. Nearly all of these bacteria grow by splitting [or dividing] into two, with one mother cell giving rise to two daughter cells. New research from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and ADA Forsyth uncovered an extraordinary mechanism of cell division in Corynebacterium matruchotii, one of the most common bacteria living in dental plaque. ...

A new technology for wheels and mobile systems, necessary for overcoming various obstacles in daily life such as stairs or rocks by adjusting the stiffness of the wheel in real time, has been developed for the first time in the world. This noble technology is anticipated to find wide applications in various moving vehicles equipped with wheels, where overcoming terrain obstacles is essential. The Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (President Seog-Hyeon Ryu, hereinafter referred to as KIMM), an institute under the jurisdiction of the ...

Melbourne researchers have made a world first breakthrough into creating blood stem cells that closely resemble those in the human body. And the discovery could soon lead to personalised treatments for children with leukaemia and bone marrow failure disorders. The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) and published in Nature Biotechnology, has  overcome a major hurdle for producing human blood stem cells, which can create red cells, white blood cells and platelets, that closely match those in the human embryo. MCRI Associate Professor Elizabeth Ng said the team had made a significant discovery in human blood stem ...

Genetic variants linked to a rare form of bicuspid aortic valve disease that affects young adults and can lead to dangerous and potentially life-threatening aortic complications have been identified by researchers at UTHealth Houston. The study was published today in the American Journal of Human Genetics. “We previously found that young individuals who present due to early onset thoracic aortic dissections are more likely to have bicuspid aortic valves and more likely to have rare variants in bicuspid aortic valve-associated genes,” said Siddharth Prakash, MD, PhD, co-principal investigator of the study and associate professor of medical ...

A research paper by scientists at Beijing Institute of Technology proposed a universal system for remote signal output control using infrared signals. The new research paper, published on Jul. 05 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, proposed a system that integrates high-precision digital-to-analog converters capable of generating customized waveform electrical stimulation signals within defined ranges. This enhances the accuracy of locomotion control in cyborg insects while maintaining real-time control and dynamic parameter adjustment. The proposed system is verified by experiments. The integration of electronic stimulation devices with insects in ...

A study on vaping behaviour among Australian high school students has found those who reported severe depressive symptoms were over twice as likely to have tried e-cigarettes, compared to those reporting no depressive symptoms. Data showed overall higher e-cigarette use among those with poorer mental health, including severe depressive symptoms, moderate and high stress, and low wellbeing.  The findings show a critical need for effective mental health support at the same time as vaping prevention during early adolescence -- when these issues first emerge. The researchers surveyed over ...

Korean researchers are pushing for a new AI-based policy intelligence research project that can assist the public decision-making and policy execution of domestic and foreign local governments. Electronics and Communications Research Institute (ETRI) announced on July 1 that they have decided to establish a cooperative system with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)1) to conduct further research regarding the development of an AI policy intelligence system that can assist public policy decision-making. 1) International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA): An independent international research institute located ...

About The Study: Pulmonary vein isolation resulted in a statistically significant and clinically important decrease in atrial fibrillation burden at 6 months, with substantial improvements in symptoms and quality of life, compared with a sham procedure. Corresponding Authors: To contact the corresponding authors, email Rick A. Veasey, MD, (rick.veasey@nhs.net) and Rajdip Dulai, MBBS, (rajdip.dulai.21@ucl.ac.uk) To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2024.17921) Editor’s ...