Mutations increase children's susceptibility to viral respiratory infectionsA research led by Jacques Fellay at école Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland has identified genetic mutations that increase children's susceptibility to respiratory infections. Fellay and colleagues hav...
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Research helps explain why obese people have worsening asthma symptomsA group of scientists from Duke University Medical Center, University of Arizona, University of Vermont, and Mayo Clinic Arizona have found a possible explanation of why obese asthmatic patients have more intractable sym...
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Drugs that target RIPK1 may treat inflammatory skin diseasesA study of the University of Melbourne has demonstrated a role of the protein RIPK1 in skin inflammation. The finding brings new hope for the treatment of inflammatory skin diseases. The study, titled "Inhibitor of Ap...
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DKK3 protein found to protect against atherosclerosisDescribed 11 July 2017 in Circulation, a study led by an international research team has shown that a cytokine-like protein DKK3 provides protection against atherosclerosis. Accordingly, the protein DKK3 is considered a ...
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New insights into the mechanism underlying lupusA study, led by Betty Diamond at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, has uncovered a mechanism underlying lupus, a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by abnormal immune responses leading to autoantibody ...
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Study extends the understanding of the link between telomeres and mitochondriaAn international team of researchers from Germany, France, Singapore, and Australia has uncovered how the ZBTB48 protein functions to regulate telomeres and mitochondria. Findings of the study, which appear online in EMB...
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Research identifies a predictor of chronic rejection after lung transplantationScientists have found that a protein called ZBTB7A may be an early predictor of graft rejection after lung transplantation. The study, described in the journal Science Translational Medicine, could open a way for the dia...
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Plasma THBS2 level may improve early diagnosis of pancreatic cancerA team of researchers, headed by Dr. Kenneth Zaret from the University of Pennsylvania, has found that detection of two proteins, THBS2 and CA19-9, may facilitate the diagnosis of early stages of pancreatic cancer, a dis...
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Preexisting antibodies prevent congenital CMV infection in monkeysCytomegalovirus (CMV) is one of the eight herpesviruses that commonly infect humans. Like other herpesviruses, CMV has the ability to remain dormant within the body for a while and may reactivate later. About half of all...
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SERA5 protein regulates the egress of malaria parasites from red blood cellsMalaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium. This disease affects both humans and animals. Numerous efforts have been made to reduce its incidence rate and mortality rate, an...
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Epac2A protein regulates insulin secretion by beta cellsBeta cells (β cells) are specialized cells situated in the pancreatic islets of the pancreas, and are the cells responsible for the production and secretion of insulin, the most important peptide hormone for controlling...
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Rochester study: latent HHV-6 infection contributes to multiple sclerosisThere is a long-standing assumption that viral infections are associated with demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis, but the exact mechanism by which viral infections contribute to these diseases remains larg...
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Scientists find a way to prevent bone fragility in diabetesDiabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic disorders that are characterized by hyperglycemia. There are two major types of diabetes mellitus, type 1 and type 2. The most common form of diabetes in the general population i...
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Research offers a new way for developing TB drugsMycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is the bacterium that causes the serious disease tuberculosis (TB). This pathogen infects about 1.5 billion individuals around the world and carries away 1 million of lives annually. The ...
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A study in mice suggests a link between reduced Slc6a15 with depression susceptibilityA gene called Slc6a15 has been linked with depression susceptibility. But the exact mechanism by which it increases depression risk remains unknown. In a newly published study, scientists have for the first time descr...
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Research provides clues to how unhealthy diet can cause colorectal cancerColorectal cancer (also referred to as colon cancer or bowel cancer) is a type of cancer that arises from the colon (large intestine) or the rectum (end of the colon). There are about 1.2 million new cases of colorectal ...
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Does sleep influence your risk for Alzheimer's disease?Approximately 5% of the world's population doesn't get enough sleep. We all know that sleep is essential for the human body, whereas lack of sleep leads to lots of negative health effects, such as fatigue, difficulty con...
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Queensland researchers identify a protein that regulates breast cancer progressionThe University of Queensland researchers have identified a protein that appears to influence the progression of breast cancer. Findings of their study have been published in the Journal of Cell Science and may open a new...
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Identification of new biomarkers may facilitate the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorderFindings of a new study may facilitate the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a group of developmental disabilities that cause social, communication, and behavioral challenges. The study, published 2 June 2017 ...
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MIDKINE protein controls the metastasis of skin cancer, study findsScientists have found that a protein called MIDKINE controls the metastasis of skin cancer, suggesting that targeting the protein might be a promising therapeutic strategy. The study, led by scientists from Spanish Natio...
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Gene expression analysis provides clues to mechanism of resistance to immunotherapyMany anti-cancer drugs work by using the body's own immune system to fight cancer. These drugs are the so-called immunotherapy, which presents an important progress in cancer research and treatment. Immunotherapy holds g...
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Study sheds light on the pathogenesis of CHAPLE diseaseCHAPLE disease, also known as Waldmann's disease, is a rare immune disease that affects the intestine. The disease was first identified by T.A. Waldmann in 1960s. But until now, little is known about its pathogenesis. No...
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Research uncovers how short telomere is repaired in cellsTelomeres are special DNA–protein structures found at each end of a chromosome. Every time a cell divides, telomeres shorten. The maintenance of a telomere length is important to prevent cellular senescence. In additio...
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Study sheds light on the pathogenesis of human respiratory syncytial virusHuman respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is a negative-sense, single-stranded RNA virus that causes respiratory tract infections. For healthy people, hRSV usually produces mild cold symptoms, but for infants, the elderly...
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Anti-CFH antibody promotes the effects of a CLL drugRituximab, a chimeric monoclonal antibody against the protein CD20, is a drug used to treat a range of autoimmune diseases and cancers, such as chronic B cell lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL). But patients with B-CLL respond...
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Anti-sclerostin antibody shows therapeutic effects for multiple myelomaAustralian scientists have found a novel way to treat multiple myeloma (MM), a rare but severe bone cancer. MM, which develops in the skeleton, is characterized by the abnormal clonal proliferation of malignant plasma...
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Research uncovers how structure of airway mucus is changed in cystic fibrosisA team of researchers, headed by Prof. Michael Welsh at the University of Iowa, has uncovered how cystic fibrosis changes the appearance of mucus in the airway, according to a study published ahead of print in PNAS. Find...
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Reducing a mitochondrial protein prevents obesity and diabetesInducing a mild mitochondrial stress in skeletal muscle protects mice from age- and diet-induced obesity and diabetes. This is the result of a new study appearing in The EMBO Journal. The study, led by Dr. E Dale Abel...
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New findings of a study may help combat heart diseaseA study appearing in eLife identifies a new mechanism that regulates heart hypertrophy, a finding that may lead to new drugs for treating heart disease. Cellular growth and function is largely dependent on protein syn...
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suPAR influences kidney disease progression in people carrying genetic risk factorsAPOL1 (apolipoprotein L1) gene codes for a secreted high density lipoprotein that appears to play a role in lipid exchange and transport throughout the body. APOL1 gene variants G1 and G2, which are found almost exclusiv...
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Loss of KIF1Bβ is associated with poor prognosis of neuroblastomaA Karolinska Institutet-led study shows that the KIF1Bβ gene on chromosome 1p36 may have an impact on tumor regression of neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma (abbreviated as NB) is a relatively common neonatal tumor and acc...
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Inhibitors of AniA might be used to treat gonorrheaGonorrhea is a common bacterial sexually transmitted infection, with an estimated 78 million new cases occurring annually worldwide. It is caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae, which mainly affects reproductive a...
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An epilepsy medication shows promise in treating Alzheimer's diseaseHarvard Medical School researchers, including Christian Musaeus, Mouhsin Shafi, Emiliano Santarnecchi, Susan Herman, and Daniel Press, have demonstrated that a medication used to treat epilepsy called levetiracetam (LEV)...
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Scientists find a way to reduce organ rejectionScientists from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in the USA, Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute in Canada, and Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan have identified a molecular me...
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New solution for combating cancerA team of researchers has recently identified a new way to combating cancer. The study, reported in Nature Chemical Biology on 5 June 2017, has shown that blocking DCN1 from binding to UB2EM could suppress cancer growth....
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IL-35 is important for insulin production in patients with type 1 diabetesAccording to a study published June 15, 2017 in Diabetes Care, about half of patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) still have some insulin production after years of diagnosis. The finding is a breakthrough because scientis...
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Study sheds light on the working mechanism of ketamineResearchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UT Southwestern) have identified a mechanism by which ketamine exerts its antidepressant effects and causes unwanted side effects. This discovery may he...
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Study reveals why pregnancy often improves rheumatoid arthritisType I interferon (IFN) may help explain why some women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) show an improvement during pregnancy, according to a study published in the journal Arthritis Research & Therapy and led by Dr. D...
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Some immune cells play a harmful role during certain bacterial infectionsA team of researchers from the Western University in Canada, Cardiff University School of Medicine in the United Kingdom, the University of Melbourne in Australia, and Institut Curie in France has identified a subgroup o...
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RBM12 is involved in psychosis, study findsA collaborative team consisting of scientists from Iceland, Finland, and Germany has identified a novel genetic mutation that contributes to psychosis, an abnormal condition of the mind that involves the inability to rec...
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CARD11 mutations found to cause eczemaA study, led by researchers at National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the USA, has shown that genetic mutations in the CARD11 gene can trigger cellular defects associated with eczema. Eczema, also known as dermatitis,...
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Combined use of two immunotherapies has better therapeutic effects for treating rhabdomyosarcomaRhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a type of sarcoma that predominantly affects children. Sarcoma is cancer of soft tissue, connective tissue, or bone. RMS usually begins in skeletal muscle cells that have failed to fully differe...
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New research may improve the diagnosis and treatment of antiphospholipid antibody syndromeAntiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder that occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks normal proteins in the blood. An antibody is a type of protein that normally protects the body agai...
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Identification of breast tumor suppressor may help assess patient prognosisA new study identifies the Proline-Rich Homeodomain protein (PRH/HHEX) as a tumor suppressor in breast cancer. Published in the journal Oncogenesis, a study conducted by scientists at the University of Birmingham and ...
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Research sheds light on regulation of JAK2Janus kinase 2, abbreviated JAK2, is a non-receptor kinase and is part of the JAK-STAT signaling pathway, which regulates immunity, proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis and oncogenesis. JAK2 is especially important ...
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New approach to combating Candida albicans infectionDescribed in the journal Nature Communications, a study reports a new way to combat fungal infections. The finding is significant because severe fungal infections afflict approximately 2 million people in the world annua...
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Culprit of graft failure after lung transplantation identifiedInvestigators have identified the culprit of primary graft dysfunction (PGD), the major reason for early mortality after lung transplantation. This discovery may improve the rates of graft success. The study, led by N...
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Why do patients with lupus develop neuropsychiatric symptoms?Systemic lupus erythematosus, also known as SLE or lupus, is an intractable autoimmune disorder that causes inflammation that affects multiple organs. Approximately 75% of all cases show neuropsychiatric symptoms such as...
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Lack of Pyk2 leads to cognitive impairments in miceA team led by investigators from Sorbonne Universités in France and Universitat de Barcelona in Spain has shown that a protein called Pyk2 is involved in spine structure and synaptic function, and that abnormalities in ...
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Malaria drug attenuates ALS progressionDescribed online in the Annals of Neurology, a study shows that a malaria drug called pyrimethamine is effective in reducing the levels of disease-causing proteins in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The study is ...
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