A new way of delivering drugs to the brain has been developed by scientists at the University of Oxford. They used the body's own transporters - exosomes - to deliver drugs in an experiment on mice.
Monday, March 21, 2011 - 12:44
It's been more than 20 years since scientists first discovered the gene that causes cystic fibrosis (CF), yet questions about how the mutated gene causes disease remain unanswered. Using a newly created pig model that genetically replicates the most common form of cystic fibrosis, University of Iowa researchers have now shown that the CF protein is "misprocessed" in the pigs and does not end up in the correct cellular location.
Friday, March 18, 2011 - 09:30
A new protein engineered to inhibit molecules that cause inflammation not only reduces symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis in mice but also may have potential to reverse the disease's course. Researchers hope the findings will point toward a new therapy for this crippling and difficult-to-treat disease, which occurs when the immune system attacks the body's own joints.
Thursday, March 17, 2011 - 11:05
The small study in The Lancet Neurology used a virus to add genes to brain cells, which resulted in reduced symptoms for half of patients.
Thursday, March 17, 2011 - 09:55
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists report that they have shrunk or slowed the growth of notoriously resistant pancreatic tumors in mice, using a drug routinely prescribed for malaria and rheumatoid arthritis.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 - 09:49
Scientists at Cambridge University believe the technique, which uses stem cells, could even cure blindness one day. They have already had success in rats and hope to start trials in humans within five years.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011 - 12:29
A new study suggests that combining two experimental anticancer peptide agents might simultaneously block formation of new tumor blood vessels while also inhibiting the growth of tumor cells.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011 - 11:47
In a research study appearing in the journal Cancer Cell on March 14, scientists from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and four other institutions have identified a strategy for targeted molecular therapy in liver cancer, which currently has limited treatment options and one of the worst one-year survival rates of any cancer type.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011 - 11:37
Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most common pediatric brain tumor, and there are few medical therapies available to those patients for whom surgery is not curative. However, it has been difficult to design targeted PA therapies because the cellular mechanisms that lead to the cancer are incompletely understood, and there is no animal model of the disease.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011 - 11:17
SAN ANTONIO (March 11, 2011) — Cell biologists pondering the death of neurons — brain cells — said today that by eliminating one ingredient from the cellular machinery, they prolonged the life of neurons stressed by a pesticide chemical. The finding identifies a potential therapeutic target to slow changes that lead to neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.
Friday, March 11, 2011 - 13:12
Several years from now, researchers at the University of Missouri say, fewer people may have to endure the discomfort and indignity of a colonoscopy.
Friday, March 11, 2011 - 12:55
One of the high-profile areas of research for stem cells is in treatment of spinal cord injuries -- and there was progress to report this week. Researchers were able to transplant a type of human cell into rats with spinal cord injuries to help the animals regain some motor function.
Thursday, March 10, 2011 - 13:41
LONDON (Reuters) - Lowering cholesterol levels could help the body's immune system fight infections, British scientists said on Tuesday. A study in mice by researchers at the University of Edinburgh found a direct link between the workings of the immune system and cholesterol levels.
Thursday, March 10, 2011 - 12:17
In a major breakthrough in the battle against Parkinson’s disease, researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine have discovered a drug that stops the progression of the degenerative illness in mice and is now being tested on humans.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 - 11:14
Professor Klaus Funke from Rhur-University Bochum has shown that various stimulus patterns created using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can change the activity of distinct neuronal types. TMS stimulates the cortex using a magnetic field – in general, brain activity drops as a result of low frequency stimulation, and increases with higher frequencies.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 - 10:49
Research by the University of Liverpool has found that systemic inflammation caused by sepsis can be suppressed by a protein which occurs naturally in a type of roundworm.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 - 10:02
An important discovery in mice may make a big difference in people's waistlines thanks to a team of Harvard scientists who found that reducing the function of a transmembrane protein, called Klotho, in obese mice with high blood sugar levels produced lean mice with reduced blood sugar levels. This protein also exists in humans, suggesting that selectively targeting Klotho could lead to a new class of drugs to reduce obesity and possibly Type 2 diabetes for people. This finding was recently published online in The FASEB Journal.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011 - 11:45
Even long after it is formed, a memory in rats can be enhanced or erased by increasing or decreasing the activity of a brain enzyme, say researchers supported, in part, by the National Institutes of Health. "Our study is the first to demonstrate that, in the context of a functioning brain in a behaving animal, a single molecule, PKMzeta, is both necessary and sufficient for maintaining long-term memory," explained Todd Sacktor, of the SUNY Downstate Medical Center, New York City, a grantee of the NIH's National Institute of Mental Health.
Friday, March 4, 2011 - 14:56
Scientists at the UCSF Cardiovascular Research Institute have discovered how a change in growth hormone activity in mice leads to fatty liver disease, a condition whose human counterpart is of rising concern worldwide. Disruption of a key protein in the pathway that responds to growth hormone could explain how fatty liver disease develops, the researchers said, but may also offer insights into how our bodies regulate fat in general.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011 - 11:55
In an advance that could improve battlefield and trauma care, scientists at University of California San Diego and Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have used tiny particles called nanoparticles to improve survival after life-threatening blood loss. Nanoparticles containing nitric oxide (NO) were infused into the bloodstream of hamsters, where they helped maintain blood circulation and protect vital organs. The research was reported in the February 21 online edition of the journal Resuscitation.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011 - 10:16