Researchers have identified a new potential immunotherapy target in pancreatic cancer, which so far has been notoriously resistant to treatment with immune checkpoint blockade drugs effective against a variety of other cancers. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center research team found overexpression of the immune checkpoint VISTA on immune cells, especially macrophages, that […]
Missing GP appointments is associated with early death, and those with long-term mental health conditions are at particular risk. Dr. Ross McQueenie led the study from the University of Glasgow along with colleagues from Lancaster University and the University of Aberdeen. In the largest study of its kind, the team examined over 500,000 patients’ appointment […]
Scientists from academia, industry, and government have developed a combination of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that protected animals from all three Ebola viruses known to cause human disease. Their work is described in two companion studies published online in the journal Cell Host & Microbe. The mAb “cocktail,” called MBP134, is the first experimental treatment to protect […]
People who eat higher levels of dietary fiber and whole grains have lower rates of non-communicable diseases compared with people who eat lesser amounts, while links for low glycaemic load and low glycaemic index diets are less clear. Observational studies and clinical trials conducted over nearly 40 years reveal the health benefits of eating at […]
The human nose can distinguish one trillion different scents — an extraordinary feat that requires 10 million specialized nerve cells, or neurons, in the nose, and a family of more than 400 dedicated genes. But precisely how these genes and neurons work in concert to pick out a particular scent has long puzzled scientists. This […]
Messenger RNA, which can induce cells to produce therapeutic proteins, holds great promise for treating a variety of diseases. The biggest obstacle to this approach so far has been finding safe and efficient ways to deliver mRNA molecules to the target cells. In an advance that could lead to new treatments for lung disease, MIT […]
Neuroscientists at Tufts University School of Medicine, in collaboration with colleagues at Yale University School of Medicine, have discovered a new molecular mechanism that is essential for maturation of brain function and may be used to restore plasticity in aged brains. Unlike previous research that broadly manipulated brain plasticity using approaches that affected the entire […]
Materials are widely used to help heal wounds: Collagen sponges help treat burns and pressure sores, and scaffold-like implants are used to repair bones. However, the process of tissue repair changes over time, so scientists are developing biomaterials that interact with tissues as healing takes place. Now, Dr. Ben Almquist and his team at Imperial […]
It’s a posture so common we almost don’t notice it anymore: someone sitting at a computer jutting his or her head forward to look more closely at the screen. But this seemingly harmless position compresses the neck and can lead to fatigue, headaches, poor concentration, increased muscle tension and even injury to the vertebrae over […]
Cancerous tumors trick myeloid cells, an important part of the immune system, into perceiving them as a damaged part of the body; the tumors actually put myeloid cells to work helping them grow and metastasize (spread). A research team co-led by scientists at Rush University Medical Center have discovered a potential therapy that can disrupt […]