Summary: A new technique, which allows scientists to generate both embryonic and non-embryonic tissues from cultured stem cells, is a step toward growing donor organs and replacement tissues to combat aging and diseases. Stem cells can be totipotent or pluripotent meaning that these cells like embryo can develop into any type of tissue in the...
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Turning skin cells into blood vessel cells while keeping them young
Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago have identified a molecular switch that converts skin cells into cells that make up blood vessels, which could ultimately be used to repair damaged vessels in patients with heart disease or to engineer new vasculature in the lab. The technique, which boosts levels of an enzyme that keeps...
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First photoactive drug for pain treatment
A team of the Institute of Neurosciences of the University of Barcelona has participated in the design of the first light-activated drug, JF-NP-26, for the treatment of pain, according to a study with animal models published in the journal eLife. The new study is conducted by the teams led by Professor Francisco Ciruela, from the University...
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Benefits and Harms of Osteoporosis Medications in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Abstract Background: Complications of chronic kidney disease (CKD) include weak bones and increased fracture risk. Purpose: To review the benefits and harms of osteoporosis medications (bisphosphonates, teriparatide, raloxifene, and denosumab) compared with placebo, usual care, or active control in terms of bone mineral density (BMD), fractures, and safety in patients with CKD. Data Sources: PubMed...
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Benefits and harms of osteoporosis medications unclear for patients with CKD
ore research is needed to determine the benefits and harms of osteoporosis medications on bone mineral density (BMD), fracture risk, and safety among patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). This is important because complications of CKD include weak bones and increased fracture risk. The results of a systematic review and meta-analysis are published in Annals of...
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Reversing Diabetes with a completely new drug
In Brief: Scientists have used a new drug to reverse diabetes in mice. The drug inhibits the enzyme LMPTP, which contributes to the development of Type 2 diabetes by weakening the body’s sensitivity to the hormone. Defining Diabetes: In the global community, the number of people with diabetes has been on the rise since 1980, with...
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Taking a combination of painkillers and gastric protection damages the intestines
Additonal given antibiotic (rifaximin) helps to protect the intestines. Credit: Medical University of Vienna Patients with inflammatory diseases are often prescribed non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. They are also often prescribed a proton pump inhibitor to protect their stomach. In a joint study, clinical pharmacologist Markus Zeitlinger and gastroenterologist Werner Dolak from MedUni Vienna showed that...
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Scientists Discover New Class of Anti-Diabetes Compounds that Reduce Liver Glucose Production
A team of scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School and the Yale University School of Medicine, among others, have identified a new class of compounds that reduce production of glucose in the liver. One of these compounds, designed and optimized by TSRI scientists, significantly...
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Molecular ‘GPS’ helps stem cells navigate inside the body
Recent research has identified a novel molecule that could help localize stem cells within the body. Cell therapy holds significant promise for treating a wide range of diseases and tissue defects including arthritis, cardiovascular disease, multiple sclerosis and Crohn’s disease. However, in current therapies most cell types do not reach diseased or damaged tissues efficiently....
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Homing System Delivers Drugs To Specific Neurons
New technique reveals synaptic contributions to Parkinson’s Disease An artist’s rendition of how the new DART system works in a neural synaptic receptor. The red posts are the beacons that attract the white triangular ‘homing devices.’ This traps drugs (represented as hexagons) via a striped leash. Biomedical engineers have developed a way to deliver drugs...