Image shows infiltration of transplanted human cancer cells (yellow/orange) by two myeloid cell subsets (red and green) in a mouse model treated with combination immunotherapy. Cancer immunotherapy drugs have had notable but limited success because in many cases, tumors develop resistance to treatment. But researchers at Yale and Stanford have identified an experimental antibody...
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These bacteria keep swapping resistance genes, even with no antibiotics around
Scientists studied how antibiotic resistance spreads among specific types of bacteria, including E. coli. The growing threat of antibiotic resistance has sparked calls to use antibiotics more responsibly to curb the spread of drug-resistant bacteria. The idea: If we reduce antibiotic use, we could reduce the resistance that’s been naturally selected for over time. But new research published Wednesday in Nature...
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Discovery of potent parasite protein may lead to new therapeutic options for inflammatory bowel conditions
High magnification micrograph of Crohn’s disease. Biopsy of esophagus. H&E stain. A single protein from a worm parasite may one day offer new therapeutic options for treating inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s or Ulcerative Colitis, that avoid the potentially serious side effects of current immunosuppressant medications. The study, published today in Nature Communications, demonstrates the...
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Low frequency brain stimulation improves cognition in Parkinson’s disease
A multidisciplinary neuroscience study using rare, intraoperative brain recordings suggests that low frequency stimulation of a deep brain region may be able to improve cognitive function in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The study findings, published Nov. 28 online in the journal Brain, also hint at the broader potential of brain stimulation for treating other cognitive...
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New studies show brain impact of youth football
Examples of Default Mode Network (DMN) subcomponents of the brain examined in this study of youth football players. School-age football players with a history of concussion and high impact exposure undergo brain changes after one season of play, according to two new studies conducted at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and Wake Forest...
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Preliminary stages of dementia reduce human face memorization ability
[LEFT] Patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have a significantly reduced ability to memorize faces in comparison to healthy controls (HCs). [RIGHT] The gaze pattern of MCI patients (yellow) is focused over a greater area of the …more A Japanese research group has revealed that elderly people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have a particularly...
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AWS launches Amazon Sumerian to build AR, VR and 3D apps quickly
We’d heard months ago that Amazon would be using its Re:Invent AWS event to roll out some a new service related to building in mixed reality — augmented reality and virtual reality. And on the eve of the conference kicking off, it’s done just that. Today the company announced Amazon Sumerian, a new platform for developers...
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Soft robotic sleeve hugs the heart to keep it beating – and could save patients from a lifetime on post-surgery drugs
Currently, pumps are made of tough material, and the blood has to run through them, increasing infection risk This device lightly squeezes the heart to help it keep pumping blood It could prevent lopsided pumping that causes the other half of the heart to fail It could also allow patients to forego debilitating post-surgery drugs...
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Cinnamon shown to burn fat
The findings aren’t an excuse to gorge on cinnamon buns, though Cinnamaldehyde is an essential oil that not only gives cinnamon its distinct flavor, but has also been shown to protect mice against obesity. Now, University of Michigan scientists led by Prof. Jun Wu have gained a better understanding of how it does so, and...
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Team constructs whole-brain map of electrical connections key to forming memories
A team of neuroscientists at the University of Pennsylvania has constructed the first whole-brain map of electrical connectivity in the brain based on data from nearly 300 neurosurgical patients with electrodes implanted directly on the brain. The researchers found that low-frequency rhythms of brain activity, when brain waves move up and down slowly, primarily drive...