Some of the deadliest cancers have mostly silent symptoms. By the time people go to their doctors because of worrisome changes, cancer may have already reached a late stage, giving physicians limited treatment options. Scientists are always looking for ways to detect cancer and other diseases through tests that show problems before outward signs appear....
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The Prospects of Behavioral Genetics: Bad Genes Behind Crimes, Precision Education And Loosing Free Will?
Can the “warrior gene” explain aggressive and violent acts so that lawyers base their defenses on that in courts? Can genetics determine whether your marriage will be a long-lasting companionship? What about alcoholism, depression or autism? To what extent are we the product of our environment or the expression of our genes? While the nature versus nurture debate has been...
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Discovery of a host mRNA that inhibits immune functions of antiviral protein RIG-I
by Kanazawa University Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a hepatotropic virus, with about 80 million chronic infections confirmed worldwide. HCV infection leads to the development of chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and in some instances, hepatocellular carcinoma. The recent development of highly potent direct-acting antiviral drugs (DAAs), targeting viral proteins, facilitates virus elimination in >90 percent of treated individuals. However,...
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Experimental drug delivers one-two punch to vision loss
by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine In studies with lab-grown human cells and in mice, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers have found that an experimentaldrug may be twice as good at fighting vision loss as previously thought. The new research shows that the compound, named AXT107, stops abnormal blood vessels in the eye from leaking vision-blocking fluids. These results build on previous research that...
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Research underscores value of cognitive training for adults with mild cognitive impairment
Memory and higher-order cognitive functions improve; neuro-stimulation fails to enhance training benefits CENTER FOR BRAINHEALTH Researchers at the Center for BrainHealth®, part of The University of Texas at Dallas, investigated the effects of combining two non-pharmacological interventions for adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI): eight semi-weekly sessions of Strategic Memory Advanced Reasoning Training (SMART), a cognitive training program shown to improve reasoning and ability to extract the bottom-line message from complex...
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Adenosine kinase deficiency makes liver more susceptible to carcinogen
MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC./GENETIC ENGINEERING NEWS New Rochelle, NY, April 9, 2019-A new study has shown that reduced adenosine kinase expression (ADK) in the liver can make it more susceptible to carcinogenic damage and the development of liver cancer. Combined results from the study of human liver cancer samples and mice with reduced levels of ADK expression support these findings, reported in Journal of Caffeine and Adenosine Research, a peer-reviewed...
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Low cholesterol linked to higher risk of bleeding stroke in women
by American Academy of Neurology Lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol reduces the risk of heart attacks and stroke, with an ideal value below 100 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). But can it be too low? A new study finds that women who have levels of LDL cholesterol 70 mg/dL or lower may be more than twice as likely to have a hemorrhagic stroke than women with LDL cholesterol levels from 100 to 130 mg/dL....
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Maintenance Immunotherapy fails to improve survival in extensive small cell lung cancer
ELCC 2019 (European Lung Cancer Congress), April 10-13, Geneva, Switzerland EUROPEAN SOCIETY FOR MEDICAL ONCOLOGY Geneva, Switzerland, 11 April 2019 – Maintenance immunotherapy fails to improve survival in extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC), according to late-breaking results from the CheckMate 451 study to be presented today at the European Lung Cancer Congress (ELCC) 2019. (1) Around 60-70% of patients with SCLC have extensive disease at the time of diagnosis, meaning it has spread beyond a...
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Research reveals how the most common ALS mutation dooms cells
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists offer insight into the toxicity at the heart of devastating neurological disorders ST. JUDE CHILDREN’S RESEARCH HOSPITAL St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists have cracked the mystery surrounding the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease. The research suggests possible new approaches to diagnosis and treatment of the lethal disorder. The findings appear online...
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Biochemical switches identified that could be triggered to treat muscle, brain disorders
ST. JUDE CHILDREN’S RESEARCH HOSPITAL St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists have found that the enzymes ULK1 and ULK2 play a key role in breaking down cell structures called stress granules, whose persistence leads to toxic buildup of proteins that kill muscle and brain cells. Such buildup is central to the pathology of three related diseases: inclusion body myopathy...