Hologram technology developed at UCLA could lead to improved diagnoses of chronic diseases in remote areas Ozcan Research Group/UCLARendering of a lens-free holographic microscope that uses a silicon chip and computer algorithms to create 3-D images of tissue samples. Anew system developed by UCLA researchers could make it easier and less expensive to diagnose chronic...
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Cancer detection with sugar molecules
Like a spaceship, the complex sugar molecule (coloured) lands exactly on the tumor protein galectin-1, which here looks like a meteorite and is shown in black and white. Galectins are a family of proteins that have become a promising source of cancer research in recent years. A representative thereof is galectin-1. It sits on...
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Blood test uncovers hidden diseases
Sufferers of rare mitochondrial disease have new hope with a new method developed at the University of Sydney. The method provides a diagnosis within weeks instead of months or years through a simple blood sample. Mitochondrial diseases are rare and hard to diagnose. They can affect any organ, at any age and are often ‘hidden’...
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New blood test may transform the way cancer is monitored and treated
Stanford University scientists have described a new type of test that can detect genetic mutations in minute amounts of DNA released from cancer cells into the blood. The test, which is called single color digital PCR, requires only a fraction of a tube of blood and can detect as few as three mutation-bearing molecules in...
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Cooling helmet, supplement show potential as concussion healers
A brain cooling device and an oral supplement made from pine bark extract both have potential to expedite concussion recovery, according to two new studies by Penn State researchers. “Currently there are no clinically validated tools or procedures to treat concussive injury,” said Semyon Slobounov, professor of kinesiology and an author of the studies. “The results...
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Which research results in mice will help humans with multiple sclerosis? Now there’s a way to tell
People with multiple sclerosis (MS) know all too well the frustration of hearing that success in treating the disease in mice had little or no effect in humans. Unfortunately, with no large animal models for MS, results that suggest promising new treatments in mice often are ineffective in humans. Now, University at Buffalo researchers have...
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Will ketamine treat your depression? Check your activity monitor
During a depressive episode, people often report having reduced energy, feeling slowed down and having reduced interest in activities. As their mood lifts, energy and activity return to their usual levels. A new study in Biological Psychiatry reports altered measures of daily activity in patients whose depressive symptoms improved in response to the fast-acting antidepressant ketamine. The...
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New kinds of brain cells revealed
Under a microscope, it can be hard to tell the difference between any two neurons, the brain cells that store and process information. So scientists have turned to molecular methods to try to identify groups of neurons with different functions. Now, Salk Institute and University of California San Diego scientists have, for the first time,...
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Dendritic Golgi as key cause of degenerative brain disease
Korean researchers have identified the early neuropathic mechanism of degenerative brain diseases A joint research team of DGIST (Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology) have identified the early neuropathic mechanism of polyglutamine brain disease, one of the representative degenerative brain diseases, and suggested a way to restore. It is expected to accelerate the development...
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One step closer in explaining MS relapse during upper respiratory infection
URBANA, Ill. – For most of us, the flu is just the flu. We suffer through it for several days, and eventually bounce back. But for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurological diseases, the flu can trigger a cascade of immune responses that result in a full-blown relapse of the disease. In a...