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Novel gene therapy treatment proves safe, effective for factor VII deficiency

A single injection. That's all someone with a factor VII deficiency would need for a life-long cure, thanks to a new gene therapy treatment developed in a collaboration of researchers at the University of North Carolina and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

20 Jan 2016

Variations in RANBP1 gene may disrupt brain signaling in neuropsychiatric conditions

Scientists have identified a gene that appears to play a significant role in raising a person's risk of having more severe subtypes of autism that co-occur with other genetic diseases, such as the chromosomal disorder 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

20 Jan 2016

Low levels of cortisol in bipolar patients associated with depression, obesity and metabolic syndrome

New observations show that older bipolar patients often have decreased activity in the hormone system responsible for the secretion of the stress hormone cortisol. Low levels of cortisol in bipolar patients were also associated with depression, low quality of life, obesity, dyslipidaemia and metabolic syndrome.

20 Jan 2016

Researchers reconstruct 3D images of protein structures that link heart muscle cells in working groups

Diseased hearts may be thrown out of rhythm by structural differences -- now visible for the first time -- in protein groups that connect heart muscle cells, according to the authors of a study to be published in the journal Nature Communications online Jan. 20.

20 Jan 2016

Amorphous iron nanoparticles have potential to kill tumor cells

Amorphous iron nanoparticles have a specific toxicity in tumor cells. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, Chinese scientists describe their design and synthesis of a special amorphous state of nanoparticulate iron, which can locally release reactive iron species in the acidic and hydrogen peroxide rich environment of cancer cells, providing new possibilities for theranostics and chemodynamic therapies.

20 Jan 2016

Scientists reveal why non-alcoholic steatohepatitis worsens in obese people

In results published on October 19, 2015 in the Journal of Lipid Research, a team of translational scientists at the Medical University of South Carolina report a new reason why non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) worsens in people who are obese.

20 Jan 2016

Neuroscientists identify the brain network system that causes people to slip when anxious

As musicians, figure skaters and anyone who takes a driving test will know, the anxiety of being watched can have a disastrous effect on your performance. Now neuroscientists at the University of Sussex's Sackler Centre and Brighton and Sussex Medical School have identified the brain network system that causes us to stumble and stall just when we least want to.

20 Jan 2016

New Georgia Tech research center launched to manufacture living cells for cell-based therapies

A $15.7 million grant from the Atlanta-based Marcus Foundation has helped launch a new Georgia Institute of Technology research center that will develop processes and techniques for ensuring the consistent, low-cost, large-scale manufacture of high-quality living cells used in cell-based therapies.

20 Jan 2016

New study sheds light on possible role of ion channel in the immune system

Many cells have microscopic gates, called ion channels, which open to allow the flow of ions across the cell membrane. Thanks to these gates, cells can detect stimuli such as heat, pain, pressure and even spicy food.

20 Jan 2016

Diabetes drug fails to show any benefit against pancreatic cancer

A diabetes drug that showed promise in previous studies as an anti-cancer treatment failed to show any benefit in a UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center-led study that used pancreatic cancer tissue samples to test sensitivity to the drug.

20 Jan 2016

Study findings may help explain why risk of stroke changes after menopause

Risk of stroke in women may come down to a compound the body produces from estrogen known as 2-methoxyestradiol (2-ME). Furthermore, the compound's therapeutic potential may extend beyond treating stroke in women to healing brain injuries in men, a new study in American Journal of Physiology—Endocrinology and Metabolism reports.

20 Jan 2016

Electrical stimulation could regulate, synchronize beating properties of nascent heart muscle cells

Columbia Engineering researchers have shown, for the first time, that electrical stimulation of human heart muscle cells (cardiomyocytes) engineered from human stem cells aids their development and function.

20 Jan 2016

Dartmouth investigators show how vestibular system's horizontal canals influence navigation

Dartmouth researchers have found the first direct evidence showing how the vestibular system's horizontal canals play a key role in sensing our direction in the environment.

20 Jan 2016

Genetics play vital role in knee pain sensitivity

Genetics play a key role in knee pain sensitivity, according to a team of researchers studying knee osteoarthritis patients.

20 Jan 2016

Vanderbilt's Geoffrey Woodman to receive 2016 Troland Research Award

The National Academy of Sciences has announced that Geoffrey Woodman, Associate Professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt University, will receive a 2016 Troland Research Award.

20 Jan 2016

Combining nanomedicine with two anticancer treatments could improve outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients

A nanoparticle drug-delivery system that combines two complementary types of anticancer treatment could improve outcomes for patients with pancreatic cancer and other highly treatment-resistant tumors while decreasing toxicity.

20 Jan 2016

Adding naturally-occurring protein to flu vaccine may offer protection to babies

According to the World Health Organization, influenza causes serious illness among millions of people each year, resulting in 250,000 to 500,000 deaths. Those most at risk include infants younger than six months, because they cannot be vaccinated against the disease.

20 Jan 2016

Immune killer cells use microptosis pathway to kill intracellular parasites

The immune system's killer cells deliver a tightly controlled, 3-phase knockout punch that kills intracellular parasites through a novel pathway that an international team led by researchers from the Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine (PCMM) at Boston Children's Hospital have named "microptosis."

20 Jan 2016

IMP, WEHI scientists successfully characterize central regulator of plasma cell function

Plasma cells play a key role in our immune system. Now scientists at the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP) in Vienna, Austria, and at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) in Melbourne, Australia, succeeded in characterizing a central regulator of plasma cell function.

20 Jan 2016

Four USF professors selected as AIMBE College of Fellows

Four University of South Florida professors have been elected to the 2016 College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE): Cesario Borlongan and Shyam Mohapatra from the USF Morsani College of Medicine, USF Health; and Robert Frisina, Jr., and Sudeep Sarkar from the USF College of Engineering.

20 Jan 2016

Medical Science News

Novel gene therapy treatment proves safe, effective for factor VII deficiency

Variations in RANBP1 gene may disrupt brain signaling in neuropsychiatric conditions

Low levels of cortisol in bipolar patients associated with depression, obesity and metabolic syndrome

Researchers reconstruct 3D images of protein structures that link heart muscle cells in working groups

Amorphous iron nanoparticles have potential to kill tumor cells

Scientists reveal why non-alcoholic steatohepatitis worsens in obese people

Neuroscientists identify the brain network system that causes people to slip when anxious

New Georgia Tech research center launched to manufacture living cells for cell-based therapies

New study sheds light on possible role of ion channel in the immune system

Diabetes drug fails to show any benefit against pancreatic cancer

Study findings may help explain why risk of stroke changes after menopause

Electrical stimulation could regulate, synchronize beating properties of nascent heart muscle cells

Dartmouth investigators show how vestibular system's horizontal canals influence navigation

Genetics play vital role in knee pain sensitivity

Vanderbilt's Geoffrey Woodman to receive 2016 Troland Research Award

Combining nanomedicine with two anticancer treatments could improve outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients

Adding naturally-occurring protein to flu vaccine may offer protection to babies

Immune killer cells use microptosis pathway to kill intracellular parasites

IMP, WEHI scientists successfully characterize central regulator of plasma cell function

Four USF professors selected as AIMBE College of Fellows

Advancing brain microphysiological systems (bMPS)

PhD researcher at LifeArc

Unveiling Hidden Potential: Organoids for Disease Modeling in Neuroscience Research

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