Cross-talk between brain cells and peripheral immune cells can modulate the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), Mount Sinai researchers have discovered. Their findings reveal a previously unknown way in which the brain and immune system talk to each other and may identify a new therapeutic target for MS and other brain disorders.
US backs study of safe injection sites, overdose prevention
For the first time, the U.S. government will pay for a large study measuring whether overdoses can be prevented by so-called safe injection sites, places where people can use heroin and other illegal drugs and be revived if they take too much.
Researchers show that using a tumor’s own bacteria is a promising anticancer therapy
Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Researchers are constantly looking for new therapies with improved anticancer activity, fewer side effects, and lower costs. In recent years, interest in bacterial agents as anticancer therapeutics has grown, due to the ability of some bacteria to selectively grow inside hypoxic tumors, i.e., these cells do not receive rich oxygen supply.
Study sheds light on how patients with rare, severe immunodeficiency are still able to defend themselves
The first study of humans with a rare immunodeficiency reveals how the immune system protects the body against pathogens known to cause serious diseases, such as tuberculosis and COVID-19. The research involving McGill University, paves the way for new therapies to treat autoimmune diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases, and new approaches to vaccine development.
Replaying outcomes in the brain could predict whether we approach or avoid situations
Past neuroscience studies suggest that when deciding their next actions, mice and other rodents tend to replay past outcomes of similar situations in their brain, which is reflected in a rapid activation of certain brain regions in a sequence. Recently, some studies recorded similar replay-associated brain activity in the human brain using imaging techniques.
Researchers identify large genetic changes that contribute to dementia risk
Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have identified new genetic risk factors for two types of non-Alzheimer’s dementia. These findings were published in Cell Genomics and detail how researchers identified large-scale DNA changes, known as structural variants, by analyzing thousands of DNA samples.
AI predicts future pancreatic cancer
An artificial intelligence tool has successfully identified people at the highest risk for pancreatic cancer up to three years before diagnosis using solely the patients’ medical records, according to new research led by investigators at Harvard Medical School and the University of Copenhagen, in collaboration with VA Boston Healthcare System, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Prolonging the survival of patients with gastric cancer
Gastric cancer is the fifth most commonly diagnosed malignancy worldwide. It ranks a sad third in cancer-related causes of death. The reason for this is late diagnosis coupled with rapid spread of tumor cells in the body.
Study sheds light on the mysterious evolution of DNA rings in tumors
Tumors sometimes seem to take on a life of their own, growing at an unusually fast rate or suddenly developing resistance to a cancer drug. This behavior is often explained by cancer genes separating from the cell’s own chromosomes and “striking out on their own” in ring shapes. So far, little has been known about how exactly these DNA rings arise and how they continue to develop as the tumor grows.
Pediatric IBD risk linked to antibiotics, Western diet and higher family income
Children and adolescents face greater risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) when exposed to antibiotics or a Western diet at early ages, or when their family has higher socioeconomic status, according to a study being presented today at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2023.