Clinical Trials & Research

Researchers at The University of Queensland have found that a native New Zealand stinging tree produces toxins that could hold clues for future pain medication. In a quest to find new molecules that affect pain pathways, Dr Thomas Durek, Dr Sam Robinson and a team from UQ’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) studied toxins from

A research group from Nagoya University in Japan has developed an artificial intelligence for analyzing cell images that uses machine learning to predict the therapeutic effect of drugs. Called in silico FOCUS, this new technology may aid in the discovery of therapeutic agents for neurodegenerative disorders such as Kennedy disease. Current treatments for neurodegenerative diseases

New research led by scientists at Arizona State University has revealed some of the first detailed molecular clues associated with one of the leading causes of death and disability, a condition known as traumatic brain injury (TBI). TBI is a growing public health concern, affecting more than 1.7 million Americans at an estimated annual cost

Researchers at the Universities of Bonn and Osnabrück have discovered a protein whose defect causes motor disorders in flies. The protein had also previously been found in human patients with Parkinson’s disease. So far, however, it was not known what function it has in the cell. The study now provides an answer to this question.

This week, CGFNS International, Inc. (CGFNS) publicly announced its “Passport2Liberty” initiative that will restore credentials for Ukrainian nurses who wish to migrate to the United States. Recognizing that special attention must be given to those forced to flee their country to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster, CGFNS will leverage its credentials assessment expertise, partnerships,

Urban agriculture is booming, but there’s often a hidden danger lurking in city soils: lead. A recent University of Illinois study showed universally elevated lead levels in soils across Chicago, an urban ag hotspot. Scientists don’t know much about how vegetables and other crops take up and accumulate lead in real-world settings, but new U

A recent International Journal of Molecular Sciences review summarizes available knowledge on the monkeypox virus, including its pathogenicity, risk to the human population, and strategies that can help limit its spread. Study: Monkeypox: A New Threat? Image Credit: Kateryna Kon / Shutterstock.com History of monkeypox infection The monkeypox virus is a pox-like disease that was first identified

Women and girls across England will benefit from improved healthcare following the publication of the first ever government-led Women’s Health Strategy for England today (Wednesday 20 July). Following a call for evidence which generated almost 100,000 responses from individuals across England, and building on Our Vision for Women’s Health, the strategy sets bold ambitions to

Age and sex have been identified as important indicators of immunity to infectious diseases as well as vaccinations throughout the lifetime of an individual. According to some reports, women’s immune systems are stronger than men’s. A higher level of inflammation has been reported in older individuals due to impaired immune function. The impact of interactions

The lack of antiviral treatments for respiratory infections became evident with the emergence and worldwide spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Study: Nanoligomers Targeting Human miRNA for the Treatment of Severe COVID-19 Are Safe and Nontoxic in Mice. Image Credit: cherezoff / Shutterstock.com Background SARS-CoV-2 is a positive-stranded enveloped ribonucleic acid (RNA)

As the coronavirus waves keep coming and cases are on the rise once again, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently launched a $577 million effort to develop antivirals against COVID-19 and other viruses with high pandemic potential. Texas Biomedical Research Institute Professor Luis Martinez-Sobrido, PhD, an expert in virology, vaccines and antiviral research, has

A team of scientists in the Physical Intelligence Department at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems have combined robotics with biology by equipping E. coli bacteria with artificial components to construct biohybrid microrobots. Firstly, the team attached several nanoliposomes to each bacterium. On their outer circle, these spherical-shaped carriers enclose a material (ICG, green

People with a learning disability and autistic people will receive better and more focused community care as part of plans to reduce the number in specialist inpatient care. The Building the Right Support Action Plan published today brings together in one place commitments from across government and public services to ensure there is suitable community

Many commercially available beverages contain a wide range of nutrients associated with various health benefits. Moreover, these beverages contain a combination of functional components that might be naturally present or formulated to improve the health benefits of these products. New strategies are often developed to enhance the functional properties of beverages. These can include, for

A recent study published in the Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians (JACEP) Open evaluated the recent usage of marijuana and its derivative products, their effects and clinical manifestations, perceptions, pharmaceutics, epidemiological studies, and the long-term ramifications in pediatric populations. Study: Marijuana use in children: An update focusing on pediatric tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol use. Image

Producing biomaterials that match the performance of cartilage and tendons has been an elusive goal for scientists, but a new material created at Cornell demonstrates a promising new approach to mimicking natural tissue. The results were published July 8 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and provide a new strategy for synthesizing

A CDC Investigation Notice regarding a multistate outbreak of Listeria infections has been posted: Listeria Outbreak | CDC.Listeria Outbreak | CDC Key points: 23 people infected with the outbreak strain have been reported from 10 states. Nearly all the people live in or traveled to Florida about a month before they got sick, although the

Researchers at the University of Southampton have gained unprecedented new insight into the key properties of an antibody needed to fight off cancer. The interdisciplinary study, published in Science Immunology, revealed how changing the flexibility of the antibody could stimulate a stronger immune response. The findings have enabled the Southampton team to design antibodies to

Our visual perception of the world is often thought of as relatively stable. However, like all of our cognitive functions, visual processing is shaped by our experiences. During both development and adulthood, learning can alter visual perception. For example, improved visual discrimination of similar patterns is a learned skill critical for reading. In a new

In this long-term study of 3,926 adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) recently published in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases (AJKD), researchers found that individuals with higher levels of physical activity were less likely to experience an atherosclerotic event (e.g. heart attack, stroke, or peripheral arterial disease), new-onset heart failure, and death as compared

In a recent study posted to the medRxiv* preprint server, researchers evaluated the effects of age structure and vaccine prioritization regarding coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in West Africa (WA). Study: Impact of age-structure and vaccine prioritization on COVID-19 in West Africa. Image Credit: NTL studio/Shutterstock The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely impacted countries in every region of the

A new study from University Hospitals (UH) Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute further proves that people living in areas that were subjected to housing discrimination decades ago now suffer from higher rates of poor health outcomes, including heart disease, kidney failure and diabetes. The findings were published this month in the Journal of the American

A promising strategy to reduce the impact of viral infectious diseases, such as influenza, is the use of attenuated, live viruses as vaccines. However, the usefulness of traditional live-attenuated virus vaccines has often been limited by suboptimal immunogenicity, safety concerns, or cumbersome manufacturing processes and techniques. In addition, immune escape due to rapid viral evolution

Data from the world’s largest prostate cancer screening study provides further evidence to support the introduction of a targeted screening program for the disease, say researchers. In 2009, the European Randomised Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer (ERSPC) showed that screening can reduce mortality from prostate cancer by between 20-35 percent. But the earlier and

Brigham and Women’s Hospital announces a $16 million grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to support the implementation and evaluation of an integrated service delivery model (PEN-Plus) for severe chronic noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as type 1 diabetes, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathies, and sickle cell disease in eight low- and

Both cervical and anal cancer are caused by human papillomavirus. Both diseases also share a common precursor: abnormal cells known as high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL). In cervical neoplasia, treatment of HSILs has been shown to reduce progression to cervical cancer. Recent published research suggests that the same holds true with anal cancer: HSIL treatment

University of California, Irvine-led researchers have discovered that a signaling molecule called SCUBE3 potently stimulates hair growth and may offer a therapeutic treatment for androgenetic alopecia, a common form of hair loss in both women and men. The study, published online today in Developmental Cell, determined the precise mechanism by which the dermal papilla cells

The emergence and rapid outbreak of a novel coronavirus, namely, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) in China in 2019, caused a global pandemic, which is popularly known as the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic (COVID-19). Study: Potential Autoimmunity Resulting from Molecular Mimicry between SARS-CoV-2 Spike and Human Proteins. Image Credit: Naeblys/Shutterstock Some of the common