New Targets Identified for the Treatment of Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a common neurological disease that causes seizures due to abnormal brain activity. The seizures can affect the whole brain or just one part, and can last for a…
Biomedical Discoveries
Researchers Show Hair Loss can be Prevented by Modifying Stem Cell Metabolism
Researchers from Cologne and Helsinki have identified a mechanism that prevents hair loss. Hair loss occurs when hair follicle stem cells are exhausted new hair follicles are not produced, leading…
UCL Researchers Increase HSCs in Cord Blood to Improve Transplant Potential
Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), also known as blood stem cells, are capable of differentiating into every type of blood cell and are essential for maintaining blood production. Blood stem cells…
Novel CRISPR Gene Repressor System Shown to Improve Efficacy of Gene Therapies
One of the problems of using an adeno-associated virus (AAV) to deliver gene editing tools into cells, is the immune system may recognize the virus as foreign, develop antibodies against…
Molecular Mechanism of Bacterial Adhesion to Gut Wall Identified
Researchers have identified how bacteria are able to colonize the gut and resist shear forces and stay attached to the cells of the intestine. Before the bacteria can proliferate, they…
New Cellular Protection Pathway Identified That Stops Ebola and Coronaviruses from Infecting Cells
A new cellular protection pathway has been identified that targets a vulnerability shared by several viruses including coronaviruses and Ebola. The vulnerability was identified by researchers at Benaroya Research Institute…
Wnt Activation in Non-Wnt Medulloblastoma Tumors Shown to Reduce Tumor Size and Improve Survival
Researchers at McMaster University have found a way to make pediatric brain cancer respond better to treatment. The most common type of brain cancer in children is medulloblastoma (MB), which…
Link Identified Between Coagulation and Complement System and Severity of COVID-19 Symptoms
New research suggests that the severity of COVID-19 is linked to the complement system, one of the oldest parts of the innate immune system and also coagulation dysfunction. Researchers at…
Three Studies Show Large, Unwanted DNA Deletions with CRISPR-Cas9 Edits of Human Embryos
Three recent studies suggest using the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool to make changes to the DNA of human embryos results in large unwanted changes to the DNA near the target…
Natural Killer Immune Cells Edited to Improve Effectiveness at Targeting Cancer Cells
When a foreign invader enters the body, natural killer (NK) cells of the immune system are mobilized and attack the invader, but they are not so effective at attacking and…