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    Category Biology/Biotechnology

    Gut Bacteria affect Brain Health, Mouse study shows

    January 13, 2023, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Gut bacteria can influence brain health, according to a study of mice genetically predisposed to develop Alzheimer’s-like brain damage. The study, by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, indicates that gut bacteria produce compounds that influence the behavior of immune cells, including ones in the brain that can cause neurodegeneration. The findings suggest a new approach to treating Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. Getty Images

    Findings suggest new approach to treating Alzheimer’s, other neurodegenerative diseases. Gut bacteria can influence brain health, according to a study of mice genetically predisposed to develop Alzheimer’s-like brain damage...

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    Study reveals Obesity-related Trigger that can lead to Diabetes

    January 12, 2023, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that a defect in an enzyme called APT1 interferes with the ability to secrete insulin, contributing to the development of Type 2 diabetes in people who are overweight or obese. In this microscopic image of the surface of an insulin-secreting beta cell from a mouse with diabetes, granules containing insulin are green; granules containing a protein affected by APT1 are red; and the yellow granules are those that release excess insulin due to a defect in APT1.

    Many with elevated insulin levels also have defects in an enzyme key to fatty acid processing...

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    Converting Temperature Fluctuations into Clean Energy with Novel Nanoparticles and Heating Strategy

    January 12, 2023, Categories  Environment/Geology, Physics, Chemistry/Nanotechnology, Biology/Biotechnology

    Illustration of potential applications of combining pyroelectric materials and the localized thermo-plasmonic effect of noble metal nanomaterials. Photo credit: Dr Lei Dangyuan’s group / City University of Hong Kong

    Pyroelectric catalysis (pyro-catalysis) can convert environmental temperature fluctuations into clean chemical energy, like hydrogen. However, compared with the more common catalysis strategy, such as photocatalysis, pyro-catalysis is inefficient due to slow temperature changes in the ambient environment...

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    New Study puts Gut Microbiome at the Center of Parkinson’s Disease Pathogenesis

    January 11, 2023, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Fig. 2
     PD-associated species nominated by consensus of MaAsLin2 and ANCOM-BC. Analysis included N = 724 biologically independent samples from 490 PD and 234 neurologically healthy control (NHC) subjects. a 257 species (denoted by circles in the plot) were tested in microbiome-wide association study (MWAS) with two statistical methods: MaAsLin2 and ANCOM-BC. The results are shown according to significance (−log10 of the FDR) achieved by MaAslin2 (Y-axis) vs ANCOM-BC (X-axis). Corresponding untransformed FDR values are provided in parentheses on the X and Y axes for easier interpretation. 84 species were nominated as PD-associated, defined by FDR < 0.05 by one method and FDR≤0.1 by the other: 68 achieved FDR < 0.05 by both methods, 10 achieved ANCOM-BC MaAsLin2 FDR < 0.05 by MaAsLin2 and FDR≤0...
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