Category Biology/Biotechnology

Norbert Leitinger, Ph.D. (left), and Vlad Serbulea, Ph.D., of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, have determined why obesity causes harmful inflammation that can lead to diabetes, clogged arteries and other health problems. Doctors may be able to use this knowledge to battle these chronic diseases and others driven by damaging inflammation.
Credit: Dan Addison, University of Virginia Communications

Finding points to new approaches to battling diabetes, other chronic conditions. New research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine explains why obesity causes harmful inflammation that can lead to diabetes, clogged arteries and other health problems. Doctors may be able to use this knowledge to battle these chronic diseases and others driven by damaging inflammation...

The IgM antibody has multiple arms to catch the virus, making it more efficient in clumping up the virus and keeping it from passing through the mucosal barrier and entering the rest of the body.
Credit: Graphic artwork: Chris Wager

A group of scientists at Texas Biomedical Research Institute have zeroed in on a new defense against HIV-1, the virus that causes AIDS. Led by Ruth Ruprecht, M.D., Ph.D., the team used an animal model to show for the first time that Immunoglobulin M (IgM) was effective in preventing infection after mucosal AIDS virus exposure. Worldwide, an estimated 90% of new cases of HIV-1 are caused through exposure in the mucosal cavities like the inside lining of the rectum or vagina. “IgM is sort of the forgotten antibody,” Dr...

Topical Curcumin Nanocarriers are Neuroprotective in Eye Disease. Scientific Reports, 2018; 8 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-29393-8

A derivative of turmeric could be used in eye drops to treat the early stages of glaucoma, finds a new study led by UCL and Imperial College London researchers. In the new Scientific Reports paper, the researchers report a new method to deliver curcumin, extracted from the yellow spice turmeric, directly to the back of the eye using eye drops, overcoming the challenge of curcumin’s poor solubility.

The research team found the eye drops can reduce the loss of retinal cells in rats, which is known to be an early sign of glaucoma. They are also investigating how the eye drops could be used as a diagnostic tool for a range of conditions...

Using an imaging technique developed at Princeton, researchers captured the moment when a segment of DNA — from genetic material that was once thought to be useless junk — turns on a target gene. Here, a time series of images reveals how a DNA segment known as an enhancer can turn on, or activate, its target gene. The enhancer (blue) must come in close proximity to the gene (green) to turn on gene activity (pink).
Credit: Hongtao Chen, Princeton University

Video shows DNA enhancers finding and activating a target gene in a living cell. Researchers have captured video showing how pieces of DNA once thought to be useless can act as on-off switches for genes. These pieces of DNA are part of over 90% of the genetic material that are not genes...