Category Biology/Biotechnology

People fed beta-glucan-enriched pasta for 2 months showed increased populations of beneficial bacteria in their intestinal tracts, and reduced populations of non-beneficial bacteria. They also showed reduced LDL (bad) cholesterol. This work is part of a broad effort to identify potential prebiotics – foods that could encourage the growth of health-promoting bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract.

β-glucans are healthy fibers that humans cannot digest, but that can be digested by some species of our gut bacteria. They are special types of sugars that are found in the cell walls of certain microbes, as well as in oats and barley...

This is an image of a cultured neuron with an added BDNF protein. Credit: Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore

Research has linked the abnormal behavior of 2 genes (BDNF and DTNBP1) to the underlying cause of schizophrenia. These findings have provided a new target for schizophrenia treatment. “In particular, we wanted to understand the ability of a specific type of …interneurons, to modulate brain network activity to maintain a balance in brain signalling.” said Assistant Professor Shawn Je, from the Neuroscience and Behavioural Disorders Programme at Duke-NUS.

Dr...

Why do some people get so sick and even die after being infected by the foodborne pathogen E. coli O157:H7, while others experience much milder symptoms and recover relatively quickly.

Over the course of a 4-year study, researchers co-cultured the pathogenic E. coli O157:H7 serotype with a nonpathogenic strain of the bacteria and inoculated mice. These mice got much sicker than mice that were infected with the pathogenic strain alone.

“Within our intestines, each of us carries 3several hundred different types of bacteria, including E. coli, and E. coli comes in a large number of varieties” he said. “This research suggests that some strains of harmless E. coli in our intestines can interact with pathogenic E...

The goal was to find nonsurgical ways to treat precancerous lesions caused by HPV. “Every standard therapeutic option for women with these lesions destroys part of the cervix, which is particularly relevant for women of childbearing age, who may then be at risk for preterm birth due to a weakened cervix,” says Prof. Cornelia Trimble, M.D. “A vaccine able to cure precancerous lesions could eventually be one way women can avoid surgery that is invasive and can also harm their fertility.”

High-grade cervical lesions, termed CIN2/3, occur most often in women 40 or younger. Because the lesions can progress to cancer, they are usually removed by surgery, freezing or laser. The procedures are successful in removing the precancerous areas in approximately 80% of women...