Category Health/Medical

It’s been known for years that humans and other mammals possess an antiviral gene called RSAD2 that prevents a remarkable range of viruses from multiplying. Now, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, part of Montefiore, have discovered the secret to the gene’s success: The enzyme it codes for generates a compound that stops viruses from replicating. The newly discovered compound, described in today’s online edition of Nature, offers a novel approach for attacking many disease-causing viruses.

“Nature has given us a template for creating a powerful and safe antiviral compound,” says study leader Steven C. Almo, Ph.D...

The fruit fly intestine shares much of the same physiology of the human intestine, just simpler and on a smaller scale. Credit: Adam Wong, PhD. Modified from Disease Models & Mechanisms. doi: 10.1242/dmm.023408.

Study teases out how ‘good bacteria’ keep us metabolically fit. The innate immune system, our first line of defense against bacterial infection, has a side job that’s equally important: fine-tuning our metabolism. The study, led by Paula Watnick, MD, PhD, of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Boston Children’s Hospital, reveals that innate immune pathways, best known as our first line of defense against bacterial infection, have a side job that’s equally important.

In the intestine, digestive cells use an innate immune pathway to respond to harmful bacteria...

CDKN1B/p27 is localized in mitochondria and improves respiration-dependent processes in the cardiovascular system—New mode of action for caffeine. PLOS Biology, 2018; 16 (6): e2004408 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2004408

A new study shows that a caffeine concentration equivalent to four cups of coffee promotes the movement of a regulatory protein into mitochondria, enhancing their function and protecting cardiovascular cells from damage. Caffeine consumption has been associated with lower risks for multiple diseases, including type II diabetes, heart disease, and stroke, but the mechanism underlying these protective effects has been unclear.

A new study by Judith Haendeler and Joachim Altschmied of the Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine-University and the IUF-Leibniz Research Institute for Env...

Researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have succeeded in printing microelectrode arrays directly onto several soft substrates. Soft materials are better suited for devices that directly measure electrical signals from organs like the brain or heart. Credit: Copyright N. Adly / TUM

Printing microelectrode arrays on gelatin and other soft materials could pave the way for new medical diagnostics tools. Microelectrodes can be used for direct measurement of electrical signals in the brain or heart. These applications require soft materials, however. With existing methods, attaching electrodes to such materials poses significant challenges. A team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now succeeded in printing electrodes directly onto several soft substrates.

Researc...