Category Health/Medical

A cross section through the fibril illustrating the stepwise overlapping arrangement of the Aβ proteins Credit: Forschungszentrum Jülich / HHU Düsseldorf / Gunnar Schröder

A team from Germany and the Netherlands has determined the structure of an amyloid fibril with previously unachieved resolution. The fibrils of the body’s own amyloid beta (Aβ) protein are the main constituent of brain protein deposits associated with Alzheimer’s. The atomic-level 3D structure elucidated by the scientists reveals previously unknown aspects of the growth of harmful deposits and the effect of genetic risk factors.

The structure reveals how the many single Aβ protein molecules are staggered in layers on top of each other and are arranged into protofilaments...

A Comparison of Alkaline Water and Mediterranean Diet vs Proton Pump Inhibition for Treatment of Laryngopharyngeal Reflux. JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, 2017; DOI: 10.1001/jamaoto.2017.1454

A plant-based, Mediterranean-style diet has been shown to provide the same medical benefits for treating laryngopharyngeal reflux as popular reflux medications. This is according to a study published in JAMA Otolaryngology Head Neck Surgery by researchers from Northwell Health’s The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and New York Medical College.

When compared to patients who took the traditional reflux medication, proton pump inhibitors (PPI), those patients who consumed a 90-95% whole food, plant-based, Mediterranean-style diet paired with alkaline water had the same if not better r...

Cardiomyocyte‐Specific Telomere Shortening is a Distinct Signature of Heart Failure in Humans. Journal of the American Heart Association, September 2017 DOI: 10.1161/JAHA.116.005086

Each cell in the body has 23 pairs of chromosomes, with 4 telomeres on each pair covering the end, protecting it from deterioration or fusion with adjacent chromosomes. While there is a length range for a healthy telomere, research found for the first time that people with heart failure have shorter telomeres in cardiomyocytes.

A team of researchers from Penn Medicine, in collaboration with the University of Connecticut, is the first to have developed a method for measuring the length of telomeres using human heart tissues...

Stereolithographic Printing of Ionically-Crosslinked Alginate Hydrogels for Degradable Biomaterials and Microfluidics. Lab Chip, 2017; DOI: 10.1039/C7LC00694B

Brown University engineers have demonstrated a technique for making 3D-printed biomaterials that can degrade on demand, which can be useful in making intricately patterned microfluidic devices or in making cell cultures than can change dynamically during experiments. “It’s a bit like Legos,” said Ian Wong, an assistant professor in Brown’s School of Engineering and co-author of the research. “We can attach polymers together to build 3D structures, and then gently detach them again under biocompatible conditions.”

They made their new degradable structures using a type of 3D printing called stereolithography...