Category Health/Medical

UK’s Vivek Rangnekar, left, and Ravshan Burikhanov.

A new study by University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center researchers shows that when therapy-sensitive cancer cells die, they release a “killer peptide” that can eliminate therapy-resistant cells. Tumor relapse is a common problem following cancer treatment, because primary tumor cells often contain therapy-resistance cancer cells that continue to proliferate after the therapy-sensitive cells have been eliminated.

In the new study, published in Cancer Research, Markey scientists identified a Par-4 amino-terminal fragment (PAF) that is released by diverse therapy-sensitive cancer cells following therapy-induced cleavage of the tumor suppressor Par-4 protein...

Associate Professor Bryan Fry with a Komodo dragon

Various types of lizard venom are being studied as possible treatments for blood clotting diseases that lead to millions of cases of stroke, heart attack, and DVT annually. University of Queensland School of Biological Sciences expert Associate Professor Bryan Fry said, while snake venom research has been extensive, lizard venom research was still in its infancy.

His latest research – partly titled Enter the Dragon – shines the light on lizards that can serve as potential sources of life-saving medication. “We now know that far more lizards are venomous than previously thought, including the iconic Komodo dragon – the world’s largest lizard,” Dr Fry said...

Blue large-amplitude pulsators as a new class of variable stars. Nature Astronomy, 2017; 1 (8): 0166 DOI: 10.1038/s41550-017-0166 Image: Paweł Pietrukowicz

Discovery of new class of variable dwarf star. In the middle of the large Chilean Atacama desert, a team of Polish astronomers are patiently monitoring millions of celestial bodies night after night with the help of a modern robotic telescope. In 2013, the team was surprised when they discovered, stars that pulsated much faster than expected. In the following years, the team that included Dr. Marilyn Latour, an astronomer from the Dr...

MIT researchers have demonstrated a new way to reverse memory loss by blocking an enzyme known as HDAC2. Credit: Jose-Luis Olivares/MIT

Study suggests a new approach to developing treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. In the brains of Alzheimer’s patients, many of the genes required to form new memories are shut down by a genetic blockade, contributing to the cognitive decline seen in those patients. MIT researchers have now shown that they can reverse memory loss in mice by interfering with the enzyme that forms the blockade. The enzyme HDAC2, turns genes off by condensing them so tightly that they can’t be expressed.

For several years, scientists and pharmaceutical companies have been trying to develop drugs that block this enzyme, but most of these drugs also block other HDAC family membe...