Category Health/Medical

This image shows an ordered string or ribbon of Toxoplasma parasites with their nuclei shown in blue and the parasite rhoptries that secrete the effectors shown in green. Credit: Barbara Fox and colleagues

Scientists identified the specific proteins secreted by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii that cause the immune system in mice to attack established ovarian tumors. A promising strategy in the fight against cancer is to use the body’s own immune system to remove tumor cells, but due to a phenomenon called immune tolerance, the immune system has a difficult time identifying which cells to attack. In the new study, scientists built upon previous discoveries that a safe, non-reproducing vaccine strain of T...

This is an X-ray crystal structure image of one of the new signature antibodies. The blue ribbons show antibody 16.a.26 Fab regions. The grey ribbons represent HA of influenza strain 1968 Hong Kong. The green spheres are glycans. Credit: NIAID VRC

Scientists have identified 3 types of vaccine-induced antibodies that can neutralize diverse strains of influenza virus that infect humans. It will help guide development of a universal influenza vaccine, according to investigators at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), both part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and collaborators who conducted the research.

The seasonal influenza vaccine must be updated each year because flu viruses mutate...

Increased apoptosis was induced by curcumin + silymarin combination treatment of DLD-1 colon cancer cells.

The combination of 2 plant compounds that have medicinal properties – curcumin and silymarin – holds promise in treating colon cancer, according Saint Louis University research published in the June 23 issue of the Journal of Cancer. Curcumin is the active ingredient in the spice turmeric, which is present in spicy curry dishes, and silymarin is a component of milk thistle, which has been used to treat liver disease.

The researchers and their students studied a line of colon cancer cells in a laboratory model. They found treating the cells initially with curcumin, then with silymarin was more effective in fighting cancer than treating the cells with either phytochemical alone.

“The co...

The biopsychosocial model of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

New research indicates that in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or indigestion, there is a distinct brain-to-gut pathway, where psychological symptoms begin first, and separately a distinct gut-to-brain pathway, where gut symptoms start first. In the study, higher levels of anxiety and depression were significant predictors of developing IBS or indigestion within 1 year. People who did not have elevated levels of anxiety and depression at the start of the study but had documented IBS or indigestion reported significantly higher levels of anxiety and depression after 1 year.

The researchers calculated that in one-third of individuals, a mood disorder precedes gastrointestinal disorder, but in two-thirds a gastrointestinal di...