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    Category Health/Medical

    Certain GI Bacteria leverage the Immune system to Decrease the Severity of Stroke

    March 28, 2016, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Immune cells (green) assemble in the outer coverings of a mouse's brain, called the meninges, protecting it from a stroke's full force. Gut bacteria modified the immune' cells behavior to elicit that protective response. Credit: Corinne Benakis

    Immune cells (green) assemble in the outer coverings of a mouse’s brain, called the meninges, protecting it from a stroke’s full force. Gut bacteria modified the immune’ cells behavior to elicit that protective response. Credit: Corinne Benakis

    New research from Weill Cornell Medicine can help mitigate stroke – the second leading cause of death worldwide. In the study mice received a combination of antibiotics. 2 weeks later, ischemic stroke was induced in them. Mice treated with antibiotics experienced a stroke that was about 60% smaller than rodents that did not receive the medication. The microbial environment in the gut directed the immune cells there to protect the brain from the stroke’s full force.

    Modifying the microbiotic makeup of the gut can become an innovative method to preven...

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    Structure of Parkinson’s Protein could lead to new Diagnostic, Treatment options

    March 28, 2016, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Three-dimensional structure of an [alpha]-syn fibril.

    Three-dimensional structure of an α-syn fibril.

    Chemists have identified the complex chemical structure of the protein that stacks together to form fibrils in the brains of Parkinson’s disease patients. Thus researchers can identify specific targets for diagnosis and treatment. In Parkinson’s, the protein alpha-synuclein forms long fibrils that disrupt brain activity. This is similar to the beta-amyloid fibrils that form in Alzheimer’s disease patients. However, while the beta-amyloid structure is known, the alpha-synuclein structure has eluded researchers as a result of its complexity, its insolubility and the difficulty of characterizing one protein within a fibril.

    “This is the first structure of the full-length fibril protein, which is now well established to be important for the patho...

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    Inactivating a certain Protein-Coding Gene Promotes Liver Tissue Regeneration in Mammals

    March 27, 2016, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Highlights • Arid1a loss results in improved regeneration after diverse liver injuries • Arid1a overexpression impairs liver proliferation and regeneration • Arid1a loss also improves tissue repair after ear hole punch • Arid1a loss remodels chromatin, altering transcriptional access by C/EBPα and E2F4

    Highlights • Arid1a loss results in improved regeneration after diverse liver injuries • Arid1a overexpression impairs liver proliferation and regeneration • Arid1a loss also improves tissue repair after ear hole punch • Arid1a loss remodels chromatin, altering transcriptional access by C/EBPα and E2F4

    The liver is unique among human solid organs in its robust regenerative capability. This research gives us ideas about new ways to treat liver damage or chronic liver disease,” said Dr. Hao Zhu, an Assistant Professor at CRI. Tails in lizards and arms in starfish show an astounding ability to regrow, but mammals have partially lost the capacity to extensively regenerate body parts, Dr. Zhu said. The liver is unique among human solid organs in its robust regenerative capability...

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    New class of Molecular ‘Lightbulbs’ illuminate MRI

    March 26, 2016, Categories  Technology/Electronics, Health/Medical

    Duke scientists have discovered a new of inexpensive and long-lived molecular tags that enhance MRI signals by 10,000-fold. To activate the tags, the researchers mix them with a newly developed catalyst (center) and a special form of hydrogen (gray), converting them into long-lived magnetic resonance 'lightbulbs' that might be used to track disease metabolism in real time. Credit: Thomas Theis, Duke University

    Duke scientists have discovered a new class of inexpensive and long-lived molecular tags that enhance MRI signals by 10,000-fold. To activate the tags, the researchers mix them with a newly developed catalyst (center) and a special form of hydrogen (gray), converting them into long-lived magnetic resonance ‘lightbulbs’ that might be used to track disease metabolism in real time. Credit: Thomas Theis, Duke University

    Discovery could enable cheaper, more versatile bioimaging. Duke University researchers have taken a major step towards realizing a new form of MRI that could record biochemical reactions in the body as they happen. A new class of molecular tags enhance MRI signals by 10,000-fold and generate detectable signals that last over an hour...

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