Category Health/Medical

This image shows modulation of wound healing and scar formation by MG53-mediated cell membrane repair and TGF-? signaling regulation. Credit: Li.et.al., 2015

The protein, MG53, travels throughout the bloodstream and helps the body fix injuries to the skin, heart, and other organs without causing scars. It’s a discovery that could help heal open wounds, decrease recovery time after surgery and reduce the spread of infections. “A massive scar on your skin may look bad, but imagine you have a heart attack and get a scar on your heart – that could be lethal,” says Jianjie Ma.

All animals carry this gene, he said, and it’s almost identical no matter which species. MG53 fixes the cell and tissue damage that occurs during everyday living...

A sample of the new fabric in reflected light. Credit: The picture is courtesy of the researchers

Scientists have synthesized the material that is perfect for protection of respiratory organs, analytical research and other practical purposes. An almost weightless fabric made of nylon nanofibers with a diameter <15 nm beats any other similar materials in terms of filtering and optical properties. The material is lightweight (10-20 mg/m2), almost invisible (95% light transmission: more than that of a window glass), showing low resistance to airflow and efficient interception of <1 micrometer fine particulate matter.

Previously, the same team showed reducing fiber diameter from 200 nanometers down to 20 decreased filter resistance to airflow by 2/3s, and this effect could no longer be explain...

Dopamine innervation into the hippocampus. Green denotes general catecholamine — a general name for dopamine — innervation of the CA1 region of the hippocampus. Yellows denotes dopamine nerve endings in the same region. Scale bar is 50 microns. Credit: John Dani, Ph.D., Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania

Dopamine regulates how mice learn to avoid a disagreeable encounter, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. “We know that dopamine reinforces ‘rewarding’ behaviors, but to our surprise, we have now shown that situations that animals learn to avoid are also regulated by dopamine,” said John Dani, PhD, chair of the department of Neuroscience.

Special neurons in the brain send out a burst of dopamine in both negat...

Weekly cases of suspected Zika virus infections and Guillain-Barré syndrome in French Polynesia between October, 2013, and April, 2014

Analysis of blood samples from 42 patients diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) during the Zika virus outbreak in French Polynesia provides the first evidence that Zika virus might cause GBS, a severe neurological disorder. Based on the analysis of data from French Polynesia, if 100000 people were infected with Zika virus, 24 would develop GBS.

Professor Arnaud Fontanet said: “Most of the patients with GBS reported they had experienced symptoms of Zika virus infection on average 6 days before any neurological symptoms, and all carried Zika virus antibodies.”

In between October 2013 to April 2014, French Polynesia experienced the largest Zika outbr...