Category Health/Medical

Highlights •IFN-γ and 4D5 act directly on erbB2-positive breast cancer cells •IFN-γ, but not IFN-α or β, cooperates with 4D5 directly on erbB2+ breast cancer cells •IFN-γ and 4D5 alters KLF4 levels and degrades Snail by the GSK3-β/proteasome pathway •Sequential combination treatment with mAb and IFN-γ sensitizes for tumor eradication. Credit: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2015.08.044

This therapy, when translated for use in people humans, would be beneficial in reducing toxicity because the amount of antibody could be decreased by 2/3 and the amount of chemotherapy by at least 1/2, they say. This in turn, “reduces the cost of treatment so that individuals previously not able to afford targeted therapy will be able to do so.

“This line of research is important to future ...

Groundbreaking computer program diagnoses cancer in two days

In 1 in 20 cancer cases, the doctor can confirm that the patient has cancer – but cannot find the source. These patients then face the prospect of a long wait with numerous diagnostic tests and attempts to locate the origin of the cancer before starting any treatment. Now, researchers have combined genetics with computer science and created a new diagnostic technology based on advanced self-learning computer algorithms which can, with 85% certainty, identify the source of the disease and thus target treatment and, ultimately, improve the prognosis for the patient.

Each year, ~35,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in Denmark, and many of them face the prospect of a long wait until the cancer has been diagnosed and its source loc...

The immune system protein SARM1 (red) extends to the string-like fibers (axons) of nerve cells in the brains of mice infected with La Crosse virus. Scientists are examining how SARM1 interacts with mitochondria in the axons to induce death of the nerve cells. Credit: NIAID

Many brain disorders involve the death of neurons, or nerve cells, but how these neurons die is not well understood. A new study describes how the activation of normally protective immune responses causes nerve cells to die and identifies the protein responsible, providing a potential target for therapeutic intervention.

Researchers from NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) studied the effect of immune system proteins: toll-like receptors on neurons...

The visual cortex can essentially make decisions just like the brain’s traditional ‘higher level’ areas, finds a new study.
“As a field, we’re only at the beginning of trying to figure out how the brain works, and the visual system is a very good place to start,” said MSU Assistant Prof. Brascamp.

Study participants were placed in an MRI scanner and shown two adjacent patterns of dots on a projection screen while their brain activity was monitored. By using a set of prisms, the researchers made sure that, unlike in normal situations, the participant’s eyes were each looking at a different dot pattern, each presented on a different part of the screen.

The combination of differing patterns seen by the 2 eyes creates an optical illusion and perception switches between the two patterns as the...