Eurekalert

Recent failed clinical trials of a drug designed to clear the mutant Huntingtin protein that causes Huntington's disease (HD) heightens the need for new approaches for the devastating, incurable, progressive neurodegenerative genetic disorder. Scientists at the Buck Institute have found that the targeting the protein called FK506-binding protein 51 or FKBP51 promotes the clearing of those toxic proteins via autophagy, a natural process whereby cells recycle damaged proteins and mitochondria and use them for nutrition.

In a study of mice, researchers showed how the act of seeing light may trigger the formation of vision-harming tumors in young children who are born with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) cancer predisposition syndrome. The research team, funded by the National Institutes of Health, focused on tumors that grow within the optic nerve, which relays visual signals from the eyes to brain. They discovered that the neural activity which underlies these signals can both ignite and feed the tumors.

Older adults with cognitive impairment are two to three times more likely to fall compared with those without cognitive impairment.

Researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences have developed a robotic mechanism for mushroom picking and trimming and demonstrated its effectiveness for the automated harvesting of button mushrooms.

Brown University researchers have developed a technique that could allow deep brain stimulation devices to sense activity in the brain and adjust stimulation accordingly.

Research published by JAMA Network Open shows how non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) like mask wearing and physical distancing can help prevent spikes in COVID-19 cases as populations continue to get vaccinated.

A new study analyzing the association between an individual's genetics (genotype) and their observable characteristics resulting from the interaction of genetics and the environment (phenotype), contributes new knowledge to the understanding of human complex traits and diseases.

In a paper published on June 1 in the journal Physical Review X, University of Arizona researchers experimentally show that quantum resources have an advantage over classical -- even in the NISQ era.

New research from the Australian Institute of Marine Science shows table corals can regenerate coral reef habitats on the Great Barrier Reef decades faster than any other coral type. The research suggests overall reef recovery would slow considerably if table corals declined or disappeared on the Great Barrier Reef.

Researchers from SWOG Cancer Research Network, a cancer clinical trials group funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), will share results of their work in 23 presentations at the 2021 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), broadcast online June 4-8, 2021.

UNC Lineberger researchers have discovered a gene, OTUD7A, that impacts the development of Ewing sarcoma, a bone cancer that occurs mainly in children. They have also identified a compound that shows potential to block OTUD7A protein activity. Critical relationships between proteins contribute to the development of cancers such as Ewing sarcoma. So, it was a seminal discovery when the UNC researchers found that OTUD7A controls the cancer-causing fusion protein.

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine found in a mouse model that when fed a Western diet rich in calories, fat and cholesterol, the mice progressively became obese, diabetic and developed NASH, which progressed to HCC, chronic kidney and cardiovascular disease.

New research, recently published in Nano Energy, describes a new metamaterial system that acts as its own sensor, recording and relaying important information about the pressure and stresses on its structure. The so-called "self-aware metamaterial" generates its own power and can be used for a wide array of sensing and monitoring applications.

A small chip inserted under the skin can monitor patients after common forms of stroke to predict those at high risk of a recurrent stroke. The chip may help physicians identify patients who could benefit from stroke prevention therapies.

Aerosol reductions that would take place as countries meet climate goals could contribute to global cooling and prevent more than one million annual premature deaths over a decade, according to a new study from the University of California San Diego.

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids in Dresden, the University of South Florida in the USA, and co-workers have discovered a new mechanism in magnetic compounds that couples multiple topological bands. The coupling can significantly enhance the effects of quantum phenomena.

A clinical trial examining the efficacy of two devices to monitor and detect atrial fibrillation (AF), or an irregular heartbeat, in ischemic stroke patients -- one an implantable device that monitors over 12 months, the other an external device that monitors over a 30-day period -- found the implantable device is more than three times more effective in detecting AF, and both are a significant improvement over the current standard of care in Alberta, Canada.

New findings reveal the genomic architecture and evolutionary fates of supergenes

Malaria, a disease caused mainly by the parasites Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax, is associated with over 400,000 deaths each year. Previously, the spleen was assumed to mostly play a role in parasite destruction, as it eliminates malaria parasites after antimalarial treatment. A study published by Steven Kho and Nicholas Anstey at Menzies School of Health Research, Australia, and international colleagues, suggests that in chronic P. vivax infections, malaria parasites survive and replicate via a previously undetected lifecycle within the spleen.

A new analysis of adults aged 80 years and older shows that a healthier lifestyle is associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment, and that this link does not depend on whether a person carries a particular form of the gene APOE. Xurui Jin of Duke Kunshan University in Jiangsu, China, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine.