WORCESTER--Variations in a gene with multiple functions in neurons are present in approximately 3 percent of all cases of ALS in North American and European populations, both sporadic and familial, making it one of the most common genetic causes of the disease, according to a paper published in Nature Genetics.
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- Polylactic acid, or PLA, is a biodegradable polymer commonly used to make a variety of products from disposable cups to medical implants to drug delivery systems. A team of Brown University researchers has shown that by treating PLA at various temperatures and pressures, they can induce a new polymer phase in the material -- one that could possibly decrease the rate at which it degrades.
The results of clinical studies by investigators at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center (VAMC), reported in the July 2016 issue of Pharmacogenomics, demonstrate transcriptome-level linkages between racial disparities in circulating levels of vitamin D and expression of pro-inflammatory genes in African American (AA) patients with prostate cancer compared to European American (EA) patients.
Telomerase, an enzyme naturally found in the human organism, is the closest of all known substances to a "cellular elixir of youth." In a recent study, Brazilian and US researchers show that sex hormones can stimulate production of this enzyme.
The strategy was tested in patients with genetic diseases associated with mutations in the gene that codes for telomerase, such as aplastic anemia and pulmonary fibrosis. The authors say that the results suggest that the approach can combat the damage caused to the organism by telomerase deficiency.
What makes flowers on a plant almost identical, or internal organs remarkably reproducible?
A study of sepals in Arabidopsis plants published in the July 11 issue of the journal Developmental Cell has revealed the mystery of how such uniformity occurs. Though the research was done on sepals - the bud that holds a plant's reproductive organs - the researchers suspect similar mechanisms apply to organ development in all organisms. The study was conducted by an interdisciplinary team led by Cornell researchers.
Reporting in the journal Cell, Senior Research Scientist Dr. Ulrike Kusebauch, of Institute for Systems Biology (ISB), describes the results of a collaboration between scientists at ISB, ETH Zurich and a number of other contributing institutes to develop the Human SRMAtlas, a compendium of proteomic assays for any human protein.
Nagoya, Japan - Despite the extensive fossil record of mammals, it is often difficult to use fossil data to reconstruct the lifestyles and habitats of extinct species. The fact that some species spent all or part of their time underwater, respectively similar to modern-day whales and seals, further complicates this.
Malaria researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have found one of the malaria parasite's best weapons against drug treatments turns out to be an Achilles' heel, which could be exploited to cure the deadly disease.
The findings could prolong the use of several anti-malarial drugs, including the former wonder drug chloroquine, to treat the mosquito-borne disease which kills 600,000 people around the world each year.
Preliminary results demonstrate that osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) helps reduce acute pain in postpartum women, regardless of whether they delivered vaginally or via cesarean. The study results published today The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.
Fifty nine women from St. Barnabas Hospital in Bronx, New York received 20-30 minutes of OMT within the first 48 hours of delivery. Mean score for pain using a visual analogue scale (VAS) decreased from 5.0 to 2.9, with 13 patients reporting being pain free after OMT.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- The Samoas' world-leading rate of obesity is a recent phenomenon, heavily influenced by the globe's rapid shift to calorie-rich, processed foods and more sedentary lifestyles.
A new study, however, suggests nearly half of Samoans have a newly identified and significant genetic variant that contributes to obesity risk; a variant that had remained undiscovered until researchers focused on the islands' populations. In cell models in the lab, this "thrifty" variant promoted more efficient storage of more fat.
ANN ARBOR -- Researchers have revealed the molecular structure of a protein produced by the Zika virus that is thought to be involved in the virus's reproduction and its interaction with a host's immune system.
The results provide scientists around the globe with new information about the NS1 protein's role in Zika virus infections, and expands scientists' understanding of the flavivirus family, which also includes dengue, West Nile and yellow fever.
The study was led by the University of Michigan and done in collaboration with Purdue University.
Honey bees are able to wiggle their abdomens in a variety of ways. Now new research published in the Journal of Insect Science shows how they are able to do it.
Boston, MA - Induction of labor appears not to be associated with increased risk of autism spectrum disorders in children in a large new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The new finding suggests that concern about autism risk should not factor into clinical decisions about whether or not to induce labor.
The study will be published online July 25, 2016 in JAMA Pediatrics.
Unfortunately, loss of plant and animal habitat leads to local species extinctions and a loss of diversity from ecosystems. Fortunately, not all of the extinctions occur at once. Conservation actions may still be able to save threatened species, according to William Newmark, a vertebrate zoologist at the Natural History Museum of Utah at the University of Utah.
The legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado was associated with both increased hospital visits and cases at a regional poison center because of unintentional exposure to the drug by children, suggesting effective preventive measures are needed as more states consider legalizing the drug, according to an article published online by JAMA Pediatrics.