Researchers studying two generations of a family affected by pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have identified an inherited variation in the ETV6 gene that is associated with an increased risk of developing the disease. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators led the study, which appears in the October 28 issue of the journal Lancet Oncology.
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Patients with advanced cancers who took a drug designed to relieve constipation caused by pain killers lived longer and had fewer reports of tumor progression than cancer patients who did not receive the drug, according to results presented Oct. 27 at the 2015 meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists in San Diego. This is the first study in humans to associate opioid blockade with improved survival.
When global leaders converge on Paris on Nov. 30 for the 2015 United Nations climate change conference, their goal will be to deliver an agreement that, for the first time, seeks to safeguard the Earth's climate by having all nations that are significant sources of carbon dioxide rein in their emissions.
With new makes of all-electric and hybrid automobiles seeming to emerge as fast as the colors of fall, it is easy to overlook another alternative to gasoline engines that could prove to be a major player in reduced-carbon transportation - cars powered by natural gas. Natural gas, which consists primarily of methane (CH4) is an abundant, cheaper and cleaner burning fuel than gasoline, but its low energy density at ambient temperature and pressure has posed a severe challenge for on-board fuel storage in cars. Help may be on the way.
Ann Arbor, MI, October 27, 2015 - On average, 80% of American adults watch 3.5 hours of television per day and multiple observational studies have demonstrated a link between TV viewing and poorer health. In this new study published in the December issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, investigators reported an association between increasing hours of television viewing per day and increasing risk of death from most of the major causes of death in the United States.
Pediatric researchers have developed the first set of growth charts for U.S. children with Down syndrome since 1988. These new charts provide an important tool for pediatricians to evaluate growth milestones for children and adolescents with this condition. With these new charts, pediatricians will be able to compare each patient's growth patterns with peers of the same age and sex who have Down syndrome.
Researchers at the University of Helsinki have discovered that cytokinin patterning, an important process in plant development, cannot happen via diffusion alone. While investigating a regulatory network in plant roots, they identified unexpected physical constraints on how cytokinin patterns form.
MISSOULA - It sounds rather simple: In order to restore the original high level of biodiversity in our rivers, they should be returned to their original state. Yet, researchers from the University of Montana and the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ) determined it really is not that easy, as efforts often are limited by historical, cultural or economic factors.
BOSTON - The development of a new method to grow three-dimensional organoid cultures of pancreatic tumors directly from patients' surgical tissue offers a promising opportunity for testing targeted therapies and drug responses and personalizing treatments in a rapid, cost-effective manner. The findings are currently reported in the Advance Online issue of the journal Nature Medicine.
Philadelphia (27 October 2015)--A workhorse of a drug that a few weeks ago earned its developers a Nobel prize for its success in treating multiple tropical diseases is showing early promise as a novel and desperately needed tool for interrupting malaria transmission, according to new findings presented today at the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) Annual Meeting.
EPFL researchers have discovered how intestinal worm infections cross-talk with gut bacteria to help the immune system.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- A new study suggests a potential new way to block one of the most common cancer-causing genes, without causing severe side effects.
The Notch gene plays a role in many types of cancer. It's the most common cancer-causing gene in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. About 60 percent of children and adults with T-cell leukemia harbor a Notch mutation.
But drugs designed to block Notch have caused serious side effects such as severe diarrhea or skin cancers.
Quebec City, October 27, 2015--After more than a century of speculation, researchers have finally proved that American eels really do migrate to the Sargasso Sea to reproduce. A team supervised by Professor Julian Dodson of Université Laval and Martin Castonguay of Fisheries and Oceans Canada reports having established the migratory route of this species by tracking 28 eels fitted with satellite transmitters. One of these fish reached the northern boundary of the Sargasso Sea, the presumed reproduction site for the species, after a 2,400 km journey.
CINCINNATI - Analyzing gene expression of an expectant mother's amniotic fluid could give doctors an important tool for deciding when it is safe to deliver premature babies.
Researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center report they have identified a way to test RNA and specific genetic signatures in amniotic fluid to see whether fetal lungs - and potentially other organs - are mature enough for a safe and viable delivery. The paper is published online in the journal BMC Medical Genomics.
DALLAS - Oct. 27, 2015 - Activating an enzyme that sounds an alarm for the body's innate immune system causes two lethal autoimmune diseases in mice, while inhibiting the same enzyme rescues them, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers report.
The findings, published in the Oct. 20 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), could someday lead to new therapies for autoimmune diseases.