Body

(TORONTO, Canada - July 14, 2016) - International stem cell scientists, co-led in Canada by Dr. John Dick and in the Netherlands by Dr. Gerald de Haan, have discovered the switch to harness the power of cord blood and potentially increase the supply of stem cells for cancer patients needing transplantation therapy to fight their disease.

Scientists at EPFL and in the US have developed a robust method for characterizing human embryonic stem cells and their potential for medical applications.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - In a paper published in the July 14 inaugural issue of the journal Science Immunology, University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers report a new quality-control checkpoint function in developing B cells, cells that produce antibodies to protect the body from pathogens.

The current Zika epidemic in Latin America is likely to burn itself out within three years, suggests new research.

The findings, from scientists at Imperial College London, also conclude that the epidemic cannot be contained with existing control measures. The team, who published their findings in the journal Science, predict the next large-scale epidemic is unlikely to emerge for at least another ten years - although there is a possibility of smaller outbreaks in this time.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (July 14, 2016) - Whitehead Institute scientists have created a checklist that defines the "naive" state of cultured human embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Such cells can mature into almost any cell type and more closely resemble the unique molecular features of pluripotent cells in the early human embryo than conventional ESCs in later stages of development. Although scientists have been very interested in working with naive stem cells, they have lacked a common definition of what makes a cell truly naive.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Scientists at Duke Health are part of a team that has discovered a type of cell surrounding blood vessels can also serve as a starting point for sarcoma, a form of cancer that occurs in bones and connective tissues.

The findings, made through studies of mice, offer insights that could aid in the development of potential new treatments for the rare but devastating cancer, which has 15,000 new diagnoses annually in the U.S.

Chicago, IL, July 14, 2016 - Diabetic patients who undergo heart bypass surgery are living longer and have much better long-term outcomes when cardiothoracic surgeons use arteries rather than veins for the bypasses, according to a new study published online today by The Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

Amsterdam, July 14, 2016 - Newly discovered molecules can kill multidrug resistant cancer cells by blocking cells' defenses against cancer drugs, according to a new study published in Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters. The lead author of the research, from the University of Navarra in Spain and Jagiellonian University Medical College in Poland, hopes the findings provide an initial step towards more effective treatments in the future against resistant cancers.

BOSTON-- July 14, 2016-- Researchers from the Harvard Medical School - affiliated Hebrew SeniorLife Institute for Aging Research (IFAR) have found increasing evidence that delirium in older surgical patients may be associated with long-term cognitive decline. Findings from the study were published today in the July 2016 issue of Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association.

Athens, Ga. - An international team of ecologists has identified the bat species with the greatest potential to harbor filoviruses--a family that includes Ebola virus. Writing in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, they suggest that areas where many of these species overlap, notably in Southeast Asia, should be targeted for disease surveillance and virus discovery efforts.

AMHERST, Mass. - Scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst report in the current issue of Small that they have genetically designed a new strain of bacteria that spins out extremely thin and highly conductive wires made up of solely of non-toxic, natural amino acids.

Researchers led by microbiologist Derek Lovely say the wires, which rival the thinnest wires known to man, are produced from renewable, inexpensive feedstocks and avoid the harsh chemical processes typically used to produce nanoelectronic materials.

When adults develop blood cancer, they are frequently diagnosed with what is referred to as acute myeloid leukemia. The disease is triggered by pathological alterations of bone marrow cells, in which, in addition, an important mechanism is out of action: these cells do not die when they are damaged. Researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have now discovered a molecular signaling pathway for self-destruction that is suppressed in leukemia cells.

Scientists have discovered a new method of creating human stem cells which could solve the big problem of the large-scale production needed to fully realise the potential of these remarkable cells for understanding and treating disease.

The discovery has been made by a team of scientists at The University of Nottingham, Uppsala University and GE Healthcare in Sweden.

The best hiding place often lies behind enemy lines, as many bacteria such as the pathogens responsible for tuberculosis or typhoid have realized. They invade immune cells and can survive there, well hidden, for some time. To eliminate such invaders, the host macrophages can initiate a suicide program. Together with researchers at the Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research and ETH Zurich, the team led by Prof.

BOSTON (July 14, 2016)--Eating less may help us lead longer, healthier lives, according to the new results from a large, multicenter study, led by researchers at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University. The paper, published in Aging, reveals that restricting calories by 25 percent in healthy non-obese individuals over two years, while maintaining adequate protein, vitamin, and mineral intake, can significantly lower markers of chronic inflammation without negatively affecting other parts of the immune system.