Body

Oxford University researchers have found a way to detect ovarian cancer early and identified an enzyme that is key in making ovarian cancer more deadly. Their results, published in two journals, provide new research routes for scientists trying to detect and beat the disease.

In what is being called the first-ever test of open-source drug-discovery, researchers from around the world have successfully identified compounds to pursue in treating and preventing parasite-borne illnesses such as malaria as well as cancer.

Cell reprogramming involves making one cell type into another. In theory, all cells can be reprogrammed, but there is evidence that the original cell (founder cell) influences the type of cell to which it can be reprogrammed. In general, founder cells are easy to acquire from a donor and come in one of four types: fibroblasts, keratinocytes, peripheral and umbilical cord blood, and dental pulp cells. Labs from around the world have made iPS cell lines using different founder cells.

The formation of large numbers of polyps in the colon has a high probability of developing into colon cancer, if left untreated. The large-scale appearance of polyps is often due to a hereditary cause; in this case the disease can occur in multiple family members. Under the leadership of human geneticists of the University Hospital Bonn, a team of researchers discovered genetic changes in the MSH3 gene in patients and identified a new rare form of hereditary colon cancer. The results have now been published in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

Barcelona, Thursday 28 July 2016.- Our skin renews, heals wounds, and regenerates the hair that covers it thanks to a small group of stem cells. These cells continually produce new ones, which appear on the skin surface after a few days. A study led by ICREA researcher Salvador Aznar Benitah and undertaken at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) has identified two proteins that are fundamental to conserve skin stem cells and has shown that without these proteins these cells are lost.

Although it reads like European license plate number, a protein known as ZMYND8 has demonstrated its ability to block metastasis-linked genes in prostate cancer, according to a study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The findings, resulting from cell line and mouse model studies, are published in the July 28 online issue of Molecular Cell.

Children with flat feet, also called pes planus, have a flattening of the arch during standing and walking. Flat foot is normal in infants and young children (up to 44% of three- to six-year-olds). At this age, in the absence of any associated symptoms, treatment is highly debatable.

NEW YORK (July 28, 2016) - A new study found that following basic hygienic practices and complying with protocols for Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) decolonization reduces the time to clearance of the bacteria more quickly than a treatment regimen of antibiotic ointment and antiseptic body wash.

A study from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine identifies a mechanism by which bioscaffolds used in regenerative medicine influence cellular behavior, a question that has remained unanswered since the technology was first developed several decades ago. The findings were recently published online in Science Advances.

Patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) face an elevated risk of perioperative complications; the risk is even higher if the diagnosis has not been made before surgery. This is so for many OSA patients, as Philipp Fassbender and colleagues point out in a review in the current issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztbl Int; 2016; 113: 463-69).

KRAKOW, POLAND - In order to introduce new flowering plants to market, breeders and growers need proven strategies for producing healthy, compact plants during times of highest consumer demand. Determining optimal planting times to produce true-to-type, high-quality potted plants or cut flowers also translates to higher revenues for growers. A new study in June 2016 issue of HortTechnology offers recommendations about production practices for lachenalia, an ornamental plant that is gaining popularity among consumers.

DALLAS - July 28, 2016 - UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have identified a new way to target lung cancer through the KRAS gene, one of the most commonly mutated genes in human cancer and one researchers have so far had difficulty targeting successfully.

Researchers studying the underlying biology of KRAS in lung cancer determined that activity resulting from the ACSL3 gene is essential for these lung cancer cells to survive, and that suppressing ACSL3 causes these lung cancer cells to die.

Some people love avocados. Others hate them. For many of the latter, the fruit's texture is the source of their intense dislike. What gives?

Scientists do not have a clear understanding of the exact process by which food texture is sensed. But now, a new study by UC Santa Barbara biologist Craig Montell and his research team sheds light on how fruit flies "feel" foods based on two important textural features -- viscosity and hardness. Their findings appear in the journal Neuron.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Though the drug levodopa can dramatically improve Parkinson's disease symptoms, within five years one-half of the patients using L-DOPA develop an irreversible condition -- involuntary repetitive, rapid and jerky movements. This abnormal motor behavior appears only while taking L-DOPA, and it stops if the drug is stopped. However, if L-DOPA is taken again, even many months later, it quickly re-emerges.

In tough times, humans aren't the only species that think twice about having children. Consider roundworm strain LSJ2.

Though it can't think - much less think twice -- about anything, the laboratory worm underwent a mutation that made it prioritize the survival of adults over creating abundant offspring. Researchers noticed the change in behavior and the mutation after LSJ2 faced hardship for 50 years.