News about PaperPanda, Open Access, and Research
Some strains of yeast in the human gut can produce toxins that could contribute to irritable bowel disease (IBD), according to new research. These “high-damaging” Candida albicans yeast strains aren’t usually a problem when they are kept in balance, but in the guts of those with IBD, the fungi appear to proliferate, triggering inflammation. The … Read more
Did you know you have tiny tunnels in your head? That’s OK, no one else did either until recently! But that’s exactly what a team of medical researchers confirmed in mice and humans in 2018 – tiny channels that connect skull bone marrow to the lining of the brain. The research shows they may … Read more
Lactococcus lactis bacteria have been engineered to produce skin-healing proteins and could be useful for treating diabetic ulcers Health 15 March 2022 By Alice Klein Lactococcus lactis bacteria seen in a scanning electron microscope image STEVE GSCHMEISSNER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY Cheese-making bacteria have been engineered to produce skin repair proteins that promote rapid healing when applied … Read more
With age comes experience. And with experience come sore backs, tired bones, and increased risks from a large number of diseases. Scientists have long been trying figure out how to stop these aches and pains in our twilight years, and to make us live longer and healthier lives at the same time. While it’s … Read more
An experimental new type of cancer treatment has yielded some impressive results in mice: the eradication of advanced-stage ovarian and colorectal cancer in the animals as little as six days. The new therapy has only been tested in mice so far, so let’s not get too excited just yet. However, the early signs are … Read more
Cancer biologist Cyrus Ghajar was gearing up to study how the immune system can fight breast cancer when he hit a snag: The supposedly fast-spreading cancer cells he implanted in mice stayed put and sometimes even disappeared after about 11 days. Then postdoc Candice Grzelak identified the culprit: the green fluorescent protein (GFP) the researchers … Read more
An Australian plan to eliminate childhood cancer deaths using personalised medicine will be made available to all Australian children with the condition from 2023 Health 15 February 2022 By Alice Klein DNA sequencing helps offer a personalised approach to cancer Getty Images/iStockphoto An ambitious Australian programme to use personalised medicine to reduce the number of children … Read more
A new technique called sonogenetics uses ultrasound to switch on and off genetically altered brain cells. It has been successfully tested in mice, and could be a future tool for treating brain conditions such as Parkinson’s or epilepsy in humans Health 9 February 2022 By Clare Wilson Neurons (magenta) in a mouse brain Salk Institute … Read more
Medical researchers have discovered a molecule linking the tiny creatures that call our guts home to levels of fat in our bodies. “We now have a molecular mechanism that provides a starting point to understand our microbiome as a link between our diet and our body composition,” explained Emory University biochemist Dean Jones. Hints … Read more
If you ever come across a king baboon spider (Pelinobius muticus), which lives primarily in Tanzania and Kenya, keep your distance: Its bite and the associated venom aren’t fatal but do produce a lot of pain and itchiness that can last for days. Scientists think they have worked out why the spider’s venom is … Read more