Endometriosis, a prevalent gynecological condition, is characterized by the growth of endometrial-like tissues outside the uterus, leading to severe pain and infertility in affected women. The pathogenesis of endometriosis remains elusive, and effective treatments are limited, highlighting the need for a deeper understanding of its molecular mechanisms. A pivotal role of P21-activated kinase 5 (PAK5) in endometriosis progression has been uncovered, revealing that PAK5-mediated phosphorylation of pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) is critical for anaerobic glycolysis in endometriotic cells. This discovery…
Accumulation of fat molecules is detrimental to the cell. Researchers from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine), have made a breakthrough in understanding how our cells manage to stay healthy by recycling important fat molecules. Their study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), reveals how a protein called Spinster homolog 1 (Spns1) helps transport fats out of cell compartments known as lysosomes. Led by Associate Professor Nguyen…
ISTA scientists uncover how the brain unblurs vision during movement Why do our mental images stay sharp even when we are moving fast? A team of neuroscientists led by Professor Maximilian Jösch at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) has identified a mechanism that corrects visual distortions caused by movement in animals. The study, conducted in mice, identifies a core function that can be generalized across the vertebrate visual system, including primates such as humans. The findings are…
Cretaceous fossil from Antarctica reveals earliest modern bird New clues delve into the age-old question: Does a duck always look like a duck and quack like a duck? Sixty-six million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous Period, an asteroid impact near the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico triggered the extinction of all known non-bird dinosaurs. But for the early ancestors of today’s waterfowl, surviving that mass extinction event was like… water off a duck’s back. Location matters, as Antarctica…
A study of fruit flies shows some species are highly susceptible to a wide range of viruses. In the study – by the University of Exeter – 35 fruit fly species were exposed to 11 different viruses of diverse types. As expected, fly species that were less affected by a certain virus also tended to respond well to related viruses. But the findings also show “positive correlations in susceptibility” to viruses in general. In other words, fly species that were…
UMD researchers uncover key mechanisms in gene regulation that may lead to better design of RNA-based medicines. RNA-based medicines are one of the most promising ways to fight human disease, as demonstrated by the recent successes of RNA vaccines and double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) therapies. But while health care providers can now successfully develop drugs that use dsRNA to accurately target and silence disease-causing genes, a major challenge remains: getting these potentially life-saving RNA molecules into cells efficiently. A new study published in…
A new drug-free, minimally invasive intervention targets the root cause of progressive loss of neural function in spinal muscle atrophy (SMA), an inherited neuromuscular disease. An intervention, which involves electrical stimulation of the sensory spinal nerves, can gradually reawaken functionally silent motor neurons in the spinal cord and improve leg muscle strength and walking in adults with SMA. The findings were reported by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers in Nature Medicine today. Early results from a pilot clinical…
People undergoing hemodialysis treatment for kidney failure often experience chronic pain related to their condition, but it can be difficult to manage with opioid medication and other conventional treatments. A new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine finds that offering these patients pain coping skills training (PCST) significantly reduced their suffering and improved their quality of life. “This is particularly important for these patients, since the therapeutic choices for pain management are limited and the use of opioids has been…
Insights into human perception might prove vital for clinical environments Tokyo, Japan – Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have studied how nurses perceive words showing high and low risk ailments. They looked for directional bias, e.g. whether words denoting lower (higher) risk led to a quicker response when placed on the left (right) side or vice versa. They found faster response for significantly higher or lower risk, but different people had different directional biases. Their findings might inform better ways…
A new platform can design and match small peptides with complex, tangled proteins previously considered unreachable DURHAM, N.C. — Biomedical engineers at Duke University have developed an AI-based platform that designs short proteins, termed peptides, capable of binding and destroying previously undruggable disease-causing proteins. Inspired by OpenAI’s image generation model, their new algorithm can rapidly prioritize peptides for experimental testing. The work appeared Jan. 22 in the journal Science Advances. One approach to treat disease is to develop therapeutics that…
Research team led by OHIO’s Sabrina Curran finds new evidence that pushes back the arrival of early hominins in Europe; discovery published in Nature Communications ATHENS, Ohio (Jan. 24, 2025) – Research led by Ohio University Associate Professor of Anthropology Dr. Sabrina Curran reveals new evidence of early hominin activity in Europe, suggesting that hominins were present on the continent far earlier than previously thought. The team of researchers, also led by co-principal investigators Dr. Alexandru Petculescu, of the “Emil…
Research among the first to show pandemic’s effects on children before they become students Lockdowns. Social distancing. Shuttered schools and businesses. The COVID-19 pandemic and its sweeping disruptions set off a stampede of “what it’s doing to us” research, focused largely on schoolchildren. How were students’ academics affected? Their mental health? Their social development? Left unexamined was whether the pandemic impacted the social cognition of preschool children — kids younger than 6 — whose social norms were upended by day…
Why does coffee taste more bitter to some people than it does to others? Researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Food Systems Biology at the Technical University of Munich have now come closer to answering this question. They have identified a new group of bitter compounds in roasted Arabica coffee and have investigated how they influence its bitter taste. In addition, they demonstrated for the first time that individual genetic predisposition also plays a role in determining how bitter these…
Insights could advance new drugs to treat the progressive, fatal disease known as transthyretin amyloidosis. LA JOLLA, CA—The tiny protein known as transthyretin can cause big problems in the body when it misfolds after secretion. While healthy transthyretin moves hormones through blood and spinal fluid, misfolded versions of the protein form dangerous clumps in the heart and along nerves—triggering a progressive and fatal disease known as transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR). Up to a quarter of all men over the age of…
Primary care physicians’ responses to treatment burden in people with type 2 diabetes: a qualitative video analysis in China Background and Goal: Managing type 2 diabetes involves complex treatment, workload, and costs that impose a significant burden on individuals, impacting their physical and mental health. This study examines how general practitioners (GPs) in China identify and respond to these burdens during patient consultations. Study Approach: The study examined video recordings of 29 GP-patient consultations recorded between 2018 and 2019 in…
The first randomized control trial of the school-based intervention called Supporting Transition Resilience of Newcomer Groups (STRONG) shows significant reductions in depression, anxiety and behavior problems among refugee and immigrant students. The study, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, was co-led by Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and Loyola University, in partnership with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Results were published in the American Journal of Community Psychology. Key findings are summarized in an infographic. STRONG is…
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