How does the brain translate information from the outside world into something we remember? An international team of researchers working in the Human Brain Project have zoomed in on the neuronal circuits in the striatum, a brain structure involved in memory, behavior and reward learning. The findings, published in the PLOS Computational Biology Journal, increase…
Vitamin D and marine omega-3 fatty acids — also known as fish oil — are purported to have many health benefits, including reducing systemic inflammation. Signals of systemic inflammation are tied to diseases of aging and obesity, including cardiovascular disease, heart failure, osteoporosis, diabetes mellitus, some cancers, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. While…
Researchers at Penn State College of Medicine have developed a new method to model how genes interact with each other — and it may someday contribute to the development of personalized treatments for patients. According to the researchers, the new model is able to construct personalized networks for an individual patient that can show…
Results from a study published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology may help explain why cannabidiol–a chemical component of marijuana with no psychoactive properties–reduces the frequency of seizures in patients with a severe form of epilepsy. The effect may be explained by a drug-drug interaction between cannabidiol and the anti-seizure medication clobazam. The form…
DUARTE, Calif. — City of Hope researchers may have found a way to sharpen the fastest, cheapest and most accurate gene editing technique, CRISPR-Cas9, so that it can more successfully cut out undesirable genetic information. This improved cutting ability could one day fast-track potential therapies for HIV, sickle cell disease and, potentially, other immune conditions.…
The human pathogenic bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common sexually transmitted bacterial pathogen worldwide. It is estimated to infect more than 100 million people each year and is a frequent cause of infertility. Moreover, Chlamydia trachomatis also causes eye infections and represents the most frequent infectious cause of blindness in developing areas of the…
A Wilmot Cancer Institute-led study in JAMA Oncology shows that when physicians fully appreciate the concerns of older adults with cancer, such as function and forgetfulness, it elevates patient care and satisfaction. The study is believed to be the first to assess in a randomized clinical trial whether a tool known as geriatric assessment (GA)…
SEATTLE, Wash. – A first-of-its-kind study led by researchers at Washington State University shows that new cases of heart disease among American Indians in three U.S. regions have gone down. Findings from the study–which looked for changes across a span of 25 years–also suggest that fewer Native men are dying from heart-disease-related events, such as…
LA JOLLA, CA – An unexpected finding from the Scripps Research laboratory of Xiang-Lei Yang, PhD, has illuminated a potential strategy for treating the inherited neurological disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT), for which there is no approved medicine today. CMT is a progressive disease that typically develops early in life, affecting roughly 1 in 2,500 people. Over…
In an effort to further measure the opioid epidemic’s impact in Ohio, the Ohio Alliance for Innovation in Population Health (The Alliance) studied hepatitis C rates within the state and discovered consistently high rates in the southern Appalachia region over a five-year period. According to Orman Hall, a research team member on the study and…