Mycophenolic acid (MPA), discovered in 1893, was the first natural antibiotic to be isolated and crystallized in human history. Today, this fungal metabolite has been developed into multiple first-line immunosuppressive drugs to control immunologic rejection during organ transplantation and treat various autoimmune diseases. However, the biogenesis of such an old and important molecule was an…
IMAGE: The image shows sampling of HIV (red) by the newly described dendritic cells (green). view more Credit: The Westmead Institute for Medical Research Researchers at The Westmead Institute for Medical Research have discovered brand new immune cells that are at the frontline of HIV infection. Known as CD11c+ dendritic cells, these new cells are more…
IMAGE: In the process of fetal brain development, neural stem cells generate both neurons and astrocytes. Neurons are formed first (left) and astrocytes later (right). The present study has revealed the… view more Background Neurons1 and astrocytes2 are prominent cell types in the cerebral cortex. Neurons are the primary information processing cells in the brain, whereas…
IMAGE: Graphs of the vorticity during the cardiac cycle in a dog under various conditions. view more Credit: FIGURE ADAPTED FROM Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 316: H882-H888, 2019. Copyright © 2019 the American Physiological Society Japanese scientists at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT), Teikyo University of Science, and Juntendo University have found…
New research by neuroscientists from the University of Sussex shows that drinking only one pint of beer or large glass of wine is enough to significantly compromise a person’s sense of agency. Sense of agency is the feeling of being in control of our actions. It is an important aspect of human social behaviour, as…
IMAGE: The BlooDe device performing platelet work analysis. view more Credit: © Université de Franche-Comté Various diseases can cause haemorrhages or thromboses, sometimes fatal, resulting in particular from complications during surgery. This may take the form of a dysfunction of the platelets (haemostasis), the blood cells the role of which is to plug the holes in…
Scientists from the University of Sheffield have discovered a novel behaviour of the blood vessels of the brain in zebrafish that may explain some forms of stroke in humans. The previously undescribed large structures are spherical and so have been termed kugeln (German for sphere) by the Sheffield team, who discovered them in collaboration with…
IMAGE: Just over 7,000 Norwegian soldiers took part in the war in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2011. More than 4,000 of them participated in a study to find out how the… view more We usually think that trauma from war is related to the fact that soldiers have been under constant threat of death. New research…
IMAGE: Dr. Shenoy Handiru is an associate research scientist in the Center for Mobility and Rehabilitation Engineering Research at Kessler Foundation. view more Credit: Kessler Foundation East Hanover, NJ. June 21, 2019. Each year, the New Jersey Health Foundation accepts applications for grants for research projects that demonstrate exciting potential to help scientists leverage their preliminary…
For decades, University Distinguished Professor of Molecular Virology X.J. Meng and his lab at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine have studied hepatitis E virus (HEV), the causative agent of hepatitis E in humans. Now, with a new, five-year National Institutes of Health RO1 grant totaling nearly $2 million — Meng’s third successful competing renewal…