The triple threat of coronavirus

Severe symptoms of COVID-19, leading often to death, are thought to result from the patient’s own acute immune response rather than from damage inflicted directly by the virus. Immense research efforts are therefore invested in figuring out how the virus manages to mount an effective invasion while throwing the immune system off course. A new…

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PENTEC: World experts team up to improve outcomes for children after radiation therapy

Annually, more than 350,000 children in the world are affected by pediatric cancer. Radiation has improved outcomes dramatically, but the damage caused to healthy tissue can affect the long-term health of a child. While clinicians and radiation specialists design treatments using the most up-to-date information available, there hasn’t been a single guiding source of data…

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Stimulating environments boost the brain; now scientists have found the genes responsible

Environmental enrichment — with infrastructure, unfamiliar odors and tastes, and toys and puzzles — is often used in zoos, laboratories, and farms to stimulate animals and increase their wellbeing. Stimulating environments are better for mental health and cognition because they boost the growth and function of neurons and their connections, the glia cells that support…

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University of Minnesota Medical School researchers identify target for senolytic drugs

MINNEAPOLIS/ST.PAUL (05/12/2021) — In a study recently published in Nature, University of Minnesota Medical School researchers found that senescent immune cells are the most dangerous type of senescent cell. Cells become senescent when they are damaged or stressed in the body, and they accumulate in our organs as we age. Senescent cells drive inflammation and…

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