Who has overcome an infection with the virus without noticing, and how many people have already produced protective antibodies against the new coronavirus? Various antibody studies are now under way that will provide information on immunity or seroprevalence in the population. However, in order to compare these studies in a timely and reliable manner and…
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A test which detects changing levels of tumour fragments in the blood may be an easy, non-invasive and quick way to predict who will benefit from immunotherapy, a treatment option for advanced cancers. Although immunotherapy has been shown to shrink tumours and prolong survival for patients for whom other treatments have failed, about 20-30% of…
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Philadelphia, August 3, 2020–Whether children have ongoing sleep problems from birth through childhood or do not develop sleep problems until they begin school, a new study by researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) has found that sleep disturbances at any age are associated with diminished well-being by the time the children are 10 or…
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“Recognizing and Treating COPD in Older Adults,” the latest issue of the What’s Hot newsletter from The Gerontological Society of America, addresses what is known about the prevalence, incidence, and impact of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in older adults. Despite high incidence of COPD — as many as 30 million Americans are affected —…
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Considered the “guardian of the genome,” TP53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer. TP53‘s normal function is to detect DNA damage and prevent cells from passing this damage on to daughter cells. When TP53 is mutated, the protein made from this gene, called p53, can no longer perform this protective function, and the…
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A mother’s own breast milk has infection-fighting factors and nutrients to help fuel growth and development in babies and may be easier to digest than formula. Providing this nourishment is particularly important for infants born prematurely, both while they are receiving care in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and after they are able…
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A team of scientists has engineered antiviral compounds that can kill several types of coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The compounds neutralized viruses in human airway cells and improved survival in mice infected with a deadly, closely related virus that causes Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The new compounds’ broad activity suggest…
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(Boston)–Deborah Lang, MD, associate professor of dermatology at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), has been awarded a two-year, $250,000 grant from the Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust to further her basic science research on the molecular and cellular biology of melanoma. Specifically, the award will support her project: Transcriptional Mechanisms underlying the shared…
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With these new findings scientists can potentially better understand the subtle changes that can occur in genes and brain circuits that can lead to mental health disorders such as anxiety and autism spectrum disorders. Although physically very different, research has found that the brains of flies, mice and humans are similar in how they form…
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In April, with hospitals overwhelmed and much of the United States in lockdown, the Department of Health and Human Services produced a presentation for the White House arguing that rapid development of a coronavirus vaccine was the best hope to control the pandemic. “DEADLINE: Enable broad access to the public by October 2020,” the first…
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