Depression ages the brain, first human trials suggest: Damage appears 10 years early in people with the mental health condition – but it could be treated with ketamine Synapses (the connections between neurons) start thinning earlier in people with depression, study finds The small study of 10 people is the first to test the theory […]
Two thousand human brains yield clues to how genes raise risk for mental illnesses
It’s one thing to detect sites in the genome associated with mental disorders; it’s quite another to discover the biological mechanisms by which these changes in DNA work in the human brain to boost risk. In their first concerted effort to tackle the latter, 15 collaborating research teams of the National Institutes of Health-funded PsychENCODE […]
Influenza A deliberately enhances levels of the human p53 protein to reduce anti-viral gene and protein expression
Genome editing technology is helping A*STAR scientists unravel how the Influenza A virus (IAV) exploits human anti-viral responses. IAV remains a key challenge for global health resources, not least because of wide variations in symptom severity experienced by different people, even when they are infected by the same strain. This implies that there are host […]
Widely used reference for the human genome is missing 300 million bits of DNA
For the past 17 years, most scientists around the globe have been using the nucleic acid sequence, or genome, an assembly of DNA information, from primarily a single individual as a kind of “baseline” reference and human species representation for comparing genetic variety among groups of people. Known as the GRCh38 reference genome, it is […]
New model mimics human tumors for accurate testing of cancer drugs
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers have genetically engineered a new laboratory model that enables accurate testing of anti-cancer drugs by mimicking the complexity of human cancers. Using this advanced model, researchers will be able to discover the safest and most effective ways to use promising drugs called MCL-1 inhibitors in the clinic. The work […]
Engineers develop process to 3-D print cells to produce human tissue such as ligaments and tendons
With today’s technology, we can 3-D-print sculptures, mechanical parts, prosthetics, even guns and food. But a team of University of Utah biomedical engineers have developed a method to 3-D-print cells to produce human tissue such as ligaments and tendons, a process that will greatly improve a patient’s recovery.A person with a badly damaged ligament, tendon, […]
Uncovering the exquisite choreography of the developing human heart
How do you mend an injured heart? We don’t yet know—but the answer is likely to lie in how the heart builds itself in the developing embryo one cell at a time. In a study published today in Cell Stem Cell, Australian researchers report on the most in-depth study to date of exactly how human […]
World’s first human case of rat disease found in Hong Kong
A Hong Kong man has developed the world’s first ever human case of the rat version of the hepatitis E virus, according to new research from one of the city’s leading universities. There had previously been no evidence the disease could jump from rats to humans, the University of Hong Kong said Friday, warning the […]
Scientists grow human esophagus in lab
Scientists working to bioengineer the entire human gastrointestinal system in a laboratory now report using pluripotent stem cells to grow human esophageal organoids. Published in the journal Cell Stem Cell the study is the latest advancement from researchers at the Cincinnati Children’s Center for Stem Cell and Organoid Medicine (CuSTOM). The center is developing new […]
Engrafted stem cell-derived lung organoids that model human lung development
Researchers have now grown lung organoids from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) that, after implantation in mice, can develop mature alveolar type 1 (AT1) and AT2 cells and architecture approximating that of human lungs. The strategy is the first to generate both lung distal progenitor cells and mature AT1-like cells. The study is published in […]