Health News

Test for esophageal cancer could save millions of lives: A tiny capsule, a string and a 2-centimeter sponge are the future of screening for deadly disease

Cancer of the esophagus claims more than 400,000 lives around the world each year. With no efficient, reliable method of screening for the disease, by the time symptoms become apparent, it’s often too late to save the patient. A Johns Hopkins researcher who has devoted his career to the detection and prevention of esophageal cancer […]

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Discovery casts doubt on cell surface organization models

Like planets, the body’s cell surfaces look smooth from a distance but hilly closer up. An article published in Communications Biology describes implications, unknown to date, of the way data from cell surfaces are normally interpreted; i.e. as if they lacked topographic features. When Earth is studied from space, its surface looks smooth, but on […]

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How breast cancer avoids immune system detection

Recent breakthroughs in immunotherapy are making a huge difference in treating some forms of cancer, especially metastatic cancer. But breast cancer has proven a tricky foe for this new therapy, and an interdisciplinary team of FSU researchers is now a little bit closer to figuring out why. Associate Professor of Statistics Jinfeng Zhang, Professor of […]

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A new molecular player involved in T cell activation

When bacteria or viruses enter the body, proteins on their surfaces are recognized and processed to activate T cells, white blood cells with critical roles in fighting infections. During T-cell activation, a molecular complex known as the microtubule-organizing center (MTOC) moves to a central location on the surface of the T-cell. Microtubules have several important […]

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A Trojan horse delivery method for miRNA-enriched extracellular vesicles

A method for large-scale production of extracellular vesicles enriched with specific microRNAs (miRNAs) has been developed in the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) labs, offering a manufacturing standardization process which may have therapeutic applications and clinical impact. Extracellular vesicles are currently of particular interest in the scientific community for their therapeutic potential as […]

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Small molecules: From beaker to solved 3D structure in minutes

In a new study that one scientist called jaw-dropping, a joint UCLA/Caltech team has shown that it is possible to obtain the structures of small molecules, such as certain hormones and medications, in as little as 30 minutes. That’s hours and even days less than was possible before. The team used a technique called micro-electron […]

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Breast cancer cells become invasive by changing their identity

Researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified a protein that determines the identity and invasive properties of breast cancer cells. The finding could lead to the development of new therapeutic and diagnostic strategies to target breast cancer invasion and metastasis. The study is published in the scientific journal Cancer Research. Cancer cell invasion of […]

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Blood vessel function takes harmful hit from hookah tobacco smoking

Smoking hookah tobacco acutely impairs blood vessels’ ability to function, according to preliminary research to be presented in Chicago at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2018, a premier global exchange of the latest advances in cardiovascular science for researchers and clinicians. Hookah, also known as a waterpipe, consists of a bowl, a chamber partially […]

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Imaging collaboration sheds new light on cancer growth

Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers have uncovered new insights into how the normal controls on cell growth are lost in cancer cells, leading to rapid tumour expansion. The findings could help researchers predict how cancer cells respond to chemotherapy and improve our understanding of how cancer evolves. Published in the journal Cell Cycle, the […]