Engineered E. coli can Survive to Treat Diseases
Scientists have long tried to introduce genetically engineered bacteria into the gut to treat diseases. In the past, these attempts have focused on engineering common lab strains of E. coli, which cannot compete with the native gut bacteria that are well…
First Synthetic Mechanosensitive Potassium Channel is Here!
Intrigued by the properties of ion channel proteins commonly observed in cells, Tokyo Tech researchers have developed the first synthetic mechanosensitive potassium channel using a newly developed aromatic fluorinated amphiphilic cyclophane. Displaying both “stimuli responsiveness” and “selective ion transport” abilities,…
7 deaths, halts phase II clinical trial of MicroGenics
Recently, the death of seven patients in a Phase II trial of MicroGeniccs led to halt the testing. The trial was trying to assess the first line treatment drugs for patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the…
Fixed vial sizes for controversial Alzheimer’s drug could waste $605 million in Medicare spending each year
Medicare could waste up to $605 million per year on the controversial Alzheimer’s drug aducanumab if it is eventually approved for widespread use because it is supplied in vials containing fixed doses that may not be appropriate for all patients–resulting…
Common antiretroviral drug improves cognition in mouse model of Down syndrome
Lamivudine, a commonly-used antiretroviral drug for treating HIV, improves cognition in a mouse model of Down syndrome, according to the findings of a joint new study by researchers at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) and the IrsiCaixa AIDS Research…
Gene variants may affect length of survival in Parkinson’s patients, new study shows
Scientists from four institutes in Paris, including the prestigious Paris Brain Institute at the Sorbonne Université, studied the records of 2,037 Parkinson’s disease patients from their first hospital visit and believe the genetic variants may shed light in how fast…
Prostate cancer hijacks tumor cell biorhythm to evade hormone therapy
Hormone therapy is successful at keeping metastatic prostate cancer under control, but eventually the tumor cells become resistant to it. An unexpected potential solution has now emerged in medicines not designed to fight cancer, but to target proteins that regulate…
Ancient microbes may help us find extraterrestrial life forms
Using light-capturing proteins in living microbes, scientists have reconstructed what life was like for some of Earth’s earliest organisms. These efforts could help us recognize signs of life on other planets, whose atmospheres may more closely resemble our pre-oxygen planet….
