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Category: biotech/medical – Page 2

Scientists Say This Simple Supplement May Actually Reverse Heart Disease

Scientists in Japan say a common supplement may actually help “unclog” certain diseased heart arteries from the inside out.

A simple food supplement sold in Japan may have helped reverse a dangerous form of heart disease that often resists standard treatment, according to researchers at Osaka University. The findings, originally published in the European Heart Journal, continue to attract attention because they describe something rarely seen in cardiology: clogged heart arteries becoming noticeably clearer after a nutritional intervention rather than conventional cholesterol lowering alone.

Scientists target a hidden form of heart disease.

Reprogramming myeloid crosstalk overcomes immune resistance in colorectal cancer

Immunotherapy resistance remains a significant clinical challenge in the treatment of colorectal cancer. A recent study by Mount Sinai researchers, published in Cell Reports Medicine, reveals that overcoming this resistance requires more than just activating cancer-fighting T cells; it depends on restoring crucial communication between T cells and myeloid cells, specifically macrophages. Using advanced preclinical models and single-cell analyses, the research team identified exhausted T cells and immunosuppressive macrophages as key drivers of treatment failure. To counter this, they tested a novel combination therapy that targets multiple immune checkpoint proteins (PD-1, CTLA-4, and LAG3) alongside TREM2, a marker found on suppressive macrophages. By successfully reprogramming the tumor microenvironment to simultaneously reinvigorate T cells and neutralize suppressive macrophages, this combination strategy achieved up to 100% tumor clearance in mismatch repair-deficient cancer models and over 70% clearance in typically resistant mismatch repair-proficient models. Furthermore, the approach established long-lasting immune memory against cancer recurrence, highlighting the profound clinical potential of rationally designed combination immunotherapies that address both T cell dysfunction and the suppressive tumor environment.

Mestrallet et al. show that T cell-myeloid interactions determine response to PD-1 blockade in colorectal cancer. Targeting TREM2 macrophages together with LAG3, CTLA4, and PD-1 reprograms the tumor microenvironment and drives antitumor immunity, achieving up to 100% tumor clearance in mismatch repair-deficient and 70% in mismatch repair-proficient models.

Nanoparticles overcome drug-resistant cancer via sequential drug release and photothermal therapy

Cancer cells frequently develop the ability to expel anticancer drugs before they can work—a phenomenon called multidrug resistance (MDR)—which is one of the leading reasons why chemotherapy fails in patients. Research published in the Journal of Controlled Release addresses that problem with a fundamentally new strategy: instead of simply increasing drug doses or switching drugs, researchers engineered nanoparticles that first disable the cancer cell’s drug-expulsion mechanism, and only then release the anticancer drug.

By combining this sequential drug delivery approach with photothermal therapy (using near-infrared laser light to heat and destroy the tumor), complete tumor elimination and 100% survival in a mouse model of drug-resistant cancer were achieved, with no detectable toxicity to normal tissues.

This remarkable drug delivery system was developed by an international research team led by Professor Eijiro Miyako at Tohoku University, who is also a Visiting Professor at Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, in collaboration with the group of Drs. Alberto Bianco and Cécilia Ménard-Moyon at the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS)/University of Strasbourg.

A blood-brain barrier-like vascular gate limits immunotherapy efficacy in neuroendocrine cancers

A blood-brain barrier-like vascular gate in small cell lung cancer and other neuroendocrine cancers blocks immune cells and drives resistance to immunotherapy. Targeting the proteins IGF1R or IGFBP5 boosts CD8+ T cell infiltration and enhances anti-PD1 therapy.

Parkinson’s Patient Moves Freely Again After World-First Imp

Parkinson’s patient Thomas Matsson was the first in the world to receive 7 million lab-grown brain cells in 2023. Today, he can smell and play sports.

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have successfully implanted 7 million lab-grown brain cells into a patient to treat Parkinson’s disease.

Swedish resident Thomas Matsson was the first in the world to test the method about a year ago.

Kanvas makes the microbiome druggable—and the implications are massive

Kanvas looks amazing! They’re systematically deciphering microbiomes and developing clinical-stage interventions to improve patient outcomes in oncology and beyond. Very impressive! I’m also especially interested in their approach to maternal envi­ron­mental enteric dysfunction (EED), which apparently affects 150M people!

Ever since the genomics revolution revealed how reliant the human organism is on its microscopic microbial cohabitants, the microbiome has been medicine’s most elusive frontier, promising better health if only we could untangle the trillions of interactions that influence nearly every facet of our physiology. But until now, effective medicines that harness the microbiome have been rare. Because of the diversity of microbial species and the complexity of host-to-microbe interactions, as well as the lack of a reliable, easily manufactured drug modality (the package that delivers a medicine’s therapeutic effect), the microbiome has been hard to treat, despite its importance to functions like immune response. Microbiome science has disappointed patients, doctors, founders, and investors.

That’s why DCVC is so excited about the cascade of recent developments at Kanvas Biosciences, which is moving the field beyond descriptive profiling of the microbiome to translating comprehensive biochemical insights into clinically useful products. In the past few weeks, the Princeton-based spatial biology company has kicked off a Phase 1 clinical trial for its first drug candidate, secured significant new backing from the Gates Foundation (closing a $48 million Series A financing, bringing Kanvas’s total funding to $78 million), and bolstered its scientific leadership by adding one of the most respected names in bioengineering to its board.

Clinical milestone

The most significant milestone in Kanvas’s evolution is the dosing of the first patients in a Phase I clinical trial for KAN-4. This live biotherapeutic product (LBP), resembling an ordinary pill, treats the colitis that many cancer patients develop after receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), allowing them to remain on the life-saving therapy longer.

One Type of Fat May Accelerate Brain Aging, But Scientists Say There’s a Fix

A higher level of the fat that gathers around organs has been linked to faster brain aging in a new study, with glucose and insulin the likely mediators.

The study, led by a team from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) in Israel, suggests that reducing visceral fat can protect against brain atrophy.

Like other parts of the body, the brain doesn’t necessarily age at a consistent rate: wear and tear can increase or decrease, depending on numerous factors. Faster brain aging typically means a faster decline in mental performance, and a higher risk of brain diseases.

Specialized RNA molecules could counter ALS neurodegeneration

Misshapen proteins cause a mess of trouble—particularly in neurodegenerative diseases. But a new study suggests it’s possible that giving them a little bit of extra support could keep them working correctly, and even reverse the damage they have caused.

The new research focuses on one such aberrant protein, TDP-43, which binds to RNA in the cell’s nucleus and is responsible for regulating thousands of human genes. If TDP-43 turns from a healthy, liquid-like phase into diseased, fibrous solid-like aggregates, its presence can be fatal.

This protein is one of the key drivers of the diseases amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD)—a discovery first made by pioneering Penn Medicine scientists Virginia M.-Y. Lee, Ph.D., MBA, and the late John Trojanowski, MD, Ph.D.

Blood as the mirror and modulator of aging: mechanistic insights and rejuvenation strategies

Aging is a complex process influenced by changes in our blood that affect how quickly we age. Scientists have shown that blood contains important molecules and cellular components — including proteins, metabolites, and immune cells — that can either accelerate or slow aging. Tools such as the ‘proteomic aging clock’ predict age and disease risk based on blood protein profiles, whereas emerging multi-omics approaches integrate metabolomic and immunomic data. Large-scale analyses of circulating factors reveal how these components change with age and identify markers of organ-specific aging. Certain blood-borne molecules can predict diseases such as heart disease and Alzheimer disease. These findings demonstrate that aging does not occur uniformly across tissues. Overall, studying diverse blood components provides valuable insight into aging biology and offers opportunities to develop strategies that promote healthier aging and improve long-term health.

This summary was initially drafted using artificial intelligence, then revised and fact-checked by the author.

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