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Category: biotech/medical – Page 3

Resurrected tissue: Mechanism that enables regeneration after extensive damage solves a 50-year-old mystery

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, our skin tissue—and in fact many types of epithelial tissue that lines and covers the body’s organs—can respond to death and destruction with a burst of regeneration. This phenomenon, known as compensatory proliferation, was first described in the 1970s in fly larvae, which regrew fully functional wings after their epithelial tissue had been severely damaged by high-dose radiation. Since then, this surprising ability has been documented in many species, including humans, yet its molecular basis has remained unclear.

A new study from the Weizmann Institute of Science, published in Nature Communications, reveals that the very enzymes responsible for cellular destruction—caspases—may also render certain cells resistant to death, enabling damaged tissue not only to regenerate but even to become more resilient.

Unfortunately, this same mechanism may be hijacked by many types of cancer and may help explain why some tumors recur in a more aggressive and treatment-resistant form. The new findings could thus open avenues for therapies that speed up wound repair and help prevent cancer relapse.

Intracranial Aneurysm Rupture Risk Prediction Model

This machine learning model was trained on a large multicenter dataset of unruptured intracranial aneurysms to predict future rupture risk across international cohorts, supporting more precise and personalized treatment decisions.

Question Can a machine-learning model (MLM) predict the rupture risk of unruptured intracranial aneurysms (UIAs) using prerupture data?

Findings In this prognostic study of 11 579 UIAs from a cohort of 8,846 patients, an MLM trained on prerupture clinical and morphological data demonstrated robust performance in both internal and external validation, including on aneurysms smaller than 10 mm.

Meaning The findings of this study suggest that an MLM may improve risk stratification and inform treatment decision-making for patients with UIAs, providing additional guidance even for smaller aneurysms traditionally considered low risk.

Rb1 identified as predictive biomarker for new therapeutic strategy in some breast cancers

A new study published in Science Translational Medicine by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center details a therapeutic vulnerability in patients with an aggressive subtype of triple-negative breast cancer.

Led by Khandan Keyomarsi, Ph.D., professor of Experimental Radiation Oncology, the study shows that simultaneous inhibition of ATR and PKMYT1 triggers a type of cell death in Rb1-deficient breast cancer models.

Using genomic profiling, proteomics and patient-derived xenografts, the researchers found that loss of Rb1—a gene important for normal cell division—disrupts DNA repair processes and forces tumor cells to rely on ATR and PKMYT1 dependent pathways for survival, creating a vulnerability that can be selectively targeted.

Why a mild brain injury can trigger Alzheimer’s

New research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine is revealing why traumatic brain injury increases the chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease—and the discovery is pointing to a potential strategy to prevent the progressive brain disorder.

John Lukens, director of UVA’s Harrison Family Translational Research Center in Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases—housed within the Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology—and his team discovered that even one mild traumatic brain injury can set off damaging changes, paving the way for the development of Alzheimer’s.

“Our findings indicate that fixing brain drainage following head trauma can provide a much-needed strategy to limit the development of Alzheimer’s disease later in life,” said Lukens, part of UVA’s Department of Neuroscience and its Center for Brain Immunology and Glia, and author on the new study published in Cell Reports.

Nine-gene blood signature and methylene blue offer hope for cerebral malaria

Malaria continues to place a substantial burden on many emerging economies, contributing to significant loss of life, long-term disability, and economic disruption. According to the World Health Organization, the disease accounts for about 600,000 deaths each year, with the highest impact in low- and middle-income regions where access to prompt diagnosis and treatment remains limited.

A revolutionary 3D-printed titanium jaw implant takes a bite out of surgery time

CADskills is a medical device startup based in Ghent, Belgium. Their expertise lies in patient-specific implants, with a focus on CMF and neurosurgery patients. What is putting them in Materialise’s spotlight however, is their AMSJI: a revolutionary 3D-printed titanium jaw implant that will make life better for extreme maxillary atrophy sufferers. Now there’s something to […]

‘Devious’ Lung-Brain Cancer Connection Surprises Researchers

Lung cancer cells metastasizing to the brain can form real electrical synapses with neurons, not just hijack brain space — a discovery that may open new therapeutic targets. Researchers found that neuronal activity actually spurs tumor growth and that drugs reducing neuron signaling could slow cancer proliferation.

Two teams discover how small cell lung cancer hijacks neural pathways to proliferate faster, especially to the brain. Common neuro drugs could be the answer.

The protein denitrosylase SCoR2 regulates lipogenesis and fat storage

Researchers have identified protein SCoR2 as a potential drug target for obesity, hepatic steatosis in studies of mice, showing that it prevents fat accumulation and weight gain.

Learn more in.

Removal of SNO groups from hepatocyte and adipocyte proteins induces lipid synthesis and weight gain.

Adjuvant Chemotherapy for HR-Positive, ERBB2-Negative Breast Cancer

Adjuvant chemotherapy use almost doubled in premenopausal patients with node-positive tumors and with a low to intermediate genomic risk from 2019 to 2022 but decreased for patients with node-negative disease.

Question What are the patterns of adjuvant chemotherapy use for early-stage hormone receptor (HR)–positive, ERBB2-negative breast cancer by genomic risk and nodal status?

Findings In this cohort study of 504 937 women, adjuvant chemotherapy use nearly doubled in premenopausal patients with node-positive tumors and low or intermediate 21-gene recurrence score from 2019 to 2022 but decreased for women with node-negative disease.

Meaning The findings highlight the variability in genomic assay use to inform adjuvant systemic therapy recommendations in HR-positive, ERBB2-negative breast cancer.

Natural protein drug may slow neuron death linked to Alzheimer’s disease

Scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz have discovered that while brain neuron changes, including cell loss, may begin in early life, a drug long-approved for other conditions might be repurposed to slow this damage, offering new hope for those with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and other cognition issues.

The study was published today in the journal Cell Reports Medicine.

“This drug improved one measure of cognition and reduced a blood measure of neuron death in people with AD in a relatively short period of time in its first clinical trial,” said the study’s senior author Professor Huntington Potter, Ph.D., director of the University of Colorado Alzheimer’s and Cognition Center at CU Anschutz.

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