New research has identified mitochondrial therapies that may benefit people who suffer from certain types of inherited neuromuscular disorders. Neuromuscular disorders affect a large number of children and adults worldwide, and mitochondrial involvement characterizes roughly 1 in 5,000 cases. Currently, treatments for mitochondrial diseases may relieve symptoms but do not target the disease itself. LabContinueContinue reading “Mice, mitochondria and myopathy”
Category Archives: research news
How Drosophila dances away from danger
We have probably all witnessed an insect evading an imminent threat, such as a flyswatter or rolled-up newspaper. But how many of us have really thought about the details of entomological escape plans? A pair of researchers from the California Institute of Technology (Pasadena) has done so, applying high-speed video technology to find out exactlyContinueContinue reading “How Drosophila dances away from danger”
Etiology of a parrot disease
Avian proventricular dilatation disease (PDD) was first reported more than 30 years ago, but its cause has remained unknown until recently. An international group of scientists led by Amy L. Kistler (University of California, San Francisco) and Ady Gancz (The Exotic Clinic, Israel) has identified a new bornavirus (avian bornavirus, ABV) in affected parrots thatContinueContinue reading “Etiology of a parrot disease”
New UV switch makes worms move
Get out that disco ball—it seems mutant worms have some brand new moves to show us. New research, led by Kenneth Miller (Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City), looked at phototaxia in Caenorhabditis elegans, which lack eyes as well as any of the proteins known to transduce light signals. The group used C. elegans mutantsContinueContinue reading “New UV switch makes worms move”
Your mother was right
Scientists have long sought to better understand the workings of the immune system. New research from Lynn B. Martin II and colleagues (Ohio State University, Columbus) specifically addresses the link between reduced food intake and immune ‘memory’. The results suggest that mothers everywhere were on to something: eating enough food is essential to proper immuneContinueContinue reading “Your mother was right”
Edible tools to fight Alzheimer’s
Two separate groups of researchers are now pursuing edible options for the treatment or prevention of Alzheimer’s disease. One study carried out by HyunSoon Kim (Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology) and colleagues showed that tomatoes may serve as effective carriers for an oral vaccine against beta-amyloid in mice. Accumulation of beta-amyloid protein in the brainContinueContinue reading “Edible tools to fight Alzheimer’s”
A primate model for Huntington’s disease?
Huntington’s disease is an incurable neurodegenerative disorder. Rodent models of Huntington’s exist, but they do not reproduce the disease course and symptoms of affected humans very closely. This limits their applicability in evaluating the pathology and potential treatments for the disorder. Now, a group of scientists from the Yerkes National Primate Research Center at EmoryContinueContinue reading “A primate model for Huntington’s disease?”
Engineered cartilage does better under pressure
Arthritis affects millions of people worldwide, causing pain and stiffness in joints. In some cases, arthritis develops after the cartilage in a joint is damaged. Cartilage acts to cushion the joints, allowing for smooth movement. Because cartilage cannot repair itself after injury, tissue engineers have attempted to generate new cartilage that could be transplanted intoContinueContinue reading “Engineered cartilage does better under pressure”
Sugars click with zebrafish
New advances in molecular tagging may one day offer deeper insights into the development of diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Now in its infancy, the technique has been applied to tracking the development of the zebrafish embryo in vivo using noninvasive imaging of sugar molecules. Lab Anim. (NY) 37, 236 (2008). view full text (loginContinueContinue reading “Sugars click with zebrafish”
Training cells to control AIDS
A new treatment for AIDS has shown promise in controlling the infection in macaques. The new technique is a form of immune therapy that uses the subject’s own blood cells. Cells are exposed to proteins extracted from the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV, which is similar to the human version, HIV) in vitro and then infusedContinueContinue reading “Training cells to control AIDS”
Fluent in Science 