Posts

neurons

Researchers decoded specific signals the nervous system uses to communicate the body’s immune and inflammatory status to the brain. Understanding the “language” of the brain is a major step forward for bioelectronic medicine as it provides insight into diagnostic and therapeutic targets. The team hopes that future bioelectronic devices could replace drugs and reduce hamrful side effects. Read more

Processed Food

New research suggests that some of the additives that extend the shelf life and improve the texture of processed foods may have harsh side effects on the human gut microbiome. The rise in deadly cases of a terrible gut infection caused by Clostridium difficile is the outcome of adding the sugar trehalose to almost all of our processed food.  Read more

Nerve cells

An international clinical study demonstrated astounding recovery of patients with multiple sclerosis after a stem cell transplant. Scientists claim these transplants are dramatically better than standard drugs at halting the spread of multiple sclerosis and improving its symptoms. Read more

Blood sample

Scientists from Stanford published new data that could influence the clinical use of CRISPR/Cas9 in the future. Humans carry antibodies and T-cells that target the Cas9 protein and might possess an inherent immunity, indicating that one of the biggest advances in genetic engineering should be observed from an additional angle. Read more

chicken egg

Researchers from Japan have bred genetically engineered chickens that lay eggs carrying interferon beta, a protein known to fight diseases like cancer and hepatitis. The method could eventually cut the cost of producing this important cancer-fighting agent by 90 percent. Read more

Black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis)

Snakebite at first glance does not seem to be a problem, which should concern a modern human. Despite numerous achievements in the field of pharmacology, it is however among the most neglected diseases of our era.

Grim statistics provided by the WHO (World Health Organisation) show that, each year, 5 million bites occur, leading to 150,000 deaths and a striking 400,000 amputations. The lucky ones who manage to avoid a deadly outcome of snakebite envenoming are often mentally and physically scarred for life. Read more

Microbes have been present on planet Earth longer than us, humans, and they become our life companions from the moment we are born. They are building, protecting and feeding our bodies. Read more

Viruses, small infectious agents that replicate only inside the living cells of other organisms, have been around for billions of years. They can infect all types of life forms, from microorganisms, plants and animals to humans. It has been estimated that there are 10 to the power of 31 viruses on Earth, but humans don’t just live in a viral world, we are also part virus ourselves. Viruses actually comprise up to the 8% of the human genome and these so called endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) represent ancient viral infections that became integrated into the human genome.  Read more

For years, the cornerstones of cancer treatment have been surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. And now excitement is growing for immunotherapytherapies that harness the power of a patient’s immune system to combat their disease. Read more

Recent drug discoveries promise new treatments and cures for many diseases. However, getting a drug to work, not only in experiments with cells in the lab, but also in the human body, is difficult. One challenge? Getting past the body’s line of defense, the immune system, which fights foreign invaders that make it into the body. Read more