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New Research Reveals Link Between Stress Response and C. difficile Severity

The portion of our nervous systems responsible for the "fight or flight" response can shape the severity of potentially deadly C. difficile infections, new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine reveals.

14 Oct 2024

Genetic Analysis of Potato and Phytophthora infestans During and After the Irish Potato Famine

In an examination of the genetic material found in historic potato leaves, North Carolina State University researchers reveal more about the tit-for-tat evolutionary changes occurring in both potato plants and the pathogen that caused the 1840s Irish potato famine.

6 Aug 2024

Harnessing Enzymes for Making RNA Therapeutics

While the COVID-19 vaccines introduced many people to RNA-based medicines, RNA oligonucleotides have already been on the market for years to treat diseases like Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and amyloidosis.

15 Jul 2024

Rethinking Antibiotics: Dental Professionals Embrace New Alternatives For Standard Dental Procedures

Bacterial resistance to antibiotics poses a threat to global health, and the WHO highlights the consequences of inappropriate and excessive antibiotic use.

22 Nov 2023

New Technique Could be a Game-Changer in the Management of Crop Loss to Mice Plague

A non-toxic method to prevent mice from devouring wheat crops has been shown to drastically reduce seed loss.

1 Jun 2023

Ancient DNA Reveals Earliest Evidence of Plague Cases in Britain

The Francis Crick Institute has discovered three 4,000-year-old British cases of Yersinia pestis, the bacteria that causes the plague—the oldest evidence of the plague in Britain to date. The study was published in Nature Communications.

31 May 2023

Developing new therapies that leverage the host immune system

Yersinia bacteria cause a variety of human and animal diseases, the most notorious being the plague, caused by Yersinia pestis. A relative, Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, causes gastrointestinal illness and is less deadly but naturally infects both mice and humans, making it a useful model for studying its interactions with the immune system.

14 Mar 2023

LLNL set off to develop vaccines to treat rheumatoid arthritis and lupus

People afflicted with autoimmune diseases may someday receive help through treatments now under development by a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) licensee and its' collaborations with two major pharmaceutical companies.

19 Feb 2023

Study finds similar levels of DNA damage in vapers and smokers

E-cigarettes-; used regularly by more than 10% of U.S. teens and more than 3% of adults-; were once pitched as a healthy alternative to tobacco cigarettes.

14 Feb 2023

Detecting the extent of natural selection over time

Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, the CNRS, and the Collège de France researchers have employed paleogenomics to trace 10,000 years of human immune system evolution. They examined the genomes of over 2,800 individuals who lived in Europe over the past 10 millennia.

From Institut Pasteur 18 Jan 2023

Black death and the development of immune genes

The Black Death, which wiped off up to 50% of the European population in less than five years, was the single-worst mortality catastrophe in recorded history.

21 Oct 2022

New research shows protein movements play an important role in their ability to function

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine have reported that they have interrogated the atomic structure of proteins, adding to proof that the wobbles, shakes, and quivers of proteins play an important role in their ability to operate.

18 Jul 2022

Research sheds light on mechanism for skin cell death, likely to help treat cancer

Researchers at Emory University have uncovered a mechanism for skin cell death that might lead to novel therapies for “flesh-eating” infections, alopecia, hives, and possibly even melanoma, the deadliest type of skin cancer.

18 May 2022

Muscle protein tied to physical fitness in youth and age-associated diseases

Researchers from Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have added to evidence that a protein called CaMKII improves strength, endurance, muscle health and fitness in young animals.

9 Aug 2021

Engineered enzyme facilitates more effective plastic degradation

Plastic was previously considered a manufacturing miracle as it was inexpensive to produce.

9 Jul 2021

Study shows that Bubonic Plague had a long-term impact on immune gene expression

A new study shows that the Bubonic Plague has had a long-term impact on immune gene expression.

20 May 2021

Metagenomic sequencing helps examine differences in the gut microbiome after injury

Researchers used metagenomic sequencing to identify variations in virus and bacterial populations that occur following spinal cord injury in mice.

13 May 2021

Study suggests that bubonic plague had long-term impact on human immune genes

Scientists examining the remains of 36 bubonic plague victims from a 16th century mass grave in Germany have found the first evidence that evolutionary adaptive processes, driven by the disease, may have conferred immunity on later generations of people from the region.

7 May 2021

Genetic makeup of more than 53,000 people offers valuable insights into dangerous diseases

A new analysis of the entire genetic makeup of more than 53,000 people offers a bonanza of valuable insights into heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders, paving the way for new and better ways to treat and prevent some of the most common causes of disability and death.

7 Apr 2021

New technology could improve antibody testing in a broad range of diseases

A global team of researchers has developed a new strategy for fast and reliable antibody tests, which can quantify the immune response induced by vaccination and reveal the timeline and stage of pathogen infection.

5 Feb 2021