Protection against malaria: A matter of balance

A balanced production of pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines at two years of age protects against clinical malaria in early childhood, according to a study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal). The results also indicate that early exposure to the parasite does not affect the risk of developing the disease, although it could affect the parasite-specific immune response […]

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Two genomic tests identify groups of patients most likely to benefit from new drugs

New results from a long-running trial to identify which new drugs or combinations of drugs are most effective in which types of breast cancer, show that two genomic tests are bringing the era of truly personalised medicine ever nearer. Professor Laura van ‘t Veer, leader of the Breast Oncology Program at the University of California San Francisco, USA, told the […]

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Researchers identify risk factors of advanced liver disease in cystic fibrosis patients

Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado) pediatric gastroenterologist, Michael Narkewicz, MD, recently shared results of the Prospective Study of Ultrasound to Predict Hepatic Cirrhosis in Cystic Fibrosis (PUSH), which sought to determine if liver ultrasounds could identify children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis who are at greater risk of developing advanced liver disease. The Cystic Fibrosis Liver Disease Network PUSH study […]

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Exercise, diet and wellness apps are powerful learning resources for young people, study finds

Research undertaken at the University of Birmingham has found that young people are able to judge which health related apps are relevant to their age and bodies, are able to source appropriate digital content as well as dismiss app content that might be harmful to them. The research published today (Wednesday 7th November 2018) in the journal Learning, Media and […]

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Immune cells trigger OCD-like behaviour in multiple sclerosis, study finds

A class of cells that defends the body against invaders also triggers obsessive-compulsive behaviour that appears in autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has found. Autoimmune disorders, in which the body’s immune system goes rogue and attacks healthy cells, are difficult to treat. MS, for example, is a debilitating […]

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Genetic ‘whodunnit’ for cancer gene solved

Long thought to suppress cancer by slowing cellular metabolism, the protein complex AMPK also seemed to help some tumors grow, confounding researchers. Now, Salk Institute researchers have solved the long-standing mystery around why AMPK can both hinder and help cancer. The lab of Salk Professor Reuben Shaw showed that late-stage cancers can trigger AMPK’s cellular recycling signal to cannibalize pieces […]

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Double whammy for grieving spouses with sleep problems

Sleep disturbances have a strong negative impact on the immune system of people who have recently lost a spouse, reports a new study from Northwestern Medicine and Rice University. The overactivated immune system of the bereaved triggered by sleep disturbances—and resulting chronic inflammation—may make them more susceptible to heart disease or cancer, the study authors said. Grieving spouses have a […]

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Calcifications in the eye increase risk for progression to advanced AMD by more than six times

Calcified nodules in the retina are associated with progression to late stages of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Experts from Queen’s University Belfast, working in partnership with the University of Alabama of Birmingham and in collaboration with UK material scientists and US clinical ophthalmology practices, made the ground-breaking discovery that the calcified nodules in the retina – the thin layer of […]

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