Boosting the cancer-destroying ability of killer T-cells

Health Problems

More types of cancer could potentially be destroyed by patients’ own immune cells, thanks to new research by Cardiff University. The team of researchers discovered that increasing the amount of the molecule L-selectin on T-cells can vastly improve their ability to fight solid tumors. Professor Ann Ager, from Cardiff University’s Systems Immunity Research Institute, said: “These results mean that immunotherapy […]

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The flu virus’s ability to mutate may sometimes be its downfall

Health Problems

One of influenza virus’s main weapons is actually a double-edged sword. The virus’s ability to rapidly mutate lets it escape from the immune system’s memory and explains why people can be repeatedly re-infected with flu—unlike measles or polio. But those mutations can also blow the virus’s cover, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator Jesse Bloom and colleagues reported May 8, 2019, […]

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The dying art of conversation – has technology killed our ability to talk face-to-face?

Health Problems

What with Facetime, Skype, Whatsapp and Snapchat, for many people, face-to-face conversation is used less and less often. These apps allow us to converse with each other quickly and easily – overcoming distances, time zones and countries. We can even talk to virtual assistants such as Alexa, Cortana or Siri – commanding them to play our favourite songs, films, or […]

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Ability to control stress reduces negative impacts

Health Problems

In individuals, stress exposure in adolescence increases vulnerability and risk of developing psychopathologies in adulthood, such as drug addiction, mood, anxiety, addiction to gambling, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, etc. Researchers at the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona observed in animal models that the ability to control the source of stress diminishes its effects and could reduce the risk of later developing […]

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