New research in the March 2023 issue of JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network highlights how the lack of genomic research for people with African ancestry, particularly those from the Sub-Saharan region, is hampering efforts to reduce disparities for people with cancer. In a first-of-its-kind study, the researchers evaluated molecular genetic results for 113 Black South African men diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer to find evidence for increased and potentially unique genetic testing recommendations. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Branches of biology
Healthy.io Awarded Three New U.S. Patents for Wound-Image Technology
Healthy.io, the global leader in transforming the smartphone camera into a medical device, announced today that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has awarded the company three patents for the technology behind its Minuteful Wound app. The app enables nurses and healthcare assistants to scan chronic wounds using a standard smartphone camera, with the simple process of shooting an ordinary five-second video. Following this scan, the app runs a set of computer-vision and deep-learning algorithms to analyze the data and translate it into clinical outputs. These include a 3D reconstruction of the wound area, a breakdown of the state of the tissues, and the exact size of the wound. Continue reading
Study Reveals How CBD Counters Epileptic Seizures
A study reveals a previously unknown way in which cannabidiol (CBD), a substance found in cannabis, reduces seizures in treatment-resistant forms of pediatric epilepsy.
Led by researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, the new study found that CBD blocked signals carried by a molecule called lysophosphatidylinositol (LPI). Found in brain cells called neurons, LPI is thought to amplify nerve signals as part of normal function, but can be hijacked by disease to promote seizures. Continue reading
Nope, coffee won’t give you extra energy. It’ll just borrow a bit that you’ll pay for later
Emma Beckett, University of Newcastle
Many of us want (or should I say need?) our morning coffee to give us our “get up and go”. Altogether, the people of the world drink more than two billion cups of coffee each day.
You might think coffee gives you the energy to get through the morning or the day – but coffee might not be giving you as much as you think.
PISTACHIOS ARE A POWERHOUSE OF NUTRIENTS
Foods rich in nutrients with antioxidant properties are regularly encouraged as part of a healthy lifestyle, and research suggests that a diet high in antioxidant-rich foods may even help to reduce the risk of premature death.1 While fruits and vegetables are often thought of as high-antioxidant foods, a new study conducted by Cornell University and published in the journal, Nutrients, produced surprising results2. Pistachios have a very high antioxidant capacity, among the highest when compared to values reported in research of many foods commonly known for their antioxidant capacity, such as blueberries, pomegranates, cherries, and beets. Continue reading
Alzheimer’s disease: surprising new theory about what might cause it
Andrea Sturchio, Karolinska Institutet; Kariem Ezzat, Karolinska Institutet, and Samir EL Andaloussi, Karolinska Institutet
In 1906, Alois Alzheimer, a psychiatrist and neuroanatomist, reported “a peculiar severe disease process of the cerebral cortex” to a gathering of psychiatrists in Tübingen, Germany. The case was a 50-year-old woman who suffered from memory loss, delusions, hallucinations, aggression and confusion – all of which worsened until her untimely death five years later.
Nobel prize: Svante Pääbo’s ancient DNA discoveries offer clues as to what makes us human
Love Dalén, Stockholm University and Anders Götherström, Stockholm University
The Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for 2022 has been awarded to Svante Pääbo from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, “for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution”.
Depression is probably not caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain – new study
Joanna Moncrieff, UCL and Mark Horowitz, UCL
For three decades, people have been deluged with information suggesting that depression is caused by a “chemical imbalance” in the brain – namely an imbalance of a brain chemical called serotonin. However, our latest research review shows that the evidence does not support it.
Evolutionary tree of life: modern science is showing how we got so much wrong
Matthew Wills, University of Bath
If you look different to your close relatives, you may have felt separate from your family. As a child, during particularly stormy fall outs you might have even hoped it was a sign that you were adopted.
As our new research shows, appearances can be deceptive when it comes to family. New DNA technology is shaking up the family trees of many plants and animals.