Biology & Medicine News and Discussions

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Combining two molecules blocks 95% of live viral infection in lung cells
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04- ... ction.html
by University of Montreal
COVID-19, in its multiple variants and its ability to thwart efforts to wipe it out, still has a lot of unknowns that make it impossible for scientists to declare victory over the disease, despite vaccines.

But now two Université de Montréal professors working at the Montreal Institute for Clinical Research (IRCM) have taken a big step towards understanding the coronavirus: they've identified and confirmed the power of two small molecules to block the infection of lung cells by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

The finding by the teams of medical professor Nabil G. Seidah, the IRCM's director of biochemical neuroendocrinology research, and microbiology professor Éric A. Cohen, the IRCM's director of human retrovirology research, was published Monday in the Journal of Virology.
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Trial shows arthritis drug restores hair in a third of alopecia patients
By Nick Lavars
March 31, 2022

In pursuit of a treatment for alopecia areata, an autoimmune disorder that causes hair loss, scientists have found new success by repurposing a common arthritis drug. An impressive portion of trial participants were able to regrow their hair following regular doses of the medication, offering fresh hope for an approved treatment for the condition.

Alopecia areata is the result of the immune system attacking hair follicles, causing patchy hair loss to particular areas of the scalp, or sometimes the eyebrows and lashes. It is the type famously suffered by the actress Jada Pinkett Smith, but in fact around 200,000 new cases occur in the US every year, mostly affecting those under the age of 40. There are currently no FDA-approved treatments for the disorder.

Scientists at Yale University have been exploring the potential of a common rheumatoid arthritis drug called baricitinib as a solution, based on the premise that it is an autoimmune treatment that could interrupt the cytokine signaling that harms the hair follicles. Their latest trials involved around 1,200 people with severe alopecia areata, who had lost at least half of their hair as a result.
https://newatlas.com/medical/arthritis- ... ia-areata/
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Newborn cells in the epileptic brain provide a potential target for treatment
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04- ... ntial.html
by Keck School of Medicine of USC
Over the years, everyone loses a few brain cells. A study led by scientists from USC Stem Cell and the USC Neurorestoration Center presents evidence that adults can replenish at least some of what they've lost by generating new brain cells, and that this process is dramatically altered in patients with long-term epilepsy. The findings are published in Nature Neuroscience.

"Our study is the first to detail the presence of newborn neurons and an immature version of a related cell type, known as astroglia, in patients with epilepsy," said Michael Bonaguidi, an assistant professor of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine, gerontology, and biomedical engineering at USC. "Our findings furnish surprising new insights into how immature astroglia might contribute to epilepsy—opening an unexplored avenue toward the development of new anti-seizure medications for millions of people."
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EPA rule would finally ban asbestos, carcinogen still in use
Source: AP

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday proposed a rule to finally ban asbestos, a carcinogen that is still used in some chlorine bleach, brake pads and other products and kills thousands of Americans every year. The proposal marks a major expansion of EPA regulation under a landmark 2016 law that overhauled rules governing tens of thousands of toxic chemicals in everyday products, from household cleaners to clothing and furniture. The proposed rule would ban chrysotile asbestos, the only ongoing use of asbestos in the United States.

The substance is found in products such brake linings and gaskets, and is used to manufacture chlorine bleach and sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda. EPA Administrator Michael Regan called the rule an important step to protect public health and “finally put an end to the use of dangerous asbestos in the United States.″ The proposed ban “demonstrates significant progress in our work to implement the (2016) law and take bold, long-overdue actions to protect those most vulnerable among us,” Regan said. The 2016 law authorized new rules for tens of thousands of toxic chemicals found in everyday products, including substances such as asbestos and trichloroethylene that for decades have been known to cause cancer yet were largely unregulated under federal law.

Known as the Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act, the law was intended to clear up a hodgepodge of state rules governing chemicals and update the Toxic Substances Control Act, a 1976 law that had remained unchanged for 40 years. The EPA banned asbestos in 1989, but the rule was largely overturned by a 1991 court decision that weakened EPA’s authority under TSCA to address risks to human health from asbestos or other existing chemicals. The 2016 law required the EPA evaluate chemicals and put in place protections against unreasonable risks.

At the signing ceremony for the new law, then-President Barack Obama said the U.S. chemical system under TSCA was “so complex, so burdensome that our country hasn’t even been able to uphold a ban on asbestos. I think a lot of Americans would be shocked by all that.” Asbestos, which was once common in home insulation and other products, is banned in more than 50 countries and its use in the U.S. has been declining for decades. The only form of asbestos known to be currently imported, processed or distributed for use in the U.S. is chrysotile asbestos, which is imported primarily from Brazil and Russia. It is used by the chlor-alkali industry, which produces bleach, caustic soda and other products.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/business-hea ... 0ea28af69b
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Researchers discover new neurodevelopmental disorder
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04- ... order.html
by Murdoch Children's Research Institute
Australian researchers have discovered a new neurodevelopmental disorder after uncovering its link to a tumor suppressor gene.

The international research collaboration, led by the Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) and published in the American Journal of Human Genetics, has linked a recognized tumor suppressor gene to a new neurodevelopmental syndrome, ending the diagnostic journey for 32 families around the world.

The study found variations in the FBXW7 gene were associated with the newly identified condition, which causes mild to severe developmental delay, intellectual disability, hypotonia and gastrointestinal issues.

Murdoch Children's researcher Dr. Sarah Stephenson said because the FBXW7 gene regulated the life-cycle of cells, cell growth and survival, the research team speculated that abnormal cell proliferation during brain development may underpin the broad spectrum of brain abnormalities identified in this new disorder.

"FBXW7 now joins a steeply increasing number of intellectual disability/autism spectrum disorder genes that have been implicated in disorders that affect nervous system development, leading to atypical brain function, affecting emotion, learning ability, self-control and memory," she said.

The study used cutting-edge diagnostic tools, genomic sequencing and global data sharing platforms to identify 35 people, aged 2-44 years, from 32 families in seven countries harboring the FBXW7 gene, which had variants that were associated with the never-before described neurodevelopmental syndrome.
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Researchers Identified over 5,500 New Viruses in the Ocean, Including a Missing Link in Viral Evolution
by Guillermo Dominguez Huerta, Ahmed Zayed, James Wainaina, and Matthew Sullivan


https://theconversation.com/researchers ... ion-180545

Introduction:
(The Conversation)

The big idea

An analysis of the genetic material in the ocean has identified thousands of previously unknown RNA viruses and doubled the number of phyla, or biological groups, of viruses thought to exist, according to a new study our team of researchers has published in the journal Science.

RNA viruses are best known for the diseases they cause in people, ranging from the common cold to COVID-19. They also infect plants and animals important to people.

These viruses carry their genetic information in RNA, rather than DNA. RNA viruses evolve at much quicker rates than DNA viruses do. While scientists have cataloged hundreds of thousands of DNA viruses in their natural ecosystems, RNA viruses have been relatively unstudied.

Unlike humans and other organisms composed of cells, however, viruses lack unique short stretches of DNA that could act as what researchers call a genetic bar code. Without this bar code, trying to distinguish different species of virus in the wild can be challenging.

To get around this limitation, we decided to identify the gene that codes for a particular protein that allows a virus to replicate its genetic material. It is the only protein that all RNA viruses share, because it plays an essential role in how they propagate themselves. Each RNA virus, however, has small differences in the gene that codes for the protein that can help distinguish one type of virus from another.
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weatheriscool
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An immune cell 'fingerprint' reveals path for better treatment of autoimmune diseases
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04- ... -path.html
by Garvan Institute of Medical Research

Most autoimmune diseases are easy to diagnose but hard to treat. A paper published today in Science proposes using your unique immune cell fingerprint to rapidly identify which treatments will work for your autoimmune disease.

"We analyzed the genomic profile of over one million cells from 1,000 people to identify a fingerprint linking genetic markers to diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, type 1 diabetes, spondylitis, inflammatory bowel disease, and Crohn's disease," says Professor Joseph Powell, joint lead author at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. "We were able to do this using single cell sequencing, a new technology that allows us to detect subtle changes in individual cells," he says.

The discovery could help individuals find tailored treatments that work for them and guide the development of new drugs.

The study by researchers in Sydney, Hobart, Melbourne, Brisbane and San Francisco helps us understand why some treatments work well in some patients, but not in others. It's the largest study to date to link disease-causing genes to specific types of immune cells.

A trial is now underway in Sydney with Crohn's disease patients to predict which treatments will work for specific patients.
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Scientists make leap forward for genetic sequencing
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-scientist ... ncing.html
by University of California, Irvine

In a paper published today in Sciences Advances, researchers in the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine revealed new details about a key enzyme that makes DNA sequencing possible. The finding is a leap forward into the era of personalized medicine when doctors will be able to design treatments based on the genomes of individual patients.
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A protein that detects cold and menthol may also be key to migraine headaches
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04- ... raine.html
by Darrin S. Joy, University of Southern California

Scientists have provided the strongest evidence yet that a protein that enables us to detect the sensation of cold may also be responsible for migraines. The findings appear in the journal Pain.

The findings move TRPM8 into the light as a potential target for new drugs aimed at relieving migraine.

"Our results confirm the importance of TRPM8 in migraines that was suggested by human genome-wide association studies and implicate the protein as a potentially important component of the pathology that leads to migraine. Thus, other scientists or clinicians can now add TRPM8 to their models of migraine and potential targets for treatment," says David McKemy, professor of biological sciences at USC Dornsife and corresponding author on the study.
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Magic mushroom compound increases brain connectivity in people with depression after use
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04- ... eople.html
by Imperial College London
Psilocybin, the psychedelic compound found in magic mushrooms, helps to "open up" depressed people's brains, even after use, enabling brain regions to talk more freely to one another.

These are the findings of a new analysis of brain scans from close to 60 people receiving treatment for depression, led by Imperial College London's Centre for Psychedelic Research. The team behind the study believes it may have untangled how psilocybin exerts its therapeutic effects on the brain.

Psilocybin is one of a number of psychedelics being explored as a potential therapy for psychiatric disorders. Several studies have trialed a synthesized form of the drug to treat patients with depression and anxiety, with promising results.

The new results, taken from two combined studies, reveal that people who responded to psilocybin-assisted therapy showed increased brain connectivity not just during their treatment, but up to three weeks afterwards. This "opening up" effect was associated with self-reported improvements in their depression. However, similar changes in brain connectivity were not seen in those treated with a conventional antidepressant (called escitalopram), suggesting the psychedelic works differently in treating depression.
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