Imperfect memories could be the source of complaints about younger generations. John Protzko, a psychologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, refers to this phenomenon as the “kids these days effect.” “Humanity has been lodging the same complaints against ‘kids these days’ for at least 2,600 years,” says Protzko. The only reason he limited…
Author: Ian Nicholson
A High-definition Map Of Liver Cells In Health And Disease
Researchers have created a high-resolution picture of the cells at work inside a key hub of metabolism — the liver — and shown how disease reprograms individual cell types. In every tissue throughout our bodies, various cell types communicate and coordinate their efforts to perform vital functions and maintain health. The new research not only…
Trojan Horse Chemotherapeutics Disguise Themselves As Fat
A new stealth drug-delivery method that disguises anti-cancer drugs as fat in order to outsmart, penetrate and destroy tumors has been developed by scientists. Thinking the drugs are tasty fats, tumors invite the drug inside. Once there, the targeted drug activates, immediately suppressing tumor growth. The drug also is lower in toxicity than current chemotherapy…
Genomic Mismatch May Explain Why Some Kidney Transplants Fail
A genomic incompatibility could explain why many kidney transplants fail, even when donors and recipients are thought to be well-matched, a new study from researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons suggests. The genomic collision is a genetic incompatibility between kidney donor and recipient, causing the recipient to mount an immune attack…
SIRT6 Gene Behind More Efficient DNA Repair In Longer Living Species
The gene sirtuin 6 (SIRT6) is responsible for more efficient DNA repair in species with longer lifespans, new research from the University of Rochester indicates. The finding sheds light on new targets for anti-aging interventions and could help prevent age-related diseases. As humans and other mammals grow older, their DNA is increasingly prone to breaks,…
Gut Microbiome Linked To The Immune System’s Ability To Fight Cancer
A causal link between the gut microbiome and the immune system’s ability to fight cancer has been shown in a worldwide collaborative study. The researchers identified a cocktail of 11 bacterial strains that activated the immune system and slowed the growth of melanoma in mice. The study also points to the role of unfolded protein…
How Dermal Fibroblasts Develop Into Fat Cells
How fibroblasts develop into fat cells, and the pathway that causes this process to cease as people age, has been identified by University of California San Diego School of Medicine researchers and colleagues. Dermal fibroblasts are specialized cells deep in the skin that generate connective tissue and help the skin recover from injury. Some fibroblasts…
How Metformin Syrosingopine Combo Induces Cancer Cell Death
A widely used diabetes medication combined with an antihypertensive drug specifically inhibits tumor growth – this was discovered by researchers from the University of Basel’s Biozentrum two years ago. In a follow-up study, the scientists now report that this drug cocktail induces cancer cell death by switching off their energy supply. The widely used anti-diabetes…
Senolytics: Antibiotics Identified As Potential Anti-aging Drugs
An FDA-approved antibiotic – Azithromycin – can effectively target and eliminate senescent cells in culture, according to the results of new research carried out in the UK. The research team, from the University of Salford’s Translational Medicine Laboratories, compared the effects of a panel of FDA-approved drugs, on i) normal cells and ii) senescent cells,…