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Read our latest stories on the people and scientific innovations making a difference in patients’ lives.
Working to Develop a More Safe and Convenient Treatment Option for Patients with Rare Platelet Disorder
While many people have heard of the blood disorder hemophilia, immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is a lesser-known bleeding disorder that also severely impacts patients’ quality of life. When you have a cut or injury, thrombocytes, or platelets, are tiny, colorless cell fragments that form a “plug” in blood vessels to help begin the clotting process. ITP is an autoimmune condition that causes a person’s immune system to attack their platelets, leading to low platelet counts. Some people with ITP...
A Superbug Problem: When Routine Surgeries Turn Dangerous
You go in for an elective knee replacement surgery, hoping to be able to climb the stairs again without pain, and end up with more than you bargained for: a potentially life-threatening bacterial infection caused by Staphylococcus aureus (also referred to as S. aureus, Staphylococcus, or staph infection.) S. aureus is a common bacterium found on the skin and in the nose that is usually harmless. This all changes if it enters the body through cuts and grazes. To compound this in recent years...
When Cancers Develop Resistance, ‘Stealthy’ Medicines Can Help
In the quest for better cancer therapies, Dr. Martin Edwards is one of the scientists on the frontlines informally known as “drug hunters.” His preoccupation these days is hunting for medicines that are more “stealthy” in their fight against cancer tumors—especially tumors that are resistant to conventional treatments. “There are people today who get cancer for which there is no treatment. Our job is to invent medicines that provide options and give them hope,” says Edwards, Vice President...
Treating Cancer by Using Epigenetics, the ‘Software’ of Our Genes
All of our cells possess the same set of DNA. So, why is it that some cells turn into skin cells while other cells turn into lung cells — and still other cells go rogue and turn into cancer cells? The key lies in the epigenome — the naturally occurring chemical markers that accompany your genes and act as molecular switches that can turn a gene on or off without changing your DNA itself. For example, in agouti mice, even identical twin siblings with the same DNA can have different fur colors...
foundations-science
Seeing Science in the Everyday: Glow Sticks That Detect Cancer
Researchers are using the same chemical processes behind glow sticks to make better tools to diagnose cancer. The same science behind glow sticks and the crime scene chemical luminol – which glows blue in the presence of blood – is now being used to develop cutting-edge tools to detect cancer and other medical diagnoses. When you snap a glow stick, two liquids inside the plastic tube come into contact, setting off a chemical reaction that emits energy in the form of light. This process...
The Great Migration: Tracking Immune Cells’ Travels
Scientists are studying how immune cells move to develop better treatments for autoimmune diseases. Birds migrate. People migrate. And so do cells. T-cells squeezing between collagen fibers. PLOS ONE/Coles JA Our immune cells, in particular, are always on the move, constantly patrolling the body for foreign invaders. If an unwelcome visitor enters through the nose, mouth or eyes, or there’s a break in the skin, these nimble soldiers are ready to flood the attack site and send out signals...
Got the Flu? It May Be Because of Your Genes
Genetic factors may explain why some people get sick and others avoid infectious diseases. When flu season strikes, why do some people get sick, some get by without even a slight cough, and an unfortunate few land in the hospital with a severe illness? We’ve long known that a complicated mix of factors — from age and stress to environment and illness history — can impact whether we get sick and how long it takes to recover. Now a growing area of research, aided by advances in human...
Checking Our Gut Microorganisms’ Disease-Fighting Might
New gene sequencing tech is helping researchers harness the bacteria, viruses, and fungi that live in our bodies to fight disease. At this very moment, trillions of bacteria and other germs are swimming in your gut and crawling on your skin. While the thought may make you cringe, these microscopic squatters — collectively known as the human microbiome — are essential to our survival. And now a growing body of research shows how this microbiome could point the way to new treatments and a...
Immunity’s Double-Edged Sword
Human’s complex immune system is the vanquisher of pathogens, but it can also turn on itself. In a stroke of “evolutionary brilliance,” according to Pfizer immunologist Aaron Winkler, humans and other higher organisms developed specialized immune systems that protect us from the vast diversity of pathogens found in nature, from flu viruses to pinworms. Through random genetic variation, our bodies constantly generate millions of new white blood cells, the foot soldiers of the immune system...
Diagnosing Disease by Voice
Detecting the occurrence of many diseases can be challenging without a blood test or other reliable screening tool. So researchers are now listening for the sounds of disease. Speech is a complex process that requires coordination with our brain, muscles, and respiratory system. Recent research shows that subtle changes in speech, for example slurring or vocal cord tremors, may be early signs of disease or illness like Parkinson’s disease, depression, cardiac problems, and concussion. Peop...
advancing-medical-research
Meet Your Body’s Energy Thermostat
AMPK controls hunger, helps burn calories and fat, and may help treat diabetes and cancer. It’s almost lunchtime. Your stomach is growling and you can’t stop thinking about your next meal. We’ve all experienced the sensation of hunger, but ever wonder how your body turns on and off its hankering for food? Scientists from Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) in Korea have recently provided additional evidence to show how an enzyme produced in a part of our brain...
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