Biotechnology Archives - thesmartcityjournal.com

Why do diseases affect men and women differently?

New research looks into factors beyond genes to explain what is causing the differences between the sexes It’s no secret that men and women face unique health challenges because of their genes. But to truly understand and address these challenges, are we relying too much on genetic factors that affect diseases, symptoms and health results?…

Genetics, Medical Research, Nature Communications, Precision Medicine, Public Health, Queen Mary University, Sex Differences, Social Determinants, UK Biobank

Could we live without pain?

Pain is unpleasant, and can be debilitating for some. The expert Rolf-Detlef Treede tackles the thorny reality of a pain-free life. “There are people that live without pain,” says Treede, a neurophysiologist at the University of Heidelberg. “They have been known for centuries to exist.” Insensitivity to pain, known as analgesia, can be caused by…

Researchers ID 17 risk factors shared by age-related brain disease

Study finds that modifying one factor can reduce risk of stroke, dementia, and late-life depression. Seventeen modifiable factors have been identified that can lower people’s risk of age-related brain diseases such as stroke, dementia, and late-life depression, according to researchers at Harvard-affiliated Mass General Brigham. The study found a reduced risk of all three conditions…

MIT engineers turn skin cells directly into neurons for cell therapy

A new, highly efficient process for performing this conversion could make it easier to develop therapies for spinal cord injuries or diseases like ALS Converting one type of cell to another — for example, a skin cell to a neuron — can be done through a process that requires the skin cell to be induced…

ALS Research, Cell Conversion, Neuroscience, Regenerative Medicine, Stem Cells

European countries come together to improve outcomes for young cancer patients

EU-funded researchers are working together to improve survival rates and quality of life for children with cancer and reduce inequalities between countries Dealing with cancer in children is hard enough. Knowing that there are huge disparities in survival rates between higher- and lower-income countries in Europe makes it even worse. But EU-funded researchers are working…

Urgent action needed to understand links between air pollution and mental health

Leading scientists are calling for urgent global action to better understand the links between air pollution and mental health In a paper published by the British Journal of Psychiatry Open, researchers led by psychiatrist Professor Kam Bhui at the University of Oxford, say that while poor air quality is a risk factor for mental illness, progress in understanding the causes…

‘Far from clear’ new Alzheimer’s drugs will make a difference at a population level, say researchers

Cambridge researchers have cast doubt on whether new amyloid immunotherapy drugs will have the desired effect of significantly reducing the impact of Alzheimer’s disease Writing in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, the team from Cambridge Public Health argue that substantial challenges including the risk-benefit ratio, limited eligibility and high cost of roll-out…

Waging war against rare diseases with genetic screening at birth

SCREEN4CARE is striving to shorten the time to rare disease diagnosis by genetically screening babies in Europe as soon as they are born he EU-funded SCREEN4CARE project aspires to have every child born in Europe undergo genetic screening at birth for a wide variety of rare diseases. Genetic checks on newborns and AI-assisted data analysis…

Sildenafil (‘Viagra’) improves brain blood flow and could help to prevent dementia

A new trial conducted by the University of Oxford reveals that sildenafil, commonly known as Viagra, enhances blood flow to the brain and improves the function of brain blood vessels in patients at a heightened risk of vascular dementia This new study, published in Circulation Research, marks a potentially pivotal step in the fight against this…

How memories are made – and preserved

Research into how the human brain stores information could lead to treatments for people who struggle with everyday tasks Professor Jan Buitelaar, an expert in neurodevelopmental illnesses, is intrigued by a possible link between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder – or ADHD – and memory. While genes play a big part in ADHD, Buitelaar thinks the…