Keratin is the fibrous, waterproof protein that builds everything from our hair and nails to a rhino's horn. However, a tiny glitch in it can have problematic outcomes. A new study has found that changes in a keratin gene called KRT16 can lead to a rare condition known as pachyonychia congenita (PC). This disorder affects the skin, nails, and the lining of the mouth, and often causes painful, thick patches of skin—especially on the hands and feet.
Adding as little as 1,700 to 5,500 steps per day can offset the risk of a list of chronic diseases—including obesity, diabetes and sleep apnea—according to a new study from a corresponding author with Vanderbilt Health.
Suburban areas often struggle with a first- and last-mile mobility problem, where residents have difficulty reaching the nearest public transport hub from their homes. Demand-responsive transport (DRT) has emerged as a flexible solution, yet the potential health benefits of combining DRT with existing public transport networks have yet to be assessed.
Since 2017, a personalized immunotherapy called Chimeric Antigen Receptor, or CAR-T cell treatment, has worked wonders to treat patients with blood cancers such as leukemia. But when it comes to treating solid tumor cancers, such as lung, breast and kidney cancers that make up the bulk of these malignancies, this type of immune cell therapy has fallen short.
Leukemia is adept at dodging the immune system, making it resistant to many of the newest generation of cancer immunotherapies. Now, researchers have identified a key part of the cancer's disguise: a protein called CD43 on the surface of leukemia cells that is coated so heavily in sugar molecules that it forms a physical barrier, shielding the cells from immune attack.
Humans and most other organisms have internal biological clocks that track the daily cycle of sunrise and sunset. These clocks help time our sleep, metabolism and other essential body functions over the course of a day, creating daily patterns called circadian rhythms. Research shows that when these rhythms are disrupted—by jet lag, lack of sleep or irregular work schedules—people can suffer long-term negative health effects.
Growing demand for estrogen patches to relieve menopause symptoms has led to shortages, leaving women searching multiple pharmacies or switching medications.
The hippocampus is a crucial part of the brain that plays a role in memory and learning, especially in remembering directions and locations. New research from the University of Chicago shows how this small, curved structure reorganizes its activity depending on whether a situation matches people's memories and expectations.
Madison professors suggest longevity gains across all states and regions for people born between 1941 and 2000, in contrast to previous estimates suggesting a century of stagnation or even declines in parts of the South. Published in the journal BMJ Open, the study by Héctor Pifarré i Arolas and Jason Fletcher of the La Follette School of Public Affairs, along with José Andrade of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, challenges recent estimates that portrayed progress on extending longevity in the United States as sharply divergent across states and regions.
A health report on COVID-19 vaccines has been delayed after concerns about how the study was conducted.
Scientists have long known that our skin is home to vast communities of bacteria, fungi and viruses. But knowing which microbes are present only tells part of the story. What matters just as much is which microbes are active, what genes they switch on, and how they interact with one another on the skin.
Increasing maternal prepregnancy body mass index (ppBMI) and increasing birth length are associated with offspring atopic dermatitis by age 3 years, according to a study published online March 23 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: Global.
New research from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) reveals how two different parts of the brain's memory center team up in a key reward region to help mice—and likely humans—combine memories of places and contexts with the drive to pursue rewards. The findings offer fresh insight into how the brain integrates information about "where" and "what feels good" to guide everyday decisions, such as heading to a favorite restaurant to meet friends or seeking out rewarding experiences. Specifically, this discovery, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, shows that inputs from the dorsal and ventral hippocampus converge on the same individual neurons in another brain region, the nucleus accumbens, where they interact in ways that amplify each other's effects.
A University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa physician is working to change how a common but often overlooked gynecologic condition is diagnosed and treated. Kimberly Kho, who holds the nation's first professorship in advanced gynecological surgery in the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM), authored a clinical expert series review on adenomyosis in Obstetrics & Gynecology. The publication places Kho among a select group of internationally recognized experts in women's health.
Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have uncovered a key reason why immunotherapy has largely failed in pancreatic cancer—and identified a promising strategy to overcome that resistance. The study, published in the journal Immunity, shows that pancreatic tumors actively reshape their immune environment by co-opting regulatory immune cells that normally shut down tumor-killing cells. By reprogramming those cells, the research reveals a potential pathway to make immunotherapy effective against one of the deadliest and most treatment-resistant cancers.
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