Lifeboat Foundation

Scientists have discovered a mechanism that lets senescent tumor cells undermine chemotherapy. With this mechanism blocked, standard chemotherapy led to complete regression of mammary tumors in mice [1].

Senescent yet still dangerous

Chemotherapy and radiation therapy, still the two most common treatments for solid tumors, subject cells to powerful stress as they are designed to do. This stress drives cellular senescence. Since senescent cells stop proliferating, inducing senescence in cancer cells is considered a desirable outcome. However, this is not the end of the story.

In a recent breakthrough, DNA sequencing technology has uncovered the culprit behind cassava witches’ broom disease: the fungus genus Ceratobasidium. The cutting-edge nanopore technology used for this discovery was first developed to track the COVID-19 virus in Colombia, but is equally suited to identifying and reducing the spread of plant viruses.

The findings, published in Scientific Reports, will help plant pathologists in Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand protect farmers’ valued cassava harvest.

“In Southeast Asia, most smallholder farmers rely on cassava. Its starch-rich roots form the basis of an industry that supports millions of producers. In the past decade, however, cassava witches’ broom disease has stunted plants, reducing harvests to levels that barely permit affected farmers to make a living,” said Wilmer Cuellar, Senior Scientist at the Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT.

In patients with biliary tract cancer with a BRAF mutation, treatment with dabrafenib plus trametinib shrank tumors, results from a phase 2 trial show.

A healthy liver is capable of completely regenerating itself. Researchers from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU), University Hospital Düsseldorf (UKD) and the German Diabetes Center (DDZ) have now identified the growth factor MYDGF (Myeloid-Derived Growth Factor), which is important for this regenerative capacity.

In cooperation with the Hannover Medical School and the University Medical Center Mainz, they also showed that higher levels of MYDGF can be detected in the blood of patients following partial removal of the liver.

In a study published in Nature Communications, they also report that this growth factor stimulates the proliferation of human hepatocytes in a tissue culture.

A new test invented by University of Illinois Chicago researchers allows dentists to screen for the most common form of oral cancer with a simple and familiar tool: the brush.

The diagnostic kit, created and patented by Guy Adami and Dr. Joel Schwartz of the UIC College of Dentistry, uses a small brush to collect cells from potentially cancerous lesions inside the mouth. The sample is then analyzed for genetic signals of oral squamous cell carcinoma, the ninth most prevalent cancer globally.

This new screening method, which is currently seeking commercialization partnerships, improves upon the current diagnostic standard of surgical biopsies-an extra referral step that risks losing patients who sometimes don’t return until the cancer progresses to more advanced, hard-to-treat stages.

Publication in Nature Medicine details long-lasting, disease-modifying intervention in vision loss from diabetic macular edema.

Women are more likely than men to have conditions such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and autoimmune hepatitis (depicted above in a cellular micrograph), in which their immune response attacks healthy, functioning parts of their body. Yet the reason behind this sex-based imbalance has long eluded scientists. Now, a study published last week in proposes that a molecule associated with the X chromosome may be partly to blame. Researchers noticed that many of the proteins commonly targeted by the immune system in people with autoimmune diseases had something in common: They help a molecule called Xist carry out its function. Xist molecules act a bit like quality control inspectors for women’s extra X chromosomes, preventing them from producing a toxic amount of proteins. The scientists suspect that when immune cells encounter large bunches of these Xist-related proteins—for instance, when a dead cell spills them into the bloodstream—they may react by making antibodies to attack them throughout the body. To test the idea, the team studied genetically engineered mice in which both males and females produced Xist. Like their female counterparts, these males were also at an increased risk of developing severe cases of lupus. The researchers also found that people with autoimmune disorders had more antibodies for Xist-related proteins in their blood. Still, Xist molecules may not be the only factor at play: Experts note that some people produce these Xist-related antibodies without developing autoimmune disorders, reports.

A new study adds to the growing literature showing that motor neurons are not the only sites affected in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, writes Dr. Leana Doherty.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease primarily affecting motor neurons. However, nonmotor manifestations, including sensory, cognitive, and autonomic impairments, increasingly have been reported. In the current study, investigators examined cutaneous innervation and its correlation with disease severity in patients with ALS using the Small Fiber Neuropathy Symptoms Inventory Questionnaire, nerve conduction studies, and distal leg, thigh, and fingertip (glabrous skin) punch biopsies. Patients with alternate diagnoses including endocrinopathies, autoimmune disorders, and vitamin deficiencies were excluded.

Among 149 participants with ALS (mean age, 63; median disease duration, 14.3 months), 35% experienced large-fiber or small-fiber sensory symptoms or both. The frequency of small-fiber symptoms was higher in patients with more severe disease based on King’s staging; scores increase on the scale from 1 to 5 with increasing regions involved. Nearly one quarter of patients had one or more sensory nerve action potential abnormalities. The density of Meissner corpuscles (MC) was reduced in most ALS patients (53÷100), and intraepidermal nerve fiber (IENF) density was reduced at all sites (5th percentile: at the leg, 58%; thigh, 78%) compared with healthy controls. While MC density decreased with increasing King’s stage, IENF density increased. Increasing IENF density on repeat thigh biopsies at 6 and 12 months was associated with shorter survival. The researchers postulated that this may reflect an upregulation of reparative pathways paralleling disease aggressiveness.

Continue reading “Peripheral Sensory Abnormalities in ALS” »

A team of researchers at the Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine, TUD Dresden University of Technology, led by Prof. Frank Buchholz, has achieved a major breakthrough in genome editing technology. They’ve developed a cutting-edge method that combines the power of designer-recombinases with programmable DNA-binding domains to create precise and adaptable genome editing tools.

Traditional genome editing faced limitations in achieving ultimate precision until now. Prof. Buchholz’s team has broken through this barrier by creating what many have sought after: a zinc-finger conditioned recombinase. This innovative approach involves integrating a zinc-finger DNA-binding domain into specially designed recombinases. These enzymes remain inactive until the DNA-binding domain engages with its target site, adjacent to the recombinase binding area.

The significance of this achievement lies in the fusion of two key strengths: the targeting ease of programmable nucleases and the precise DNA editing capabilities of recombinases. This breakthrough overcomes existing limitations in genome editing techniques and holds vast promise for therapeutic gene editing and various biomedical applications.