Tag: Mice

A team of researchers affiliated with a host of institutions across Japan has found that inhibiting kidney-type glutaminase-dependent glutaminolysis in mice can lead to elimination of senescent cells. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes using RNA interference to look for enzymes that are required for senescent cell survival and subsequently

When it comes to vitamin D, most adults exhibit either frank deficiency, which results in clear clinical symptoms, or insufficiency, which often goes undetected. But how that insufficiency impacts physical health and the vulnerability of older adults to frailty as they age has been difficult to determine. Now a University at Buffalo study of 24-28–month-old

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have discovered in mice what they believe is the first known genetic mutation to improve cognitive flexibility—the ability to adapt to changing situations. The gene, KCND2, codes for a protein that regulates potassium channels, which control electrical signals that travel along neurons. The electrical signals stimulate chemical messengers

Mice exposed to stress in the womb and soon after birth can expect a lifetime of immune system deficiencies that hinder the ability to ward off infections and cancer, Yale University researchers report March 5 in the journal Cell. In a new study, they tracked a lifetime of physiological changes experienced by mice given a

Employing advanced technologies that allow whole brain imaging at single-cell resolution, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine report that in an alcohol-dependent mouse model, the rodent brain’s functional architecture is substantially remodeled. But when deprived of alcohol, the mice displayed increased coordinated brain activity and reduced modularity compared to nondrinker or

A high fat diet limits the birth and growth of new neurons in adult female, but not male, mice, according to new research published in eNeuro. Further research could inspire metabolism-based preventions and treatments for brain disorders. Metabolic disorders like obesity and type 2 diabetes are associated with an increased risk for brain disorders ranging

Researchers at the University of Toronto have discovered how a brief disruption to a molecular pathway in the guts of mice before they are born can compromise adult immunity to a common and often deadly intestinal virus. The researchers found that in utero inhibition of molecular signalling in the ‘lymphotoxin pathway,’ long known as important

A new approach to programing cancer-fighting immune cells called CAR-T cells can prolong their activity and increase their effectiveness against human cancer cells grown in the laboratory and in mice, according to a study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. The ability to circumvent the exhaustion that the genetically engineered cells often

Boosting brain function is key to staving off the effects of aging. And if there was one thing every person should consider doing right now to keep their brain young, it is to add extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) to their diet, according to research by scientists at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at

Giving lazy mice blood transfusions from active rodents ‘gives them more brain cells, helps them perform better on tests and slashes inflammation’ Scientists at Stanford University in California were behind the new study They gave some mice access to a running wheel in their cage for a month Tests showed they created far more new

Much remains mysterious about the factors influencing human inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but one aspect that has emerged as a key contributor is the gut microbiome, the collection of microorganisms dwelling in the intestines. Diet is known to profoundly affect this microbial community, and special diets have been used as therapies for intestinal disorders including

Scientists are batting a thousand in a project to reconstruct the mouse brain’s wiring diagram. Researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Janelia Research Campus have now carefully unraveled a tangle of more than 1,000 neurons, tracing each cell’s branching route across the brain to pinpoint where it goes and to which cells it connects.

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have discovered a pharmaceutical target that, when activated, can reverse bone degradation caused by osteoporosis in mouse models of the disease. “The most widely used drugs currently approved by the FDA to treat osteoporosis can prevent further bone loss, but they don’t help rebuild the bone,” said Shyni Varghese, professor

A study published in Cell Reports Aug. 6 describes the generation of a new mouse model developed at Hollings Cancer Center that could lead to a better understanding of the cachexia syndrome. This wasting condition, characterized by excessive weight loss, has one of the highest incidence in pancreatic cancer patients. Denis Guttridge, Ph.D., Hollings Cancer

Women really DO have a ‘mother’s instinct’: Study on female mice reveals their brain cells are activated when exposed to the ‘love hormone’ that helps parents bond with their child Occurred when exposed to oxytocin, which is linked to mother-baby bonding Brain cells found in the area of the organ that regulates maternal behaviour  Could

On an ice hockey team, the players all start off with identical uniforms, skates and a stick. But if you take one of them, add padding, a glove, and a mask; and switch the stick to one with a larger blade, then you get a goalie. Now, the player has morphed — or differentiated —

Millions of people take capsules of probiotics with the goal of improving their digestion, but what if those bacteria were also able to detect diseases in the gut and indicate when something is awry? New research from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University and Harvard Medical School (HMS) has created an effective, non-invasive way to

Pathogenic fungal spores capitalize on host immune cells to escape the lung and gain access to the brain to cause fatal disease in mice, according to a study published June 27 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by Christina Hull of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and colleagues. These insights into the interactions between pathogenic fungal

Impeding VCAM1, a protein that tethers circulating immune cells to blood vessel walls, enabled old mice to perform as well on memory and learning tests as young mice, a Stanford study found. Mice aren’t people, but like us they become forgetful in old age. In a study published online May 13 in Nature Medicine, old

University of Sydney research provides new evidence that nanoparticles, which are present in many food items, may have a substantial and harmful influence on human health. The study investigated the health impacts of food additive E171 (titanium dioxide nanoparticles) which is commonly used in high quantities in foods and some medicines as a whitening agent.