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Alferink et al determined that regular coffee and herbal tea consumption was inversely related with liver stiffness, but not steatosis, in the general population. Image credit: Louise Alferink / Sarwa Darwish Murad.

Coffee, Herbal Tea Consumption May Protect Against Liver Fibrosis

Jun 8, 2017 by News Staff

New research suggests that coffee and herbal tea consumption may protect against liver fibrosis, estimated as the degree of liver stiffness, which is high...

The anti-heroin vaccine candidate is effective in mice and rhesus monkeys. Image credit: Bremer et al, doi: 10.1021/jacs.7b03334.

Anti-Heroin Vaccine Shown Effective in Rhesus Macaques

Jun 7, 2017 by News Staff

An anti-heroin vaccine created by scientists from the Scripps Research Institute and Virginia Commonwealth University to block the ‘high’ of heroin,...

Structure of milky spots in the omentum. (A) schematic of whole omentum in mice; the omentum is a thin strip of fat (yellow) that is covered by a layer of mesothelial cells (green); milky spots (MSs, blue) are located just beneath the mesothelial layer embedded between adipocytes; the omentum is well vascularized with an extensive network of capillaries (not shown), which connect to a large central blood vessel (red), running between the adipocytes; blood vessels also connect to the MSs and form a glomerulus-like knot of blood vessels in the lymphoid clusters; a large central lymphatic vessel (light blue) runs down the center of the omentum and branches from this vessel lead to MSs as well as to areas of the omentum that lack MSs; the human omentum is much larger and resembles an apron hanging in front of the abdomen, but also contains MSs. (B) structure of MS; MSs are loose collections of leukocytes embedded between adipocytes (yellow) just beneath the mesothelial layer (green); B cells (blue) form a central cluster, whereas macrophages (brown) and dendritic cells (light green) tend to accumulate around the outside of the MS and are also found individually throughout the omentum; T cells (green circles) and ILCs (orange) can be intermixed with the B cells or may cluster around blood vessels (not shown); cells and antigens are passively collected from the peritoneal cavity through fenestrations in the mesothelial layer by fluid flow or may be actively carried by phagocytic cells like macrophages; cells can also enter the MSs from the blood through HEVs (not shown). Image credit: Selene Meza-Perez & Troy D. Randall, doi: 10.1016/j.it.2017.03.002.

Omentum Performs Unique Immunological Functions

Jun 2, 2017 by News Staff

The omentum is an important immune organ that serves as a first line of defense against toxins and infection, according to a review paper published online...

This digitally-colorized scanning electron microscopic image depicts Enterococcus faecalis. Image credit: Pete Wardell / CDC.

Modified Version of Vancomycin Could Fight Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria

May 31, 2017 by News Staff

A team of researchers at the Scripps Research Institute has structurally modified vancomycin to make an already-powerful version of the antibiotic even...

Eating three or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day may lower risk of developing PAD.

Daily Consumption of Fruits, Vegetables May Reduce Risk of Blockages in Leg Arteries

May 26, 2017 by News Staff

A new study published in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology found that consuming fruit and vegetables may lower the risk of...

According to Mostofsky et al, moderate chocolate intake may be inversely associated with AF risk, although residual confounding cannot be ruled out. Image credit: Alexander Stein.

Study: Dark Chocolate Consumption May Decrease Risk of Irregular Heartbeat

May 24, 2017 by News Staff

Consuming moderate amounts of chocolate with high cocoa content was associated with lower risk of being diagnosed with atrial fibrillation — a common...

Phenotypes of osteoarthritis: evidence suggests that patients with osteoarthritis fall into multiple phenotypic subgroups defined on the basis of the main driver of disease, one of which is a distinct metabolic phenotype, although all osteoarthritis phenotypes probably involve metabolic alterations; cartilage, bone and synovium are all affected by external and internal drivers of disease such as inflammation, injury or biomechanical alterations, metabolic reprogramming and immunomodulation, but different synovial joint tissues dominate the disease in different patients with osteoarthritis. Image credit: Mobasheri et al / Nature Reviews Rheumatology, doi: 10.1038/nrrheum.2017.50.

Osteoarthritis Could Be Prevented with Regular Exercise, Good Diet

May 16, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of researchers, led by the University of Surrey, UK, has identified a crucial link between metabolism and osteoarthritis. Phenotypes...

Layers of the skin. Image credit: M.Komorniczak / Madhero / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Skin Cell Discovery Could Lead to Possible Treatments for Balding, Hair Graying

May 15, 2017 by News Staff

A team of scientists at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center has identified the cells that directly give rise to hair as well as the mechanism...

Stages of liver disease. Image credit: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

Researchers Identify Liver Fibrosis-Causing Protein

May 4, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of scientists has identified a long-sought protein that causes liver fibrosis (scarring), paving the way for new treatments. The...

Most previous attempts at creating a womb-like device used artificial pumps to drive the blood through the system, causing heart failure. In the system invented by Partridge et al, the fetal heart is the only pump. It is different in other key ways. Use of the bag, rather than a more open container, nearly eliminated the infection issues that contributed to previous failures. And while previous attempts relied on blood vessels in the neck, the authors figured out how to quickly and successfully insert tubes (cannulas) into the notoriously touchy umbilical vessels. Image credit: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

New Womb-Like Device May Transform Care for Extremely Premature Infants

Apr 26, 2017 by News Staff

A unique womb-like environment designed by pediatric researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia — which is in an experimental stage using...

Regular Consumption of Sugary Beverages Affects Brain

Apr 26, 2017 by News Staff

Researchers using data from the Framingham Heart Study (FHS), a joint project of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and Boston University, have...

Physical activity is inversely associated with chronic subclinical myocardial damage, according to a study by Florido et al. Image credit: Skeeze.

Physical Activity Can Lower Risk of Heart Damage, Says New Study

Apr 25, 2017 by News Staff

According to a new study, physical activity can lower the risk of myocardial damage in middle-aged and older adults and reduce the levels of myocardial...

This image shows the Wide-spread fungoid frog (Hydrophylax bahuvistara) in its native environment in southern India. Image credit: Sanil George / Jessica Shartouny.

Frog Skin Peptide ‘Urumin’ Kills H1 Influenza Viruses

Apr 20, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of scientists from the United States and India has discovered that a component of the skin mucus secreted by a South Indian fungoid...

Drinking a beetroot juice before exercise makes the aging brain perform more efficiently. Image credit: Ken Bennett, Wake Forest University.

Beetroot Juice before Exercise Keeps Aging Brain Sharp

Apr 19, 2017 by News Staff

According to a study published recently in the Journals of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, drinking a beetroot juice before exercise makes the brain of...

This is an image to demonstrate visual ‘crowding’ and test peripheral vision. Ensure that the red dot in the center of the image is at eye level and focus on it. While holding your focus on the red dot, try to read the middle ‘C’ in every triplet. Is the gap facing left or right? You may find it easier to read in some directions than others. People usually find it easier to read below the dot than above, and easier still to the left or right. Image credit: John Greenwood, University College London.

Ability to Distinguish Objects in Peripheral Vision Varies between Individuals, Study Finds

Apr 14, 2017 by News Staff

New research led by University College London, UK, shows that on average we are worse at spotting objects in crowded environments when they are above or...

According to Dr. Samuel and co-authors, patients at high risk of CAD should have regular check-ups to avoid early cardiac events by initiating preventive therapy. Image credit: Arek Socha.

Gray Hair Linked with Increased Risk of Coronary Artery Disease in Men

Apr 12, 2017 by News Staff

Gray hair has been linked with an increased risk of coronary artery disease in men, in a study presented this month at EuroPrevent 2017 in Malaga, Spain. According...

This micrograph depicts the gram-positive bacterium Propionibacterium acnes grown in thioglycollate medium at 48 hours. Propionibacterium acnes is a very common obligate anaerobic, non-spore forming rod, and the etiologic pathogen responsible for acne vulgaris, or pimples. It normally resides in the sebaceous glands of the skin. Image credit: Bobby Strong, CDC.

Unbalanced Skin Microbiome May Be Key to Acne Development, Study Finds

Apr 6, 2017 by News Staff

The overall balance of the bacteria on a person’s skin, rather than the presence or absence of a particular bacterial strain, appears to be an important...

A maple syrup extract increases the potency of common antibiotics. Image credit: Three-Shots.

Maple Syrup Extract Synergizes with Common Antibiotics

Apr 3, 2017 by News Staff

A phenolic-rich extract from maple syrup can make disease-causing bacteria more susceptible to common antibiotics, according to new research from McGill...

Visualization of resident megakaryocytes in the lungs. Image credit: Emma Lefrançais et al, doi: 10.1038/nature21706.

Lungs Play Previously Unknown Role in Blood Production

Mar 27, 2017 by News Staff

Using video microscopy in a living mouse lung, a team of researchers at the Universities of California, San Francisco (UCSF) & Los Angeles (UCLA),...