Medical News Observer

Keep updated with latest medical research news

Research shows efficacy of malarial drug Chloroquine in treating Zika infection

Zika virus remains a major global health risk. In most adults, Zika causes mild flu-like symptoms. But in pregnant women, the virus can cause serious birth defects in babies including microcephaly a neurological condition in which newborns have unusually small heads and fail to develop properly. There is no treatment or way to reverse the…
Finding new uses for old medication using computer program DrugPredict

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have developed a computer program called DrugPredict to discover new indications for old drugs. This program matches existing data about FDA-approved drugs to diseases, and predicts potential drug efficacy. In a recent study published in Oncogene, the researchers successfully translated DrugPredict results into the laboratory, and…
Computational model uncovers progression of HIV infection in brain

University of Alberta research team successfully uncovered the progression of HIV infection in the brain using a new mathematical model. The team is utilizing this model to develop a nasal spray to administer antiretroviral medication effectively. Their research is published in Journal of Neurovirology. Research was done by PhD student Weston Roda and Prof. Michael…
Delaying aging process by selective removal of senescent cells

A recent study, led by an international team of researchers confirms that targeted removal of senescent cells (SnCs), accumulated in many vertebrate tissues as we age, contribute significantly in delaying the onset of age-related pathologies. Credit: Baker et al., Nature This breakthrough research has been led by Dr. Chaekyu Kim and Dr. Ok Hee Jeon.…
Metformin influences gut microbiome

A recent study at Sahlgrenska Academy and University of Girona indicates thatcontrol of blood glucose by metformin is achieved partly through modulation of the gut microbiota. Results of the study are published in journal Nature Medicine. Fredrik Bäckhed’s research group at Sahlgrenska Academy has previously shown that the gut microbiota is altered in patients with…
ResistoMap developed to track world wide microbial drug resistance

Scientists from the Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical-Chemical Medicine, the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, and Data Laboratory have created the ResistoMap, an interactive visualization of gut resistome. Gut resistome is human gut microbiota potential to resist antibiotics and includes the set of all antibiotic resistance genes in the genomes of human…
Brain changes in diabetic patients

A new study published in Diabetologia reveals that overweight and obese individuals with early stage type 2 diabetes (T2D) had more severe and progressive abnormalities in brain structure and cognition compared to normal-weight study participants. The research conducted by Dr Sunjung Yoon and Dr In Kyoon Lyoo (Ewha Brain Institute, Ewha Womens University, Seoul, South Korea),…
Hinokitiol, molecule from Japanese cypress tree shows promise in iron related disorders

Researchers find key molecule that could lead to new therapies for anemia and other iron disorders. New findings reported in journal Science by a multi-institutional team, including researchers from University of Illinois, Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Northeastern University, could impact whole range of diseases related to iron…
New tissue-engineered platform for islet cell transplantation found effective in type 1 diabetic patients

Researchers from the Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) have produced the clinical results demonstrating that pancreatic islet cells transplanted within a tissue-engineered platform can achieve insulin independence in type 1 diabetes. The research findings are published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Fluorescence microscopy of islets in the omentum transplanted within the biologic scaffold. In…
Computational model to track flu using Twitter data

An international team led by Alessandro Vespignani from Northeastern University has developed a computational model to predict the spread of the flu in real time. This unique model uses posts on Twitter in combination with key parameters of each season’s epidemic, including the incubation period of the disease, the immunization rate, how many people an…