After 60 years, scientists uncover how thalidomide produced birth defects
More than 60 years after the drug thalidomide caused birth defects in thousands of children whose mothers took the drug while pregnant, scientists at Dana-Farber … Read more
eLife
Flies meet gruesome end under influence of puppeteer fungus
Carolyn Elya discovered the puppet-master on the balcony of her Berkeley apartment. It was a fungus that infects fruit flies, invading their nervous system and … Read more
Neighborhood cops: Some immune cells defend just 1 organ
Scientists have uncovered a new way the immune system may fight cancers and viral infections. The finding could aid efforts to use immune cells to … Read more
Tobacco plant may have key to fighting cancer
La Trobe University research has revealed a tobacco plant’s natural defence mechanisms could be harnessed to kill cancer cells in the human body. Scientists at … Read more
Genetically identical bacteria can behave in radically different ways
Although a population of bacteria may be genetically identical, individual bacteria within that population can act in radically different ways. As these bacterial cells divide, … Read more
Breast cell survival factor increases breast cancer risk after late pregnancy
The mystery of why the risk of breast cancer goes up in women whose first pregnancies occur after the age of 35 may boil down … Read more
Antibiotic-resistant typhoid likely to spread
Restricting the use of antibiotics is unlikely to stop the spread of drug resistance in typhoid fever, according to a study funded by the Wellcome … Read more
Ambien has unexpected impact on brain injured patients
George Melendez has been called a medical miracle. After a near drowning deprived his brain of oxygen, Melendez remained in a fitful, minimally conscious state … Read more
Outside influence: Genes outside nucleus have disproportionate effect
New research from the University of California, Davis, shows that the tiny proportion of a cell’s DNA that is located outside the cell nucleus has … Read more
Tissue loss triggers regeneration in planarian flatworms
Unlike humans, planarian flatworms have the remarkable ability to regrow any missing body part, making them an ideal model with which to study the molecular … Read more
Compounds target amyloid fibrils in Alzheimer’s, other brain diseases
UCLA chemists and molecular biologists have for the first time used a “structure-based” approach to drug design to identify compounds with the potential to delay … Read more
