Study: Malaria-preventive drugs dramatically reduce infections in school children
(University of Maryland School of Medicine) Use of preventive antimalarial treatments reduces by half the number of malaria infections among schoolchildren, according to a new analysis published today in The Lancet Global Health. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)
Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - October 22, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
UMD-led study shows fear and anxiety share same bases in brain
(University of Maryland) The report by an international team of researchers led by Alexander Shackman, an associate professor of psychology at UMD, and Juyoen Hur, an assistant professor of psychology at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, provides new evidence that fear and anxiety reflect overlapping brain circuits. The findings run counter to popular scientific accounts, highlighting the need for a major theoretical reckoning. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - October 19, 2020 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news
Fast 50: Hunt Valley-based Kermit builds mightily on a niche in health care tech
Health care tech firm Kermit has benefitted greatly from the presence of Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland Medical System, CEO Rich Palarea says. (Source: bizjournals.com Health Care:Physician Practices headlines)
Source: bizjournals.com Health Care:Physician Practices headlines - October 15, 2020 Category: American Health Authors: Ethan McLeod Source Type: news
Ingestible capsule that could help demystify the gut-brain axis
(University of Maryland) A team of University of Maryland experts from engineering, neuroscience, applied microbiology, and physics has been making headway on building a platform that can monitor and model the real-time processing of gut microbiome serotonin activity. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - October 15, 2020 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news
UMD researchers use artificial intelligence language tools to decode molecular movements
(University of Maryland) University of Maryland researchers used language processing AI to turn molecular movements into stories that reveal what forms a protein can take and how and when it changes form--key information for understanding disease and developing targeted therapeutics. This research appears in the October 09, 2020, issue of Nature Communications. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - October 9, 2020 Category: Biology Source Type: news
Mosquitos lost an essential gene with no ill effects
(University of Maryland) University of Maryland scientists discovered mosquitos are missing a gene that's critical for survival in other insects. Alys Jarvela noticed the missing gene and went on the hunt to find out how mosquitos survive without it. She identified the first example of nature swapping out closely related genes, a phenomenon that poses caveats for studies using model organisms as proxies for other species. The research was published September 30, 2020, in Communications Biology. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - September 30, 2020 Category: Biology Source Type: news
The Center for Research on Complex Generics
FDA awards a 5-year grant to the University of Maryland and the University of Michigan to establish a Center for Research on Complex Generics (CRCG). (Source: FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research - What's New)
Source: FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research - What's New - September 29, 2020 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Authors: FDA Source Type: news
How zika virus degrades essential protein for neurological development via autophagy
(University of Maryland) Researchers at the University of Maryland (UMD) shed new light on how Zika virus hijacks our own cellular machinery to break down an essential protein for neurological development, getting it to " eat itself " . By triggering this process known as autophagy, Zika virus is able to degrade an important protein, a process that may contribute to the development of neurological or brain deficiencies and congenital birth defects in the newborns of infected pregnant women. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)
Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - September 28, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
Theater improvisation techniques show promising results for science classroom engagement
(University of Maryland Baltimore County) A researcher at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) has developed a unique method to improve class participation in a graduate-level thermodynamics course by incorporating theater improvisation activities in the classroom. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - September 25, 2020 Category: Biology Source Type: news
Gene Therapy Clinical Trial for Mesothelioma Moving Forward
This study will compare the effectiveness of the drug against a control group receiving only the gemcitabine and celecoxib. Patients have a one-in-two chance of being randomly assigned to either the adenovirus treatment or the control group.
Adenovirus-delivered interferon Alpha-2b is designed as a second- or third-line treatment for patients who have failed in earlier regimens. Patients who previously had aggressive mesothelioma surgery but whose tumors have since progressed would be eligible to enroll.
Success at the phase III level would mark the culmination of 20 years of researching and fine tuning gene therapy for us...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - September 23, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Having high cholesterol levels early in life leads to heart problems by middle age
(University of Maryland School of Medicine) Having elevated cholesterol during the teens or early twenties increases a person's risk of having a heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular event during middle age. That is the finding a new landmark study led by researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM). (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - September 22, 2020 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news
Dipanjan Pan demonstrates new method to produce gold nanoparticles in cancer cells
(University of Maryland Baltimore County) Researchers published a seminal study in Nature Communications that demonstrates for the first time a method of biosynthesizing plasmonic gold nanoparticles within cancer cells, without the need for conventional bench-top lab methods. It has the potential to notably expand biomedical applications. (Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer)
Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer - September 11, 2020 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: news
Researchers identify role of protein in development of new hearing hair cells
(University of Maryland School of Medicine) Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) have conducted a study that has determined the role that a critical protein plays in the development of hair cells. These hair cells are vital for hearing. Some of these cells amplify sounds that come into the ear, and others transform sound waves into electrical signals that travel to the brain. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - September 11, 2020 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news
Vaccine proponents and opponents are vectors of misinformation online
(George Washington University) Researchers from the George Washington University, University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins University assessed content from the most active vaccine-related accounts on Twitter and found that even accounts with pro-vaccination views and higher public health credibility can be vectors of misinformation in the highly uncertain and rapidly changing environment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)
Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - September 9, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
Globalization is reweaving the web of life
(University of Maryland) Networks of interactions among species are becoming increasingly similar across ecosystems, according to a global analysis published this week in Nature. Data collected over the last 75 years show the accelerating pace that introduced species are reshaping mutualistic relationships and creating new ecological links between previously disconnected ecosystems. These changes to mutualistic networks will influence which species are winners and losers in future ecosystems and may expose ecological networks to collapse. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - September 2, 2020 Category: Biology Source Type: news
