Category: Disease Discoveries
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Immune Genes Are Altered in Alzheimer’s Patients’ Blood
A new study has found the immune system in the blood of Alzheimer’s patients is epigenetically altered, and many of these altered genes are the same ones that increase an individual’s risk for Alzheimer’s.
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Using Cancer’s Strength to Fight Against It
In findings published in Nature, scientists may have found a way around the limitations of engineered T-cells by borrowing a few tricks from cancer itself.
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Study Identifies Molecular Mechanisms of Rare Neurodevelopmental Disorder
Investigators from the laboratory of Alicia Guemez-Gamboa, PhD, assistant professor of Neuroscience, have discovered new molecular mechanisms of PACS1 syndrome, a rare neurodevelopmental disorder, according to findings published in Nature Communications.
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Decorated Nanoparticles Prevent Allergic Reactions
Northwestern University scientists have developed the first selective nanoparticle therapy to prevent allergic reactions, which can range in severity from itchy hives and watery eyes to trouble breathing and even death.
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New Cause of Neuron Death in Alzheimer’s Discovered
A new Northwestern Medicine study has identified short strands of toxic RNAs that contribute to brain cell death and DNA damage in Alzheimer’s and aged brains.
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Novel Protein Interactions May Serve as Biomarker for Heart Disease
Investigators led by Elizabeth McNally, MD, PhD, the Elizabeth J. Ward Professor of Genetic Medicine and director of the Center for Genetic Medicine, have discovered previously unknown protein interactions in the heart’s atrium that are critical for normal heart function, according to findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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Neural Mechanisms May Serve as Therapeutic Target for Depression
A recent study published in Molecular Psychiatry has identified previously unknown alterations in neural connectivity that promote psychomotor disturbance — a slowing or reduction in movement — in individuals with major depressive disorder.
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Exploring How Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Become Aggressive
Some strains of an antibiotic-resistant bacteria may not turn out to be as aggressive as previously thought, according to a Northwestern Medicine study recently published in Nature Communications.
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Defining Rheumatoid Arthritis Subtypes May Improve Treatments
By profiling the inflammatory cells types in joint tissue biopsy samples, scientists have characterized six subtypes of rheumatoid arthritis, an approach that could help physicians tailor more effective treatment strategies for patients based on disease type, according to findings published in Nature.
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Novel ‘Feeding’ Mechanism Promotes Glioblastoma Treatment Resistance
Northwestern Medicine investigators have discovered that specialized immune cells within the glioblastoma tumor microenvironment use a unique “feeding” mechanism that promotes tumor growth and treatment resistance, according to findings published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
