Category: Scientific Advances
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Uncovering the Mysteries of Microproteins
Northwestern Medicine scientists have developed a method to identify and characterize microproteins, a development which opens the door for understanding physiology and disease at a molecular level not possible until now, according to findings published in Nature Communications.
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Understanding How a Motor Protein Helps Cells Move
Scientists have characterized how non-muscle myosin assembles in cells using the latest advances in technology only available at Northwestern and a handful of institutions worldwide, according to a study published in the Journal of Cell Biology.
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Treating Cardiovascular Health with Anti-Obesity Medications and Addressing Health Equity
As GLP-1 receptor agonist medications like semaglutide have been shown to be effective at helping patients lose weight, scientists are now asking, whether they can treat other conditions where obesity is a risk factor. Most recently, initial studies have shown that they can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by reducing overall body weight.
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Engineered Heart Cells May Improve Understanding of Atrial Fibrillation
A multidisciplinary team of investigators have engineered a more accurate model for studying the underlying mechanisms of atrial fibrillation and treatment response, according to findings published in Science Advances.
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Novel Pathway Explains the Escalation of Fear Responses
Scientists have discovered a neuronal pathway involved in how the brain encodes the transition to high-intensity fear response behaviors required for survival, according to a study published in Nature.
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Calming Neurotransmitter Can Also Be Excitatory
A neurotransmitter previously thought to only calm neurons may also play a role in waking them up, according to a study published in the journal PLOS Biology, a discovery which upends conventional theories of how the neurotransmitter works in the brain.
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Analysis of K99/R00 Pipeline Illustrates Systematic Disadvantages
An analysis of NIH training grants has illustrated systematic disadvantages among the trainees who receive the awards.
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Study Shows Tiny ‘Twisters’ Move Cytoplasm Within Cells
Investigators at Northwestern Medicine and the Flatiron Institute have characterized how developing cells reorganize their cytoplasm as part of their growth, according to a study published in Nature Physics, a discovery which furthers the field’s understanding of basic cellular processes at the earliest stages of development.
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Neuronal Diversity Impacts the Brain’s Information Processing
Northwestern Medicine investigators have revealed new insights into the impact of neuronal structural diversity on neural computation, the basis of brain function, according to a recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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Shedding Light on the Synaptic Complexities of Vision
An individual retinal cell can output more than one unique signal, according to a Northwestern Medicine study published in Nature Communications, a finding which sheds new light on the complexities of how vision functions in mammals.
