Science and Health News

A hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease is the appearance of plaques in the brain. The plaques are gradually made up by the aggregation of a small protein called amyloid-beta or «Abeta». Alzheimer’s is usually diagnosed late, when the plaques have developed and are already causing cognitive damage like memory loss. In a large study led by EPFL, an international team of scientists from Harvard, Edinburgh and Ulm, have now found a way to detect Abeta aggregation in its early stages, which will make diagnosing and treating the disease much more effective. The study is published in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

A University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher who studies the most common genetic intellectual disability has used an experimental drug to reverse — in mice — damage from the mutation that causes the syndrome.

Nicotinamide riboside (NR) is pretty amazing. It has already been shown in several studies to be effective in boosting metabolism. And now a team of researchers at EPFL’s Laboratory of Integrated Systems Physiology (LISP), headed by Johan Auwerx, has unveiled even more of its secrets. An article written by Hongbo Zhang, a PhD student on the team, was published today in Science and describes the positive effects of NR on the functioning of stem cells. These effects can only be described as restorative.

Italian neurosurgeon Sergio Canavero and his Chinese colleague Dr. Xiaoping Ren are set to perform a two-part human head transplant procedure he dubbes HEAVEN (“head anastomosis venture”) and GEMINI (the subsequent spinal cord fusion).

A 25 percent calorie restriction over two years by adults who were not obese was linked to better health-related quality of life, according to the results of a randomized clinical trial published online by JAMA Internal Medicine.

IBM Research and Singapore's Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology Announce New Macromolecule with Triple-Play Action to Help Fight Virus Infection and Drug Resistance

Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have discovered how the major genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease causes memory impairment. A specific type of brain activity important for memory replay is disrupted in mice with the E4 version of the apolipoprotein E (apoE4) gene, which may interfere with memory formation.

If damaged cells are replaceable, type 1 diabetics wouldn't need insulin shots