Medical Xpress news

Medical Xpress / Frequently distracted? Your brain rhythms may be to blame

Scientists may have new answers to why pop-ups or notifications grab our attention. Turns out our attention is on a cycle, shifting seven to 10 times per second. This rhythmic occurrence may be crucial for survival, as it ...

5 hours ago in Neuroscience
Medical Xpress / 'Off the shelf' immunotherapy could get a lift from gene-edited natural killer cells

Since scientists first discovered that human immune cells could be modified to become cancer-fighting agents, they've been trying to engineer a cell that's effective against solid tumors, which account for the vast majority ...

12 hours ago in Oncology & Cancer
Medical Xpress / Differing immune responses in infants may explain increased severity of RSV over SARS-CoV-2

Young infants hospitalized with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) often become much sicker than those infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. In a study published in Science Translational Medicine, scientists ...

6 hours ago in Immunology
Medical Xpress / Gallbladder cancer could soon be detected in blood

Researchers at Tezpur University in Assam, India, working with scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, have identified distinct chemical signatures in blood that could help detect gallbladder cancer earlier. ...

13 hours ago in Oncology & Cancer
Medical Xpress / Vitamin B7 reveals a new metabolic weak spot in some cancers

A research group at the University of Lausanne (Unil) has identified a new mechanism that exposes the vulnerability of tumor cells when they are deprived of vitamin B7. The ability of cells to adapt to fluctuations in nutrient ...

14 hours ago in Oncology & Cancer
Medical Xpress / Scientists sharpen genetic maps to help pinpoint DNA changes that influence human health traits and disease risk

Scientists have identified how specific genetic changes function in cells to influence disease risk and other human health traits. By probing regions of DNA previously linked to disease, the work has created high-resolution ...

14 hours ago in Genetics
Medical Xpress / Why eczema often starts in childhood: New clues point to early immune 'overreaction'

A team of researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Weill Cornell Medicine, and other institutions have uncovered a key biological explanation for why eczema so often starts in childhood. The study, in young ...

14 hours ago in Immunology
Medical Xpress / AI, monkey brains, and the virtue of small thinking illuminate how the brain processes sight

What does it take to make AI that can pass as human? Try massive clusters of supercomputers. To build human-like intelligence, computer scientists think big. However, for neuroscientists who want to understand how real brains ...

14 hours ago in Health informatics
Medical Xpress / Unlearning fear faster: Activating certain neurons can accelerate the process

Unlearning fear responses is a fundamental learning process in the brain. It allows us to flexibly react to formerly threatening situations once the danger is no longer present. This mechanism, known in research as "fear ...

14 hours ago in Psychology & Psychiatry
Medical Xpress / Civilians face increasing harm from deadly explosive weapons, 17-country study finds

A University of Queensland study has found that almost 90% of people killed and injured by landmines and similar weapons are civilians. Dr. Stacey Pizzino from UQ's School of Public Health, together with her research team, ...

6 hours ago in Health
Medical Xpress / Surprising culprit leads to chronic rejection of transplanted lungs and hearts

Despite advances in the field of organ transplantation, long-term organ rejection that can become apparent a decade or more after a heart or lung transplant remains a common problem for patients. This chronic organ failure ...

Medical Xpress / How ketogenic diets help prevent seizures

A ketogenic diet—one that is high in fat and extremely low in carbohydrates—has been known for decades to reduce seizures in some epilepsy patients. But how the highly restrictive diet achieves these effects has not previously ...