Diabetes-treating implant produces oxygen to support islet cells

The current version of the device is about the size of a US quarter-dollar coin – a version for use in humans may be more around the size of a stick of chewing gum

Daily insulin injections are painful and inconvenient, which is why scientists are developing implants that treat diabetes without any need for needles. A new one looks particularly promising, as it produces oxygen to feed onboard islet cells.

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World-first in-utero procedure successfully treats dangerous brain defect

A first-of-its-kind surgical procedure has been performed in utero to correct a brain defect that can be fatal in infants

Surgeons have successfully performed a first-of-its-kind procedure in utero to treat a potentially fatal genetic defect in the brain. Usually treated after birth, the new procedure could give newborns a better chance of a normal life.

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COVID vaccines in children cut Omicron hospitalizations by 68%

The research found vaccination reduces a child's risk of hospitalization and severe disease from COVID-19 by 68 percent

A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine is offering some of the first real-world data on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness against the Omicron variant in children aged 5 to 11. The findings reveal vaccination reduce a child’s risk of severe illness and hospitalization by two-thirds compared to unvaccinated children.

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Blocking cellular pathway delays or prevents onset of diabetes in mice

Researchers have identified a cellular pathway that seems to play a role in the onset of type 1 diabetes, and found that blocking it could help prevent the disease

Type 1 diabetes begins when beta cells in the pancreas die off, meaning a patient can no longer produce enough insulin. Scientists have now identified a cellular pathway that can contribute to the death of these cells, and found that blocking it in mice and human cells keeps the beta cells alive for longer, delaying or preventing the onset of diabetes.

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Blocking cellular pathway delays or prevents onset of diabetes in mice

Researchers have identified a cellular pathway that seems to play a role in the onset of type 1 diabetes, and found that blocking it could help prevent the disease

Type 1 diabetes begins when beta cells in the pancreas die off, meaning a patient can no longer produce enough insulin. Scientists have now identified a cellular pathway that can contribute to the death of these cells, and found that blocking it in mice and human cells keeps the beta cells alive for longer, delaying or preventing the onset of diabetes.

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Urine analysis could definitively diagnose concussions

Urine samples from concussion patients were found to have lower-than-normal levels of two proteins

Although it’s vitally important to know if someone has experienced a concussion, the injuries are notoriously difficult to diagnose. According to a new study, however, urine tests may do the trick – plus they could be used to monitor the healing process.

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Jigsaw gene therapy reverses genetic hearing loss in mice

A new gene therapy shows promise in reversing some forms of genetic hearing loss

Scientists at Boston Children’s Hospital have successfully used gene therapy to reverse a form of genetic hearing loss in mice. The team corrected a gene mutation that affects sensory hair cells in the inner ear, and the new jigsaw-like method could help improve gene therapy for other disorders.

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Preventing rogue cells from cloning could nip blood cancer in the bud

Image depicting a rogue blood stem cell type becoming dominant, due to an introduced genetic mutation

Scientists investigating a root cause of leukemia have made a key discovery around how genetic mutations can cause blood stem cells to go rogue, forming dangerous populations of cloned cells that can go on to become cancerous. The team’s experiments on zebrafish not only shed new light on how these cells protect themselves as they rapidly multiply, but reveal new targets for scientists looking to halt blood cancer in its early stages.

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Toxic lead found in over half of blood samples from US children

The first large-scale study to look at very low levels of lead in blood samples from children has been conducted

A new study published in JAMA Pediatrics is reporting one half of American children under the age of six have detectable levels of lead in their blood. The research looked at recent blood test results from over one million children and is the first study of this scale to analyze minute traces of lead in blood samples.

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Molecules identified that reverse cellular aging process

A new discovery paves the way for novel drugs that could help safeguard DNA and slow the aging process

Central to a lot of scientific research into aging are tiny caps on the ends of our chromosomes called telomeres. These protective sequences of DNA grow a little shorter each time a cell divides, but by intervening in this process, researchers hope to one day regulate the process of aging and the ill health effects it can bring. A Harvard team is now offering an exciting pathway forward, discovering a set of small molecules capable of restoring telomere length in mice.

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