(Reuters) – British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Vir Biotechnology Inc will expand their existing partnership developing antibody therapies for COVID-19 to research therapies for other diseases, the companies said on Wednesday. The companies will research monoclonal antibody treatments for influenza and other respiratory illnesses as a part of the agreement,…
Phase 1 clinical trial of novel HIV vaccine approach shows promising results
A phase 1 clinical trial testing a novel vaccine approach to prevent HIV has produced promising results, IAVI and Scripps Research announced today. The vaccine showed success in stimulating production of rare immune cells needed to start the process of generating antibodies against the fast-mutating virus; the targeted response was…
Study of bile acids links individual’s genetics and microbial gut community: Gene identified in mice affects both size of a bacterial population and bile acid levels in blood
In a new study published 29th August in PLOS Genetics, Federico Rey of the University of Wisconsin — Madison and colleagues identified genetic variants in mice that impact the levels of different bile acids as well as the size of a specific population of microbes in the gut. The complex…
Gut throws cells overboard when chemical insults build up
A team of Duke researchers has discovered that cells lining the gut of zebrafish — and probably humans too — have a remarkable defense mechanism when faced with certain kinds of toxins: they hit the eject button. “The gut has the challenging job of handling all the chemicals that we…
First events in stem cells becoming specialized cells needed for organ development
New research by cell biologists at the University of Toronto (U of T) provides significant new insight into the very first step stem cells go through to turn into the specialized cells that make up organs. The findings published online in Genes & Development implicate the ability of proteins to…
How egg cells choose their best powerhouses to pass on
Developing egg cells conduct tests to select the healthiest of their energy-making machines to be passed to the next generation. A new study in fruit flies, published online May 15 in Nature, shows how the testing is done. The work focuses on mitochondria, the cellular machines that turn the sugars,…
Diet rich in animal protein is associated with a greater risk of early death
A diet rich in animal protein and meat in particular is not good for the health, a new study from the University of Eastern Finland finds, providing further backing for earlier research evidence. Men who favoured animal protein over plant-based protein in their diet had a greater risk of death…
Understanding what makes Tennessee whiskey unique
The sugar maple tree yields autumn foliage, maple syrup and Tennessee whiskey. Wood from the tree is chopped into planks, stacked in piles and burned to form charcoal. Freshly distilled, un-aged whiskey is filtered over the charcoal in a mysterious, but necessary step known as the Lincoln County Process (LCP)….
How viruses outsmart their host cells: Scientists decipher protein structure after more than fifty years of research
Viruses depend on host cells for replication, but how does a virus induce its host to transcribe its own genetic information alongside that of the virus, thus producing daughter viruses? For decades, researchers have been studying a type of bacteriophage known as ‘lambda’ to try and find an answer to…
Fluconazole makes fungi sexually active
The yeast Candida albicans occurs in most healthy people as a harmless colonizer in the digestive tract. However, it can also cause life-threatening infections, especially in immunocompromised patients. These infections are usually treated with the drug fluconazole, which inhibits the synthesis of ergosterol in Candida. Ergosterol fulfils similar important functions…
Scientists generate functional, transplantable B cells from mice
Functional B-1 cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells are capable of long-term engraftment and secrete natural antibodies after transplantation in mice, researchers report February 7th in the journal Stem Cell Reports. Scientists are interested in B-1 cells generated from pluripotent stem cells because they could be tested as a…