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It has long been known that a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, and most other neurodegenerative diseases, is the clumping together of insoluble protein aggregates in the brain. During normal disease-free aging, there is also an accumulation of insoluble proteins. Researchers have recently completed a systematic study in worms that paints an intricate picture of the connections between insoluble proteins in neurodegenerative diseases and aging. Furthermore, the work demonstrated an intervention that could reverse the toxic effects of the aggregates by boosting mitochondrial health. "Our study shows how maintaining healthy mitochondria can combat protein clumping linked to both aging and Alzheimer's,"...

Autoimmune diseases occur when the body's immune system attacks healthy cells instead of protecting them. Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is one such autoimmune condition characterized by faulty circulatory and immune systems, leading to the occurrence of fibrosis (hardening and scarring of healthy tissue) of the skin and internal organs. Countering oxidative stress using antioxidant compounds, is therefore, being increasingly explored as a therapeutic strategy. To this end, a team of researchers has investigated the effectiveness of Twendee X (TwX)—a dietary supplement comprising of a combination of eight active antioxidants—in reducing oxidative stress in SSc mouse models. Prof. Inufusa says, "Studies have...

Aerobic training is known to regulate blood pressure more effectively when practiced in the evening than in the morning. Researchers who conducted a study of elderly patients concluded that evening exercise is better for blood pressure regulation thanks to improved cardiovascular control by the autonomic nervous system via a mechanism known as baroreflex sensitivity. "There are multiple mechanisms to regulate blood pressure, and although morning training was beneficial, only evening training improved short-term control of blood pressure by enhancing baroreflex sensitivity. This is important because baroreflex control has a positive effect on blood pressure regulation, and there aren't any medications...

In emergency rooms and intensive care units across the country, clinicians make split-second decisions about which antibiotics to give a patient. A new study reveals that these decisions may have unintended consequences for patient outcomes. Beginning in 2015, a 15-month national shortage of a commonly prescribed antibiotic, piperacillin/tazobactam--known by the brand name Zosyn--provided a unique opportunity to compare rates of death in hospitalized patients with sepsis who were administered two different types of antibiotics—one that spares the gut microbiome and one that profoundly alters it. Piperacillin/tazobactam is a broad-spectrum antibiotic that is commonly administered for sepsis, a life-threatening complication from...

For the roughly 150,000 AIDS patients who come down with a life-threatening infection called fungal meningitis each year, there's only one treatment: a drug called fluconazole that works for less than half of patients. Now, a study suggests there may be a way to improve the odds—simply by changing what patients eat. In animal tests, the researchers found that taking fluconazole in combination with a low-carb, high-fat keto diet worked significantly better at killing the fungus than taking the medication alone. For the new study, the researchers wondered if a keto diet—which deprives the body of glucose by cutting carbohydrate...

Researchers have made a discovery that could bring relief to those struggling with long COVID. In a world-first finding, they've identified a way to restore the faulty function of ion channels on immune cells using a well-known drug. The breakthrough, builds on previous research showing long COVID patients share similar issues with ion channels as those with chronic fatigue syndrome (also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis or ME/CFS). The team had previously shown success in restoring ion channel function in ME/CFS patients using a drug called Naltrexone, and now they've achieved similar results with long COVID patients. "Ion channels are integral...

Gut microbiota or the population of microbial inhabitants in the intestine, plays a key role in digestion and maintenance of overall health. Intestinal microbes metabolize dietary components into beneficial fatty acids (FAs), supporting metabolism and maintaining host body homeostasis. Metabolites originating from polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), influenced by gut microbes such as Lactobacillus plantarum, exhibit potent effects on inflammation and immune responses. The researchers used antigen-stimulated spleen cells to elicit an enhanced immune response. Subsequently, they investigated the impacts of different polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) derivatives, focusing on metabolites of linoleic acid, a prevalent dietary fatty acid. Their findings revealed...

Exercise prompts muscles to release molecular cargo that boosts brain cell function and connection, but the process is not well understood. New research has found that the nerves that tell muscles to move also prompt them to release more of the brain-boosting factors. "The molecules released from the muscle go into the bloodstream and then to the brain." said Hyunjoon Kong. "As we get older, we lose these neurons from the muscle," he said. The researchers compared two muscle tissue models—one with neuron innervation and one without. They found that the innervated muscle produced more molecules that promote brain neuron...

A team of researchers has found evidence that daily consumption of olive oil may reduce the chances of developing dementia. In their study, the group analyzed data for thousands of people included in two separate health databases and found that those people who consumed at least 7 g of olive oil daily were less likely to die from dementia-related ailments. Prior research has suggested that following the Mediterranean diet can lead to healthier outcomes for most people. The diet tends to stress consuming legumes, vegetables, nuts, fish, dairy and olive oil. In this new study, the research team found evidence...

Researchers have evaluated a drug called azithromycin, a macrolide antibiotic, to test if it would put moderate to severe asthma into remission. Professor Peter Gibson says the findings were very promising. "Remission in adults with asthma is a relatively new concept and a less researched area but it has recently gained attention. Recent studies have found that remission is possible in severe asthma treated with highly effective biologics therapies, a new class of drugs," Professor Gibson said. "We've taken a different approach by testing another type of drug. We're the only people in the world to have tested this drug...

Consuming a primarily plant-based diet may be associated with better cancer-specific health outcomes among men with prostate cancer, according to a study. Vivian N. Liu and colleagues examined whether post-diagnostic plant-based dietary patterns are associated with the risk for prostate cancer progression and prostate cancer-specific mortality. The analysis included 2,062 participants in the multisite Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Research Endeavor study. The researchers found that men scoring in the highest versus lowest quintile of the Plant-based Diet Index (PDI) had lower risk for progression (hazard ratio, 0.53). There was no association for healthful PDI and risk for progression...

Inulin, a type of fiber found in certain plant-based foods and fiber supplements, causes inflammation in the gut and exacerbates inflammatory bowel disease in a preclinical model, according to a study. The study shows that inulin, which is found in foods such as garlic, leeks and sunchoke, as well as commonly used fiber supplements and foods with added fiber, stimulates microbes in the gut to release bile acids that increase the production of molecules that promote intestinal inflammation. Feeding inulin to mice in the context of a model of inflammatory bowel disease increased the production of certain bile acids by...

Researchers have found naturally occurring compounds in the gut that can be harnessed to reduce inflammation and other symptoms of digestive issues. This can be achieved by binding the compounds to an important, but poorly understood, nuclear receptor. Said Jiabao Liu, "We found that these molecules act similarly to artificial compounds that are currently being used to regulate the constitutive androstane receptor, otherwise known as CAR." CAR plays a critical role in regulating the breakdown, uptake and removal of foreign substances in the liver, including drugs. It is also involved in intestinal inflammation. "One of the challenges with studying CAR...

A drug that targets a protein known as phosphatidylserine boosted the response rate for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients receiving immunotherapy without compromising their safety, according to results of a clinical trial. The findings show the potential benefits of augmenting immunotherapy for this and other forms of cancer. Several years ago, researchers discovered that phosphatidylserine, a fatty substance called a phospholipid sometimes present on the surface of cancer cells, appeared to interact with immune cells to prevent them from attacking tumors. An antibody drug called bavituximab that neutralizes phosphatidylserine showed no effect on tumor response, progression, or survival when administered alone...

Protein imbalances that increase brain cell excitability may explain why individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) who also experience seizures demonstrate more rapid cognitive decline than those who do not experience seizures. These imbalances may be present in the brains of individuals before the onset of AD symptoms. The team found that an existing drug called rapamycin, initially developed as an immunosuppressant for organ transplant patients that suppresses signaling between neurons, was able to regulate the over-excited neurons in mouse models of AD and seizures, and preserve cognitive function, like memory and the ability to learn new things. "Experts used to...

Combining time-restricted eating with high-intensity functional training may improve body composition and cardiometabolic parameters more than either alone, according to a study. Prior studies indicate that time-restricted eating (which limits when, but not what, individuals eat) and high-intensity functional training (which combines intense aerobic and resistance exercise) may be beneficial and easier for individuals to commit to long term. In a new study, researchers investigated the impact of time-restricted eating and high-intensity functional training on body composition and markers of cardiometabolic health such as cholesterol, blood glucose, and lipid levels. A total of 64 women with obesity were assigned to...

A preclinical study from Karolinska Institutet offers hope for treating severe neurodegenerative diseases with an existing drug. The study suggests that the leprosy drug clofazimine may be effective in the treatment of Huntington's disease. The research group examined whether existing drugs could reduce the toxicity of so-called polyQ proteins. These proteins are found in patients with certain hereditary neurodegenerative diseases, including Huntington's disease, for which there is no cure. Screening hundreds of drugs, they found that the leprosy drug clofazimine reduces the toxicity of polyQ proteins and restores mitochondrial function in zebrafish and worms. The finding supports the previous hypothesis...

For individuals without a family history of colorectal cancer (CRC), increasing the interval between colonoscopies for those with a first colonoscopy with negative findings seems safe and can avoid unnecessary colonoscopies, according to a study. Qunfeng Liang and colleagues assessed how many years after a first colonoscopy with findings negative for CRC a second colonoscopy can be performed. The exposed group included individuals without a family history of CRC who had a first colonoscopy with findings negative for CRC at age 45 to 69 years between 1990 and 2016, while the control group included matched individuals who did not have...

Blood vessels in the lungs aren't like the others in the body. This difference becomes clear in pulmonary hypertension, in which only the lungs' blood vessels stiffen progressively, leading to chronic lung disease, heart failure and death. The underlying reasons for this organ-specific vessel stiffening remained a mystery until Stephen Chan and colleagues made a surprising discovery about these blood vessel cells in patients with pulmonary hypertension—they're hungry. They found that hypertensive pulmonary blood vessel cells have a voracious appetite for two amino acids, glutamine and serine, and—as happens with any unbalanced diet—there are consequences. This metabolism of glutamine and...

Researchers found that metformin, a drug commonly used to treat diabetes, can decrease the amount of COVID-19 virus in the body and lower the chances of the virus coming back strongly after initial treatment. A higher viral load—the amount of virus in a person's body—usually indicates a greater concentration of the virus, which can be important in understanding the severity of infection and monitoring the effectiveness of treatments. "The results of the study are important because COVID-19 continues to cause illness, both during acute infection and for months after infection," said Carolyn Bramante, MD. In this phase 3 randomized clinical...