News on the money and policy behind biomedical research. Covers foundation and career-development awards, endocrine and neuroscience funding, and university royalties.
The Rivkin Center awarded $1.185 million to ovarian cancer researchers worldwide, focusing on prevention and early detection, DNA repair, and novel therapies. This funding aims to improve early detection and discover new treatments for the deadly gynecological cancer.
Arthur Grossman, a Carnegie scientist, has received a $300,000 Human Frontier Science Program grant to investigate how light and metabolic signals control photosynthetic processes in algae. This research aims to develop a holistic view of photosynthetic control, spanning metabolism to epigenetics and mathematical modeling.
The University of Minnesota's Clinical and Translational Science Institute has received $42.6 million in renewed NIH funding to accelerate discoveries that lead to treatments and cures for Minnesotans. The five-year award enables clinical and translational researchers across the UMN System and state to make important health discoveries.
Herbert Edelsbrunner, a mathematician and computer scientist at IST Austria, has been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant for his work on topological data analysis. He will develop a unified theory of alpha shapes, wrap complexes, and persistent homology to broaden and deepen the existing field.
Researchers calculated genetic scores from over 30 genes in 3000 children with no family history of type 1 diabetes. The upper quartile of scores was associated with a greater than 10% risk for pre-symptomatic stage of multiple islet autoantibodies by age 6.
A new Northwestern University study reveals that losing 75% of one's wealth in two years increases the risk of death by 50% over the next 20 years. The research also found that socially vulnerable individuals, including low-income people, are more likely to die after a financial shock.
The St. Baldrick's Foundation has awarded grants to support pediatric cancer research and novel immunotherapies for childhood cancers such as medulloblastoma and osteosarcoma. The funding will enable researchers to study the immune system's response to these tumors and develop targeted immunotherapy techniques.
The American Cancer Society has approved funding for 110 grants totaling $47,624,000 to researchers at 72 institutions. Grants focus on improving treatments for various types of cancer, including lymphoma, breast cancer, and sarcomas.
The National High Magnetic Field Laboratory has received a $184 million funding renewal from NSF over five years. The lab provides access to powerful instruments, including the world's strongest magnets, enabling scientists to advance fundamental science and applied research.
Researchers aim to develop a new type of weed control system using genetic modification techniques. The goal is to introduce specific genetic controls that could change the sex ratio of waterhemp and Palmer amaranth populations, leading to population crashes.
The SU2C Phillip A. Sharp Innovation in Collaboration Awards aim to strengthen collaboration among scientists conducting cancer research, with five teams receiving $1.25 million to work on new projects across institutional and national lines. The grants focus on synergies among researchers from different institutions and skill sets.
A new study published in PLOS Medicine found that high doses of antiviral drug favipiravir extended survival in non-human primates infected with Ebola virus. The drug was shown to inhibit viral replication in a drug concentration-dependent manner, with animals treated at higher doses surviving longer than those treated at lower doses.
A new study found that e-liquid ingredients can vary widely in toxicity, with some being more toxic than nicotine alone and propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin. The researchers developed a system to rapidly evaluate e-liquid toxicity using plastic plates with tiny wells containing human cells exposed to different e-liquids.
Research articles explore associations between comorbidities, symptoms, and patient-rated health in heart failure patients. Patterns of multimorbidity were identified, with poorer clinical outcomes observed in certain groups, highlighting the need for comprehensive approaches in phenotyping patients with heart failure.
The DFG is investing €10 million in three new research groups to explore the concept of power in humanities and its applications. Researchers will investigate protective mechanisms against mechanical stress in cells, as well as develop a regional microsimulation model for policy analysis.
New research suggests that stiffer connections allow for better exchange of physical cues during coordinated movements, requiring more effort from partners. This study explores the impact of stiffness on human interaction and its potential applications in physical training and rehabilitation.
Researchers have identified a novel thermogenetic tool, Gr28bD, that can regulate individual neurons in the brain through temperature changes. This breakthrough has the potential to advance fundamental brain research and lead to new treatments for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.
A five-year grant funds a multi-center clinical trial testing the effectiveness of intermittent hypoxia therapy on hand and arm function in individuals with incomplete cervical SCI. The study aims to improve neuroplasticity and increase muscle contractions, leading to better outcomes for rehabilitation.
The University of Montana has earned a $2.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study precision medicine targeted at Native peoples. Dr. Erica Woodahl will lead the project, which aims to build on existing community and university partnerships with tribal communities in Alaska and Montana.
Salk Institute scientists discover brain's memory storage is dynamic, with some synapses growing larger and others shrinking as a result of learning. This balance allows for increased overall storage capacity, enabling the brain to store more information.
Dr. Adam Smith receives $650,000 CAREER award to develop a quantitative chemical model for receptor tyrosine kinases, targeting anti-cancer therapies. The project also includes education initiatives and citizen science projects.
A study of 5,065 participants found that stronger hand grips are associated with a lower heart mass and reduced remodeling of the heart muscle, indicating a reduced risk of cardiovascular events. This suggests that hand grip strength may be an important indicator of cardiovascular health.
Researchers from WSU and UI will lead a national conference on dairy foods, focusing on the compositions of bovine and human milk. The conference aims to improve concentrations in milk, leading to better health outcomes such as reduced inflammation and improved gastrointestinal health.
A multi-disciplinary team will investigate the bush-cricket's ear and create 3D models to simulate its operation, producing theoretical circuitry for new acoustic sensors. This study aims to improve frequency analysis and sound capture in miniaturized devices.
A five-year grant will help researchers study arsenic's impact on pancreatic beta cells and the protective effects of selenoproteins. The study aims to identify factors that counteract arsenic's effects and potentially develop interventions for diabetes prevention.
The special issue highlights the increasing burden of comorbidities in patients with cardiovascular disease, leading to poorer outcomes and reduced quality of life. Research findings emphasize the need for treatment guidelines tailored to multimorbidity patient groups.
The university aims to improve STEM transfer student success by providing academically promising, low-income community college students with opportunities for relationships with faculty, advisors, and fellow students. PSU will offer substantial course-based research experiences and individual internships or independent research projects.
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that NIH grant reviewers cannot consistently differentiate between great and good proposals, despite initial agreement. The study suggests that the current peer review process may not be effective in funding high-quality research.
The Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation (NETRF) has awarded six new research grants totaling $1.85 million to leading academic institutions worldwide. The funding aims to improve current treatments for neuroendocrine tumors, a rare and poorly understood cancer affecting hormone-producing cells.
A study found that surgeon-scientists have less success in obtaining NIH grants, but their research produces significant impacts, with an increase of 25% in publication impact over the study period. Academic institutions and the NIH are recommended to increase support for early-career surgeon-scientists.
Researchers will use Azure and AI tools to analyze Hurricane Maria's impact on El Yunque National Forest. The 28,000-acre forest was severely damaged, with thousands of trees felled.
Researchers found that bonobo gestures overlap extensively in meaning with those of chimpanzees, sharing up to 33 gesture types. This similarity may indicate an inherited trait or shared ancestral behavior.
A new X-ray laser method solves the phase problem for solution scattering, allowing scientists to visualize molecular structures in detail. This improvement will enable researchers to study viruses and other biological molecules more effectively, providing critical information about their internal density variations.
Two studies found that curable STI prevalence exceeds older women and similar-aged men in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly among young women. High rates of chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and trichomoniasis were also detected in young men.
Researchers at the University of Maryland have developed a new military vehicle shock absorbing device that may protect troops from traumatic brain injury after a land mine blast. The technology, which reduces blast acceleration by up to 80 percent, has the potential to be adapted for use in vehicle bumpers and other applications.
Researchers are developing synthetic antimicrobial materials that target toxic bacteria while being biocompatible with healthy mammalian cells. The goal is to create new therapeutic platforms to combat multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.
A team of scientists has devised a general experimental scheme to identify and predict which small groups of bacterial species can help plants respond to phosphate starvation. The study demonstrates that the functional complexity of the root microbiome might be simplified by testing only a subset of all possible microbial combinations.
A Penn nursing study found that sex communication with parents is rarely discussed among gay, bisexual, and queer male adolescents, often being heteronormative and reactionary. The study suggests that targeted family-based sexual health discussions can minimize risk behaviors and improve overall health outcomes for this demographic.
The Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine has received a five-year, $10.78 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to investigate obesity and its related disorders. The funding will support research focused on inflammatory bowel disease, colon cancer, and obesity in West Virginia and central Appalachia.
Researchers Albert Descoteaux and Kessen Patten will study Leishmania's mechanisms to evade the immune system and spinal muscular atrophy, respectively. Their work aims to advance understanding of these diseases and uncover therapeutic targets.
A Bentley University study reveals the US government invested over $100 billion in basic research that led to 210 new medicines approved by the FDA. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded 84 innovative first-in-class drugs, which treat disease through novel biological mechanisms or targets.
GlycoNet has awarded $3.5 million to researchers across Canada to explore glycomics and its impact on human health. The grants will support research into Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, drug-resistant fungal infections, and other areas.
Researchers found that individual great spotted woodpeckers can be distinguished by unique drumming patterns, including stroke speed and roll duration. Drumming also signals the quality of potential mates, as it requires well-developed back and neck muscles.
Phoronida, Bryozoans, and Brachiopods are related despite earlier arguments. A recent study led by Elena Temereva reveals the presence of homological nerve elements in their lophophore, establishing a common protophoronid ancestor.
A $6.5M NIH grant will support a Center of Research Translation in Psoriasis (CORT) at Case Western Reserve University. The CORT aims to advance translational discovery and application in psoriasis by integrating cutting-edge technology and bioinformatics with basic and clinical science.
Researchers discovered that mitochondria operate at temperatures up to 50°C, contradicting the long-held assumption of 37.5°C. This finding has significant implications for our understanding of cellular processes and energy production.
A recent study found that tRNA fragments in mosquitoes can modulate their ability to transmit viral diseases to humans. The researchers identified 55 tRNA-derived fragments with varying expression patterns across different strains and developmental stages.
The National Academies' Gulf Research Program has awarded $5.3 million to seven new projects focused on enhancing environmental restoration outcomes. Five projects aim to develop or test new monitoring and evaluation methods, while two focus on improving decision-maker access to public health risk information resulting from oil spills.
Researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute have made a groundbreaking discovery that may advance neural stem cell treatments for brain disorders. The study reveals how an mRNA modification impacts the life of neural stem cells, and how it regulates histone modifications to maintain their self-renewal.
Researchers at Washington State University are testing a low-cost sleep measurement technology to improve sleep patterns in individuals with chronic insomnia. The technology, known as S+, measures timing, quantity and quality of sleep and provides personalized suggestions for improvement.
Researchers found that higher-level brain regions can compensate for persistent changes in sensory and movement areas following a hand transplant. The study suggests that non-invasive brain stimulation may improve recovery from nerve injury, paving the way for new approaches to neurorehabilitation for amputees and stroke patients.
Researchers, led by Dr. Felicia Goodrum, aim to understand the virus-host interaction of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), a member of the herpesvirus family. HCMV poses life-threatening risks in individuals with compromised immune systems and is the leading cause of infectious disease-related birth defects.
Despite policies to increase diversity, racial/ethnic minority patients are less likely to receive live donor kidney transplants. The study found that disparities worsened over the last two decades, with black patients receiving only a quarter of the number of live donor transplants as white patients.
The Affordable Care Act was associated with decreased out-of-pocket spending among low-income Americans due to cost-sharing and premium subsidies. However, premium spending increased mainly among higher-income individuals, while combined spending decreased only in the lowest-income group.
The Blavatnik Family Foundation is providing a $10 million grant to Columbia University's Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. The gift will support the Blavatnik Fund for Engineering Innovations in Health, which aims to attract graduate student talent and promote early-stage research across disciplines.
The University of Pittsburgh's Center for Medical Innovation has awarded grants to five engineering and medicine groups to develop novel biomedical devices. The projects focus on treating conditions such as peripheral artery disease, pulmonary fibrosis, and improving auditory pathology detection.
The Kessler Foundation has been awarded a major federal grant to train doctoral-level rehabilitation researchers in partnership with Rutgers University. The five-year grant aims to improve overall health and function of individuals with neuromuscular and musculoskeletal diseases and injuries.
Researchers at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center are studying the mechanisms behind cell-size control in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a unicellular green alga. The study aims to gain insights into how cell division is controlled in more complex organisms where it's harder to study the impacts of noise on cellular decision making.
A new study found that most NIH grants awarded to pediatric researchers in the past five years have been limited to senior physicians at a few institutions. This downward trend in funding affects early-career physician-scientists, potentially hindering research discoveries and patient treatments.
A new AI model based on convolutional neural networks (CNN) significantly improves the analysis of kidney biopsy images, enabling accurate quantification of kidney damage and prediction of life remaining in the kidney. This technology has the potential to act as a surrogate nephropathologist, particularly in resource-limited settings.