Lifeboat Foundation

We don’t have a cure for Parkinson’s disease yet, but a recently discovered mutation in mitochondrial DNA that seems to protect the body against the condition could one day point the way to one. Discovered in a small protein called SHLP2, the genetic variant is relatively rare – found in just 1 percent of Europeans. Yet an analysis of the health records of 16,167 people led by researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) suggests…

The transcription factor FOXP3’s interactions with DNA present more evidence of the importance of disorder.

Since its earliest days, supramolecular chemistry has taken inspiration from biology. To create a ‘chemistry beyond the molecule’, supramolecular chemists can learn from the way nature builds hierarchies of organisation from the selective and orderly interactions of molecular components. At least, that’s what Jean-Marie Lehn and I argued in an overview of the subject in 2000.¹ Yet while I still believe that today, I’m less sure that nature’s molecular principles can be easily translated into what Lehn has called a rational ‘science of informed matter’² – and even less so that the principles used in supramolecular chemistry to create wonderful edifices of molecular order and design will by themselves give us anything like proto-living systems.

The reason is that life’s molecular principles are far less transparent than we thought even a few decades ago, and certainly less amenable to rational bottom-up design. An example is supplied by a new study of how a transcription-factor protein called FOXP3 interacts with DNA to influence the differentiation of regulatory T (T_reg) cells, key components of the immune system, from their precursor cells. Transcription factors regulate gene expression, and one way FOXP3 seems to do this is by binding directly to DNA as dimers in which two of the proteins sit in ‘head-to-head’ contact.

“The bottom-line finding is that cannabis before exercise seems to increase positive mood and enjoyment during exercise, whether you use THC or CBD. But THC products specifically may make exercise feel more effortful,” said Dr. Laurel Gibson.

How does cannabis influence workouts? Does it serve as a performance enhancer or in other ways? This is what a recent study published in Sports Medicine hopes to address, as a team of researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus investigated how cannabis influences exercise workouts and regimens, specifically pertaining to the exercise performance. This study comes almost a decade since Colorado legalized the sale of recreational marijuana and holds the potential to help researchers and the public better understand cannabis’ role in our everyday lives.

For the first-of-its-kind study that started in 2021, the researchers recruited 42 participants who were consistent cannabis users ages 21 to 39 to ascertain their responses to exercise after using cannabis and in a controlled laboratory setting. In the end, the participants reported increased enjoyment and “runner’s high” characteristics while also reporting greater levels of exertion during their exercise regimen. Additionally, the participants reported the following when the researchers asked them why they combine cannabis with their workout routines: 90.5 percent said it increases enjoyment, 69 percent said it reduces pain, 59.5 percent said it increases focus, 57.1 percent said it increases motivation, 45.2 percent stated they perceived that it speeds up time, and 28.6 percent said it improves their performance.

Continue reading “Cannabis and Exercise: A Novel Study Reveals Surprising Findings” »

Cancer and an enlarged prostate cause similar symptoms, so it’s important to understand the differences.

Fresh from announcing positive Phase 1 trial results for its inflammation-targeting drug candidate, Utah-based biotech Halia Therapeutics is now pursuing Phase 2 studies in a range of indications. The Salt Lake City company’s lead compound is an inhibitor of the NLRP3 inflammasome, a known driver of systemic chronic inflammation, which is linked to conditions including fibrotic disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and many others.

Halia is taking a unique approach to the NLRP3 inflammasome by targeting the protein NEK7, which plays a key role in gene’s activity. In preclinical models, the company has shown its approach disrupts the formation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and promotes its disassembly once activated, reducing the overall inflammatory response. In its recent Phase 1 trial, in addition to showing positive safety and tolerability data, Halia’s drug demonstrated positive effects in blood samples taken from healthy volunteers, showing “over 90% suppression of multiple NLRP3-mediated cytokines and chemokines.”

Longevity. Technology: Chronic inflammation is a frequent topic of discussion in longevity circles. The term “inflammaging” refers to the increase of inflammatory cytokines in our bodies as we age, which is linked to chronic morbidity, disability, frailty and premature death. While there is no doubt that Halia believes that its approach can potentially impact many diseases, does the company have aging itself in its sights? We caught up with CEO Dr David Bearss to find out.

Have you heard of (MTC)? While ThyroidCancer is fairly common, there are four different types of thyroid cancers and MTC is the rarest type making up 3% of 4% of all thyroid cancers. Check out our expert reviewed summary for more.

Medullary thyroid cancer, or MTC, is a cancer that forms in the thyroid. The thyroid is a gland located in the front of your neck, just below the Adam’s apple. It is responsible for sending out hormones to the rest of your body. The inside of the thyroid is called the medulla. The medulla contains special cells called parafollicular C cells that produce and release hormones. MTC happens when the C cells become cancerous and grow out of control. MTC may also be called medullary thyroid carcinoma.

How common is medullary thyroid cancer?

Continue reading “Medullary Thyroid Cancer” »

As the average lifespan of people with Down Syndrome (DS) has more than doubled over the past 40 years, more people with DS are being considered for total hip and knee replacements.

Patients with Down syndrome are not more likely to need follow-up surgery after a total knee replacement or total hip replacement. But they are at higher risk.

MSU researcher Carolina de Aguiar Ferreira is changing the way we fight cancer. She is precisely targeting cancer cells with diagnostics and therapies using radioisotopes produced by FRIB, the world’s most powerful heavy-ion accelerator.

Using breakthrough tools to target cancer led Carolina de Aguiar Ferreira to MSU, where she found a community of scientists who discover better together.

Continue reading “A Spartan changing the way we fight cancer” »

Restricting calories is known to improve health and increase lifespan, but much of how it does so remains a mystery, especially in regard to how it protects the brain. Buck Institute for Research on Aging scientists have uncovered a role for a gene called OXR1 that is necessary for the lifespan extension seen with dietary restriction and is essential for healthy brain aging.

“When people restrict the amount of food that they eat, they typically think it might affect their digestive tract or fat buildup, but not necessarily about how it affects the brain,” said Kenneth Wilson, Ph.D., Buck postdoc and first author of the study, published in Nature Communications. “As it turns out, this is a gene that is important in the brain.”

The team additionally demonstrated a detailed cellular mechanism of how dietary restriction can delay aging and slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. The work, done in fruit flies and human cells, also identifies potential therapeutic targets to slow aging and age-related neurodegenerative diseases.