Lifeboat Foundation

Scaling back treatment for three kinds of cancer can make life easier for patients without compromising outcomes, doctors reported at the world’s largest cancer conference.

It’s part of a long-term trend toward studying whether doing less — less surgery, less chemotherapy or less radiation — can help patients live longer and feel better. The latest studies involved ovarian and esophageal cancer and Hodgkin lymphoma.

Thirty years ago, cancer research was about doing more, not less. In one sobering example, women with advanced breast cancer were pushed to the brink of death with massive doses of chemotherapy and bone marrow transplants. The approach didn’t work any better than chemotherapy and patients suffered.

All patients in pembrolizumab trial were found to be cancer-free after combination of drug and surgery.

Researchers based at the Dept of Biology and School of Physics, Engineering and Technology have developed a remarkable new technology which is able to study single biological molecules using intrinsic twist properties to bring about essential functions in cells.

“Nano twists” that drive life

There are myriad so-called “chiral” molecules in biology, which have a fascinating property of not appearing to have the same structure were you to look at their image in a mirror — one of the best known examples being DNA, the “molecule of life”, whose chirality comes from its amazing double helix structure. This chirality, which looks in the case of extended DNA molecules like “nano twists”, results in a property which physicists describe as “symmetry breaking” which in turn can drive molecules into a range of different states. With input from sources of energy, these molecules can then jump between different states as part of their normal function, and it is this state jumping which essentially drives all processes in living cells — so chirality is an enormously fundamental feature which in effect effect steers key cellular processes.

Though one in two people will develop some form of cancer in their lifetime, there’s still much we don’t know about this disease. But thanks to continued research efforts, we keep learning more about the biology of cancer. One of these recent discoveries could even transform our understanding of how cancers develop.

But before we talk about the new discovery, let’s first discuss the classical theory that attempts to explain why normal cells become cancer cells. This theory posits that DNA mutations are the primary cause of cancers.

It’s well known that ageing, as well as some lifestyle and environmental factors (such as smoking and UV radiation) cause random DNA mutations (also known as genetic alterations) in our cells. Most genetic alterations trigger cell death or have no consequence.

Move over, graphene. There’s a new, improved two-dimensional material in the lab. Borophene, the atomically thin version of boron first synthesized in 2015, is more conductive, thinner, lighter, stronger, and more flexible than graphene, the 2D version of carbon. Now, researchers at Penn State have made the material potentially more useful by imparting chirality — or handedness — on it, which could make for advanced sensors and implantable medical devices. The chirality, induced via a method never before used on borophene, enables the material to interact in unique ways with different biological units such as cells and protein precursors.

The team, led by Dipanjan Pan, Dorothy Foehr Huck & J. Lloyd Huck Chair Professor in Nanomedicine and professor of materials science and engineering and of nuclear engineering, published their work — the first of its kind, they said — in ACS Nano.

“Borophene is a very interesting material, as it resembles carbon very closely including its atomic weight and electron structure but with more remarkable properties. Researchers are only starting to explore its applications,” Pan said. “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to understand the biological interactions of borophene and the first report of imparting chirality on borophene structures.”

With over 37,000 views, this special issue discusses the relationship between phytochemicals and chronic disease prevention, aiming to promote the development of this field.

The special issue focuses on phytochemicals’ isolation, identification, structure–activity relationships, bioactivities, and…

This Special Issue, entitled Phytochemicals and Prevention of Chronic Diseases, features a series of high-quality research articles that explore the isolation, identification, and bioactivities of phytochemicals, as well as the underlying molecular mechanisms implicated in chronic diseases via antioxidation, neuroprotection, and the modulation of the gut microbiota.

Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) accumulate in the brain, leading to neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The pathophysiology of AD is influenced by receptors for AGEs and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). Protein glycation results in irreversible AGEs through a complicated series of reactions involving the formation of Schiff’s base, the Amadori reaction, followed by the Maillard reaction, which causes abnormal brain glucose metabolism, oxidative stress, malfunctioning mitochondria, plaque deposition, and neuronal death. Amyloid plaque and other stimuli activate macrophages, which are crucial immune cells in AD development, triggering the production of inflammatory molecules and contributing to the disease’s pathogenesis. The risk of AD is doubled by risk factors for atherosclerosis, dementia, advanced age, and type 2 diabetic mellitus (DM). As individuals age, the prevalence of neurological illnesses such as AD increases due to a decrease in glyoxalase levels and an increase in AGE accumulation. Insulin’s role in proteostasis influences hallmarks of AD-like tau phosphorylation and amyloid β peptide clearance, affecting lipid metabolism, inflammation, vasoreactivity, and vascular function. The high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) protein, a key initiator and activator of a neuroinflammatory response, has been linked to the development of neurodegenerative diseases such as AD. The TLR4 inhibitor was found to improve memory and learning impairment and decrease Aβ build-up. Therapeutic research into anti-glycation agents, receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) inhibitors, and AGE breakers offers hope for intervention strategies. Dietary and lifestyle modifications can also slow AD progression. Newer therapeutic approaches targeting AGE-related pathways are needed.

Biomarkers are small molecules of interest to researchers, because they can indicate underlying diseases, often even before symptoms even appear. However, detecting these markers can be challenging as they are often present in very low quantities, especially in the early stages of a disease. Traditional detection methods, while effective, usually require expensive components like prisms, metal films, or optical objectives.

In a recent paper published in Applied Physics Letters, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have unveiled a novel approach to detecting low concentrations of biomarkers that paves the way for biodetection technology that is simple to use, highly sensitive, and surprisingly affordable.

“The goal of this technology is early diagnostics, to be able to detect molecules associated with diseases at very low concentrations, sometimes a few molecules per millions, very early on,” said Seemesh Bhaskar, a postdoctoral researcher in Brian Cunningham’s lab and first author on the study. “Looking for very small concentrations of micro-RNA, circulating tumor DNA, and exosomes, for example, can help determine whether a patient will develop cancer one or two years down the line.”

Researchers at Cambridge have shown that the Third Thumb, a robotic prosthetic, can be quickly mastered by the public, enhancing manual dexterity. The study stresses the importance of inclusive design to ensure technologies benefit everyone, with significant findings on performance across different demographics.

Cambridge researchers demonstrated that people can rapidly learn to control a prosthetic extra thumb, known as a “third thumb,” and use it effectively to grasp and handle objects.

The team tested the robotic device on a diverse range of participants, which they say is essential for ensuring new technologies are inclusive and can work for everyone.