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Category: biotech/medical – Page 38

Elon Musk’s Neuralink raises $600M at $9B valuation

Neuralink did not immediately return requests for comment outside regular business hours.

Semafor’s report corroborates earlier reporting from Bloomberg, which noted in April that the startup was looking to raise $500 million at an $8.5 billion pre-money valuation.

Neuralink last year received “breakthrough device” clearance from the U.S. FDA. Three people have so far received implants made by Neuralink. Earlier this month, a nonverbal patient posted a video about how he uses a Neuralink implant to edit and narrate YouTube videos with just his brain signals.

New biomarker may guide best use of KRAS inhibitors in lung cancer

Researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have identified a new biomarker, TTF-1, that was predictive of survival outcomes for patients with advanced KRAS G12C-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), following treatment with the KRAS targeted therapy sotorasib.

Results from the study, published in Nature Medicine, found patients with that express low TTF-1 levels responded poorly to sotorasib—with a median progression free survival (PFS) of 2.8 months and a (OS) of 4.5 months—whereas patients with tumors expressing high TTF-1 levels had a median PFS of 8.1 months and a median OS of 16 months.

“Since TTF-1 testing is routinely performed in lung cancer diagnosis, it gives physicians an immediate tool to help identify those patients who may benefit from sotorasib and those who may need an alternative or intensified treatment approach,” said lead author Ferdinandos Skoulidis, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology.

Add-On Treatment With Zilebesiran for Inadequately Controlled Hypertension: The KARDIA-2 Randomized Clinical Trial

This randomized clinical trial examines the efficacy and safety of zilebesiran vs placebo when added to a standard antihypertensive medication in adult patients with uncontrolled hypertension.

Protective genetic variants against Alzheimer’s disease

Genetic studies can offer powerful insights for the development of disease-modifying therapies for Alzheimer’s disease. Protective genetic variants that delay the onset of cognitive impairment have been found in people with sporadic Alzheimer’s disease and in carriers of mutations that usually cause autosomal-dominant Alzheimer’s disease in mid-life. The study of families who carry autosomal dominant mutations provides a unique opportunity to uncover genetic modifiers of disease progression, including rare variants in genes such as APOE and RELN.

Scientists test real-time view of brain’s waste removal with new monitoring device

A new device that monitors the waste-removal system of the brain may help to prevent Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases, according to a study published today in Nature Biomedical Engineering.

In the study, participants were asleep when they wore the device: a head cap embedded with electrodes that measures shifts in fluid within , the from sleep to wakefulness and changes in the brain’s blood vessels.

By measuring these three features, the researchers found they could monitor the brain’s glymphatic system, which acts as a waste-removal and nutrient-delivery system.

Long working hours may alter brain structure, preliminary findings suggest

Long working hours may alter the structure of the brain, particularly the areas associated with emotional regulation and executive function, such as working memory and problem solving, suggest the findings of preliminary research, published online in Occupational & Environmental Medicine.

Ultimately, overwork may induce neuroadaptive changes that might affect cognitive and emotional health, say the researchers.

Long working hours have been linked to heightened risks of cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, and mental health issues. And the International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that overwork kills more than 800,000 people every year, note the researchers.

Study reveals intricate molecular detail of human DNA repair process

Researchers have revealed the structural mechanisms of a major DNA repair pathway in human cells.

The research, published today as a Reviewed Preprint in eLife, is described by the editors as a landmark study with compelling evidence on how an important player in DNA repair—the RAD51 filament—promotes the exchange of strands between DNA molecules that contain homologous (identical or similar) sequences. They added that the findings will be very valuable for research communities studying DNA repair and genome stability.

Homologous recombination (HR) is one of the key DNA repair pathways in cells. It is essential for repairing double-stranded breaks in DNA and for DNA crossover events during sexual reproduction. Moreover, cells deficient in HR are more prone to cancer, and targeting the cells’ HR machinery—together with other DNA repair pathways—can be used to kill cancer cells (an approach called synthetic lethality).