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Category: biotech/medical – Page 59

Helping cells find their perfect match

Researchers including those from the University of Tokyo found a way to optimize how cells bind to small packages they release called extracellular vesicles. By coating the vesicles with metal ions, they made cells and their corresponding vesicles stick together more strongly than they would naturally. This reduced the time needed for cells to capture their own vesicles, even in mixtures containing billions of other vesicles. The team demonstrated an application of this by improving two kinds of blood tests for cancer cells, and it could have downstream applications in drug delivery, rejuvenation and more.

Anyone afflicted with cancer will often face a long and difficult journey. The early stages of any medical intervention will necessarily include a biopsy, tissue sample collection, such as a liquid biopsy which uses a blood sample. These aren’t perfect, but medical researchers are trying to improve them, with one such method being how to amplify the signals indicating cancer cells. This should be possible as all cells release tiny telltale particles known as extracellular vesicles. Professor Keisuke Goda from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Tokyo and his team members found a way to engineer extracellular vesicles in a way never seen before which could improve liquid biopsies and aid in some other medical and research applications in drug delivery, rejuvenation and more.

“Each extracellular vesicle is only about a thousandth the width of a human hair and carries a tiny sample of material from the cell that made it like a little molecular ‘message in a bottle.’ Cancer cells release these packages too but finding them in blood is like searching for a few specific grains of sand on a beach,” said Assistant Professor Tianben Ding from the Department of Chemistry. “So, we developed a simple way to make both the packages and the cancer cells much easier to find. By coating the packages with tiny amounts of lanthanide metals, we made matching packages and cells stick together over 25 times more strongly. This provides a versatile platform that can improve how engineered extracellular vesicles interact with their target cells, enabling applications ranging from cancer detection to targeted drug delivery and rejuvenation.”

Gold-catalyzed chemical reaction advances next-generation anticancer prodrugs

Anticancer prodrugs have attracted significant attention from the medical and scientific communities in recent years because of their potential to improve treatment precision while reducing side effects. These drugs are engineered to remain inactive until they are activated at specific sites or under particular physiological conditions within the body, at which point they release their therapeutic effect.

This targeted approach helps minimize damage to healthy tissues that often occurs when conventional chemotherapy agents attack cancer cells, addressing the longstanding challenge of collateral toxicity in cancer treatment.

However, achieving precise drug activation within the body’s highly complex biological environment remains a considerable challenge. Existing chemical strategies and activation technologies continue to face a number of technical limitations and obstacles, highlighting the need for further innovation in this field.

Scientists found three gene variants that may change when Alzheimer’s begins

One of the strongest findings involved a variant in CCNG1, which was associated with an earlier age of dementia onset. Carriers of the risk allele developed dementia roughly a decade earlier than those without it.

The same variant was also linked to higher levels of TDP-43, a protein implicated in several neurodegenerative diseases, and signs of accelerated brain aging on MRI scans.

The researchers also found that a variant in RHOJ was associated with biological markers of more severe Alzheimer’s disease. Individuals carrying the risk allele had higher levels of total tau and phosphorylated tau 181 in cerebrospinal fluid and a lower Aβ42/Aβ40 ratio—changes commonly associated with Alzheimer’s pathology.

Derivation of a datadriven followup protocol for resected skull base meningiomas: a Bayesian analysis NeuroOncology

Complete resection of skull base meningiomas (SBMs) is often limited by their proximity to critical neurovascular structures, potentially increasing the risk of postoperative progression. This study quantified long-term progression risk after SBM resection, identified predictors of progression, and developed a data-driven MRI surveillance protocol using Bayesian methods.

Patients undergoing SBM resection between 2002 and 2020 at two neurosurgical centres were analysed. Kaplan–Meier and Cox regression analyses were used to estimate intervention-free survival (IFS). Conditional probability modelling was used to derive an MRI surveillance schedule that maintained a ≤ 3% risk of progression requiring intervention, stratified by extent of resection.

A total of 358 SBMs were included. Median age at diagnosis was 57 years (IQR 18), and 76.0% of patients were female. WHO Grade 1 tumours accounted for 80.3% of cases and Grade 2 for 19.7%. Median follow-up was 97 months (IQR 64–128). Progression requiring re-intervention occurred in 14.1% of patients. Subtotal resection (STR) increased the risk of re-intervention (HR 2.62, 95% CI 1.30–5.30, p = 0.009), whereas higher comorbidity burden (HR 0.78, 95% CI 0.62–0.98, p = 0.038) and incidental presentation (HR 0.11, 95% CI 0.01–0.88, p = 0.038) were associated with lower risk. Conditional probability modelling demonstrated higher annual progression risk following STR, supporting more intensive imaging surveillance. Recommended MRI schedules were: gross total resection (GTR), scans at 3 months, 2, 5, 8, and 10 years; STR, scans at 3 months, 1 year, 18 months, annually from years 2–8, and at 10 years.

Neuropathologic Correlates of Seizures in Patients With Alzheimer Disease and Dementia With Lewy Bodies

Background and ObjectivesSeizures are a recognized comorbidity in dementia, with varying prevalence across Alzheimer disease (AD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLBs). Although previous studies have demonstrated an increased seizure risk in AD, the…

3D multiomics tumour atlases: from technology to biology and clinical translation Reviews Cancer

In this Review, Liu et al. describe the established and emerging tools for the generation of comprehensive 3D tumour atlases, the analysis of which has the potential to uncover novel biomarkers for risk stratification, early detection, preventive interventions, and transformative diagnostic and treatment strategies.

Butterfly gliomas: to biopsy or to ablate cohort study NeuroOncology

Butterfly gliomas are an aggressive subset of high-grade glioma characterized by bilateral hemispheric involvement. These patients often only receive biopsy followed by chemoradiation rather than surgical resection. Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) provides a minimally invasive alternative that can improve survival.

We retrospectively compare outcomes in biopsy alone versus LITT cohorts. Demographic characteristics, perioperative outcomes, and survival metrics were analyzed. Within the LITT cohort, procedural and volumetric analyses were performed to examine the relationship between extent of ablation (EOA), residual tumor burden (RTB).

Of 44 patients, 15 underwent biopsy only and 29 received LITT was associated with a longer median overall survival compared to biopsy (14.86 versus 4.93 months, p = 0.0489), and median progression-free survival (4.67 versus 2.53 months, p = 0.0389). Within the LITT cohort, larger preoperative tumor volumes were associated with lower EOA (r²=0.46, p = 0.0002) and a higher RTB (r2 = 0.90, p = 0.0001). Longer ablation times correlated with a larger EOA (r2 = 0.21, p = 0.0320). Neither EOA nor RTB were associated with survival. Postoperative KPS improvement correlated with improved OS after multivariable Cox proportional hazards analysis (HR (death) = 0.93, 95%CI:0.87–0.99, p = 0.026), with a similar trend in PFS. Total operating room time was longer in the LITT group (median 4.0 vs. 2.57 h, p = 0.0034), while time-to-chemoradiation, ICU stay, and hospital stay were comparable. Post-operative re-admissions and complications were not statistically different between groups.

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