The information of the human genome is encoded by approximately 3 billion DNA base pairs and packaged into 23 pairs of chromosomes. If all chromosomes could be disentangled and linearly aligned, they would be a thin thread of about 2…
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Can biomaterials offer novel therapeutic strategies against COVID-19?
The global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic rages on. To date, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of COVID-19, has infected over 138.3 million and caused over 2.9 million deaths the world over. Despite major gains…
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Researchers identify SARS-CoV-2 antiviral compounds using protein assay
On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to be a pandemic. COVID-19 is caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pathogen, which is deemed to be highly contagious…
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Broadly cross-reactive antibody to SARS-CoV-2 RBD with robust resistance to mutational escape
The current pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has triggered an intensive hunt for effective new and repurposed antivirals and antibodies, for prevention and treatment of the infection. A new preprint…
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Scientists built a perfectly self-replicating synthetic cell
Scientists have crafted a single-celled synthetic organism that divides and multiplies just like the real thing. The advancement could someday help researchers to build miniscule computers and tiny drug-producing factories, all out of synthesized cells. Of course, that future likely…
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Bespoke neuroblastoma therapy weaponizes cell metabolism
Preclinical research from VCU Massey Cancer Center published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that the combination of two existing drugs can exploit the metabolic ‘hunger’ of a particularly aggressive type of neuroblastoma to kill…
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New approach can help identify patients at risk for esophageal cancer
A combination of esophageal brushing and extensive genetic sequencing of the sample collected can detect chromosome alterations in people with Barrett's Esophagus, identifying patients at risk for progressing to esophageal cancer, according to a new study by researchers at the…
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Researchers show how stem cell depletion leads to recurring pregnancy loss
Depletion of a certain type of stem cell in the womb lining during pregnancy could be a significant factor behind miscarriage, according to a study released today in STEM CELLS. The study, by researchers at Warwick Medical School, University of…
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Identification of specific anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies with cross-neutralization potency
A team of scientists from the USA and Canada recently characterized the cross-neutralizing potency of anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies isolated from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. The findings reveal that some of the isolated antibodies targeting…
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Neutralizing antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in mice depend on Fc effector function
The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) brought about intensive research on the biological characteristics of the pathogen responsible, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The immune response mediated by neutralizing antibodies, elicited by the virus or…
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