Neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease and epilepsy have had some treatment success with deep brain stimulation, but those require surgical device implantation. A multidisciplinary team at Washington University in St. Louis has developed a new brain stimulation technique using…
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Developmental abnormalities are controlled by genetics of the fetus and placenta
Yale researchers have shown that developmental abnormalities, including those that lead to pregnancy loss and autism, are controlled by the genetics of the fetus and placenta — and not the mother's intrauterine environment. The findings are reported in the April…
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Genetics, not the intrauterine environment, controls abnormal development
Yale researchers have shown that developmental abnormalities, including those that lead to pregnancy loss and autism, are controlled by the genetics of the fetus and placenta—and not the mother’s intrauterine environment. The findings are reported in the April 28 online…
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Twofold Increased ALS Risk in Manual Laborers
Blue-collar workers, particularly carpenters and construction workers, have a significantly increased risk for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) compared with white-collar workers, new research shows. Investigators found manual laborers had a twofold increased risk for the fatal neurodegenerative disease, possibly because…
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Altering a mosquito's gut genes shows promise to curb malaria
Altering a mosquito's gut genes to make them spread antimalarial genes to the next generation of their species shows promise as an approach to curb malaria, suggests a preliminary study published today in eLife. The study is the latest in…
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Discovering DNA methylation from bacteria and microbiome using nanopore technology
Journal name: Nature Methods Title of the article: Discovering multiple types of DNA methylation from individual bacteria and microbiome using nanopore sequencing Corresponding author: Gang Fang, PhD Bottom line: Bacterial DNA methylation occurs at diverse sequence contexts and plays important…
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New method for growing embryos outside the womb
To observe how a tiny ball of identical cells on its way to becoming a mammalian embryo first attaches to an awaiting uterine wall and then develops into nervous system, heart, stomach and limbs: This has been a highly-sought grail…
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Mitochondrial DNA Variant Increases Gallstone Risk
A mitochondrial DNA variant may increase the risk of gallstone disease more than fourfold, according to investigators. Mitochondrial DNA 827A>G disrupts mitochondrial function and leads to abnormal cholesterol transport, which increases gallstone development, reported Dayan Sun, of Fudan University, Shanghai,…
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Researchers Approach Publishers About Errors in 31 Papers
Retraction Watch readers may recall the name Jennifer Byrne, whose work as a scientific sleuth we first wrote about four years ago, and have followed ever since. In a new paper in Scientometrics , Byrne, of New South Wales Health Pathology and the University of…
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Could rotavirus vaccine platforms aid in the immunization campaign against SARS-CoV-2?
Rotavirus is a common diarrheal disease that affects young children. Live oral rotavirus vaccines have been used to reduce its incidence in many countries. However, with the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, and amid focus on vaccines…
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