Body

Treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) with the drug metformin greatly reduces diabetic complications and mortality. Unfortunately, many patients on metformin therapy become hyperglycemic, which exacerbates insulin resistance and reduces β cell function.

Various muscular diseases are associated with changes in the elasticity of the protein titin, but whether these changes are a cause or an effect of disease has been unclear. A study in The Journal of General Physiology helps solve this "chicken or the egg" conundrum and identifies a key player in determining titin's size and stiffness.

Kinesins are motor proteins that "walk" along microtubules and transport various cargoes throughout the cell. A study in The Journal of Cell Biology uncovers an unexpected role for one kinesin in the pathway that regulates cholesterol levels in the blood.

Researchers from The University of Tokyo in Japan studied mice lacking KIF13B, one of 45 kinesins in the human genome. KIF13B is particularly abundant in the liver, and KIF13B mutant mice were found to have elevated levels of cholesterol in their blood.

The ultraviolet radiation (UVR) present in sunlight is the most common environmental carcinogen, and long-term exposure to UVR can lead to skin cancer and premature aging of the skin. To develop better methods of protection from the sun, we need to understand how the human skin detects and responds to UVR. A study in The Journal of General Physiology provides new insight into the molecular pathway underlying this process.

How do you prevent and treat the common cold? Handwashing and zinc may be best for prevention whereas acetaminophen, ibuprofen and perhaps antihistamine–decongestant combinations are the recommended treatments, according to a review in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

The common cold is well, common, affecting adults approximately 2-3 times a year and children under age 2 approximately 6 times a year. Symptoms such as sore throat, stuffy or runny nose, cough and malaise are usually worse in days 1-3 and can last 7-10 days, sometimes as long as 3 weeks.

Researchers find changes to protein SirT1 can prevent excess metabolic stress associated with obesity, diabetes and aging.

Studies have suggested that the protein SirT1 may be protective in metabolic diseases and the effects of aging, and diminished SirT1 activity has been reported in various disease models including diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Maintaining a normal level of this protein may be effective in preventing obesity- and age-related diseases.

Genomic research will eventually uncover a complete picture of how our genetic information, acting in concert with our experiences, influences our behavior. When considering whether an individual's genetic inheritance can be blamed for criminal behavior, or how information on disease predisposition should be used, who is qualified to testify, and what kinds of knowledge are needed to make sound judicial decisions?

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The sponges of the future will do more than clean house.

Picture this, for example: Doctors use a tiny sponge to soak up a drug and deliver it directly to a tumor. Chemists at a manufacturing plant use another to trap and store unwanted gases.

Rice University scientists have created a way to interpret interactions among pairs of task-oriented proteins that relay signals. The goal is to learn how the proteins avoid crosstalk and whether they can be tuned for better performance.

Each cell contains thousands of these two-component signaling proteins, which often act as sensors and trigger the cell to act.

Four pesticides commonly used on crops to kill insects and fungi also kill honeybee larvae within their hives, according to Penn State and University of Florida researchers. The team also found that N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) -- an inert, or inactive, chemical commonly used as a pesticide additive -- is highly toxic to honeybee larvae.

WHAT:

Scientists supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a method to synthesize modified forms of an established antibiotic called spectinomycin. The modified forms, unlike the original drug, can act against tuberculosis (TB) bacteria. The new compounds overcome a pump mechanism that TB bacteria ordinarily use to expel standard spectinomycin and were highly effective when tested in mice with either acute or chronic TB infection.

Poor-quality sleep marked by frequent awakenings can speed cancer growth, increase tumor aggressiveness and dampen the immune system's ability to control or eradicate early cancers, according to a new study published online January 21, 2014, in the journal Cancer Research.

The study is the first to demonstrate, in an animal model, the direct effects of fragmented sleep on tumor growth and invasiveness, and it points to a biological mechanism that could serve as a potential target for therapy.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27—Silk and diamonds aren't just for ties and jewelry anymore. They're ingredients for a new kind of tiny glowing particle that could provide doctors and researchers with a novel technique for biological imaging and drug delivery.

This news release is available in Spanish.

A team of scientists from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles and the University of California at Davis describe ten new species of Temnothorax ants, doubling the number of species of this genus in California. What makes this discovery even more special is that each described specimen is linked to the AntWeb database by a unique identifier.