Medicine & Healthcare

Asia Research Newsは同所の女性研究者5名に、彼女らの研究について、そしてなぜKavli IPMUを選んだのか、これまでの同所での経験について話しを聞いた。それぞれ様々な背景を持ち、各分野で卓越している研究者らに、足かせのない女性がいかに飛躍できるかをみせてもらった。

A new apparatus uses electromagnets to remotely control guidewires through tiny, tortuous blood vessels for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

Researchers in Sarawak, Malaysia, measured the immunity responses of people who received different COVID-19 vaccines.

Researchers are working to overcome challenges in order to bring wearable, electric, wound-healing devices to clinical practice.

Cancer metastasis is a major cause of cancer-related death. A research team at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) recently identified a protein that triggers the migration of liver and pancreatic cancer cells and metastasis, and is correlated with shortening the survival time of patients. The research findings were verified by in vitro and in vivo models, supported with clinical data, and are expected to provide a new potential target for cancer therapy.

Brain shrinkage patterns tied to low trust have links to depression vulnerability that can alert to its early detection even before symptoms appear.

Lipid nanoparticles have been used to encapsulate CRISPR-Cas9 and deliver it to cells in mice, where it was highly effective at knocking down expression of a target protein.

A research group from the Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Medicine conducted a survey of 285 patients regarding the long-term aftereffects of COVID-19. As a result, they revealed that more than half of COVID-19 patients still had residual symptoms, even close to a year afterward. It became clear that fatigue, abnormalities in senses of taste and smell, hair loss, and sleep disorders could persist, regardless of the severity of the initial COVID-19.

This year’s roster is the third cohort to be inducted into the Hall of Master Academic Clinicians, an honour conferred on exceptional clinician-educators at the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre.

Tree rings forecast extreme weather in central Asia, Squid 🦑and chemistry make versatile hydrogels, James Webb telescope reveals the earliest galaxies & Reducing negative effects of screen time. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice. Plus our latest journalist resource "Experts for Media: Antimicrobial Resistance "🦠.

Antimicrobial resistance is a global public health threat. Asia Research News has prepared a resource for journalists to find stories and connect with scientists combating antimicrobial resistance.

A new approach that ‘baits’ the caps or telomeres protecting the ends of chromosomes could provide information on how rapidly we are ageing and what we need to do to slow it down.

Team studies discrimination, mental distress, and work impairment in COVID-19 survivors.

Researchers from Osaka University have shown sex-specific differences in the immune response to COVID-19 infection. By identifying and analyzing the immune cell population in COVID-19 patients, they showed that infection results in a reduced ratio of circulating follicular T regulatory (cTfr) cells to a network of antibody-producing proteins, correlated with dysregulated antibody production. This cTfr cell reduction is more significant in males, providing cellular evidence for the observed association between increased risk and male sex.

Hokkaido University researchers have developed a novel method to design and develop peptide antibiotics in large numbers, which will prove critical to controlling antibiotic resistance.

Researchers from Osaka University have used single carbon atom doping to form four chemical bonds in one step. Gamma-lactams (cyclic molecules that are common in antibiotics) were easily synthetically accessible from alpha, beta-unsaturated amides (an important molecule in cancer progression). The team chemically modified an anti-seizure medication in 96% yield, highlighting the work's utility to otherwise synthetically complex aspects of pharmaceutical development. The results of this work could become foundational to drug discovery and development.

Blocking an immune-regulating protein reverses the damage caused by acute and chronic kidney disease, a preclinical study suggests.

A new microscopic technique allows for the real-time study of RNA G-quadruplexes in living cells, with implications for the fight against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Researchers from Osaka University compared the sensitivity of rapid antigen tests (RATs) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for the Omicron variant of COVID-19 using data produced by the Japan Professional Football League. They found the comparative sensitivity of RATs for Omicron was not affected by the duration from the onset of symptoms to testing.

New research found that periodontitis, a common gum infection known to worsen other systemic diseases, could also be linked to atrial fibrosis — potentially clarifying its previously unknown connection with atrial fibrillation.

New research from Osaka University indicates that more screen time at age 2 is associated with poorer communication and daily living skills at age 4—but when kids also play outdoors, some of the negative effects of screen time are reduced. Increasing outdoor play time could reduce the negative effects of screen time on daily living skills by almost 20%.

Overeating mechanism: why "eating just one chip"🍟 is impossible, Measuring hidden energy of gamma-ray bursts, Marine species that can adapt to ocean acidification & A rough start can lead to a strong bond, Read all in our first Editor's Choice of 2023. Plus our interview on what dengue vaccine approval in EU💉means for global dengue protection.

In a study recently published in Cancer Science researchers from Kanazawa University show how some intestinal cancer cells lose their ability to spread as they divide and can be eliminated as the cancer grows.

Researchers led by Osaka University demonstrated the role of endothelial cell-specific protein Roundabout4 (Robo4) in the reduction of vascular permeability and mortality in mouse models of severe infection. The research team identified a drug inhibitor that increased Robo4 expression and reduced mortality in sepsis and SARS-CoV-2 mouse models of infection. These findings may aid in the development of drugs to reduce the mortality rate of severe infectious diseases.

Osaka Metropolitan University scientists delved into the relationship between gait function and knee extension velocity after total knee arthroplasty and compared the effects of various factors on walking. The results reveal that knee extension velocity, measured while seated, on the operated side was the most important determinant of gait function. These findings are expected to contribute to the development of new rehabilitation programs for efficient gait function improvement.

An Osaka Metropolitan University research group recorded the autonomic nervous system activity in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and healthy subjects using a wearable device and a proprietary smartphone application to record daily life events such as defecation and sleep. As a result, they found that sympathetic nervous system activity was activated in IBS patients from 2 minutes before defecation and continued until 9 minutes after defecation. Further research is expected to improve the quality of life of IBS patients and elucidate the pathophysiology.

A research team led by Osaka Metropolitan University has revealed a difference in neural activity in response to visual food stimuli, depending on whether those stimuli are presented consciously or unconsciously. Using a questionnaire to assess the study participants, the team found that this difference was associated with their scores on eating behaviors, including emotional eating and cognitive restraint of food intake. These results indicate that eating behavior cannot be understood without taking into account both unconscious and conscious neural processes.

Researchers at Hokkaido University have revealed the effects of high pathogenicity avian influenza virus infection on an Ezo red fox and a Japanese raccoon dog, linking their infection to a recorded die-off of crows.

A research study led by scientists from the School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) has shown for the first time that the human gut bacterium Ruminococcus gnavus is a major trigger factor of diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D). Based on this discovery, a new therapeutic target for the disease’s treatment was identified. The study also found that low-protein food items such as fresh fruits, vegetables and bread may help reduce the gut motility in IBS-D.

Researchers from Osaka University found that dietary supplementation with tricaprin results in coronary artery plaque regression and resolution of symptoms in patients with triglyceride deposit cardiomyovasculopathy, a treatment-resistant form of coronary artery disease. These findings represent a conceptually novel treatment for coronary atherosclerosis that paves the way toward establishing a multi-faceted approach to caring for patients with this condition.