News by Subject Medicine & Health

Pluripotent cells can give rise to all cells of the body, a power that researchers are eager to control because it opens the door to regenerative medicine and organ culture for transplants. But pluripotency is still a black box for science, controlled by unknown genetic and epigenetic signals. CNIO researchers now uncovers one of those epigenetic signals, after a detective quest that started almost a decade ago.

Neuropathic pain is a chronic condition resulting from nerve injury and is characterized by increased pain sensitivity. Although known to be associated with overly excitable neurons in the spinal cord, the mechanisms leading to chronic pain are poorly understood. Researchers from Osaka University have now shown that expression of a protein called FLRT3 in the spinal dorsal root ganglion causes pain sensitization, which can be alleviated by treatment with FLRT3-blocking antibodies.

Researchers at the UW have used machine learning to develop a new system that can monitor factory and warehouse workers and tell them how ergonomic their jobs are in real time.

The 2.5-year study, conducted by the PRECISION Pain Research Registry and TCOM's John Licciardone, D.O., M.S., M.B.A., reaffirmed the importance of empathy and better interpersonal manner when treating patients with chronic pain.

Law enforcement K-9s face the same dangers their human handlers confront. Recognizing a gap in care for law enforcement K-9s injured on the job, a team of veterinarians, emergency medical services experts and canine handlers has developed protocols for emergency medical service personnel who may be called upon to help treat and transport the injured dogs.

Cutting off and then restoring blood supply to a limb following a stroke reduces tissue damage and swelling and improves functional recovery, according to a new study in mice published in JNeurosci. The simple, noninvasive technique could be developed into a treatment for stroke patients of varying severity.