News by Subject Biology

Reports from cannabis users that the drug reduces the symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may finally be explained by new research from the University of Massachusetts Medical School and the University of Bath showing that endocannabinoids help control and prevent intestinal inflammation in mice.

Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas on August 25, 2017, bringing more than 50 inches of rain and extreme flooding to the city of Houston. In addition to wreaking havoc on buildings and infrastructure, urban floodwaters harbor hidden menaces in the form of bacteria that can cause disease. Now, researchers have surveyed the microbes that lurked in Houston floodwaters, both inside and outside of homes. They report their results in Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

Doxorubicin is a chemotherapy drug used in ovarian, bladder, lung, thyroid and stomach cancers, but it carries a harmful side effect. The drug causes a dose-dependent heart toxicity that can lead to congestive heart failure. Researchers have found an important contributor to that heart pathology -- disruption of the metabolism that controls immune responses in the spleen and heart. This dysregulated immunometabolism impairs resolution of inflammation, and chronic, non-resolving inflammation leads to advanced heart failure.

Estrogen treatment promotes apoptotic death in cancer cells through balanced upregulation of liganded and non-liganded pathways of estrogen receptor activation.

When dairy cattle consume aflatoxin-contaminated feed, they are lethargic, their appetite wanes, they produce less milk, and their immune system goes awry. Some of those symptoms relate to oxidative stress, in which dangerous free-radicals bounce around, damaging cells. In a new study, researchers at the University of Illinois investigated the potential of injectable trace minerals to reduce the damage and keep dairy cows healthier.