Teams are pursuing a dizzying array of therapeutic strategies to stymie COVID-19. It’s not yet clear which approach, or combination of approaches, will work best. *Editor’s Note: We’re providing a preview of this content due to the urgent and rapidly … Continue reading
Journal Club
Highlighting recently published papers selected by Academy members
Category Archives: Medical Sciences
PREVIEW News Feature: To counter the pandemic, clinicians bank on repurposed drugs
Categories: Cell Biology | Immunology | Infectious disease | Medical Sciences | News feature | Pharmacology
Tagged choloroquine, COVID-19, hydroxycholoroquine, novel coronavirus, pandemic, remdesivir, SARS-Cov-2, TMPRSS2
Leave a comment
Fluid dynamics work hints at whether spoken word can spread COVID-19
As of April 3, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is advising that everyone—sick or healthy—wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Recent research on how fluids travel from our respiratory tracts when we sneeze, speak, or … Continue reading
Categories: Applied Physical Sciences | Immunology | Infectious disease | Journal Club | Medical Sciences
Tagged aerosol particles, coronavirus, cough, COVID-19, facemask, fluid dynamics, saliva, SARS-Cov-2, sneeze, social distancing
Leave a comment
PREVIEW Inner Workings: Molecular biologists offer “wartime service” in the effort to test for COVID-19
*Editor’s Note: We’re providing a preview of this content due to the urgent and rapidly unfolding events surrounding the novel coronavirus pandemic. An updated version will appear in PNAS in the coming weeks. As COVID-19 spreads, communities across the United … Continue reading
Categories: Inner workings | Medical Sciences
Tagged coronavirus, COVID-19, COVID-19 testing, pandemic, qPCR, RNA extraction, SARS-Cov-2
Leave a comment
Mouse gut bacteria cure rotavirus infection, pointing to treatment for humans
Despite available vaccines, over 200,000 children die annually from severe diarrhea cause by rotavirus, which infects intestinal cells. A recently published study, facilitated by a research team’s lucky break, suggests bacteria in the mouse gut microbiome could actually help prevent … Continue reading
Categories: Infectious disease | Journal Club | Medical Sciences | Microbiology | Uncategorized
Tagged bacteria, microbiome, microbiota, rotavirus, segmented filamentous bacteria
Leave a comment
Hydrogel uses biology and light to release proteins on demand, advancing hopes for synthetic tissues
A wiggly cylinder of protein, hydrogel, and human cells, about the size of a wristwatch battery, could one day serve as a building block for synthetic tissues. The implications could be big for biological research and even organ transplants, according … Continue reading
New insights into how influenza evades human immunity
Some viruses can only infect people once—measles for example. But other viruses, notably influenza, are capable of infecting repeatedly. Scientists have long puzzled over how the flu virus evades human immunity. Recent work in eLife clarifies exactly how the virus … Continue reading
Categories: Immunology | Infectious disease | Journal Club | Medical Sciences
Tagged antibody, immunity, influenza, vaccine, virus
Leave a comment
New protein structure reveals hotspot for cystic fibrosis drug binding
The newly revealed structure of a cystic fibrosis drug, captured in tandem with its target channel protein, could help scientists design better medications for the condition. Cystic fibrosis results from mutations in the gene for the cystic fibrosis transmembrane … Continue reading
Journal Club: In big advance for lab-grown organs, 3-D printing better replicates tissue complexity
The lung is a feathery web of blood vessels and air sacs that branch closely together, but never touch. They’re nestled near enough that oxygen can diffuse into the bloodstream, but far enough that blood and air flow through separate … Continue reading
Categories: Engineering | Journal Club | Medical Sciences
Tagged 3-D printing, bioengineering, lung, photoabsorber, regenerative medicine, stereolithography, tissue engineering
Leave a comment
Journal Club: Newly discovered ion channel gene promises disease insights
The molecular identity and precise function of a commonly expressed cell-membrane chloride channel has long been a mystery. A recent study in Science uncovers the gene responsible for the channel, potentially shedding light on its role in the body. Researchers … Continue reading
Categories: Cell Biology | Journal Club | Medical Sciences | Neuroscience
Tagged acidosis, ASIC, chloride channel, CRISPR, gated pore, heart attack, ion channel, membrane protein, PAC, stroke, TMEM206
Leave a comment
Journal Club: Ion channel puts the squeeze on blood vessels, affecting blood pressure
Blood pressure is exquisitely regulated to respond to our physiological state. Stress raises blood pressure. Simply stand up, and the arteries constrict to maintain pressure. New findings in mice show how a protein called PKD2 helps regulate blood pressure by … Continue reading
Categories: Cell Biology | Genetics | Journal Club | Medical Sciences
Tagged ADPKD, blood pressure, blood vessel, hypertension, PKD2
Leave a comment