Medical research

Stress wakes up sleeping herpes viruses – but how?

Hiding their DNA genome inside the nuclei of the infected cells, the herpes viruses establish a lifelong infection in humans. Poorly defined stress conditions are known to wake up these parasites from their latent phase and ...

Neuroscience

Insulin action in the brain can lead to obesity

Fat-rich food makes you fat. Behind this simple equation lie complex signalling pathways, through which the neurotransmitters in the brain control the body's energy balance. Scientists at the Cologne-based Max Planck Institute ...

Genetics

Common gene variant linked to COVID mortality

It may be the most baffling quirk of COVID: What manifests as minor, flu-like symptoms in some individuals spirals into severe disease, disability, and even death in others. A new paper published in Nature may explain the ...

Oncology & Cancer

Avastin, Sutent increase breast cancer stem cells, study shows

Cancer treatments designed to block the growth of blood vessels were found to increase the number of cancer stem cells in breast tumors in mice, suggesting a possible explanation for why these drugs don't lead to longer survival, ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

'Switching off' specific brain cells protects against stress

It is well known that long-term exposure to stress can lead to serious psychiatric problems. However, the precise mechanisms underpinning the stress response have remained elusive. Recent advances in microscopic imaging by ...

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