Abstract Background: Despite the implementation of the national control program, tuberculosis is one of the greatest health problems in Iran. The prevalence of different strains in specific ethnic populations suggests that Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission has been limited and restricted to close contact. Objectives: In the present review, we describe the epidemiology of tuberculosis in Iran. Methods: In this review article, databases including Scopus, PubMed, and Google scholar were used to search for…
Read MoreWeighing Cancer Cells To Personalize Drug Choices and Help With Treatment Decision-Making
A new study shows a link between patient survival and changes in tumor cell mass after glioblastoma treatment. Researchers at MIT and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have developed a new way to determine whether individual patients will respond to a specific cancer drug or not. This kind of test could help doctors to choose alternative therapies for patients who don’t respond to the therapies normally used to treat their cancer. The…
Read MoreBio-Inspired Slow-Release System: Mimicking Nature To Provide Long-Lasting Local Anesthesia
Bio-inspired slow-release system for site 1 sodium channel blockers mimics the anesthetics’ natural receptors in the body. Site 1 sodium channel blockers such as tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin are small-molecule drugs with powerful local anesthetic properties. They provide pain relief without toxic effects on local nerves and muscles, and are an attractive alternative to opioids. But injected by themselves, they can easily float away, causing severe systemic toxicity. Encapsulating these drugs…
Read More“Mini” CRISPR Genetic Editing System Engineered – Easier To Deliver Into Human Cells for Gene Therapy
Bioengineers have repurposed a “non-working” CRISPR system to make a smaller version of the genome engineering tool. Its diminutive size should make it easier to deliver into human cells, tissues, and the body for gene therapy. The common analogy for CRISPR gene editing is that it works like molecular scissors, cutting out select sections of DNA. Stanley Qi, assistant professor of bioengineering at Stanford University, likes that analogy, but he…
Read MoreBuilding a Better Bioartificial Pancreas for More Effective Treatment for People With Type 1 Diabetes
Brigham bioengineers have developed a convection-enhanced macroencapsulation device that offers the potential of faster and more effective treatment for people with type 1 diabetes. More than 40 million people worldwide are affected with type 1 diabetes (T1D) mellitus, an autoimmune disease in which insulin producing β-cells in the pancreas are destroyed by the immune system. Today, there are several new and emerging treatment methods for type 1 diabetes, including macroencapsulation…
Read MoreResearchers film human viruses in liquid droplets at near-atomic detail
A pond in summer can reveal more about a fish than a pond in winter. The fish living in icy conditions might remain still enough to study its scales, but to understand how the fish swims and behaves, it needs to freely move in three dimensions. The same holds true for analyzing how biological items, such as viruses, move in the human body, according to a research team led by…
Read MoreLab Tests Show Minibinder Proteins Are as Effective as Antibodies at Blocking SARS-CoV-2
Researchers at the University of Washington (UW) School of Medicine Institute for Protein Design have used computers to design small proteins, or minibinders, that bind tightly to the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein and prevent it from infecting cells. Their work has resulted in the development of a lead antiviral candidate, LCB1, which is currently undergoing evaluation in rodents, and which appears to rival the most effective known SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies in…
Read MoreCOVID-19 Coronavirus Breathalyzer Test Developed
Few people who have undergone nasopharyngeal swabs for coronavirus testing would describe it as a pleasant experience. The procedure involves sticking a long swab up the nose to collect a sample from the back of the nose and throat, which is then analyzed for SARS-CoV-2 RNA by the reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Now, researchers reporting in ACS Nano have developed a prototype device that non-invasively detected COVID-19 in the…
Read MoreLEGO-Inspired 3D-Printed Bricks Help Broken Bones Heal Faster
Hollow, flea-sized blocks can be filled with materials that improve healing. Tiny, 3D-printed bricks have been designed to heal broken bones — and could one day lead to lab-made organs for human transplant. Inspired by Lego blocks, the small, hollow bricks serve as scaffolding onto which both hard and soft tissue can regrow better than today’s standard regeneration methods, according to new research published in Advanced Materials on July 23,…
Read More
