Biomarker Discovery Could Aid Diagnosis and Therapeutic Development
Our cells can’t afford to be wasteful, so they prefer to recycle broken components. However, when the mitochondria that provide their energy are damaged beyond repair, cells may have no choice but to throw them out. New IRP research suggests that more of this mitochondrial debris floats in the blood of patients with Alzheimer’s disease, potentially providing an easy, cost-effective way to diagnose or even possibly predict the illness.
IRP Researcher Nancy Sullivan Led Development of Cutting-Edge Treatment
Twenty-four years before the novel coronavirus began spreading in Wuhan, China, an outbreak of another deadly virus burned through the city of Kikwit in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. Between January and August of 1995, 316 people are thought to have contracted Ebola, and 252 of them died. More than a decade later, a team of NIH infectious disease scientists would track down one of the survivors and use a sample of the individual’s blood to produce one of the first effective treatments for Ebola.
IRP Study Could Help Identify Women at Greater Risk for Fertility Problems
As the calendar page turned from 2020 to 2021, many people adopted major lifestyle changes like healthier eating or significantly increasing their physical activity. While these New Year’s resolutions will likely improve their overall health, they could also wreak havoc on the reproductive cycles of a small set of women. New IRP research sheds light on the genetic factors that make some women susceptible to diet- or exercise-induced disruptions to their reproductive systems.
Artificial Intelligence Simplifies Cervical Cancer Screening
Even though cervical cancer is considered one of the most preventable forms of cancer, it remains a serious and deadly scourge for many across the world. A computer algorithm designed to quickly and easily identify pre-cancerous changes using a regular smartphone may change that.
“The point of everything that we do and have done in the last 40 years is to understand something deeply so that we can invent simple tools to use,” says IRP senior investigator, Mark Schiffman, M.D., M.P.H. To that end, he and collaborators in the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), in collaboration with the Global Health Labs and Unitaid, developed and are now testing a machine learning-based approach to screening for cervical cancer, with promising results.
NIH Researcher Recognized for Contributions to Structural Biology Techniques
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS), established in 1863, is comprised of the United States’ most distinguished scientific scholars, including nearly 500 Nobel Prize winners. Members of the NAS are elected by their peers and entrusted with the responsibility of providing independent, objective advice on national matters related to science and technology in an effort to advance innovations in the United States.
IRP senior investigator Robert Tycko, Ph.D., was one of two NIH researchers elected to the NAS in 2020, an honor he hopes will give him the opportunity to help other scientists and improve the way science is done.
NIH Researcher’s Pioneering Work Led to Discovery of Hepatitis C
When the phone rang at 4:15 in the morning, IRP senior scientist Harvey J. Alter, M.D., was annoyed. He didn’t answer it. After the third try, he reluctantly got out of bed and took his phone out to the hallway.
“Before I could yell at the person, he said, ‘This is Stockholm calling,’” Dr. Alter recalls. “And then I got stopped in my tracks. Then the moment of disbelief and awe comes over you.”
The man from Stockholm informed Dr. Alter that he had won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his contributions to the discovery of the hepatitis C virus. He shared the prize with Michael Houghton, Ph.D., of the University of Alberta, Canada, and Charles M. Rice, Ph.D., of Rockefeller University in New York.
IRP Study Examines Less Time-Intensive Method for Improving Mental Health
While working in healthcare can be extremely rewarding, it is also undoubtedly stressful. In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic has had severe repercussions on the mental health of medical professionals, as doctors and nurses struggle to care for unprecedented numbers of sick patients. Fortunately, new NIH research suggests that a relatively brief workplace mindfulness program can reduce stress and anxiety in healthcare workers.
If TV shows like The Voice and America’s Got Talent are any indication, there are many extremely talented people out there who could become huge successes if presented with the right opportunity. This is no less the case in science, with thousands of extremely bright individuals quietly toiling away in their mentors’ labs as they await the chance to establish research programs of their own.
Fortunately, initiatives like the NIH’s Lasker Clinical Research Scholars Program exist to boost promising young researchers on to the next stage of their careers. Every year, the Lasker program allows a small group of early stage physician-scientists to establish their own labs at the NIH and carry out independent clinical research there for at least five years.
The five talented investigators selected as 2020 Lasker Scholars are pursuing a wide range of research questions, from how the immune system influences blood clotting to the mechanisms driving a rare and devastating skeletal disorder. Read on to learn more about the latest crop of researchers ramping up IRP labs of their very own.
IRP Research Overturns Common Concerns About ‘Weight Cycling’
With 2021 less than a month away, many of the more than 200 million Americans who are overweight or obese are beginning to consider making weight loss their New Year’s resolutions — perhaps not for the first time. While trying to lose weight only to ultimately regain it may be disappointing, a new IRP study suggests that repeated attempts at weight loss significantly reduce a person’s risk of dying.
Sugar Molecule Protects Mice Against Type 1 Diabetes
Avoiding too much sugar is one of the cardinal rules for those who have or are at risk for diabetes. In fact, diabetes is characterized by having too much glucose, a form of sugar, in the blood. As a result, it came as quite a surprise to IRP researchers led by senior investigator Wanjun Chen, M.D., when they discovered that a particular form of sugar that they expected to have no effect on diabetes-prone mice actually protected them from developing type 1 diabetes.
This page was last updated on Friday, January 14, 2022
