Gut Bacteria Falls Into Three Major Types

Just like eye color or blood type, the bacteria that flourish in the gut can also be used to categorize humans, new research finds.

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Drug Effective in Treating Kidney Disease in Diabetic Patients, Study Suggests

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Mayo Clinic have published promising results of a clinical study using an experimental anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory drug called pirfenidone to treat patients with diabetic nephropathy. Their study will be published in the April 21 issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN).

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Scientists develop compound that effectively halts progression of multiple sclerosis

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have developed the first of a new class of highly selective compounds that effectively suppresses the severity of multiple sclerosis in animal models. The new compound could provide new and potentially more effective therapeutic approaches to multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases that affect patients worldwide.

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New Therapeutic Target for Asthma, COPD and Other Lung Disorders Identified

Michael Croft, Ph.D., a researcher at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology, has discovered a molecule's previously unknown role as a major trigger for airway remodeling, which impairs lung function, making the molecule a promising therapeutic target for chronic asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and several other lung conditions. A scientific paper on Dr. Croft's finding was published online April 17 in the journal, Nature Medicine.

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Cholesterol Regulator Plays Key Role in Development of Liver Scarring, Cirrhosis

UCLA researchers have demonstrated that a key regulator of cholesterol and fat metabolism in the liver also plays an important role in the development of liver fibrosis -- the build-up of collagen scar tissue that can develop into cirrhosis. Cirrhosis, in turn, is a major cause of premature death and is incurable without a liver transplant.

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Four New Genes for Alzheimer's Disease Risk Identified

In the largest study of its kind, researchers from a consortium of 44 universities and research institutions in the United States, including Rush University Medical Center, identified four new genes linked to Alzheimer's disease. Each gene individually adds to the risk of having this common form of dementia later in life.

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