Day: June 26, 2024

Categories : Obstetrics & GynaecologyTags :

New Cervical Cancer Test Catches Significantly More Cases

On By ModernMedia
Female reproductive system. Credit: Scientific Animations CC4.0 BY-SA

Researchers have developed a simpler and more effective screening method for cervical cancer than the method used today. A comprehensive study published in Nature Medicine shows that the test detects significantly more cancers and precancerous stages.

Most countries have a very extensive cervical cancer screening program that starts with testing for different variants of the human papillomavirus (HPV) that causes cervical cancer. In the case of an HPV-positive test, this is followed by cytological analysis, the examination of gynaecological cell samples by microscopy, which is dependent on human interpretation.

The new molecular test WID-qCIN, which could replace the cytological analysis, can automatically analyse epigenetic changes in cells. These changes, where genes are switched on or off, are influenced by factors such as environment, lifestyle, and aging, and can increase the risk of cancer and other diseases.

Fewer invasive procedures

The current study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and the University of Innsbruck included more than 28 000 women over the age of 30 who underwent screening in Stockholm between January and March 2017. The researchers analysed a total of 2377 HPV-positive samples with the WID-qCIN test combined with a test for two high-risk HPV types (HPV 16 and 18). In this way, they were able to detect 100% of all invasive cervical cancer and 93% of all serious precancerous lesions that occurred within a year of sampling.

In addition, the new test, in combination with the HPV 16/18 test, was able to predict 69% of all cancers and precancerous lesions up to six years after the sample was taken. This can be compared with only 18% with today’s screening method.

“By integrating the WID-qCIN test into our screening programs, we would be able to identify more cancer cases while reducing the need for invasive procedures,” says Joakim Dillner, Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology at Karolinska Institutet and co-author of the study.

A significant improvement 

When cell changes are detected in today’s screening program, the woman undergoes a vaginal examination, a so-called colposcopy, where the gynaecologist looks at the cervix with the help of a microscope and, if necessary, takes a biopsy. The biopsy involves a surgical procedure that, among other things, can lead to negative pregnancy outcomes like premature delivery. The results of the current study suggest that implementation of the WID-qCIN test could reduce the number of colposcopy examinations by 40%.

“This would mean a significant improvement compared to today’s screening methods, which were introduced in the 1960s,” says the study’s last author Martin Widschwendter, Professor at the University of Innsbruck (Austria) and visiting Professor at Karolinska Institutet. “With its simplicity and objective assessment, the WID-qCIN test can improve the effectiveness of these programs and support the global strategy to eliminate cervical cancer.” 

Source: Karolinska Institutet

Categories : Lab Tests and Imaging Neurodegenerative DiseasesTags : Leave a comment

New Pulsatility Metric in Brain Blood Vessels for Studying Dementia

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels

Researchers from the Mātai Institute and the Auckland Bioengineering Institute have developed a new metric from measured blood circulation in the brain. The new metric opens up new research avenues for brain conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. The research has been published in the leading research journal Scientific Reports Nature.

Each time the heart beats, it pumps blood through the brain vessels, causing them to expand slightly and then relax. This pulsation in the brain helps distribute blood evenly across different areas of the brain, ensuring that all parts receive the oxygen and nutrients they need to function properly.

In healthy vessels, the pulse wave is dampened before it reaches the smallest vessels, where high pulsatility could be harmful. The new metric provides a comprehensive measure of the small vessel pulsatility risk.

The new metric is based on 4D flow MRI technology, and is particularly crucial because increased vascular pulsatility is linked to several brain conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

By accurately measuring how pulsatility is transmitted in the brain, researchers can better understand the underlying mechanisms of these diseases and potentially guide the development of new treatments.

Current MRI methods face limitations due to anatomical variations and measurement constraints. The new technique removes this issue by integrating thousands of measurements across all brain vessels, rather than the traditional method of looking at one spot. This provides a richer metric representative of the entire brain.

“The ability to measure how pulsatility is transmitted through the brain’s arteries could revolutionise our approach to neurological diseases, and support research in vascular damage hypotheses,” says first author Sergio Dempsey.

“Our method allows for a detailed assessment of the brain’s vascular health, which is often compromised in neurodegenerative disorders.”

The study also highlighted the potential to enhance clinical assessments and research on brain health. By integrating this new metric into routine diagnostic procedures, healthcare providers can offer more precise and personalised care plans for individuals at risk of or suffering from cognitive impairments.

To make the most of the new metric’s implications for patient care, the researchers have made their tools publicly available, integrating them into pre-existing open-source software. This enables scientists and clinicians worldwide to adopt the advanced methodology, fostering further research and collaboration in the field of neurology.

Results from the initial study of the metric also identified important sex differences in vascular dynamics which has initiated a new study focusing on sex-related dynamics.

The research team is planning further studies to explore the applications of this technique in larger and more diverse populations.

Source: University of Auckland

Categories : Medical Research & TechnologyTags : Leave a comment

Sonic ‘Tweezers’ can Manipulate Objects inside the Body

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Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash

In 2018, Arthur Ashkin won the Nobel Prize in Physics for inventing optical tweezers: laser beams that can be used to manipulate microscopic particles. While useful for many biological applications, optical tweezers require extremely controlled, static conditions to work properly.

“Optical tweezers work by creating a light ‘hotspot’ to trap particles, like a ball falling into a hole. But if there are other objects in the vicinity, this hole is difficult to create and move around,” says Romain Fleury, head of the Laboratory of Wave Engineering in EPFL’s School of Engineering.

Fleury and postdoctoral researchers Bakhtiyar Orazbayev and Matthieu Malléjac have spent the last four years trying to move objects in uncontrolled, dynamic environments using soundwaves. In fact, the team’s method – wave momentum shaping – is entirely indifferent to an object’s environment or even its physical properties. All the information that’s required is the object’s position, and the soundwaves do the rest.

“In our experiments, instead of trapping objects, we gently pushed them around, as you might guide a puck with a hockey stick,” Fleury explains.

The unconventional method, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Spark program, has been published in Nature Physics in collaboration with researchers from the University of Bordeaux in France, Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan, and the Vienna University of Technology in Austria.

Very simple, very promising

If soundwaves are the hockey stick in Fleury’s analogy, then a floating object like a ping-pong ball is the puck. In the lab’s experiments, the ball was floating on the surface of a large tank of water, and its position was captured by an overhead camera. Audible soundwaves emitted from a speaker array at either end of the tank directed the ball along a pre-determined path, while a second array of microphones ‘listened’ to the feedback, called a scattering matrix, as it bounced off of the moving ball. This scattering matrix, combined with the camera’s positional data, allowed the researchers to calculate in real time the optimal momentum of the soundwaves as they nudged the ball along its path.

“The method is rooted in momentum conservation, which makes it extremely simple and general, and that’s why it’s so promising,” Fleury says.

He adds that wave momentum shaping is inspired by the optical technique of wavefront shaping, which is used to focus scattered light, but this is the first application of the concept to moving an object. What’s more, the team’s method is not limited to moving spherical objects along a path: they also used it to control rotations, and to move more complex floaters like an origami lotus.

Mimicking conditions inside the body

Once the scientists succeeded in guiding a ping-pong ball, they performed additional experiments with both stationary and moving obstacles designed to add inhomogeneity to the system. Successfully navigating the ball around these scattering objects demonstrated that wave momentum shaping could perform well even in dynamic, uncontrolled environments like a human body. Fleury adds that sound is a particularly promising tool for biomedical applications, as it is harmless and noninvasive.

“Some drug delivery methods already use soundwaves to release encapsulated drugs, so this technique is especially attractive for pushing a drug directly toward tumour cells, for example.”

Source: Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Categories : Diet and NutritionTags : Leave a comment

Time to Debunk Four Persistent Myths about Intermittent Fasting

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Photo by Malvestida on Unsplash

In a new article published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology, researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago debunk four common myths about the safety of intermittent fasting. 

Intermittent fasting as a weight loss method has grown increasingly popular, with a large body of research demonstrating its safety. Despite this, several myths about fasting have spread among clinicians, journalists and the general public: that fasting can lead to a poor diet or loss of lean muscle mass, cause eating disorders, or decrease sex hormones. 

In a new commentary, UIC researchers debunk each of these. They base their conclusions on clinical studies, some of which they conducted and some done by others. 

“I’ve been studying intermittent fasting for 20 years, and I’m constantly asked if the diets are safe,” said lead author Krista Varady, professor of kinesiology and nutrition at UIC. “There is a lot of misinformation out there. However, those ideas are not based on science; they’re just based on personal opinion.”  

There are two main types of intermittent fasting. With alternate-day eating, people alternate between days of eating a very small number of calories and days of eating what they want. With time-restricted eating, people eat what they want during a four- to 10-hour window each day, then don’t eat during the rest of the day. The researchers conclude both types are safe despite the popular myths.

Their conclusions: 

Intermittent fasting does not lead to a poor diet: The researchers point to studies showing the intake of sugar, saturated fat, cholesterol, fibre, sodium and caffeine do not change during fasting compared with before a fast. And the percentage of energy consumed in carbohydrates, protein and fat doesn’t change, either.  

Intermittent fasting does not cause eating disorders: None of the studies show that fasting caused participants to develop an eating disorder. However, all the studies screened out participants who had a history of eating disorders, and the researchers say that those with a history of eating disorders should not try intermittent fasting. They also urge paediatricians to be cautious when monitoring obese adolescents if they start fasting, because this group has a high risk of developing eating disorders. 

Intermittent fasting does not cause excessive loss of lean muscle mass: The studies show that people lose the same amount of lean muscle mass whether they’re losing weight by fasting or with a different diet. In both cases, resistance training and increased protein intake can counteract the loss of lean muscle. 

Intermittent fasting does not affect sex hormones: Despite concerns about fertility and libido, neither oestrogen, testosterone nor other related hormones are affected by fasting, the researchers said. 

Source: University of Illinois Chicago

Categories : Mental HealthTags : Leave a comment

A Ketamine Depression Treatment in a Safer Oral Tablet Form

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Photo by Danilo Alvesd on Unsplash

A University of Otago-led clinical trial has tested an oral form of ketamine therapy for treatment-resistant depression that has fewer side effects whilst also reducing the risk of abusing the powerful, tightly-regulated anaesthetic.

Working in collaboration with New Zealand’s Douglas Pharmaceuticals, researchers have conducted a trial of ketamine in an extended-release tablet form. The study, published in Nature Medicine, involved 168 adults for whom regular anti-depressant therapy repeatedly failed. They either took a range of oral doses of ketamine or a placebo for 12 weeks.

Professor Paul Glue, Otago’s Hazel Buckland Chair in Psychological Medicine, says the highest dose of ketamine – 180mg – showed significant improvement in depressive symptoms, compared with patients who received placebo.

“Ketamine can be given by injection or nasal spray, but these methods can leave people feeling spaced out, sedated, and increases their blood pressure. This study shows the extended-release ketamine tablets are safe and effective, and overall, tolerability was good, with participants reporting minimal side effects,” he says.

Douglas Pharmaceuticals is now seeking the interest of partners to complete registrational clinical trials and prepare for commercialisation of the tablets.

“We have found there are many people, here in New Zealand and around the world, who have treatment-resistant depression, and who have no or very little chance of accessing ketamine. Because most doses of this tablet formulation can be taken at home, this is potentially a much cheaper and convenient option for these patients compared with weekly clinic visits for ketamine injections or nasal sprays.”

Ketamine has been used legally by doctors in New Zealand since the 1970s for sedation and pain relief, but it has been classified as an illegal drug for recreational use since the 1980s.

Professor Glue says having the drug in a tablet form reduces the risk of abuse as the manufacturing process makes them difficult to manipulate.

Source: University of Otago