News by Subject Medicine & Health

Scientists at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois have developed a hydrogel integrated with zirconium-based robust metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) that rapidly degrades organophosphate-based nerve agents used in chemical warfare. Unlike existing powdered MOF adsorbents, this hydrogel composite does not require added water and may be easily scaled up for use in protective masks or clothing. The work appears July 14 in the journal Chem Catalysis.

Neural plasticity depends on a reliable delivery team of Kinesin protein KIF5C to carry goods like RNA from cell body to synapse, a new study finds.

Researchers have developed a sensor that can be implanted anywhere in the body, for example under the tip of a severed finger; the sensor connects to another nerve that functions properly and restores tactile sensation to the injured nerve. This unique development is biocompatible ("human-body friendly") and does not require electricity, wires, or batteries.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a medically safe mental health intervention, according to a new study led by CAMH researcher Dr. Tyler Kaster as part of his doctoral studies at ICES and the University of Toronto. The study was published today in the journal The Lancet Psychiatry, and is among the largest and most comprehensive to compare the safety of ECT with standard treatment amongst individuals with depression.

The blood-brain barrier protects the brain and is notoriously hard to get past for drug delivery, making it difficult to treat disorders in the central nervous system. In a mice study, a team of researchers from the University of Copenhagen used a novel approach to study the barrier and in detail characterized a Trojan horse technique to help to solve the challenge.

When it comes to post-menopausal hormone therapy, the type, route and duration all play a role in reducing the risk of neurodegenerative diseases.

The major cause of Parkinson's Disease is a dysregulation of immune genes central for fighting against viruses, a new study reveals. Researchers from the University of Copenhagen show that this dysregulation leads to a malfunction in the cell's powerhouse, which cannot produce sufficient energy for neurons to stay alive, causing them to gradually die.

Many people who undergo trauma take a long time to truly heal from the post-traumatic stress disorder, which manifests as flashbacks and nightmares to the traumatic incident. Medical researchers have been trying different therapeutic approaches to reduce these manifestations. A group of Japanese medical researchers report that trihexyphenidyl, a central anticholinergic drug, might just be the answer, in their new study published in Brain and Behavior.