Medical Bulletin 2/September/2022
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Here are the top medical news for the day:
Therapy to improve cognitive function in Down syndrome patients
In a study, the researchers sought to determine whether GnRH injection therapy was effective in enhancing the cognitive abilities of a small group of Down syndrome patients. In an animal model of Down syndrome, they discovered GnRH neuron malfunction and its effects on the condition's impairment of cognitive performance.
Then a pilot study later published in Science testing GnRH pulsatile injection therapy was conducted in seven patients. The results were promising : the therapy led to improved cognitive function and brain connectivity.
Ref:
Science, September 1, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abq4515
Possible treatment against melanoma by Inhibiting key metabolic enzyme
For the first time, Sanford Burnham Prebys researchers have demonstrated that inhibiting a crucial metabolic enzyme specifically kills melanoma cells and inhibits tumour growth. These findings which were published in Nature Cell Biology, may help develop a new class of medications that target melanoma, the most dangerous type of skin cancer.
"We found that melanoma is addicted to an enzyme called GCDH," says Ronai, professor and director of the NCI-designated Cancer Center at Sanford Burnham Prebys. He added that "If we inhibit the enzyme, it leads to changes in a key protein, called NRF2, which acquires its ability to suppress cancer. Now, our goal is to find a drug, or drugs, that limit GCDH activity, potentially new therapeutics for melanoma."
Ref:
ZE'EV RONAI, et al,Nature Cell Biology, DOI: 10.1038/s41556-022-00985-x
Novel method to Predict Alzheimer's risk before onset of symptoms
Even before symptoms occur, researchers have created a new approach to detect people who have a higher genetic risk of getting Alzheimer's disease. This method could hasten the development of new treatments.
People with Alzheimer's disease experience gradual loss of memory and other cognitive functions. While some treatments can ease symptoms, it has been challenging to develop treatments to prevent or slow disease progression. Some clinical trials investigating potential treatments may have been unsuccessful because they involved patients whose disease was too advanced to be treated. Better methods to identify people at high risk of developing Alzheimer's could aid treatment research.
Ref:
Paranjpe MD, Chaffin M, Zahid S, Ritchie S, Rotter JI, Rich SS, et al. (2022) Neurocognitive trajectory and proteomic signature of inherited risk for Alzheimer's disease. PLoS Genet 18(9): e1010294. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1010294
CAR-T cell therapy neurotoxic complications predicted by Simple blood test
According to a recent study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, a quick blood test could help doctors determine which patients are more likely to experience neurotoxic side effects in the days and weeks following CAR-T cell therapy.
Analyzing blood samples from patients before, during and after CAR-T cell therapy, the researchers found that levels of a protein called neurofilament light chain (NfL) are higher in patients who go on to develop neurotoxic complications. High levels of the protein are present even before therapy begins, and those levels remain elevated throughout treatment and up to a month afterward.
Ref:
Omar H. Butt et al,Assessment of Pretreatment and Posttreatment Evolution of Neurofilament Light Chain Levels in Patients Who Develop Immune Effector Cell–Associated Neurotoxicity Syndrome,JAMA Oncology, DOI: 10.1001/jamaoncol.2022.3738
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