Mouse study: Gabapentin prevents harmful structural changes in spinal cord

Research led by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine found that the widely prescribed pain-relief drug gabapentin can prevent harmful structural changes in the injured spinal cords of mice, and also block cardiovascular changes and immune suppression caused by spinal cord injury. “Gabapentin is often prescribed as a treatment for […]

Plant compound reduces cognitive deficits in mouse model of Down syndrome

The plant compound apigenin improved the cognitive and memory deficits usually seen in a mouse model of Down syndrome, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions. Apigenin is found in chamomile flowers, parsley, celery, peppermint and citrus fruits. The researchers fed the compound to pregnant mice carrying […]

Engineered immune cells recognize, attack human and mouse solid-tumor cancer cells

A method known as CAR-T therapy has been used successfully in patients with blood cancers such as lymphoma and leukemia. It modifies a patient’s own T-cells by adding a piece of an antibody that recognizes unique features on the surface of cancer cells. In a new study, researchers report that they have dramatically broadened the […]

Worm extract found to reduce inflammation in mouse models

A team of researchers from Germany, Switzerland, Sweden and Australia has found that a substance isolated from roundworm larvae was able to reduce inflammation in the airways of mice. In their paper published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, the group describes extracting a protein from a type of parasite that infects rodents and used […]

Mouse study shows ‘chaperone protein’ protects against autoimmune diseases

Like a parent of teenagers at a party, Mother Nature depends on chaperones to keep one of her charges, the immune system, in line so that it doesn’t mistakenly attack normal cells, tissues and organs in our bodies. A recent study by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers has demonstrated that in mice—and probably humans as well—one […]