Blood test to boost cataract treatment in kids developed

Scientists have developed a blood test which they say may improve treatment for children born with congenital cataracts. Researchers from Manchester University and the Central Manchester Health Care Trust, developed the test that analyses every known mutation in the DNA which can cause the condition. The team believes it will speed up diagnosis and help decide the best treatment for the condition. “Diagnosing a congenital cataract is very easy at birth, but diagnosing the cause takes considerably longer,” Professor Graeme Black, from the University of Manchester, said. The problem arises as there are more than 100 different mutations in a child’s DNA which have been linked to congenital cataracts. Currently, each mutation has to be tested for individually, BBC News reported. Researchers used advances in genetics to look for all the errors in the genetic code in a single test. “Our test looks at all of these genes in parallel, so patients can be diagnosed much faster and receive the treatment, clinical management and genetic counselling they need,” said researcher Dr Rachel Gillespie. The test will be available in Manchester hospitals from December. (PTI)

Samoan tree bark that helps make medicinal tea may help cure AIDS

Researchers have suggested that a tree bark that is used in Samoa to make medicinal tea, could help treat AIDS. Dr Paul Wender of Stanford University has said that an AIDS medicine made from Samoa’s mamala tree could be available in the next 18 – 24 months. Wender and others, which includes AIDS researchers Paul Cox and Stephen Brown, heard about mamala’s use as a remedy for viral hepatitis in Falealupo at the most western point of Samoa. The bark was analysed by The US National Cancer Institute and prostratin was identified as a key ingredient and after 25 years of dedicated work, Wender has been able to synthesise prostratin, enabling the latest breakthrough. Wender said that they have made synthetic variants of prostratin, called analogues, which is 100 times more potent than the natural product. The new versions of prostratin show promise in laboratory tests for both preventing HIV from infecting human cells and awakening dormant HIV viruses that are hiding inside human latently infected cells. Wender told Healthline that initial testing AIDS patients. (ANI)

Now, tattoo-like skin patch that acts as a thermometer

Scientists have developed an ultra-thin tattoo-like patch that when glued to the skin can be used as a thermometer to measure its temperature. A team of researchers from the US, China, and Singapore have created the small patch that looks like a bar-code tattoo and is applied using special glue. It keeps working even when the skin to which it is attached twists and turns. The patch can measure body temperature (at the skin level) very accurately, and over a continuous period of time. Also, because it measures heat at multiple locations (at the same skin site) at the same time, the patch is capable of monitoring heat flow and the constriction and dilation of blood vessels as they respond to the environment around them. The team claims that the patches can work in reverse as well, delivering heat to the skin, if desired, simply by increasing the voltage, ‘phys.org’ reported. The patch isn’t ready for use by the general population just yet, however, as it still requires an external power source. The team is investigating different sources for different types of patches – solar for those applied to the skin and bioelectric for those applied inside the body, such as to the outside of organs. (PTI)

Gene mutation that ‘blocks’ pain identified

Scientists have identified a gene mutation that keeps people from feeling physical pain, a discovery that may lead to the development of new painkillers. Congenital analgesia is a rare condition in which people do not sense physical pain coming in from outside stimuli. Scientists at Jena University Hospital in Germany compared the gene sequence of a girl with the disorder against those of her parents, and identified a mutation in a gene called SCN11A. This gene controls the development of channels on pain-sensing neurons. Sodium ions travel through these channels, creating electrical nerve impulses that are sent to the brain, which registers pain, ‘New Scientist’ reported. Overactivity in the mutated version of SCN11A prevents the build-up of the charge that the neurons need to transmit an electrical impulse, numbing the body to pain. “The outcome is blocked transmission of pain signals,” said researcher Ingo Kurth. In mice studies, researchers inserted a mutated version of SCN11A into the creatures and tested their ability to perceive pain. (PTI)

Cancer drug may help treat diabetes

Scientists have found that a cancer drug, already approved for use in humans, could also help treat diabetes. A pair of studies by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine identified a molecular pathway involved in the development of diabetes. They also found that the drug, aflibercept – marketed as Eylea or Zaltrap – can regulate this pathway. The drug is used to treat metastatic colorectal cancer and a form of macular degeneration. Aflibercept is a member of a family of proteins that inhibit the vascular endothelial growth factor, or VEGF, pathway.

It works by blocking the growth of the blood vessels into tumours and starving them of oxygen. The new studies, done in mice, identified a previously unexpected link between a low-oxygen condition called hypoxia and the ability of cells in the liver to respond to insulin. Researchers identified a series of protein interactions that link VEGF inhibitors and blood glucose levels. “We were surprised to find that this drug currently used in patients for cancer treatment had beneficial effects on diabetes in laboratory mice and could, potentially, in humans,” said Calvin Kuo, senior author of one of the studies. “Proteins involved in this pathway could also be targeted for the development of new diabetes therapies,” said Amato Giaccia, senior author of the other paper. Together, the studies explain an observation made several years ago by Kuo and his lab members that VEGF inhibitors, such as aflibercept, could lower blood glucose levels in mice. “Anecdotally, there have been reports that diabetic patients who have been prescribed VEGF inhibitors to treat their cancer are better able to control their diabetes,” Kuo said. The findings are published in two articles in journal Nature Medicine. (PTI)