CRISPR-based system developed to safely restrain mosquito vectors via sterilization By: Mario Aguilera | UC San Diego | September 10, 2021 Leveraging advancements in CRISPR-based genetic engineering, researchers at the University of California San Diego have created a new system that restrains populations of mosquitoes that infect millions each year with debilitating ... Continue Reading »
It’s Not Just SARS-CoV-2: Most Respiratory Viruses Spread by Aerosols
By: Robert Monroe | UC San Diego | September 8, 2021 Conventional wisdom on viral disease transmission needs revision, international science team finds SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind today’s global coronavirus pandemic, spreads primarily by inhalation of virus-laden aerosols at both short and long ranges—and a comprehensive new assessment of respiratory viruses finds that ... Continue Reading »
How much wildfire smoke is infiltrating our homes?
By: Kara Manke | UC Berkeley | September 2, 2021 Though overall air quality in the U.S. has improved dramatically in recent decades, smoke from catastrophic wildfires is now creating spells of extremely hazardous air pollution in the Western U.S. And, while many people have learned to reduce their exposure by staying inside, keeping windows closed and running air filtration ... Continue Reading »
Fire and the foothills: reducing wildfire threats while boosting biodiversity
By: Kathleen Wong | | UC Natural Reserve System | September 2, 2021 The foothills of California are familiar to anyone who has ventured into county parks to hike: iconic oak savannas, chaparral-covered hillslopes, and grasslands. They encircle the Central Valley like a bathtub ring, and include much of the Coast and Transverse ranges. Ranging from a few hundred to a few ... Continue Reading »
UC San Diego Researchers Discover Key Mechanisms behind Synapse Degeneration in Alzheimer’s Brain
Targeting newly identified signaling pathway holds promise for treatments of neurodegenerative disorders By: Mario Aguilera | UC San Diego | August 18, 2021 Healthy adult brains are endowed with a vast number of synapses, structures that relay signals across nerve cells to enable communications, information processing and storage throughout the nervous system. Apart from ... Continue Reading »
Ultrasound Remotely Triggers Immune Cells to Attack Tumors in Mice Without Toxic Side Effects
By: Liezel Labios | UC San Diego | August 12, 2021 Bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a cancer immunotherapy that pairs ultrasound with cancer-killing immune cells to destroy malignant tumors while sparing normal tissue. The new experimental therapy significantly slowed down the growth of solid cancerous tumors in mice. The team, led ... Continue Reading »
Graphic Warning Labels on Cigarette Packaging Changes Perceptions
Smokers in a randomized clinical trial were more likely to recognize the negative consequences of tobacco and consider quitting By: Tadira Galindo | UC San Diego | August 4, 2021 Purchase a pack of cigarettes in Australia and be prepared to be accosted with graphic warning labels depicting the dangers of tobacco use — including images of gangrene of the foot, a newborn ... Continue Reading »
Rethinking Remdesivir
Researchers modify current drug, creating oral version that can be taken earlier in COVID-19 diagnoses; in cell and animal studies, revised drug proved effective and safe By: Scott LaFee | UC San Diego | August 2, 2021 Remdesivir is an antiviral drug originally discovered as part of a program to develop antiviral agents with activity against novel emerging viruses. In the ... Continue Reading »
Obesity and Cardiovascular Factors Combine to Cause Cognitive Decline in Latinos
Obesity is a widespread health issue, but conditions like hypertension and cholesterol are stronger predictors of worsening brain function By: Dan Bennett and Scott LaFee | UC San Diego | July 28, 2021 Obesity is linked to several cardiometabolic abnormalities, such as high blood sugar and hypertension, which are considered to be risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. ... Continue Reading »
Using machine learning to detect early-stage cancers
By: Ashleen Knutsen | UC Berkeley | August 16, 2021 Diagnosing cancer early on can improve a patient’s treatment and prognosis. But detecting cancer in its first stage can be difficult, and current screening methods often require invasive procedures or expensive imaging equipment to identify the initial signs of disease. But now, an international group of medical ... Continue Reading »