The mammalian gastrointestinal tract harbors a complex community of microbes — called the gut microbiome — that is essential for the development of the immune system. Despite its complexity, even the presence or absence of some of the many bacterial species that form this community may lead to a variety of disorders of the immune […]
Thanks to their keen sense of smell, African giant pouched rats can be trained to detect landmines and tuberculosis. Two weeks ago, Maarten Boersema reported in The Scientist that “It takes about nine months to fully train a tuberculosis-detection rat. But once trained, the rat can screen thousands of patients every month.” Rats are not the only disease-sniffing […]
We’ve known for a long time that there are good bacteria and bad bacteria. Now, we’re coming to realize there are also good viruses and bad viruses. The good viruses — good for us, that is — are viruses that infect and kill bacteria. These viruses are called bacteriophage or phage. It turns out that, […]
Our understanding of the risk factors for heart disease, the related prevention programs, diagnosis and treatment are continuously improving. At the same time, there are many unknowns that need to be studied. After all, heart disease kills more people than any other disease in the U.S. and worldwide. One of the questions in search of […]
Molecular mimicry involves two or more unrelated molecules that mimic each other – for example, a viral protein may mimic a human protein. Why? A small portion of the viral protein may be very similar or identical to a small portion of the human protein. It is said that, in molecular mimicry, a protein “impersonates” […]
Narcolepsy — or “seized by numbness” — is a condition far more common that people realize. Jane Brody’s account of Clea’s personal experience with narcolepsy provides an excellent description of the symptoms associated with this condition “Yet during her freshman and sophomore years, she was always tired, no matter how much she slept at night. She often fell asleep […]
The immune system is dynamically interconnected with the outside world — even childhood poverty has long-lasting effects on how the immune response gets shaped and regulated throughout life. Childhood poverty is related to adult productivity, as measured in terms of work hours and earnings. More specifically, childhood poverty leads to low income in adulthood, as […]
A few years ago, a reader of the New York Times blog “Consults – Experts on the Front Lines of Medicine” (now replaced by Ask Well) posed the question “How does someone get scleroderma?” Leading expert Dr. John Varga responded “The cause of scleroderma is unknown. Viruses and exposure to certain chemicals and occupational toxins have been suspected, but […]
In Western countries, atopic diseases – eczema, asthma, and rhinoconjunctivitis – have been on the rise for decades. However, children raised on traditional farms are protected from childhood atopic diseases – in general, they do not develop sensitization to common allergens, as for example grass and birch pollen. The timing and duration of exposure to the farming […]
Female fruit flies are notoriously promiscuous insects that respond to the courtship song of a male by activating their immune system. Why? The accepted explanation is that they anticipate mating and, at the same time, they anticipate the possibility of contracting sexually transmitted diseases – therefore, they get ready to defend themselves from the attack […]