Life Sciences
Computer genetic metrics of fly brain reveal sex differences
Research
EPFL
Thanks to genetic tools that allow computers to accurately count neurons from microscopy images, EPFL researchers have estimated with unprecedented accuracy the number of neurons and other types of cells in the brain of fruit fly larvae—and discovered that females have substantially more neurons than males.
Severe flu risk as immune cells swap with age
Research
ETH Zurich
ETH researchers found that in mice, long-lived embryonic macrophages in the lungs die upon aging and during infection and are replaced by inflammatory bone marrow-derived macrophages. This causes severe disease progression when infected with viral flu.
Wearable muscles
Research
ETH Zurich
Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a wearable textile exomuscle that serves as an extra layer of muscles. They aim to use it to increase the upper body strength and endurance of people with restricted mobility.
Breakthrough study of hormone “crosstalk” in breast cancer
Research
EPFL
Scientists led by EPFL have successfully engrafted breast cancer cells on mice, allowing them to study in vivo the cross-talk between the estrogen and progesterone receptors that hampers hormone therapies. Their findings suggest that endocrine therapy may need to be personalized, and that abrogating progesterone receptor expression can be a therapeutic option.
Streamlining stem cells to treat macular degeneration
Research
EPFL
Scientists at EPFL and the Karolinska Institute have tested and confirmed a protocol for growing human embryonic stem cells into retina cells to treat eye diseases such as age-related macular degeneration.
An anti-cancer drug acts as an epigenetic memory aid, scientists find
Research
EPFL
EPFL scientists have discovered how an anti-cancer drug could be repurposed to improve memory. It does so by supporting the cell’s ability to read the very genes that are important for learning. The epigenetic mechanism of the drug is shown in mice.
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