A research team from the University of Tokyo and Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology uncovered a new mechanism of Yaku’amide B, a deep-sea sponge-derived natural product. Using photoaffinity labeling, they found that yaku’amide B transiently binds CD9, inducing its degradation, in addition to inhibiting ATP synthase. This dual action suppresses cancer cell proliferation and migration, opening new avenues for anticancer drug development and protein degradation strategies.

Light speckle fluctuations, a noninvasive proxy for cerebral blood flow index (CBFi), are quantified by diffuse correlation spectroscopy. However, this conventional technique provides marginal brain sensitivity for CBFi in adult humans. To improve the brain sensitivity, researchers have now optimized interferometric diffusing wave spectroscopy—a novel approach to quantify the fluctuations. They demonstrated pulsatile CBFi monitoring at 4–4.5 cm source-collector separation in adults with moderate pigmentation.

Tooth enamel is the hardest tissue in vertebrates, yet how its intricate structure forms, remains unclear. Using mouse models, researchers have now discovered how specialized enamel-forming cells move in coordinated, opposing directions to create a woven structure that boosts enamel’s strength. By identifying the specialized cell population and tracking its descendants in mouse incisors, the researchers provide the first experimental evidence for enamel structure, providing new insights into dental biology.

Drug-drug interactions (DDI) can cause adverse drug reactions during the co-administration of multiple drugs, necessitating accurate and scalable prediction tools. While deep learning models have shown promise recently, most models show poor performance against drugs not encountered during training. Now, researchers have developed a lightweight and scalable model, called DDINet, designed specifically to predict unseen drug interactions. This innovative model achieves superior accuracy in predicting interactions for unseen drugs, with potential for practical deployment.

In new results from a clinical trial, researchers show that electrical stimulation of the spinal cord can restore the muscle control and sensory feedback required for coordinated walking movements.

A multi-disciplinary research team at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and collaborating institutions leveraged their recently developed highly versatile DoriVac DNA origami nanotechnology that is both vaccine and adjuvant as an alternative to current vaccine platforms. As published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, DoriVac vaccines made with different viral antigens produce potent antigen-specific antibody-mediated and T cell-mediated responses in mice as well as in a forward-looking pre-clinical in vitro model of the human lymph node engineered using the Wyss Institute’s microfluidic human Organ Chip technology. The findings are published in Nature Biomedical Engineering.

Kyoto, Japan -- Swallowing is a fundamental human function that supports nutrition and communication. Damage to swallowing muscles can reduce quality of life and even lead to aspiration pneumonia or malnutrition. Many patients suffer from swallowing difficulties after being treated for head or neck cancer, and swallowing disorders are also common in older adults, yet effective therapies have been limited.

Stem cell therapy is considered a promising strategy for muscle repair, including the swallowing muscles, but so far it has not demonstrated the desired effect. Many transplanted cells die quickly after injection because they cannot survive in an injured environment. Spheroids, or three-dimensional cell clusters, are known to improve stem cell function, but large spheroids often develop a necrotic core due to limited oxygen and nutrient supply.

This motivated a collaborative team of researchers from Kyoto University and McGill University to take a new approach to tackling this uncomfortable condition. They included a soft, biocompatible material inside the spheroid to support cell survival and function. Biodegradable nanogels proved to be the innovative material they needed.