A prospective new method of treating patients with multiple sclerosis has been proposed by researchers of the Mainz University Medical Center working in cooperation with researchers of the University of Montreal. In model trials and experiments employing human endothelial cells, they discovered that the EGFL7 protein hinders the migration of immune cells into the central nervous system by stabilizing the blood-brain barrier.

Scientists from the Diabetes Research Institute at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have confirmed the existence of progenitor cells within the human pancreas that can be stimulated to develop into glucose-responsive beta cells. These significant findings, published in Cell Reports, open the door to developing regenerative cell therapies for those living with type 1 diabetes, addressing a major challenge that stands in the way of discovering a biological cure for the disease.

New research from The Australian National University (ANU) has drilled down to the molecular level to find similarities across six pharmaceutical drugs used in pain relief, dentist anaesthetic, and treatment of epilepsy, in a bid to find a way to reduce unwanted side-effects. One in five Australians experience chronic pain, and 250,000 Australians live with epilepsy, 40 per cent of which are children.

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have discovered a new link between gut bacteria and obesity. They found that certain amino acids in our blood can be connected to both obesity and the composition of the gut microbiome. We know less about the significance of our gut bacteria than what many books and magazines on the subject seem to suggest. A lot of the research on the topic is based on animal studies which cannot be directly applied to humans.

Scientists have identified a hormone that could help prepare the womb lining for pregnancy, research shows. The hormone helps prime cells for implantation, a vital stage in early pregnancy when a fertilised egg attaches to the womb lining, the study suggests. The discovery - made by testing tissue from women aged in their forties - could help scientists develop ways to improve fertility.

On average, 1 in 10 children who enroll in pediatric phase I cancer trials are improved after the trial, and 1 in 50 die from drug-related complications, according to a new systematic review and meta-analysis published this week in PLOS Medicine by Jonathan Kimmelman from McGill University, Canada, and colleagues.

Researchers have found that excess levels of calcium in brain cells may lead to the formation of toxic clusters that are the hallmark of Parkinson's disease. The international team, led by the University of Cambridge, found that calcium can mediate the interaction between small membranous structures inside nerve endings, which are important for neuronal signalling in the brain, and alpha-synuclein, the protein associated with Parkinson's disease.