Latest news at the intersection of technology and medicine

1. A group of researchers from the United States has developed nanoparticles capable of interacting with cancer cells and reducing their growth. Researchers have found a way through which the rate of cancer progression can be influenced. The reason for the proliferation of cancer cells is that the cells secrete an aggressive enzyme that damages collagen and leads to the destruction of healthy tissue. In the course of the study, scientists were able to use this property and direct it against cancer cells. To do this, scientists have developed nanoparticles, the accumulation of which in the immediate vicinity of the cell prevents the aggressive enzyme, thereby reducing the ability of cancer cells to reproduce.

Although the research is in its early stages, it could be a major breakthrough in cancer treatment without the strong drugs that are addictive and lose their effectiveness in metastatic disease.

2. A new experiment by scientists from California opens up opportunities for the treatment of neurological diseases. The reserch is based on the study of the functions of the hippocampus, a part of the brain's limbic system responsible for spatial memory and orientation. For the experiment, the scientists examined the behavior of rats in a virtual reality labyrinth, rewarding them with an eatable reward at the end of the way. Thanks to this, they were able to identify responses in individual neurons responsible for orientation. Scientists find out that neurons in the hippocampus carry different types of information about the position of an animal in space. First: where it is, secondly: its body in relation to the reward, and finally, how far it has advanced since the beginning of its way. In addition, the researchers noted that during the experiment, the rats more and more clearly resembled a labyrinth.

Thanks to this experiment, it was possible to investigate the ability of neurons to encode several aspects of body position relative to space, although it was previously popularly believed that only position was encoded in the hippocampus. These discoveries will help scientists conduct similar studies in healthy and sick people, and find out which function does not work correctly in people with neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's and others.

3. Scientists from Cambridge have developed a "mini-brain" to investigate the neurological disorder that leads to serious diseases such as paralysis and dementia. The point is that neurodegenerative diseases are very difficult to study because they affect different types of cells at different times. The benefit of the study is that scientists were able to grow a more functional "mini-brain" with cellular diversity and cell interactions from stem cell patients with neurological disorders. This approach allows to see changes in the early stages and identify degradation in cells at different phase. Research shows that harmful changes can occur from birth. Further development of this method for studying neurodegenerative disorders will help to identify the effect of drugs on the disease, which in turn can save patients from the negative effects of drugs.

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