Researchers have shown that glucocorticoids, a type of steroid hormones, target both neuroplasticity-related genes and genes related to ciliary function in the brain. However, the effects on the different processes are mediated via different receptors, and in response to different stimuli. A study investigated the specific targets of glucocorticoids, giving new insights into the biological mechanisms of stress adaptations, and how they are linked to neural plasticity.

It's a good news, bad news scenario for exhausted T cells in chronic infections. Multiple groups of investigators reported in the July 26, 2021, online issue of Nature Immunology that even after a chronic hepatitis C virus infection was cured, T cells that had become dysfunctional during the infection retained epigenetic "scars" that prevented them from becoming fully functional memory T cells.

Immunologists at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China, have been the first to show that interferon-induced protein 35 family proteins promote neuroinflammation and multiple sclerosis (MS), as they reported in the August 2, 2021, edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Researchers led by Emanuel Hanski at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have identified a class of molecules that inhibit endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and could decrease mortality in mice infected with Streptococcus pyogenes, also known as the group A streptococci.

Investigators at the University of California at San Francisco have identified a confounder that appears to be behind the purported anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects of a number of therapeutic candidates that were identified via repurposing.

A genome-wide association study has identified 290 genetic variants, including a wide range of DNA damage response genes, that are associated with age at menopause.

Investigators at the University of California at San Francisco have identified a confounder that appears to be behind the purported anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects of a number of therapeutic candidates that were identified via repurposing.

Researchers from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) have developed a blood test to detect Alzheimer’s disease (AD) early. They said the test has an accuracy level of over 96% and can also monitor disease progression. This is a new approach to detecting AD compared to the commonly used cognitive tests and invasive methods that detect changes in the brain caused by AD.

Brain-wide genome editing via a single systemic dose of modified adeno-associated virus variants that cross the blood-brain barrier may represent a promising new approach for the development of disease-modifying treatments for familial Alzheimer's disease. This strategy could also be applicable to other central nervous system (CNS) disorders, according to a proof-of-concept (PoC) study led by researchers at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).

The collective findings of a new multicenter Japanese study have demonstrated for the first time that expression of the gene Gem via the activity-dependent transcription factor, neuronal PAS domain protein 4 (Npas4), promotes neuroprotection in the injured brain following ischemic stroke.