Medical News

Casgevy is the first CRISPR-based medicine to be approved for use in the United States After approving Casgevy (exagamglogene autotemcel) in December to treat sickle cell disease, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that the therapy has now been approved to treat patients older than 12 years with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia. Casgevy is the first CRISPR-based...

Having older siblings, childhood tonsillectomy linked to increased risk for AS in case-control analysis Factors associated with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) have been identified and include having older siblings and childhood tonsillectomy, according to a study published online Oct. 16 in RMD Open. Matilda Morin, from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues conducted a nationwide, register-based,...

People with psoriasis have double the odds of celiac disease versus people without psoriasis Individuals with psoriasis have double the odds of having celiac disease (CD) versus individuals without psoriasis, according to a research letter published online Feb. 9 in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. Marina Z. Joel, from the Johns Hopkins...

Researchers introduced a new mutation to pluripotent stem cells, enabling their transformation to red blood cells without the need for expensive stem cell factor and erythropoietin, thus enabling large-scale RBC culture at lower costs. Numerous hematological conditions require blood frequent blood transfusions. Therefore, in recent years, researchers have explored the potential of cultured red blood...

Vivax malaria has historically been absent in sub-Saharan Africa, as the parasite cannot penetrate Duffy-negative erythroblasts. However, a new study shows that P. vivax can penetrate erythrocytes during erythropoiesis due to the transitory expression of the protein. Plasmodium vivax malaria was historically believed to be absent in sub-Saharan Africa due to the high prevalence of...

Gain-of-function mutations in the PIEZO1 mechanosensor channel affect intracellular calcium concentration, affecting late-stage differentiation and disrupting apoptosis, hypoxia response, and glycolysis, according to a new study.  PIEZO1 is an important mechanosensitive cation channel that detects mechanical forces and is involved in many physiological functions. Its function in erythrocytes is to control hydration and cellular volume....

Proportion of stimulant involvement in fentanyl-involved overdose deaths increased in almost every state from 2015 to 2021 By 2021, stimulants were the most common drug class found in fentanyl-involved overdoses, according to a study published online Sept. 13 in Addiction. Joseph Friedman, Ph.D., and Chelsea L. Shover, Ph.D., from the University of California in Los Angeles,...

The field of multiple myeloma (MM) treatment has seen significant advancements in recent years, which have improved median survival rates for patients from 3 years two decades ago to around 10 years now. One of the most notable advancements in the treatment of MM is the introduction of immune-based therapies, specifically anti-CD38 monoclonal antibodies. These...

Cytisinicline well tolerated with only 2.9 percent of participants discontinuing due to an adverse event. For smokers who want to quit, six or 12 weeks of cytisinicline is efficacious for smoking cessation, according to a study published in the July 11 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Nancy A. Rigotti, M.D., from Massachusetts...