Research News

Sanofi is discontinuing the global clinical development program of tusamitamab ravtansine. The decision is based on the outcome of a prespecified interim analysis of the Phase 3 CARMEN-LC03 trial evaluating tusamitamab ravtansine as monotherapy compared to docetaxel in previously treated patients with metastatic non-squamous (NSq) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors express high levels of carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 5 (CEACAM5).

A research team from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at the National University of Singapore (NUS) has successfully harnessed artificial intelligence (AI) and deep-learning techniques to model atomic-level RNA 3D structures from primary RNA sequences. Called DRfold, this novel AI-based method improves the accuracy of RNA models by more than 70 percent, compared to traditional approaches.

A new study led by the University of Oxford has demonstrated that diverse communities of resident bacteria can protect the human gut from disease-causing microorganisms. The researchers found that protective communities block the growth of harmful pathogens by consuming nutrients that the pathogen needs. The findings, published today in the journal Science, could help to develop new strategies to optimise gut health.

In a landmark study led by the University of Maryland School of Medicine, researchers discovered for the first time that a certain kind of protein similar to hemoglobin, called cytoglobin, plays an important role in the development of the heart. Specifically, it affects the correct left-right pattern of the heart and other asymmetric organs. The findings, published today in the journal Nature Communications, could eventually lead to the development of new therapeutic interventions to alter the processes that lead to these defects.

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is extremely common, affecting nearly two-thirds of the world’s population, according to the World Health Organization.

Once inside the body, HSV establishes a latent infection that periodically awakens, causing painful blisters on the skin, typically around the nose and mouth. While a mere nuisance for most people, HSV can also lead to dangerous eye infections and brain inflammation in some people and cause life-threatening infections in newborns.

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, has posed unprecedented challenges worldwide. While extensive efforts have focused on understanding the clinical features, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19, certain aspects of the virus behavior, such as reactivation and recurrence, remain elusive. 

Enamel, the hardest and most mineral-rich substance in the human body, covers and protects our teeth. But in one of every 10 people – and in one third of children with celiac disease – this layer appears defective, failing to protect the teeth properly. As a result, teeth become more sensitive to heat, cold and sour food, and they may decay faster. In most cases, the cause of the faulty enamel production is unknown.

The trial, by the University of Leeds, has been identified as groundbreaking research by the New England Journal of Medicine and the 65th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition in San Diego, where the results have been presented.

The ketogenic diet proved to be effective at controlling polycystic kidney disease (PKD) in the first randomized controlled clinical trial of ketogenic metabolic therapy for PKD.