As we enter the November semester, researchers around the world are also hard at work advancing efforts that benefit human health. This week’s science news focuses on efforts to understand a variety of health challenges and identify treatments to combat them.
New treatment for antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea
Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease.patient becomes infected with bacteria gonorrhea It occurs in the mucous membranes of the uterus and fallopian tubes in women and the urethra in men.
Antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea has become an urgent public health problem as the bacteria has developed resistance to nearly all existing antibiotic treatments. If untreated, gonorrhea can cause pelvic inflammatory disease in women and epididymitis in men, leading to an increased risk of infertility in both men and women. The infection can also spread from the reproductive system through the bloodstream to other parts of the body, causing further complications.
Fortunately, recent large-scale phase 3 clinical trials have identified new drugs to which bacteria have not yet developed resistance.
The study included patients from the United States, the Netherlands, South Africa, Thailand, and Belgium. They evaluated the outcomes of patients who received standard treatment ceftriaxone, along with azithromycin and a new drug called zoliflodacin.
Ceftriaxone-resistant strains are emerging around the world. Although no participants were infected with ceftriaxone-resistant strains, researchers found that zoliflodacin was as effective as standard drugs in treating gonorrhea.
The new drug could become a weapon against antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea. However, considering the following facts: gonorrhea Regulating new drugs and preventing misuse is important to maintain their effectiveness in treating gonorrhea, as resistance has developed to many drugs.
The Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership, part of the research team, currently has a marketing license for zoliflodacin. The research team hopes that, like previous gonorrhea treatments, this new drug will soon become economically available.
Nepal’s mysterious and severe eye infection continues to pose challenges
Seasonal hyperacute panuveitis (SHAPU) is an eye infection endemic to Nepal that can lead to childhood blindness. First identified in 1979, cases of SHAPU were sparse until a relatively large outbreak occurred in 2021. Doctors in Nepal are determined to solve the mystery of SHAPU by 2023.
Laboratory culture results from infected eyes were inconclusive and suggested multiple infectious agents. The geographic distribution also appears to be dispersed, and we were unable to indicate specific regions with increased vulnerability to SHAPU.
In 2020, anecdotal evidence gave Nepali doctors a clue. Many patients describe encountering white moths before the onset of SHAPU. This was the only statistically significant difference between SHAPU patients and healthy controls.
The white moth Gazalina Their presence in the environment increases, especially during the monsoon season. This coincides with the increase in SHAPU cases during the post-monsoon period.
However, the 2023 SHAPU case does not mention contact with the white moth, and the infection also occurred on the cornea, which doctors believe is rare. SHAPU continues to challenge Nepali doctors.
Doctors plan to learn more about SHAPU through DNA sequencing to identify the microorganisms present in infections. However, their efforts are limited due to lack of funding and available research resources in Nepal. Samples must be sent to the United States for analysis, a process that is costly and prevents timely discovery.
The cytoplasmic lattice of the oocyte stores proteins important for embryonic development.
The cytoplasmic lattice is a cellular structure in the oocyte, and its functional role has remained enigmatic for the past few decades. Recent studies have revealed that these structures act as storage stores and prevent premature degradation of proteins during early embryonic development.
Oocytes, like other specialized cells in the body, break down and recycle unused cellular material, such as proteins. However, oocytes must selectively store substances with essential functions after fertilization.
Using mammalian cells, researchers identified the functional role of the cytoplasmic lattice in maintaining critical cellular material for the fertilization that can occur at any time to an oocyte within the fallopian tube. The cytoplasmic lattice is organized in a staggered manner and has a large surface area for storing proteins. This lattice is composed of filaments made from proteins such as PADI6 and SCMC, and its disruption is associated with embryonic arrest in humans.
The findings could have implications for in vitro fertilization (IVF), an assisted reproductive technology that is costly and can have negative psychological effects on patients. Abnormalities in genes that contribute to the functional importance of the cytoplasmic lattice for early embryonic development may serve as markers advising couples not to undergo in vitro fertilization early because those embryos will not survive. Therefore, patients can avoid the financial and psychological burden of IVF.
Mixed drugs that deliver toxic chemicals can treat cancer
Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) target cancer cells and release toxic chemicals to disrupt the cell division process. Thomas Powless, of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital in London, showed that ADCs doubled the survival time of patients with bladder cancer compared to other treatments.
This discovery could benefit not only bladder cancer patients, but also other types of cancer. There are 14 ADCs approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and more than 100 ADCs are currently being evaluated through clinical trials.
ADCs are made up of proteins that encourage the immune system to mount a better attack on tumors, and antibodies that bind to proteins that are expressed at higher rates in cancer cells and disrupt cell division.
However, ADCs are not perfect. Because ADCs travel through the bloodstream before reaching their target cancer site, the toxic chemicals they carry can cause problems such as decreased red blood cell, white blood cell, and platelet counts, and damage to the lungs, liver, and nerves. may cause. The researchers will work on reducing the toxicity of ADCs to reduce these side effects.