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Tag: Queen Mary University of London

  • Study Unveils Promising Pancreatic Cancer Treatment Approach.

    Study Unveils Promising Pancreatic Cancer Treatment Approach.

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    Newswise — A new study carried out in mice, led by Queen Mary University of London, has identified cells that drive the spread of pancreatic cancer and discovered a weakness in these cells that could be targeted using existing drugs. This offers a promising new approach for treating pancreatic cancer.

    The research, published in Science Advances and funded by Barts Charity and Cancer Research UK, found that many patients’ pancreatic cancer contains cells called amoeboid cells. These are aggressive, invasive and fast-moving cells that weaken the immune system. These cells have previously been identified in other cancers, such as melanoma, breast, liver and prostate cancer, and have been linked with poor survival rates. This is the first time that they have been found in pancreatic cancer.

    Crucially, the new study discovered amoeboid cells in pancreatic cancer produce high levels of a molecule called CD73, which drives their ability to spread and weaken the immune system. When blocking this molecule, the researchers reduced the spread of cancer to the liver and decreased the number of immune cells that supported the tumour.

    The research looked at mice given anti-CD73 treatment over the short term (3 weeks) and long term where clinical endpoints were met (when an outcome that represents direct clinical benefit was achieved, such as survival, decreased pain, or the absence of disease). In the long-term group, anti-CD73 treatment reduced the incidence of cancerous tumours that spread to the liver from 66.6 per cent to 36.4 per cent.

    While further tests would be needed involving humans to confirm the conclusions, the study suggests that blocking CD73 could be a promising approach for treating pancreatic cancer and the spread of it, especially considering that drugs blocking CD73 have already been developed and are being tested in clinical trials for various types of cancer.

    The amoeboid cells were present in both late and early-stage pancreatic cancer. This opens up a new possible avenue of treatment in blocking CD73 early in the disease and reducing the aggressive nature of these cells and the damage they cause in the body.

    Professor Victoria Sanz-Moreno, Professor of Cancer Cell Biology at Queen Mary University of London, said:

    “While the results would need to be replicated in humans, they are very promising in highlighting a potential way of treating the spread of one of the most aggressive and poorly survived cancers.

    “More than 10,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the UK every year, so finding a way to improve its extremely low survival rate even by a little could save many years of human life.

    “Pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest cancers and current treatments are not working well. To improve these, we urgently need to understand the disease better.”

    Victoria King, Director of Funding and Impact at Barts Charity said:

    “The ability of cancer cells to spread to other parts of the body is one of the greatest clinical challenges to treating cancer. Our investment in cancer research at Queen Mary has helped to attract world-leading researchers to East London who are making scientific breakthroughs that could transform the lives of people with cancer. We are excited to see the insights presented in this study, which suggest a promising new approach for halting the spread of pancreatic cancer.”

    Dr Claire Bromley, Senior Research Information Manager at Cancer Research UK, said: 

    “Thanks to research, over one million lives have been saved from cancer since the 1980s, but improvements haven’t been equal across all cancer types. Pancreatic cancer remains hard to treat and survival hasn’t improved in the past 50 years.

    “Research like this is vital to innovate new ways to treat pancreatic cancer, which is the fifth most common cause of cancer in the UK. The team’s discoveries offer a promising new route for drugs of the future. However, more research is needed before these findings can move from the laboratory bench to the bedside.” 

    Despite advances made in early diagnosis and treatment, the survival rate of pancreatic cancer remains extremely low. Only around 7 per cent of people survive five years after their diagnosis, and current therapies, which may include surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy, do not work well for most patients.

    Like all cancers, early diagnosis is key to improving survival rates. For pancreatic cancer, around half of all patients are diagnosed when the disease has already spread, which is one of the reasons for poor survival rates.

    The researchers plan to expand their research to other cancers and see if they uncover the same link between amoeboid cells and CD73. A key focus will be breast cancer, which is the most common type of cancer in the UK and the second most common cause of cancer death in women.

    The research funders include Barts Charity, Cancer Research UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre based at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London. No NIHR BRC funds were used for animal studies.

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  • Vision & hearing linked in reptiles, study shows

    Vision & hearing linked in reptiles, study shows

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    Newswise — An international research team from Queen Mary University of London, UK and the Rovereto Civic Museum Foundation, Italy has made a groundbreaking discovery regarding reptiles and their ability to match visual and auditory information.

    Their study published in Biology Letters from Royal Society showed that reptiles demonstrate spontaneous associations between two different sensory modalities: vision and hearing. Tortoises associated low sounds with large shapes and high pitch sounds with small shapes, even if they had not been trained to do so. These results show how brains are prepared to predict visuo-acoustic correspondences that are likely to occur in the natural world.

    Previous research has shown similar matching between sensory modalities (crossmodal associations) in mammalian species such as humans, chimpanzees, and dogs. However, it was unclear whether these associations were present in other vertebrate animals, including reptiles. The study led by Dr Maria Loconsole from Queen Mary University of London (now at University of Padova) and Dr Elisabetta Versace also from Queen Mary University of London aimed to fill this gap in knowledge.

    To unveil the presence of spontaneous preferences for matching the two dimensions of acoustic pitch (high vs low tone) and visual size (small vs large disk), the team tested land tortoises (Testudo hermanni) in a choice task. After being trained to follow any sound to find a food reward, tortoises were tested for the preference for high and low pitch sounds associated to either small or large shapes.

    “Astonishingly, the tortoises consistently chose small disks when presented with high pitch sounds, and large disks when low pitch sounds were presented. The study has helped us understand how the patterns present in the natural environment such as correspondence between size and pitch shape the cognitive abilities of animals,” says Dr Maria Loconsole.

    These findings suggest that crossmodal associations are widespread across species and animal groups, indicating that they may be an organising principle of the vertebrate brain. “It is possible that mammals, birds, and reptiles have independently evolved this mechanism, or it may be a predisposed mechanism shared by descent from a common ancestor. Expanding research to a broad range of species is important to understand general principles of the organisation of the brain and evolution of behaviour,” concludes Dr Elisabetta Versace, Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary University of London.

    “I enjoyed collaborating with Queen Mary University of London as it demonstrated the importance of preserving the sanctuary not only for the protection of land tortoises but also for advancing knowledge on animal behavior and cognition”, says Gionata Stancher, the head of Zoology Rovereto Civic Museum Foundation.

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  • New pterosaur nicknamed ‘Elvis’ takes flight

    New pterosaur nicknamed ‘Elvis’ takes flight

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    Newswise — A new 145-million-year-old pterosaur (extinct flying reptiles that lived alongside the dinosaurs) was named today by a team of British, American and German researchers. The animal was nicknamed ‘Elvis’ when the fossil was first unearthed in Bavaria, Germany because of the giant pompadour-like bony crest on its skull. 

    Now the animal has been given a formal scientific name of Petrodactyle wellnhoferi. The name translates as ‘Wellnhofer’s stone-finger’ honouring legendary German palaeontologist Peter Wellnhofer who spent his career working on German pterosaurs. Petrodactyle is a member of a group of pterosaurs called the ctenochasmatids that were mostly small filter feeders. Petrodactyle is a very complete skeleton with nearly every bone preserved and in remarkable detail.  

    Many pterosaurs are known with bony crests which they used primarily as sexual signals to other members of the species, but Pterodactyle has by far the largest crest even seen in a ctenochasmatid. Dr David Hone of Queen Mary University of London was the lead author on the study said, “Big though this crest is, we know that these pterosaurs had skin-like extensions attached to it, so in life Petrodactyle would have had an even larger crest”. 

    The details of the specimen are especially clear under UV light which helps show the difference between the bones and the rock in which they are embedded, which under natural light are a very similar colour. René Lauer of the Lauer Foundation, an author on the study said, “The use of UV Induced Fluorescence digital photography provided the ability to discern fine structures small bones and provided additional information regarding the structures of the bony crest which aided in the interpretations and conclusions of this unique new species”. 

    Petrodactyle was unusually large too. It has a wingspan of around 2 meters, but it was still an older ‘teenager’ by pterosaur standards and would have been even larger as a fully mature animal. Even so, it is one of the largest pterosaurs known from the Late Jurassic period. Bruce Lauer of the Lauer Foundation, an author on the study said “The specimen was located in a quarry which is producing scientifically important fossils that provide additional insights into Late Jurassic Pterosaurs.  This research is a great example of the benefits of cooperation between amateur collectors, commercial fossil dealers, our Foundation and research scientists to advance science.” 

    Like other ctenochasmatids, Petrodactyle was at home on the shore of shallow seas but might have ventured into estuaries or to lakes. It’s long jaw with many small teeth would have been good for grabbing at small fish, shrimp and other aquatic prey. However, unlike most other ctenochasmatids, it had an expansion at the back of the skull to attach large jaw muscles and give it a stronger bite than many of its contemporaries. Frederik Spindler of the Dinosaurier Museum in Germany, an author on the study said, “It is amazing to document an increasingly wide range of adaptations.  Pterosaurs were a fundamental part of the Jurassic ecology”. 

    Dr Hone concluded “Peter Wellnhofer is long overdue having a species of German pterosaur named after him to honour his lifelong contribution to the study of these amazing animals”.  

    The Lauer Foundation acquires, curates, and provides access to a collection of scientifically important Palaeontological specimens.  The collection is available to the scientific community for research, publication, exhibition and educational outreach.

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  • Review calls for a refreshed look at clinical approach to heart muscle disorder

    Review calls for a refreshed look at clinical approach to heart muscle disorder

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    Newswise — The heart’s main pumping chamber – the lower left ventricle – contains pieces of muscle called trabeculations that extend into it. Excessive trabeculation, often referred to as non-compacted myocardium, has been described at all ages, from fetus to adult.

    Numerous prior studies have reported excessive trabeculation in healthy individuals, possibly due to the influence of changes in circulatory load such as pregnancy or exercise, in co-existence with well-known heart muscle diseases such as dilated cardiomyopathy or hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or in relation to a rare entity of so-called non-compaction cardiomyopathy.

    The review article and expert consensus paper is published in top cardiac imaging journal, JACC Cardiovascular Imaging, and is led by global experts in heart muscle diseases and cardiovascular imaging, from Queen Mary University of London’s William Harvey Research Institute and the NIHR Barts Biomedical Research Centre.

    Amongst its highlights, “Excessive Trabeculation of the Left Ventricle – JACC: Cardiovascular Imaging Expert Panel Paper” advises that since trabeculated heart muscle does not coalesce to form the compact myocardial wall, the term ‘left ventricular non-compaction’, which is prevalent in contemporary medical literature, is inaccurate and so its use should be discouraged.

    The lead author Steffen E. Petersen, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Queen Mary and Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at Barts Health NHS Trust, says:

    “We envisage the scientific community will move away from the term ‘LV non-compaction’, which is misleading, to use ‘excessive trabeculation’ which can be observed across a wide spectrum of health and disease states.

    “The recommendation from this work has a substantial clinical impact as it can reduce harm to patients and people often wrongly labelled to have a specific disease. We also hope that this review article and expert consensus will lead to further research to better characterise the genetic basis and physiological impact of excessive trabeculation in otherwise normal individuals.”

    Co-author Dr Nay Aung, National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Academic Clinical Lecturer at Queen Mary and Cardiologist, adds:

    “Based on the available evidence, this expert consensus provides pragmatic recommendations on the clinical management of adults with incidental excessive trabeculation and those diagnosed with hypertrophic or dilated cardiomyopathy along with excessive trabeculation. Evidence is relatively sparse in children with excessive trabeculation, so this population may follow a different clinical trajectory – hence the need for further research.”

    The experts summarised the evidence and uncertainties about the features of excessive trabeculation and its potential associations with cardiomyopathies – diseases of the heart muscle that result in it being harder to pump blood around the body.

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  • Ten-minute scan enables detection and cure of the commonest cause of high blood pressure

    Ten-minute scan enables detection and cure of the commonest cause of high blood pressure

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    Newswise — Doctors at Queen Mary University of London and Barts Hospital, and Cambridge University Hospital, have led research using a new type of CT scan to light up tiny nodules in a hormone gland and cure high blood pressure by their removal. The nodules are discovered in one-in-twenty people with high blood pressure.

    Published today in Nature Medicine, the research solves a 60-year problem of how to detect the hormone producing nodules without a difficult catheter study that is available in only a handful of hospitals, and often fails. The research also found that, when combined with a urine test, the scan detects a group of patients who come off all their blood pressure medicines after treatment.

    128 people participated in the study of a new scan after doctors found that their Hypertension (high blood pressure) was caused by a steroid hormone, aldosterone. The scan found that in two thirds of patients with elevated aldosterone secretion, this is coming from a benign nodule in just one of the adrenal glands, which can then be safely removed. The scan uses a very short-acting dose of metomidate, a radioactive dye that sticks only to the aldosterone-producing nodule. The scan was as accurate as the old catheter test, but quick, painless and technically successful in every patient. Until now, the catheter test was unable to predict which patients would be completely cured of hypertension by surgical removal of the gland. By contrast, the combination of a ‘hot nodule’ on the scan and urine steroid test detected 18 of the 24 patients who achieved a normal blood pressure off all their drugs.

    The research, conducted on patients at Barts Hospital, Cambridge University Hospital, and Guy’s and St Thomas’s, and Universities of Glasgow and Birmingham, was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) partnership, Barts Charity, and the British Heart Foundation.

    Professor Morris Brown, co-senior author of the study and Professor of Endocrine Hypertension at Queen Mary University of London, said: “These aldosterone-producing nodules are very small and easily overlooked on a regular CT scan. When they glow for a few minutes after our injection, they are revealed as the obvious cause of Hypertension, which can often then be cured. Until now, 99% are never diagnosed because of the difficulty and unavailability of tests. Hopefully this is about to change.”

    Professor William Drake, co-senior author of the study and Professor of Clinical Endocrinology at Queen Mary University of London, said: “This study was the result of years of hard work and collaboration between centres across the UK. Much of the ‘on the ground’ energy and drive came from the talented research fellows who, in addition to doing this innovative work, gave selflessly of their time and energy during the national pandemic emergency. The future of research in this area is in very safe hands.”

    In most people with Hypertension (high blood pressure), the cause is unknown, and the condition requires life-long treatment by drugs. Previous research by the group at Queen Mary University discovered that in 5-10% of people with Hypertension the cause is a gene mutation in the adrenal glands, which results in excessive amounts of the steroid hormone, aldosterone, being produced. Aldosterone causes salt to be retained in the body, driving up the blood pressure. Patients with excessive aldosterone levels in the blood are resistant to treatment with the commonly used drugs for Hypertension, and at increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.

    ENDS

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  • Bumblebees have poor, but useful memories

    Bumblebees have poor, but useful memories

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    Newswise — Bumblebees  don’t seem to keep memories for how sweet a flower was, but instead only remember if it was sweeter than another flower, according to researchers at Queen Mary University of London, along with an international team of scientists. 

    In new research in the journal eLife, bumblebees were first trained on two flowers, learning that one flower was sweeter than a second flower. Later, they learned that a third flower was sweeter than a fourth flower. Then bumblebees were given the choice between two of the flowers they hadn’t seen together before, for example the second and third or the first and third.  

    Over a series of experiments, bumblebees’ preferences during the tests indicated that they could only retain very basic ranking memories for the flowers for very long. The bumblebees could only remember that a flower had been better or worse during training phase. Bees couldn’t seem to remember for more than a few minutes how sweet or rewarding the flowers were on their own or even how much sweeter they were compared to other flowers.  

    Previous research shows that we humans actually keep memories for both absolute information (e.g. how sweet something is) and comparisons [Palminteri and Lebreton, 2021]. Starlings, a bird native to Europe, and the only other animal for which this question has been examined, similarly use a combination of absolute and comparative information when remembering options [Pompilio and Kacelnik, 2010].

    Ms Yonghe Zhou, co-lead author on the paper and currently a PhD student at Queen Mary University of London, says: “Our results reveal an intriguing divergent mechanism for how bumblebees retain and use information about options, compared to humans and birds.” 

    Prof Fei Peng, senior author currently at Southern Medical University, China, states “It may be that the different strategies used by bumblebees and humans may have evolved because of their different diets. Maybe because bumblebees evolved to mostly only eat flower nectar, they never needed to remember the details and could survive and thrive simply using simple comparisons.”  

    Ms Yonghe adds: “Despite what may seem to be a poor memory strategy, bumblebees do very well in finding the most profitable flowers. It’s fascinating to consider how different animals, in their own ecological niche, can be similarly successful using such different strategies.” 

     

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