Genes that make you friendlier
Wondered why some people enjoy social engagements while others shy awayIJ It may be genetic, say scientists who have identified two genes that make some people more friendly by regulating the love hormone oxytocin. Researchers from the National University of Singapore found that CD38 and CD157 genes are associated with the sociality of young individuals. They found that young adults who have higher expression of the CD38 gene as well as differences in CD157 gene sequence are friendlier and more socially adept than others. They have more close friends and show greater social skills. CD38 and CD157 genes regulate the release of oxytocin, the paramount social hormone in humans involved in primary social behaviours such as pair-bonding, mating and child-rearing, to more sophisticated behaviours such as empathy, trust, and generosity. The team studied over 1,300 healthy young Chinese adults in Singapore in a non-clinical setting.
Chronic ear ringing affects brain
Tinnitus, a chronic ringing in the ears, is linked to changes in networks in the brain that cause it to stay more attentive and less at rest. Although this condition has eluded medical treatment, the finding provides patients with validation of their experiences and hope for future treatment options. Researchers used functional MRI to look for patterns across brain function and structure and found that tinnitus is in a region of the brain called the precuneus. It is connected to two inversely related networks in the brain: The dorsal attention network, which is active when something holds a person’s attention, and the default mode network, which are the background functions of the brain.
Therapeutic antibody for dog cancers
Japanese researchers have developed an antibody that induces immune responses, which significantly suppresses malignant cancers in dogs as well as increases their survival rate. As seen in humans, dogs too have malignant cancers that cannot be treated by existing therapies such as surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Oral malignant melanoma (OMM), a highly invasive cancer in dogs, accounts for 30-40 per cent of all oral tumours. They are seen along the gums, the lip, palate and sometimes the tongue. The newly developed chimeric anti-PD-l1 antibody was found to induce immune responses, thus causing tumour regression among dogs with malignant cancers. “Chimerisation of the antibody is now proven as a simple and effective strategy to develop therapeutic antibodies in veterinary medicine,” said lead author Satoru Konnai.