Bruce Goldman, Author at Scope

Rheumatoid arthritis may be triggered by a missing molecular “anchor,” but new research suggests a fix

Stanford scientists have dug up a defect at the heart of rheumatoid arthritis: a faulty "anchor" that should be tethering a key molecule to the spot inside immune cells where it has to be in order to do its job. It seems this defect can be reversed with a not yet commercially available small-molecule drug.

Nature, not nurture: New evidence in mice that recognition of a stranger’s sex is baked into the brain at birth

Male mice are hardwired to recognize the sex of other mice, a new study shows. Females' circuitry guiding that decision differs from males.

Culturing technique captures hard-to-study, critically important brain cell — the oligodendrocyte — in action

Brain cells called oligodendrocytes supply insulation by wrapping neurons in multiple layers of fatty extensions, preserving signal strength and markedly speeding up transmission. But studying these cells in culture has been virtually impossible -- until now.

The brain-circuitry clash that keeps you from diving into that plate of ribs when you’re dining with royalty

A study in Nature details a discovery with potential clinical significance for treating eating disorders such as anorexia. To make that discovery, Stanford researchers had to develop a "first-time-ever" way of teasing apart two separate but closely intertwined sets of identical-appearing neurons in the brain.

Mistaken identity: Influenza/narcolepsy autoimmunity link confirmed

New research has confirmed that an antigen in some variants of the flu virus and vaccine can, in rare cases, trigger an autoimmune response leading to narcolepsy.

Computer memory: A scientific team builds a virtual model of a key brain region

Stanford scientists are making efforts to create high-resolution simulated versions of the human brain, bells and whistles and warts and all.

Comic book aimed at cutting cervical cancer rates hits the stands

In a drive to reduce high cervical-cancer rates in Nigeria, a nonprofit organization co-founded by Stanford oncology researcher Ami Bhatt, MD, PhD, has enlisted the imaginative assistance of an educational comic book.

Brain implant lets people with limb paralysis compose and send emails, select videos and even play music, just by thinking

In a study, paralyzed people with tiny brain implants were able to directly operate a tablet just by thought.

Can flicking a molecular switch restore the aging immune system’s competence?

With age comes wisdom: mostly true. But a new study helps explain why one part of us - our immune system - gets decidedly dumber with age.

Is zinc the link to how we think? Some evidence, and a word of warning

Studies have associated low zinc levels with autism spectrum disorder. But why this should be the case has been unclear. Now, scientists may have an explanation for the link.

Behind many a Parkinson’s case lurks a mutation in a gene called LRRK2 — why?

Genetic mutations affecting a single gene called LRRK2 play an outsized role in Parkinson's disease, but nobody's been able to say what the connection is between the genetic defect and the brain-cell die-off that characterizes the condition. Here's a clue.

Nanoparticle ‘cage’ allows for safe, noninvasive, precise drug delivery in the brain

Stanford researchers have shown in rats that pharmacologically active amounts of a fast-acting anesthetic drug could be released from nanoparticle "cages" in small, specified brain areas at which the scientists had aimed a beam of focused ultrasound. In principle, the same approach could work for many drugs with widely differing pharmacological actions and psychiatric applications, and even for some chemotherapeutic drugs used to combat cancer.

Your gut-microbial ecosystem is a pharmaceutical cornucopia

Your trillions-strong ecosystem of gut microbes, in addition to its many other responsibilities, operates as a homespun pharmaceutical factory.

Stanford immunologist pushes field to shift its research focus from mice to humans

Much of what we know about the immune system comes from experiments conducted on mice. But lab mice are not little human beings. The two species are separated by both physiology and lifestyles. Stanford immunologist Mark Davis is calling on his colleagues to shift their research focus to people.

How to deliver gene therapy without a dangerous side effect: autoimmunity to the normal protein

A workaround avoids a common, dangerous side effect of gene therapy: an autoimmune reaction to the normal protein, which could improve gene therapy.

Revealed: The molecular mechanism underlying hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or “workaholic heart”

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is caused by various genetic mutations that cause heart muscle to contract with too much force. New research suggests why.