Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by Fnord666 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:47PM   Printer-friendly
from the turning-back-the-hands-of-time dept.

Molecular 'switch' reverses chronic inflammation and aging:

Chronic inflammation, which results when old age, stress or environmental toxins keep the body's immune system in overdrive, can contribute to a variety of devastating diseases, from Alzheimer's and Parkinson's to diabetes and cancer.

Now, scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have identified a molecular "switch" that controls the immune machinery responsible for chronic inflammation in the body. The finding, which appears online Feb. 6 in the journal Cell Metabolism, could lead to new ways to halt or even reverse many of these age-related conditions.

[...] In the study, Chen and her team show that a bulky collection of immune proteins called the NLRP3 inflammasome -- responsible for sensing potential threats to the body and launching an inflammation response -- can be essentially switched off by removing a small bit of molecular matter in a process called deacetylation.

Overactivation of the NLRP3 inflammasome has been linked to a variety of chronic conditions, including multiple sclerosis, cancer, diabetes and dementia. Chen's results suggest that drugs targeted toward deacetylating, or switching off, this NLRP3 inflammasome might help prevent or treat these conditions and possibly age-related degeneration in general.

"This acetylation can serve as a switch," Chen said. "So, when it is acetylated, this inflammasome is on. When it is deacetylated, the inflammasome is off."

[...] "I think this finding has very important implications in treating major human chronic diseases," Chen said. "It's also a timely question to ask, because in the past year, many promising Alzheimer's disease trials ended in failure. One possible explanation is that treatment starts too late, and it has gone to the point of no return. So, I think it's more urgent than ever to understand the reversibility of aging-related conditions and use that knowledge to aid a drug development for aging-related diseases."

Journal Reference:
Ming He, Hou-Hsien Chiang, Hanzhi Luo, Zhifang Zheng, Qi Qiao, Li Wang, Mingdian Tan, Rika Ohkubo, Wei-Chieh Mu, Shimin Zhao, Hao Wu, Danica Chen. An Acetylation Switch of the NLRP3 Inflammasome Regulates Aging-Associated Chronic Inflammation and Insulin Resistance. Cell Metabolism, 2020; DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2020.01.009


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 0, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @02:50PM (8 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @02:50PM (#956846)

    It's obvious they don't want to "cure" disease, only find patches for "symptoms".

    It is well understood "inflammation" is a symptom of something else. In reality, inflammation is natural reaction to _something else entirely_. Like maybe deteriorating DNA, or toxins like heavy metals or preservative type chemicals built up in the body over decades. Where a weak immune system is failing.

    But you can't sell prevention, because if no one is sick they don't need your medicine. So, find something, anything and cure that, even if it's not the disease but sure looks bad.

    Starting Score:    0  points
    Moderation   0  
       Troll=1, Interesting=1, Total=2
    Extra 'Interesting' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   0  
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @04:55PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @04:55PM (#956889)

    The mods here are off their meds...
    Some many mods on the site lately that are way out in left/right field now days.
    It's starting to drive me back to the Green Site....
    So much anger now days...
    Channel John Lennon and free yourself from the pain of hate.
    Peace Love Linux!

    • (Score: 4, Insightful) by RS3 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:04PM (2 children)

      by RS3 (6367) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:04PM (#956914)

      For the record, I have not down-modded you. I very rarely down-mod, even if I disagree- I respect and learn from others' thoughts.

      I've up-modded some AC posts here, probably up-modded you, but how could I know?

      I can't speak for others here, but being AC you: 1) detract from your potential reliability, and 2) there are many ACs here, which one are you?

      Join us and be part of an adult conversation.

      Or don't.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:53PM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:53PM (#956986)

        Different AC here. (And I *always* post AC.)

        Every freaking site out there demands a login. Even the Green Site a while back finally banned anonymous posting. This is one of the few remaining places where you can still post your ideas and let them stand on their own. I am not about to wear a name tag simply to have permission to speak. Give the surveillance society a rest.

        • (Score: 4, Insightful) by RS3 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:24PM

          by RS3 (6367) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:24PM (#956996)

          I shouldn't even respond to your post, but once again, leap-o-logic. Now I'm supporting a surveillance society? Ridiculous statements like yours severely degrade what could be a great think-tank. And I suppose my responding to you also degrades the conversation.

          How would a login allow surveillance?

          How would being AC make it more difficult to surveil you?

          And, really, who would care to? Methinks you think too highly of yourself.

          BTW, AFAIK, "green site" allows you to post AC if you have a login and are otherwise logged in.

  • (Score: 4, Informative) by RS3 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:15PM (3 children)

    by RS3 (6367) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:15PM (#956916)

    Well, when doctors don't have a cure, or it might take too long, they do their best with what they have at their disposal and treat symptoms. If nothing else, treating symptoms often / usually gives patients relief & better quality of life.

    Doctors are pretty boxed in by FDA, lawyers/courts, patient expectations & demands, etc. And many diseases / conditions will "resolve" with treatment, you know, the body healing itself.

    Which brings me to inflation: as you wrote, inflation is a very frequent body's response to something being wrong. However, inflation in and of itself usually causes damage and many more problems, so reducing inflation often results in faster healing.

    However, inflation is often treated with steroids, and steroids usually suppress the immune system, so doctors are often forced to make difficult and compromising decisions.

    • (Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:47PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:47PM (#956925)

      You mean inflammation. The mechanism via which inflammation can damage your tissue is via oxidation.

      Vitamin C is the terminal extracellular antioxidant (it regenerates all others). Glutathione is the terminal intracellular antioxidant.

      https://www.pnas.org/content/86/16/6377 [pnas.org]

      • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:22PM

        by RS3 (6367) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:22PM (#956970)

        Oh gosh, that's so embarrassing. Yes, I meant inflammation, not "inflation"!! That's what happens when I'm trying to write here while doing something attention-demanding.

        Thanks for all the info.

           

    • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:25PM

      by RS3 (6367) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:25PM (#956971)

      I meant to write "inflammation", not "inflation" - sorry everyone...