“Now that we know that HMGA1 is driving colon tumor development, the million-dollar question is how can we block it in therapy?”

Linda Resar, professor of medicine, pathology and oncology at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, who led work showing that a gene called high mobility group A1 (HMGA1) may be key to the development of colon cancer. The discovery, published in Journal of Clinical Investigation, could help explain why gut microbiome changes have been linked to rising rates of colon cancer in the United States, particularly in younger people.

“Further research documenting the genomic diversity of more groups in Africa can help to advance scientific research, health equity and our understanding of human history.”

Geneticist Cesar Fortes-Lima, who led research that analyzed the DNA of the Fulani people. The team found a shared genetic component among all Fulani populations that can be traced back to hunter-gatherers who lived in North Africa during the Stone Age. “Individuals whose African ancestors were forced to migrate to the United States during the transatlantic slave trade may have shared genetic links to the Fulani, and the insights about the Fulani presented in our study can help to investigate those links broken during that period,” Fortes-Lima says. The study appeared in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

“Neurons are the cellular foundation of the brain, and the ability to experience our environment and learn depends on [chemical] communications between neurons.” 

Edward Twomey, assistant professor of biophysics and biophysical chemistry, describing the implications of a study in which researchers used a cryo-electron microscope to capture more precise details of how glutamate, a common signaling molecule, opens a channel and allows a flood of charged particles to enter. Reported in Nature, the finding could advance the development of new drugs that block or open such signaling channels to treat conditions as varied as epilepsy and some intellectual disorders.

“The findings from this study underscore the importance of minimizing oral corticosteroid use in patients with lupus and indicate the need for alternative strategies.”

Rheumatologist Andrea Fava, co-senior author of a study showing it’s likely best to use as little corticosteroid medicine as possible when treating people who have lupus pericarditis — a common heart complication of lupus, occurring in 15% – 30% of patients. The researchers’ data showed that steroid use is also a risk factor for recurring pericarditis. The study appeared in  JAMA Network Open.

“Surprisingly, we often don’t actually know what causes necrotizing enterocolitis in the first place. By identifying its connection with cytomegalovirus infection, we have now identified an important trigger for NEC, which could save the lives of premature infants who develop this condition.”

David Hackam, surgeon-in-chief at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, describing results of a new study in mice showing that infection with a common virus that can be transmitted from mother to fetus before birth significantly worsens necrotizing enterocolitis, an often fatal complication of premature birth. The study was published in Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology.