In recent research, scientists have discovered that blood vessels feeding high-grade glioma brain tumors have high levels of LDL receptors (LDLR) on them. The study found that using drug-containing nanoparticle-based therapies to target these receptors can be a new way of treating cancer. Gliomas are the most common primary brain tumors and, due to their highly aggressive nature, have a poor prognosis with an average survival of only 4.6 months without treatment and approximately 14 months with optimal multimodal treatments. This research could pave the way for treating glioma brain tumors with LDL receptor-targeted nanoparticle-based therapies, thereby cutting off the energy supply of cancer cells.
A smaller version of the amyloid-beta protein, AB 1-40, builds up on the wall of small arteries and reduces blood flow to the brain, a new study reports.
Frequent consumption of alcohol during adolescence and young adulthood was associated with accelerated arterial stiffening, a precursor of cardiovascular disease.
A newly created stem cell model demonstrates a potential route of entry of the COVID-19 virus, SARS_CoV_2, into the human brain.
Propranolol, a beta-blocker commonly used to treat haemangioma in children and cardiovascular disease, can also be used to treat cerebral cavernous malformations, a condition characterized by misshapen neural blood vessels.
Researchers found hallmarks of damage caused by thinning and leaky blood vessels in brain samples of people after contracting COVID-19, but saw no evidence of SARS_CoV_2 in the tissue samples. Findings suggest the damage was not caused by a direct viral attack on the brain, but by the body's immune response to the infection.
Blood vessels can sense the metabolic state of nearby neurons. An imbalance of fatty acids is sensed by neural blood vessels, stimulating them to mount a stress response by loosening the blood-brain barrier. If the imbalance remains, the leaky blood-brain barrier can induce a disease state.
A new case study reveals a link between COVID-19 and clotting in blood vessels in the brain that results in an increased risk of ischemic stroke. Five of the six cases included in the study suffered an ischemic stroke within 8-24 days of the onset of coronavirus symptoms. Early use of anticoagulants might help reduce the risk of blood clotting and stroke in patients with COVID-19.
Combining advance microscopy techniques and artificial intelligence, researchers reconstruct the entire vascular network of a mouse brain down to its finest details.
Eating cheese and increasing consumption of other dairy products helps improve vascular health by reducing the effects of a high-sodium diet, a new study reports.
Damaged capillaries in the brain may set the stage for the development of Alzheimer's disease, years before symptoms appear.
Capillary constriction caused by amyloid beta restricts cerebral blood flow in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease. Inhibiting the capillary constriction may potentially reduce some of the neurodegenerative features of Alzheimer's.