- New Data Shows Asthma Medicine May Help Reduce Severe Reactions in People with Multiple Food Allergies
- Weight Loss Surgery Has Long-term Benefits for People with Diabetes, Study Finds
- Disney and Mukesh Ambani Merge Their Media Businesses in India
- One of London’s Top Museums Wants to Hire a Taylor Swift Superfan
- CAR-T Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis Enters US Trials for First Time
- Stealthy Stem Cells to Treat Disease
New Data Shows Asthma Medicine May Help Reduce Severe Reactions in People with Multiple Food Allergies
新數據顯示氣喘藥物可能有助於減少多種食物過敏患者的嚴重反應
Health
Data published Sunday in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that repeated injections of Xolair over the course of several weeks reduced the severity of allergic reactions in certain adults and children as young as 1 who are allergic to peanuts and other foods such as milk, egg and wheat. By including several foods in the new study, the researchers were able to determine that Xolair could, in theory, reduce an allergic reaction if a person were to consume multiple foods that they’re allergic to at one time, experts say. “This is an amazing step forward in our field,” said Dr. Sharon Chinthrajah, a senior author of the study and an associate professor at Stanford University. “There’s so much fear and anxiety that goes into everyday activities for food allergy patients or parents of a food allergy patient.” Xolair gives people with food allergies some protection against accidental exposure that could result in anaphylaxis, a serious and sometimes life-threatening allergic reaction that requires immediate medical treatment, including an epinephrine injection, she said.
--from CNN
《新英格蘭醫學期刊》週日發表的數據顯示，對某些對花生和牛奶、雞蛋或是小麥等其他食物過敏的成人和年齡約 1 歲兒童，在幾週內重複注射Xolair可以減輕過敏反應的嚴重程度。 專家表示，透過在這項新研究中納入多種食物，研究人員能夠確定，理論上，如果一個人對多種食物過敏，Xolair可以減少過敏反應。 該研究的資深作者、史丹佛大學副教授 Sharon Chinthrajah 博士說：「這是我們這個領域向前邁出的驚人一步。」因為 「對於食物過敏患者或食物過敏患者的父母來說，日常活動中，充滿了恐懼和焦慮。…」 她說，Xolair 為食物過敏患者提供了一些保護，防止意外接觸可能導致全身過敏反應，這是一種嚴重的、有時危及生命的過敏反應，需要立即就醫，包括注射腎上腺素。
-- 摘錄翻譯自 CNN
Weight Loss Surgery Has Long-term Benefits for People with Diabetes, Study Finds
研究發現減重手術對糖尿病患者有長遠的好處
Health
The study, published Tuesday in the journal JAMA, compared the blood sugar levels and medication regimens of 262 people who were randomly assigned to undergo weight loss surgery or non-surgical medical management, such as medication and lifestyle changes, for type 2 diabetes after seven to 12 years. Participants who had weight loss surgery had significantly lower blood sugar levels and were on fewer diabetes medications than those who did not undergo surgery, the researchers, from University of Pittsburgh and other institutions, wrote. They were also more likely to achieve diabetes remission, which is defined as having non-diabetic blood sugar levels for at least three months without medication. This research “provides the most robust evidence to date of the long-term efficacy of bariatric surgery for improving control of type 2 diabetes,” Dr. Thomas A. Wadden, a professor of psychology and former director of the Center for Weight and Eating Disorders at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, wrote in an editorial that was published along with the research.
--from CNN
這項研究週二發表在《美國醫學會期刊》上，比較了262 名患者的血糖水平和藥物治療方案，這些第2 型糖尿病患者被隨機分配到接受減肥手術或非手術醫療管理（例如藥物治療和生活方式改變），並於7至12年後進行追蹤。 匹茲堡大學和其他機構的研究人員寫道，與未接受減肥手術的參與者相比，接受減肥手術的參與者的血糖水平顯著降低，服用的糖尿病藥物也更少。他們也更有可能達到糖尿病緩解，糖尿病緩解的定義是在不服用藥物的情況下，至少三個月維持非糖尿病血糖水平。 賓州大學Perelman School of Medicine體重和飲食失調中心前主任、心理學教授Thomas A. Wadden 博士在與該研究一起發表的社論中寫道，這項研究「為減肥手術改善第2 型糖尿病控制的長期療效提供了迄今為止最有力的證據」。
--摘錄翻譯自CNN
Disney and Mukesh Ambani Merge Their Media Businesses in India
迪士尼和Mukesh Ambani合併其在印度的媒體業務
Culture
Disney is joining forces with Asia’s richest man to create a new media giant in India that says it will reach an audience of more than 750 million people. Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries and Disney have combined their digital streaming platforms and 100 TV channels in the country in a joint venture worth about $8.5 billion, the companies said in a statement Wednesday. Reliance will own just over 63% of the new entity, mostly through its Viacom18 subsidiary, with Disney (DIS), which owns Star India, holding the rest. “With the addition of Disney’s acclaimed films and shows to Viacom18’s renowned productions and sports offerings, the joint venture will offer a compelling, accessible and novel digital-focused entertainment experience to people in India and the Indian diaspora globally,” the companies added. “This is a landmark agreement that heralds a new era in the Indian entertainment industry,” said Mukesh Ambani.
-- from CNN
迪士尼將與亞洲首富聯手在印度創一個新的媒體巨頭，據稱將吸引超過 7.5億的觀眾。 億萬富翁Mukesh Ambani旗下的Reliance Industries 和迪士尼週三在一份聲明中表示，兩家公司已將其在印度的數位串流媒體平台和100個電視頻道合併為一家合資企業，價值85億美元。 Reliance集團將擁有新公司63%以上的股份，主要透過其子公司Viacom18持有，而擁有Star India的迪士尼 (DIS)持有剩餘股份。 兩家公司補充說：「隨著迪士尼廣受好評的電影和節目添加入Viacom18的著名製作和體育產品中，該合資企業將為印度人民和全球印度僑民提供引人注目的、可取得的且新穎的數位娛樂體驗。」 Mukesh Ambani表示：「這是一項具有里程碑意義的協議，預示著印度娛樂業進入一個新時代。」
--摘錄翻譯自CNN
One of London’s Top Museums Wants to Hire a Taylor Swift Superfan
一間倫敦頂級博物館想要雇用泰勒絲的超級粉絲
Culture
Taylor Swift might be saying “So Long, London” in her much-anticipated upcoming album but one of the city’s top museums is offering the dream job for any Swiftie. On Thursday, the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) released a job listing for a Taylor Swift superfan to advise its expert curators and explain her importance to the history of art and design, in which the museum specializes. The successful fan will have the chance to view relevant items from the V&A’s collection of more than 2.8 million objects and potentially help influence the museum’s future programming, it said. They should be able to offer “insights into the culture and artisanry” around the friendship bracelets that Swifties often exchange, as well as the handmade signs frequently displayed at concerts, the V&A told CNN in a statement on Friday.
--from CNN
Taylor Swift可能會在她備受期待的新專輯中唱「再見，倫敦」，但倫敦一家頂級博物館為所有泰勒絲瘋狂粉絲 (Swiftie) 提供了夢寐以求的工作機會。 週四，the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) 發布了Taylor Swift超級粉絲的徵聘啟事，為博物館的專家策展人提供建議，並解釋泰勒絲對藝術和設計史的重要性，而博物館專門從事這分面的工作。 據稱，獲聘的粉絲將有機會欣賞V&A博物館超過280萬件收藏品中的相關物品，並有可能對博物館的未來規劃產生影響。 V&A在週五的一項聲明中告訴CNN，他們應該能夠提供Swifties經常交換的友誼手鐲以及經常在音樂會上展示的手拿板的「文化和手工藝的見解」。
--摘錄翻譯自CNN
CAR-T Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis Enters US Trials for First Time
多發性硬化症的 CAR-T 療法首次進入美國的試驗
Sciences
The first US trials of engineered cells to treat multiple sclerosis have started recruiting volunteers, raising hopes for a new therapeutic option for this devastating neurodegenerative disease and other autoimmune disorders. CAR-T cells are made by harvesting immune cells called T cells from people with diseases. The cells are then edited in a lab to produce proteins called chimeric antigen receptors (CARs), enabling them to take on a target of choice. When CAR T cells are re-infused into the person they came from, they seek out and destroy their target. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease, driven by misguided T and B cells that attack nerve cells. Neurologists have for decades treated MS with antibodies that target a protein called CD20, a marker of B cells. These antibodies kill these cells, keeping the immune system in check. But these therapies, when they work, slow rather than halt the disease. Researchers have therefore turned to CAR T cells, and specifically to those that kill B cells carrying a protein called CD19. CAR T cells are better cell killers than are the antibodies, and seem to penetrate into tissues including the brain that antibodies can’t reach. More thorough depletion of these B cells, the theory goes, should reset the malfunctioning immune system — halting the brain damage that defines the disease.
--from Nature
美國首次用於治療多發性硬化症的人造細胞試驗已經開始招募志願者，此舉為這種毀滅性神經退化性疾病和其他自體免疫疾病的新治療選擇帶來了希望。 CAR-T細胞是透過從患者身上收集稱為T細胞的免疫細胞來製造的。製造之後，這些細胞在實驗室中進行編輯，產生稱為嵌合抗原受體（CAR）的蛋白質，使它們能夠攻擊選定的目標。當CAR-T細胞被重新注射入其來源的人體內時，它們會尋找並摧毀目標。 多發性硬化症（MS）是一種自體免疫疾病，由錯誤的T細胞和B細胞攻擊神經細胞驅動。幾十年來，神經學家一直使用針對CD20（B細胞標記）蛋白質抗體來治療多發性硬化症。這些抗體會殺死這些細胞，進而控制免疫系統。但這些療法只會減緩而不是停止疾病。 因此，研究人員將目光轉向了CAR-T細胞，特別是那些能夠殺死攜帶CD19蛋白質B細胞的細胞。CAR- T細胞是比抗體更好的細胞殺手，而且似乎可以滲透到包括大腦在內的抗體無法到達的組織中。該理論認為，更徹底地消耗這些B細胞應該可以重置功能失調的免疫系統，從而阻止這種疾病的大腦損傷。
--摘錄翻譯自Nature
Stealthy Stem Cells to Treat Disease
用隱形的幹細胞治療疾病
Sciences
After decades of development, the dream of regenerative medicine has become a clinical reality — in part. Researchers can now cultivate stem cells in a laboratory, transform them into specialized cell types and then transplant them into people to alleviate disease. But there’s a catch: therapies derived from stem cells must be customized to the patient — a process that is both slow and expensive. Or they can be made using donor cells. But, because the immune system tends to reject foreign cells, these ‘allogeneic’ off-the-shelf treatments require the concurrent administration of immune-dampening medicines — a strategy that raises the risk of complications such as infection and cancer. Now, researchers are exploring a third approach — one that could fully realize the vision of mass-produced cell therapies for everyone, without the need for immune suppression. By harnessing the power of gene-editing techniques, particularly CRISPR–Cas systems, to endow stem cells with immune-evasive properties, researchers can fashion stem cells that circumvent the immune system’s recognition mechanisms. They can also incorporate fail-safe features to ensure that the cells can be eliminated in the event of unforeseen complications. Such ‘stealth’ cells could, in principle, underpin a wide range of cell-replacement therapies, and billions of dollars have been invested in this work over the past five years.
--from Nature
經過幾十年的發展，再生醫學的夢想在一定程度上已經在臨床現實。研究人員現在可以在實驗室中培養幹細胞，將其轉化為特定的細胞類型，然後將其移植到人體中以減輕疾病。 但有一個問題：幹細胞療法必須針對患者進行客製化—這個過程既緩慢又昂貴。或者可以使用捐贈者的細胞來製造。 但是，由於免疫系統往往會排斥外來細胞，這些「同種異體」現成的治療方法需要同時使用免疫抑制藥物—這種策略會增加感染和癌症等併發症的風險。 現在，研究人員正在探索第三種方法—一種方法可以完全實現為每個人大規模生產細胞療法的願景，而不需要免疫抑制。 透過利用基因編輯技術的力量，特別是CRISPR-Cas系統，賦予幹細胞免疫規避特性，研究人員可以塑造繞過免疫系統識別機制的幹細胞。它們還可以結合故障安全功能，以確保在發生不可預見的併發症時可以消除細胞。原則上，這種「隱形」細胞可以支撐廣泛的細胞替代療法，在過去的五年中，這項工作已投入數十億美元。
--摘錄翻譯自Nature