Nature’s instructions: How fungi make a key medicinal molecule
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 16-Jun-2025 13:09 ET (16-Jun-2025 17:09 GMT/UTC)
After participating in a global clinical trial, leaders at the Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado) Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders and the University of Colorado Cancer Center are celebrating results so transformative, they change the standard of care for treating most kids with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), the most common form of childhood cancer. The new therapy is less toxic than traditional chemotherapy, resulting in significantly fewer side effects like severe infections, mouth sores and bone marrow suppression, leading to improved quality of life for patients.
A new study from the University of Oregon shows how one kind of bacteria, Vibrio cholerae, triggers painful intestinal contractions by activating the immune system. The research also finds a more general explanation for how the gut rids itself of unwanted intruders, which could also help scientists better understand chronic conditions like inflammatory bowel disease.