Alla Katsnelson

Jul 24, 2024 | cen.acs.org | Alla Katsnelson

The immune system is generally a pro at fighting off microbial infections. But sometimes it goes rogue, turning itself on the body's own organs and tissues, resulting in a life-threating condition called sepsis. According to the World Health Organization, in 2017 sepsis was responsible for 20% of deaths worldwide. Pinpointing the bacterial culprit and the right antibiotic treatment for sepsis can take a harrowing 2-3 days.

Jul 16, 2024 | thetransmitter.org | Steve Ramirez |Sydney Wyatt |Sarah DeWeerdt |Alla Katsnelson

Steve Ramirez is assistant professor of psychological and brain sciences at Boston University and a former junior fellow at Harvard University. He received his B.A. in neuroscience from Boston University and began researching learning and memory in Howard Eichenbaum’s lab. He went on to receive his Ph.D. in neuroscience in Susumu Tonegawa’s lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where his work focused on artificially modulating memories in the rodent brain.

Jul 3, 2024 | cen.acs.org | Alla Katsnelson

A novel compound strongly improves the efficacy of naloxone, the substance used to reverse overdoses of morphine, fentanyl and other opioid drugs. When administered to mice along with naloxone, it is 10 times as potent as naloxone alone at blocking morphine's ability to attenuate pain and depress breathing ( Nature 2024, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07587-7). Endogenous opioids such as enkephalins and endorphins, as well as opioid drugs such as morphine and fentanyl, bind to the μ-opioid receptor.

May 23, 2024 | cen.acs.org | Alla Katsnelson

Distinct brain circuits drive two key components of addiction to the synthetic opioid drug fentanyl, according to a new finding published in Nature (2024, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07440-x). The research significantly revises researchers' understanding of opioid addiction, and it points to approaches for more targeted treatment.

May 7, 2024 | cen.acs.org | Alla Katsnelson

The human proteome consists of about 20,000 proteins-a paltry number compared with the 6.2 million or so proteins encoded by viruses. New biotech company Prologue Medicines has plans to harness the largely untapped therapeutic potential of this vast trove of viral proteins. The firm launched today with $50 million in initial funding from the life sciences investment company Flagship Pioneering. Viruses have a knack for evolving rapidly to regulate complex biological processes.