The results of research on molecular biology might shine new light on potential cures for diseases such as dementia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and autism, Academia Sinica said yesterday.
The results were published in international journal Nature Communications on Thursday, the nation’s highest academic body said, adding that it is currently in the process of applying for a patent.
The research was conducted by Academia Sinica researchers Hsueh Yi-ping (薛一蘋) and Shih Yu-tzu (石育慈) over three-and-a-half years.
Photo: Wu Hsin-tien, Taipei Times
According to Hsueh, central nervous system diseases usually occur when the valosin-containing protein (VCP) undergoes pathological changes.
The researchers found that the efficiency of nervous impulses depended on the density of dendritic spines on nerve cells, Hsueh said, adding that after undergoing pathological changes, the cells usually had a decreased amount of synapses and suffered a decline in the amount of new protein synthesized.
The team hypothesized that the amount of synthesized protein might be directly tied to the density of dendritic spines on cells, Hsueh said.
The pathological changes to VCP decreased the endoplasmic reticulum and ribosomal RNA in nerve cells, which changed the amount of protein synthesized, Hsueh said, adding that the team chose the amino acid leucine on which to conduct their experiments.
Hsueh said research showed that leucine, or other types of branched-chain amino acids, could increase the rate of protein synthesis.
The team provided normal and pathologically changed nerve cells with three times the normal amount of leucine and successfully caused the cells to develop more dendritic spines on their surfaces, Hsueh said, adding that on average, every 20mm of nerve cells that underwent pathological changes would increase the amount of dendritic spines from six to eight when coming into contact with additional leucine.
The number of dendritic spines on normal cells would increase up to nine when in contact with additional leucine, Hsueh said.
The research team has begun live tests on mice and has achieved positive initial results, Hsueh said.
Marked improvement has been observed in mice with deficiencies in learning ability, memory or social interaction after the introduction of additional leucine, Hsueh said, adding that the team hopes to one day carry out experiments on human subjects.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “[we] appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, was arrested in Boston last month amid US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigrants, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said yesterday. The arrest of Liou was first made public on the official Web site of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Tuesday. ICE said Liou was apprehended for overstaying her visa. The Boston Field Office’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) had arrested Liou, a “fugitive, criminal alien wanted for embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes in Taiwan,” ICE said. Liou was taken into custody