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When the workload on the heart increases, the ventricular wall may thicken too, known as cardiac hypertrophy . This is an adaptive response that reduces pressure on the heart and maintains the activity of this vital organ. It is often a reversible process that does not cause serious effects on the structure or function of the heart, but if the factor causing cardiac overload becomes chronic, it can lead to pathological hypertrophy with more serious effects (dilatation of the ventricular cavities, alterations in cardiac function, heart failure, etc.

An international study led by the UB has shown cognitive and analgesic effects in early mouse trials. A study published in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry presents a new family of candidate compounds for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and pain, which have shown promising effects in animal models.

Photoactivable drugs are activated when irradiated by a beam of light - via an optical fibre - thus generating a controlled and local therapeutic effect on target tissues.

Eighty-five percent of diagnosed cases of lung cancer are non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this group, 5% of patients show molecular alterations in the ALK gene involved in cell multiplication.

It shows neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects in animal models of the disease. Alzheimer's disease, the most common cause of dementia, is currently incurable. The current drugs available have very limited efficacy and only in mild stages of the disease. A team from the University of Barcelona has developed a promising therapeutic candidate to treat this disease, which affects more than 800,000 people in Spain.

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), in collaboration with Escuela Politécnica del Ecuador and the ASEPEYO hospitals in Barcelona and Madrid, has developed a system of exercise video games (or exergames) that promotes the rehabilitation of people with mobility problems in their hands and wrists.

Insulin resistance precedes and predicts the onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2), a chronic disease that causes high morbidity and mortality worldwide. In affected people, insulin is unable to facilitate the uptake of glucose through tissues and organs, leading to an increase in blood glucose (chronic hyperglycaemia).

The results could be used to improve early detection of the disease, which affects 190 million women worldwide. The University of Barcelona has participated in an international study that has found new evidence linking traumatic experiences and stressful events with endometriosis, a chronic systemic inflammatory disease characterized by the presence of endometrial-like tissue outside the uterus.

Psoriasis is a chronic skin disease that manifests itself mainly with skin symptoms (dryness, itching, scaly skin, abnormal patches and plaques). It affects about 2% of the population and is mediated by an altered immune system response that triggers the proliferation of skin cells. Depending on the severity, there are different therapeutic options (topical medications, phototherapy, systemic drugs, etc.), but some conventional treatments can have harmful effects on patients.

Maternal stress could leave epigenetic imprints on genes in the placenta associated with cortisol - a necessary hormone for foetal development - and this would affect the baby's development from very early stages, as stated in a paper published in the journal European Neuropsychopharmacology. The study suggests that a mother's emotional wellbeing during pregnancy is not only important for her, but could also influence the future health of her baby.

UB researchers detect that people with schizophrenia have an altered ability to visually perceive contrast According to a review of more than 600 studies, these patients would have difficulty in detecting differences in light intensity between adjacent areas, without which they cannot adequately see their surroundings and objects.

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) has carried out a study which shows the desire among Spanish society to have mechanisms in place which ensure the veracity of the news they receive through the media on health issues.

After treating a tumour with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, cells known as senescent cells can appear. These are cells that do not divide, are involved in the ageing process and are resistant to cell death, but are still metabolically active in the human body. When they accumulate, they can jeopardize the patients' recovery.

Smartwatches that can collect physical and physiological data on users could be potentially interesting tools in biomedicine to gain a better understanding of brain diseases and behavioural disorders and possible driver mutations related to these pathologies. This is stated in a study published in the journal Cell , and led by the co-author Mark Gerstein, from Yale University (United States).

An international study published in the journal Nature Mental Health has identified three psychological profiles associated with different patterns of cognitive and brain decline in ageing. The study, which analysed more than 1,000 middle-aged and older adults, shows that the specific psychological characteristics of each profile may influence the risk of developing dementia, as well as aspects such as the speed of brain decline and sleep quality.

Researchers describe the relationship between facial morphology and cerebral cortex measurements in patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder A study published in Psychiatry Research identifies subtle differences in facial shapes that may be linked to the diagnosis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Light and moderate consumption of wine is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular complications, according to a multicentre study led by researchers from the University of Barcelona, the Hospital Clínic and the August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), the Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition Networking Biomedical Research Centre (CIBEROBN) and the University of Navarra (UNAV).

Researchers at the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM) have discovered that R-Ras1 and R-Ras2 proteins regulate the diversity of subpopulations of oligodendrocytes, the cells responsible for producing myelin in the central nervous system. This finding, published in Glia , could lay the foundations for new regenerative therapies for diseases such as multiple sclerosis.

One of the most fascinating periods in the evolution of the human lineage is the appearance of the first ancestors capable of bipedalism. Knowing the type of locomotion used by many fossil species - walking upright on the ground or climbing from branch to branch with the strength of their arms - has been one of the most classic questions in the study of the process of hominization.

Researchers at the Faculty of Medicine of the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM) have revealed that pipolins, mobile genetic elements present in bacteria, contain numerous defense systems against bacteriophages. The study, published in Nucleic Acids Research , analyzed more than 11,000 pipolins in bacterial genomes, identifying their crucial role in the genetic evolution of bacteria.