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Showing posts from September, 2017

Brain cells found to control aging

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Scientists have pinpointed the cells in the hypothalamus that control aging. Credit: © red150770 / Fotolia Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have found that stem cells in the brain's hypothalamus govern how fast aging occurs in the body. The finding, made in mice, could lead to new strategies for warding off age-related diseases and extending lifespan. The paper was published online today in  Nature . The hypothalamus was known to regulate important processes including growth, development, reproduction and metabolism. In a 2013  Nature  paper, Einstein researchers made the surprising finding that the hypothalamus also regulates aging throughout the body. Now, the scientists have pinpointed the cells in the hypothalamus that control aging: a tiny population of adult neural stem cells, which were known to be responsible for forming new brain neurons. "Our research shows th...

Stem cell therapy attacks cancer by targeting unique tissue stiffness

Weian Zhao, associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences , and colleagues have programmed human bone marrow stem cells to identify the unique physical properties of cancerous tissue. They added a piece of "code" to their engineered cells so that they can detect distinctively stiff cancerous tissue, lock into it and activate therapeutics. In a study appearing in  Science Translational Medicine , the researchers report they have effectively and safely employed this stem cell-targeting system in mice to treat metastatic breast cancer that had spread to the lung. They first transplanted the engineered stem cells to let them find and settle into the tumor site where they secreted enzymes called cytosine deaminase. The mice were then administered an inactive chemotherapy called prodrug 5-f lurocytosine, which was triggered into action by the tumor site enzymes. Zhao said his team specifically focused on metastatic cancer, which comes when the disease spreads to other part...

CRISPR sheds light on rare pediatric bone marrow failure syndrome

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Chromosomes (blue) have protective end caps called telomeres that help them maintain stability. In this image, the telomeres (green) are abnormally short, which leads to DNA damage that accrues over time. Using the gene editing technology CRISPR, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shed light on a rare syndrome that causes children to lose the ability to manufacture vital blood cells. The syndrome, dyskeratosis congenita, is characterized by shortened telomeres. Credit: Marquet Minor Using the gene editing technology CRISPR , scientists have shed light on a rare, sometimes fatal syndrome that causes children to gradually lose the ability to manufacture vital blood cells. The research, at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, suggests new lines of investigation into how to treat this condition -- dyskeratosis congenita -- which is characterized by shortened telomeres. Telomeres, the protective caps on the ends of c...

Lab-created mini-brains reveal how rising organ maintains neuronal stability

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Creation of organoids from stem cells permits scientists to check discrete areas of mind because it develops. Credit score: Courtesy of Yale College Scientists can now discover in a laboratory dish how the human mind develops by creating organoids -- distinct, three-dimensional areas of the mind. In analysis revealed in  Cell Stem Cell , Yale scientists coaxed early stage stem cells to create and fuse two varieties of organoids from totally different mind areas to point out how the creating mind maintains correct steadiness of excitatory and inhibitory neurons. A failure to keep up this steadiness has been implicated in a number of neurodevelopmental issues equivalent to autism and schizophrenia. "The inhibitory neurons migrate from particular areas of the embryonic mind to the area the place excitatory neurons are being produced," stated senior creator In-Hyun Park, affiliate professor ...

New stimuli responsive smart hydrogels open door to future material biology and biomedical applications

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Prof Solar Fei and the brand new protein-based hydrogel developed by his workforce. Credit score: Picture Copyright: HKUST A analysis workforce led by Prof SUN Fei, Assistant Professor of Chemical & Organic Engineering at The Hong Kong College of Science and Expertise (HKUST), has created a brand new protein-based stimuli-responsive good hydroge l that might open doorways for future materials biology and biomedical functions. Hydrogels, also called mushy matter within the medical world, are main supplies for biomedical functions equivalent to drug supply and stem cell remedy. However conventional hydrogels, utilized in merchandise equivalent to facial masks and speak to lenses, are made up of both artificial polymers or organic extracts equivalent to animal collagen, are more likely to trigger allergy symptoms. They can't totally mimic the complicated organic atmosphere wanted for cell progress an...

Stem cells may help improve corneal wound healing

Corneal wound healing is a complex process that occurs in response to various eye injuries and surgery. Delayed, incomplete, or excessive healing is a significant clinical concern. The review presents evidence on the participation of stem cells in corneal wound healing and highlights how stem cell transplantation may be used to fine tune wound healing and provide benefits for patients. "The advances in transplant techniques and the range of available cell sources that can be used to optimize the treatment of aberrant corneal wound healing can give reassurance to patients with corneal injuries that preserving vision may be possible in the near future, " wrote the authors of the  Stem Cells  review. for more information visit our product website:  Buy Vidalista 20 mg Online

Towards a safe and scalable cell therapy for type 1 diabetes by simplifying beta cell differentiation

With the vision of providing a cell therapy for type 1 diabetes patients, scientists at the University of Copenhagen have identified a unique cell surface protein present on human pancreatic precursor cells providing for the first time a molecular handle to purify the cells whose fate is to become cells of the pancreas -- including insulin producing cells. The work, outlined in a landmark study entitled 'Efficient generation of glucose-responsive beta cells from isolated GP2+ human pancreatic progenitors' has just been published in  Cell Reports . A biomarker to clearly separate cell populations is a holy grail of cell therapy research for the reasons of safety and end product consistency. By using this cell surface marker, the researchers have engineered a streamlined and simplified differentiation process to generate insulin-producing cells for future treatment of type 1 diabetes patients. The process enables cost-efficient manufacturing and exploits at its core an int...

ONC201 may inhibit cancer stem cell self-renewals by altering their gene expression

Cancer stem cells survive after chemotherapy and radiation treatment and are associated with recurrence, metastasis and poor survival in clinical trials. Previous studies have shown that a small molecule known as ONC201 currently in advanced cancer clinical trials, targets self-renewing colorectal cancer stem cells. However, little is known about the specific stem cell-related effects by which ONC201 inhibits cancer stem cells from renewing. Prabhu and colleagues conducted a gene expression analysis of colorectal, prostate cancer and glioblastoma cell lines and patient-derived tissues that were both treated with ONC201. They found that ONC201 alters the gene expression of cancer stem cell markers and signaling pathways prior to killing the tumor cells, providing pharmacodynamic biomarkers of response. These changes were not observed in cells with acquired resistance to ONC201. Finally, the authors suggest that a pre-treatment gene expression signature of cancer stem cells might be ...

How to reprogram cells in our immune system

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A colorized scanning electron micrograph of a T cell. Credit score: NIAID When the immune system is imbalanced, both as a result of overly-active cells or cells that suppress its operate, it causes a variety of ailments, from psoriasis to most cancers. By manipulating the operate of sure immune cells, known as T cells, researchers may assist restore the system's steadiness and create new therapies to focus on these ailments. Scientists on the Gladstone Institutes revealed, for the primary time, a technique to reprogram particular T cells. Extra exactly, they found tips on how to flip pro-inflammatory cells that increase the immune system into anti-inflammatory cells that suppress it, and vice versa. The researchers studied two forms of cells known as effector T cells, which activate the immune system to defend our physique towards completely different pathogens, and regulatory T cells, which assist m...

Stem cell therapy for lung fibrosis conditions

n the journal  Respiratory Research , the scientists demonstrated that they could harvest lung stem cells from people using a relatively non-invasive, doctor's-office technique. They were then able to multiply the harvested lung cells in the lab to yield enough cells sufficient for human therapy. In a second study, published in the journal  S tem Cells Translational Medicine , the team showed that in rodents they could use the same type of lung cell to successfully treat a model of IPF -- a chronic, irreversible, and ultimately fatal disease characterized by a progressive decline in lung function. The researchers have been in discussions with the FDA and are preparing an application for an initial clinical trial in patients with IPF. "This is the first time anyone has generated potentially therapeutic lung stem cells from minimally invasive biopsy specimens," said co-senior author of both papers Jason Lobo, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at UNC and medic...