Blog

Yorkie drives Ras-induced tumor progression by microRNA-mediated inhibition of cellular senescence

Although activating mutations in the GTPase Ras promote cancer, Ras also induces cellular senescence, a barrier that is necessary to overcome for Ras activation to promote tumor progression. Using a model of Ras-induced tumor growth in flies, Ito and Igaki found that Ras-induced cellular senescence required the ETS family transcription factor Pnt. Loss of cell polarity, which frequently occurs in cancers of epithelial origin, activated the transcription factor Yki, resulting in a series of microRNA-mediated regulatory events that ultimately inhibited Pnt. Given the conservation of most of these proteins and their regulatory relationships, this mechanism may be relevant to how the loss of cell polarity removes the brakes on Ras-induced tumor growth in humans.

Jun 24, 2021

A frozen leap forward for age-related macular degeneration stem cell-based therapy

Scientists at UC Santa Barbara, University of Southern California (USC), and the biotechnology company Regenerative Patch Technologies LLC (RPT) have reported new methodology for preservation of RPT's stem cell-based therapy for age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Jun 22, 2021

How stem cells synchronize to repair the spinal cord in axolotls

The spinal cord is an important component of our central nervous system: it connects the brain with the rest of the body and plays a crucial part in coordinating our sensations with our actions. Falls, violence, disease—various forms of trauma can cause irreversible damage to the spinal cord, leading to paralysis, sometimes even death.

Jun 20, 2021

Engineered Natural Killer Cells Can Eliminate Glioblastoma Cancer Stem Cells

Deleting the TFG-β receptor in NK cells overcame immune suppression and enabled anti-tumor activity in preclinical models. Preclinical research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center finds that although glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) can be targeted by natural killer (NK) cells, they are able to evade immune attack by releasing the TFG-β signaling protein, which blocks NK cell activity. Deleting the TFG-β receptor in NK cells, however, rendered them resistant to this immune suppression and enabled their anti-tumor activity.

Jun 19, 2021

Recovering from a Stroke with MSCs Stem Cells

Stroke is an abrupt interruption of constant blood flow to the brain that causes loss of neurological function, there are 3 types: a blocked artery ( ischemic stroke ) or leaking or bursting of a blood vessel ( hemorrhagic stroke ) and transient ischemic attack ( TIA also known as a mini stroke ). Different factors can lead to a stroke: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and those who smoke. Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) are not only safe but also one of the only treatment that can improve the patient condition following a stroke. Study show that with Cerebral artery occlusion model the efficacy of interferon‐γ–activated mesenchymal stem cells (aMSCγ) as an acute therapy for stroke.

Jun 2, 2021

3D-printing of human organs closer to reality

Researchers have designed a new bioink which allows small human-sized airways to be 3D-bioprinted with the help of patient cells for the first time. The 3D-printed constructs are biocompatible and support new blood vessel growth into the transplanted material. This is an important first step towards 3D-printing organs.

May 11, 2021

Muscle gene linked to type 2 diabetes

People with type 2 diabetes tend to have poorer muscle function than others. Now a research team has discovered that in type 2 diabetes, a specific gene is of great importance for the ability of muscle stem cells to create new mature muscle cells.

May 5, 2021

Non-neutralizing secretory IgA and T cells targeting SARS-CoV-2 spike protein are transferred to the breastmilk upon BNT162b2 vaccination

In view of data scarcity to guide decision-making in breastfeeding women, we evaluated how mRNA vaccines impact immune response of lactating health care workers (HCW) and the effector profile of breast milk transferred immune protection.