For the first time, EMBL* researchers have captured microglia nibbling on brain synapses. Their findings show that the special glial cells help synapses grow and rearrange, demonstrating the essential role of microglia in brain development. Nature Communications will publish the results on March 26. Around one in ten cells in your brain are microglia. Cousins of macrophages,...
Post
MS stem cell treatment stabilises disease and reduced disability, trial shows
Pioneering international research has found stem cell treatment in people with active multiple sclerosis stabilises the disease and improves disability. The first ever international large scale randomised trial into autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) in relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) has shown that the treatmentstabilised the disease and improved disability in people who had experienced...
Post
DNA methylation plays key role in stem cell differentiation
Neural progenitors cells differentiated from human embryonic stem cells. Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered how the process of DNA methylation regulates the development of spinal cord motor neurons, according to a study published in the journal Cell Stem Cell. DNA methylation, an epigenetic mechanism that determines whether or not a gene is expressed, guides stem...
Post
Drug reduces inflammation in stroke patients
A blood clot forming in the carotid artery. An anti-inflammatory drug given to patients in the early stages of a stroke has been shown by researchers at The University of Manchester and Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust to reduce harmful inflammation. The drug, Kineret, licenced for treating rheumatoid arthritis, was given as a small...
Post
Two immunotherapies used together for the first time to tackle tumors
Drs. Esteban Celis and Sharad Ghamande in the Georgia Cancer Center. Two immunotherapies – one that enables the T-cells a patient already has to better attack a tumor and another that can produce an independent and vigorous immune response – are being given together for the first time to help more patients wage a...
Post
New method identifies type 2 diabetics at risk of early death
Type 2 diabetes has consequences for the entire body. A new method uses a urine sample, and not a blood test, to identify the consequences of disease. When you hear the phrase ‘adult-onset diabetes’, your first thought might be of excessive blood sugar levels and obesity. Picturing an adult carrying extra weight around his or...
Post
“Game-changing” synthesized antibiotic successfully treats infections for the first time
A synthesized version of a new antibiotic is proving successful in early animal trials, bringing researchers one step closer to producing a useful new antibiotic to help in the war against superbugs Back in 2015, a team of scientists discovered an exciting new antibiotic called teixobactin. Now an international team of researchers has, for the first...
Post
How parasitic worms could help us with everything from obesity to asthma
This parasitic worm, Heligmosomoides polygyrus, has been found to reduce incidences of obesity in mouse experiments A growing body of research is suggesting that parasitic worms could in fact have a positive effect on our immune system. A new study is bolstering that hypothesis, finding in animal experiments that a certain type of helminth infection can...
Post
Designers of ultrasound patch know the world isn’t flat
The patch works even when twisted Regular ultrasound probes have flat bases, which means they only work best when scanning objects that have similarly-flat surfaces. So, what happens if you want to inspect something that’s curved or otherwise “irregular” in shape? Well, that’s where a new ultrasound patch comes in. Designed by a team...
Post
How human embryonic stem cells sparked a revolution
After 20 years of hope, promise and controversy, human embryonic stem cells are reshaping biological concepts and starting to move into the clinic. Neural rosettes, derived from human embryonic stem cells, assemble into spheres in culture. Dieter Egli was just about to start graduate school in 1998 when researchers first worked out how to derive...