by University of Tsukuba Credit: pogonici/Shutterstock Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are rare cells found in the bone marrow that produce red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Their correct functioning is indispensable for the growth and health of an organism. Accordingly, defects in the DNA of hematopoietic stem cells (mutations) can cause impaired blood production...
by RIKEN A new study by researchers at the RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Science in Japan reports differences in blood cell mutations between Japanese and European populations. The study found that these pre-clinical mutations were strongly associated with different types of cancers and can explain why Europeans have higher rates of chronic lymphocytic leukemia,...
by University of Bonn A tuberculosis vaccine developed 100 years ago also makes vaccinated persons less susceptible to other infections. While this effect has been recognized for a long time, it is not known what causes it. Together with colleagues from Australia and Denmark, researchers from Radboud university medical center the universities of Nijmegen and...
by University of Zurich Novel immunotherapy against leukaemia: Genetically modified immune cells (white) attack the cancer cells (orange). Credit: iStock/wildpixel Hematopoietic stem cells from a healthy donor can help patients suffering from acute leukemia. However, the side effects of therapies are often severe. A group of researchers led by the University of Zurich have now...
A man in England with multiple sclerosis can walk and dance for the first time in 10 years after receiving a stem cell transplant for the disease. Roy Palmer spent the last decade in a wheelchair without any feeling in his legs. He decided to undergo a procedure known as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) after seeing the results from a television program. Two days after receiving treatment, Palmer regained feelings in his legs. HSCT is still considered to be...
