Macrophages of the innate immune system, cells derived from monocytes, are involved in many processes in tissue beyond merely hunting down invading pathogens. They are also important to the processes of tissue maintenance regeneration following injury. Like all aspects of the immune system, macrophage behavior becomes dysregulated with age, a consequence of changes in the signaling environment that result from the accumulation...
Scientists at the University of Bonn identify previously unknown disease mechanism UNIVERSITY OF BONN DEOXYSPHINGOLIPIDS (GREEN) INTERFERE NOT ONLY WITH THE WORK OF THE MITOCHONDRIA (RED) BUT ALSO WITH CELL DIVISION. SOME OF THEM THEREFORE HAVE TWO NUCLEI (TURQUOISE). view more CREDIT: © AG KÜRSCHNER/UNIVERSITÄT BONN A congenital disorder of the fat metabolism can apparently...
by Bob Yirka , Medical Xpress A team of researchers working at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York has discovered how metastatic cancer is able to survive in the hostile subarachnoid space. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes RNA sequencing studies they conducted with patients with leptomeningeal metastases...
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA – SAN DIEGO Nanoparticles cloaked in human lung cell membranes and human immune cell membranes can attract and neutralize the SARS-CoV-2 virus in cell culture, causing the virus to lose its ability to hijack host cells and reproduce. The first data describing this new direction for fighting COVID-19 were published on June...
Study shows nervous and immune systems ‘need to talk’ for bone repair Photomicrographs from a recent Johns Hopkins Medicine study showing the importance of the peripheral nervous system in bone injury repair. Clockwise from bottom left: (A) Micro computed tomography image showing bone regrowth in mouse skull 14 days after injury (dashed black line is...
Researchers from Sechenov University (a Project 5-100 participant) and University of Pittsburgh (USA) discovered that the resistance of innate immune cells, macrophages, to ferroptosis – a type of programmed cell death – depends on the type of their activation. It turned out that cells helping tissues to recover from inflammation were more vulnerable. The researchers...
by Ciara O’shea, Trinity College Dublin Although COVID-19 commands the headlines today, tuberculosis (TB) remains the biggest infection killer in the world and multiple drug resistant TB, which does not respond to regular antibiotics, continues to be a major threat to global health. TB is caused by bacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) that most often affect the...
by Maria Fernanda Ziegler, FAPESP Immune system cells in the blood of breast cancer patients undergo alterations early in the disease course, according to a study published in the journal Clinical & Translational Immunology. The authors believe that this discovery may contribute to the early identification of aggressive tumors and help enhance personalized immunotherapy strategies...
by Harvard University Macrophages are immune cells that patrol the body looking for potential threats like viruses, bacteria, and cancer cells, and engulf and destroy them. However, cancerous tumors have a nasty trick up their sleeves: they secrete substances that “switch” arriving macrophages from their tumor-killing state to a tumor-promoting state, in which they suppress...
CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES HEADQUARTERS Recent evidence suggests a link between cholesterol metabolism and innate immunity. Upon viral infection, macrophages show reduced cholesterol synthesis accompanied by enhanced expression of antiviral genes, including type I interferon (IFN-I). IFN-I can induce 25-hydroxycholesterol (25-HC) accumulation, which blocks viral entry. However, it has been unclear whether other cholesterol-associated metabolic...
