How a mutated protein outwits evolution and fuels leukemia

How a mutated protein outwits evolution and fuels leukemia
In their experiments, Dr. Aifantis, working in collaboration with graduate student Bryan King and others, began by introducing mutated Fbxw7 into healthy blood stem cells in mice. “We thought the mutation would induce anemia, just as it does when Fbxw7 is deleted,” says Dr. Aifantis. But to the researchers’ surprise, nothing happened — the stem cells continued to manufacture...

Investigating devastating childhood diseases just got easier

Investigating devastating childhood diseases just got easier
Other social bookmarking and sharing tools: Explaining their results Prof Shinichi Hirose, from Fukuoka University, said, “From research with mice we believed that SCN1A mutations affect GABAergic neurons in the forebrain from signalling properly. From the human neurons we also found that GABAergic neurons were affected by DS, especially during intense stimulation. These patient-derived cells...

Making cancer less cancerous

Making cancer less cancerous
“The aggressive breast cancer cells grow rapidly and normally appear spindle-shaped or thin and elongated. Remarkably, within a few days of blocking HMGA1 expression, they appeared rounder and much more like normal breast cells growing in culture,” says Resar. The team also found that the cells with suppressed HMGA1 grow very slowly and fail to migrate or invade new territory like their...

Keeping stem cells strong: RNA molecule protects stem cells during inflammation

Keeping stem cells strong: RNA molecule protects stem cells during inflammation
May 21, 2013 ? When infections occur in the body, stem cells in the blood often jump into action by multiplying and differentiating into mature immune cells that can fight off illness. But repeated infections and inflammation can deplete these cell populations, potentially leading to the development of serious blood conditions such as cancer. Now, a team of researchers led by biologists at the California...

Biomarker could help scientists choose the right cell line when conducting stem cell experiments

Biomarker could help scientists choose the right cell line when conducting stem cell experiments
From there, the pair went on to show — in collaboration with researchers at Duke University — that they could use WNT3 expression levels in hESCs to predict the potential of hESC lines for differentiating into endoderm. The discovery of WNT3′s role as an endoderm differentiation marker grew out of work by Jiang on pancreatic cell development. “Wei was testing different lines...

New liver cell for cellular therapy to aid in liver regeneration

New liver cell for cellular therapy to aid in liver regeneration
A critical discovery in this research was finding that the novel progenitor has a receptor protein on its cell surface called KDR, or vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2, which until now, was thought to be restricted to endothelial cells that form vessels, the progenitors for endothelial cells and the progenitors blood cells. The research team showed that activation of KDR on these novel...

Scientists coax brain to regenerate cells lost in Huntington’s disease in mouse model

Scientists coax brain to regenerate cells lost in Huntington's disease in mouse model
The virus infected the target cells in the brains of mice with Huntington’s disease and triggered the sustained over-expression of both BDNF and noggin. This, in turn, activated the neighboring neural stem cells which began to produce medium spiny motor neurons. The new neurons were continuously generated and migrated to the striatum, the region of the brain impacted by Huntington’s disease,...

Turning human stem cells into brain cells sheds light on neural development

Turning human stem cells into brain cells sheds light on neural development
In ongoing studies, Anderson explained, he and colleagues are using their cell model to better define molecular events that occur during brain development. By selectively manipulating genes in the interneurons, the researchers seek to better understand how gene abnormalities may disrupt brain circuitry and give rise to particular diseases. Ultimately, those studies could help inform drug development...

Heart cells change stem cell behavior

Heart cells change stem cell behavior
“Electrical ions or really small molecules that are in one cell can diffuse directly into a cell next to it,” he said. “It’s like they put holes in their membranes when they’re up against each other.” Co-authors are Rice graduate student Jennifer Petsche Connell, Rice junior Emily Augustini and maternal-fetal specialists Kenneth Moise Jr. and Anthony Johnson. Jacot...

Stem Cell Therapy

What Is Included in the Cost of Stem Cell Therapy? There are many companies and facilities that provide stem cell therapy and stem cell treatments at reasonable, affordable costs. While each facility is different, in general, the cost of stem cell transplantation includes pre-tests, blood work, stem cell enhancement and generation, the transplantation itself and follow-up monitoring. It is a good idea...