Category Archives: Cell Medicine

As they find out more about the cell biology of multiple sclerosis, scientists are gradually unraveling the mysteries of the disease, although the exact causes are still unclear. Now, a new study continues this progress with a significant discovery about a new cellular mechanism. It suggests that high levels of the protein Rab32 disrupt key communications involving mitochondria. The disruption causes these "cellular batteries" to misbehave, leading to the toxic effects seen in the brain cells of people with multiple sclerosis.

The new study is the work of researchers from the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom and the University of Alberta in Canada. They report their findings in the Journal of Neuroinflammation.

Co-author Paul Eggleton, an immunologist and professor at the University of Exeter Medical School, says that multiple sclerosis can have a "devastating impact on people's lives," and yet, unfortunately, the present situation is that "all medicine can offer is treatment and therapy for the symptoms."

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks tissue of the central nervous system - which comprises the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerve.

As the disease progresses, it destroys more and more of the fatty myelin sheath that insulates and protects the nerve fibers that send electrical messages in the central nervous system.

This destruction can lead to brain damage, vision impairment, pain, altered sensation, extreme fatigue, problems with movement, and other symptoms.

As research into the cause of MS progresses, scientists are becoming increasingly interested in the role of mitochondria - the tiny components inside cells that produce units of energy for powering the cell.

Fast facts about MS

Learn more about MS

In earlier work, the team behind the new study was the first to provide an explanation for the role of defective mitochondria in MS through clinical and laboratory experiments.

In their new investigation, the researchers study a protein called Rab32, which is known to be involved in certain mitochondrial processes.

They found that levels of Rab32 are much higher in the brains of people with MS and hardly detectable in brains of people without the disease.

They also discovered that the presence of Rab32 coincides with disruption to a communication system that causes mitochondria to malfunction, causing toxic effects in the brain cells of people with MS.

The disruption is caused by a cell compartment called the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) being too close to the mitochondria.

The ER produces, processes, and transports many compounds that are used inside and outside the cell.

The researchers note that one of the functions of the ER is to store calcium, and if the distance between the ER and mitochondria is too short, it disrupts the communication between the mitochondria and the calcium supply.

Calcium uptake into mitochondria is already known to be critical to cell functioning.

Although they did not discover what causes Rab32 levels to increase, the team believes that the problem may lie in a defect in the base of the ER.

The study could help scientists to find ways to use Rab32 as a treatment target, as well as look for other proteins that may cause similar disruptions, note the authors.

"Our exciting new findings have uncovered a new avenue for researchers to explore. It is a critical step, and in time, we hope it might lead to effective new treatments for MS."

Prof. Paul Eggleton

Learn how a new immunotherapy reversed paralysis in mouse models of MS.

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Scientists step closer to finding cause of multiple sclerosis - Medical News Today

Madhu Srivastava/IANS

Our health scenario has undergone drastic changes over the past few decades. Is it not fair to say that given today`s lifestyles, finding someone who is completely fit and healthy is quite rare?

In an attempt to take precautions, people are doing their best such as exercising, controlling their diet, taking health supplements, undergoing periodic health check-ups and what not. However, these are only precautionary or preventive measures. How can you protect yourself or your family in the worst case of being diagnosed by a disorder that could take you by surprise?

The good news is that while more new diseases are being discovered, medical science is also growing at a matching pace with treatment solutions for such conditions. Here comes the role of stem cells. Stem cell treatment has been found to be a solution for many ailments that are not treatable by conventional methods of surgery or medication. Diseases such as leukemia ans thalassemia can now be treated by stem cells with a hope of survival, which was not possible even a decade or so ago.

As stem cell medicine keeps advancing with more conditions being researched, the future sounds quite promising as more and more disorders that were once considered as permanent or terminal will soon become treatable.

But, the question is, where does one find these stem cells? Well, the answer is, within you; in your bone marrow.

Unfortunately in more than 80 per cent of these disorders, your own stem cells cannot be used and you would need to seek them from someone else. Here comes the challenge of finding a matching donor and someone who is willing to donate his stem cells. Alternatively, you can source stem cells from a public bank which preserves umbilical cord stem cells of donors. Here, in addition to the rarity of finding a matching stem cell of Indian ethnicity, the problem gets compounded with the need of Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh for stem cell treatment. Seven out of 10 patients who require a matching stem cell do not find a match in their family.

Can this scenario change? Is there a hope for treating such dreaded conditions? The answer is yes. If you are expecting a baby in your family, then you are blessed.

We say a child is a blessing from God, which is true in real terms. While as parents we bless our children, now the baby can bless us to stay protected against such medical conditions.

The baby`s umbilical cord is a rich source of stem cells. These can be collected and preserved at the time of birth for future use so that it can come to the rescue when required. With the new concept of community stem cell banking by one of the leading stem cell banks in the country which preserves a baby`s stem cells by making him/her a member of the community of parents who have also preserved their baby`s stem cells. The stem cell of all the babies within the community forms a collective pool to be accessed by all members.

Hence, at any given time, one can access donor stem cells from this collective pool for treatment, protecting not just your baby but your family too from such ailments. There is only the initial cost of preserving your baby`s stem cells which is much lower than sourcing stem cells from a public stem cell bank. More importantly, the probability of finding a match of Indian ethnicity is higher and stem cells are readily available for treatment when required.

If you are worried about the uncertainties over the health of your family, you can now rest assured that your baby`s birth will now bless your family with the protection of good health.

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Stem cells and the art of giving - Zee News (blog)

When Henrietta Lacks, a 31-year-old black woman from Virginia,sought treatment for stomach pain at Baltimores Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1951, doctors discovered a fast-growing cancerous tumor on Lacks cervix.

Doctors harvested Lacks cells without her permission during surgery a clear ethical violation today in the hopes of using them for scientific research.Those same cells continued to replicate long after her death from cervical cancer, however, and they fueled some of the most noteworthy scientific advancements in modern medicine.

Now The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,a movie staring television personality Oprah Winfrey, based on the 2010 book of the same name, seeks to cement Lacks place in medical history.

I am a student of the African American culture ... I have never, in all of my readings, in all of my stories, heard of HeLa or Henrietta Lacks, Oprah said at press event in April. I could not believe that. How could I have been in this town all this time and never seen one thing about her?

For a snapshot of how influential Lacks cells, also called HeLa cells, have been on science, look no further than PubMed, the National Institutes of Healths online library for medical research. SearchingHeLanets more than 90,000 results. Indeed, HeLas influence is so widespread, involved and often, interconnected, thats its impossible to pinpoint its scope.

Heres how HeLa will influence the future of medicine:

Indeed, HeLa cells have been a cornerstone of research for Andrew Adey, assistant professor of molecular and medical genetics at Oregon Health and Science University, where he does cancer research.

Because HeLa cells are extremely well documented, Adey uses them as a control for the cancer-detecting technologies his group develops.

We use HeLa cells to calibrate and refine our technologies because we know exactly which mutations are present, he told The Huffington Post.Just about every single technology we work on developing, we use HeLa cells first.

Its not possible to quantify how many lives have been saved from research based on HeLa cells, but one measure, in combination with gains in preventative medicine, might point to the scope:Deaths from cervical cancer, the disease that took Lacks life,declined more than 60 percent between 1955 and 1992, according to the NIH.

HeLa cell research has also had an immense influence on health beyond cancer, contributing also to the development of the polio vaccine and helping to map the human genome.

The number of lives saved by research that utilized HeLa is most likely in the millions, Adey said.

HeLa-based research laid the groundwork for whats known as precision medicine: treatments tailored to an individuals environment, lifestyle and genes, rather than a one-size-fits-all prescription.

Precision medicine is regarded by some oncologists as the future of cancer treatment. One example is immunotherapy, in which scientists stimulate a patients immune system to treat his or her cancer. The stimulation can range from drugs to vaccines to cell transfers.

This type of research had been championed by former President Barack Obama, who allotted $215 million for a Precision Medicine Initiative in his 2016 budget.

HeLa cells continue to be a major tool in many laboratories focused on the development of cancer drugs, said Patricia Thompson-Carino,a pathology professor at Stony Brook School of Medicine.

HeLa cells have bolstered scientists knowledge about cancer treatment resistance and helped doctors to better match cancer drugs to patients. And although immunotherapy is multifaceted, and certainly doesnt work for everyone, former President Jimmy Carters immune system-boosting melanoma treatmentin 2015 is one notable success.

Today, HeLas not the only immortal cell line aiding researchers, but it arguably paved the way for those lines and the immeasurable medical innovation that followed.

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Henrietta Lacks' Cells May Be Responsible For The Future Of Medicine - Huffington Post

Abbie Bennett The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) (TNS)

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have identified a cell where HIV persists even when patients are treated for the disease.

This discovery creates a new target for cure research.

HIV cure research to date has focused on clearing the virus from T cells, a type of white blood cell that is an essential part of the immune system.

But researchers in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the UNC School of Medicine have found that the virus still persists in HIV-infested macrophages large white blood cells found in tissues throughout the body, including the liver, lungs, bone marrow and brain.

This discovery has significant implications for HIV cure research researchers said. The findings were published Monday in Nature Medicine.

These results are paradigm changing because they demonstrate that cells other than T cells can serve as a reservoir for HIV, said Dr. Jenna Honeycutt, lead author and postdoctoral research associate in the UNC Division of Infectious Diseases. The fact that HIV-infected macrophages can persist means that any possible therapeutic intervention to eradicate HIV might have to target two very different types of cells.

Now that researchers know HIV persists in macrophages, the next step will be to determine what regulates HIV persistence in tissue macrophages, where in the body persistently infected macrophages reside during HIV treatment and how macrophages respond to possible therapeutic interventions aimed at eradicating HIV from the body.

The UNC School of Medicine team collaborated with scientists in UNCs Department of Biostatistics, the Theoretical Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System and the Departments of Medicine and Pathology at the University of California at San Diego. The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

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UNC researchers ID cell where HIV persists despite treatment - Asheboro Courier Tribune

News & Observer

UNC researchers ID cell where HIV persists despite treatment, new target for cure research News & Observer But researchers in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the UNC School of Medicine have found that the virus still persists in HIV-infested macrophages large white blood cells found in tissues throughout the body, including the liver, lungs, bone ... and more »

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UNC researchers ID cell where HIV persists despite treatment, new target for cure research - News & Observer

Stem cell research begins with scientists, passes on to physicians and ends up with patients.

But those roles arent as separate as they seem, said speakers Thursday at a special meeting held by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the states stem cell agency, and UC San Diego.

The agency is beginning a statewide tour to discuss the progress of its treatments through the lengthy research and clinical trial process. One priority is to make sure all those involved understand each others needs, and how they can help.

Speaker David Higgins has multiple roles built into his life. A San Diegan with Parkinsons disease, Higgins sits on CIRMs governing board.

Patient input is heard throughout CIRM, Higgins said, addressing the audience of more than 100 at the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine on Torrey Pines Mesa.

Patient advocates sit on reviews for grant funding, Higgins said. Nothing ever goes out the door without it being screened through the eyes of a patient advocate.

Patients can now take a much more active role in managing their illness and advocate for others, Higgins said, because doctors now recognize that treating disease is a partnership.

Now were looking at a two-way relationship, Higgins said. I dont know a single physician that Ive ever talked to who doesnt welcome this, Higgins said.

And in the long run, nobody can escape patienthood, said Dr. Catriona Jamieson, an oncologist-researcher at UCSD Moores Cancer Center.

Were all going to be patients, were all going to be health care users, Jamieson said. I dont see the patient term as in any way stigmatizing, because its part of using our health care system.

Making sure these roles are harmonized is important to CIRM, which has about $800 million left of the $3 billion given by California voters in 2004 in Proposition 71.

And while CIRM cant formally lobby on the issue, those who support the agency recognize they need public support if they want more money from taxpayers.

Jamieson said CIRM has helped her research, her UCSD colleagues and patients by grants and funding alpha stem cell clinics, including one at UCSD. These clinics help translate science into patient care, and help scientists and doctors share ideas and resources.

What we know so far is that great medicine requires great science, said Jamieson, who specializes in blood cancers.

Audience member Adrienne Shapiro was there as a patient advocate for sickle cell disease. Shes a carrier of the trait, and her daughter, Marissa Cors, has the disease. CIRM has funded a program to develop a better bone marrow transplant to treat the disease.

Cors said one of her main issues is dealing with the pain sickle cell disease causes her.

The pain medications are really the key at this particular point in the journey, Cors said, hesitating slightly in discussing the course of her disease.

Cors said shes hopeful that the CIRM program helps others.

Im looking for something effective for the community, Cors said.

bradley.fikes@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1020

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For stem cell treatments, patients, doctors, scientists, must collaborate - The San Diego Union-Tribune

A team of researchers in Japan has combined simple agarose with advanced machine learning techniques to study the differentiation of stem cells.

Asian Scientist Newsroom | April 20, 2017 | In the Lab

AsianScientist (Apr. 20, 2017) - Stem cell differentiation can now be seen thanks to a combination of machine learning and microfabrication techniques developed by scientists at the RIKEN Quantitative Biology Center in Japan. The results, published in PLOS ONE, followed the differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) which are easily obtained from adult bone marrow.

MSCs have proven to be important for regenerative medicine and stem cell therapy because they can potentially repair many different types of organ damage. Depending on the way the cells are grown, the results can be quite different, making controlling differentiation is an important goal.

Observing MSC differentiation under different conditions is an essential step in understanding how to control the process. However, this has proved challenging on two fronts. First, the physical space in which the cells are grown has a dramatic impact on the results, causing significant variation in the types of cells into which they differentiate. Studying this effect requires consistent and long lasting spatial confinement. Second, classifying the cell types which have developed through manual observation is time consuming.

Previous studies have confined cell growth with fibronectin on a glass slide. The cells can only adhere and differentiate where the fibronectin is present and are thus chemically confined. However, this procedure requires high technical skill to maintain the confinement for an extended period of time. To overcome this, the first author of the study, Dr. Nobuyuki Tanaka, decided to look for a new way to confine them. Using a simple agarose gel physical confinement system, he found that he could maintain them for up to 15 days.

It was wonderful to be able to do this, because agarose gel is a commonly used material in biology laboratories and can be easily formed into a micro-cast in a PDMS silicone mold, Tanaka said.

The advantage of this system is that once the PDMS molds are obtained the user only needs agarose gel and a vacuum desiccator to create highly reproducible micro-casts.

Tanaka's paper also describes an automated cell type classification system, using machine learning, which reduces the time and labor needed to analyze cells.

Combined together, these tools give us a powerful way to understand how stem cells differentiate in given conditions, he added.

The article can be found at: Tanaka et al. (2017) Simple Agarose Micro-confinement Array and Machine-learning-based Classification for Analyzing the Patterned Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells.

Source: RIKEN; Photo: Shutterstock. Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of AsianScientist or its staff.

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Automatically Observing Stem Cell Differentiation - Asian Scientist Magazine

Immune system cells may help your heart keep the beat. These cells, called macrophages, usually protect the body from invading pathogens. But a new study published April 20 in Cell shows that in mice, the immune cells help electricity flow between muscle cells to keep the organ pumping.

Macrophages squeeze in between heart muscle cells, called cardiomyocytes. These muscle cells rhythmically contract in response to electrical signals, pumping blood through the heart. By plugging in to the cardiomyocytes, macrophages help the heart cells receive the signals and stay on beat.

Researchers have known for a couple of years that macrophages live in healthy heart tissue. But their specific functions were still very much a mystery, says Edward Thorp, an immunologist at Northwestern Universitys Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. He calls the studys conclusion that macrophages electrically couple with cardiomyocytes paradigm shifting. It highlights the functional diversity and physiologic importance of macrophages, beyond their role in host defense, Thorp says.

Matthias Nahrendorf, a cell biologist at Harvard Medical School, stumbled onto this electrifying find by accident.

Curious about how macrophages impact the heart, he tried to perform a cardiac MRI on a mouse genetically engineered to not have the immune cells. But the rodents heartbeat was too slow and irregular to perform the scan.

Immune cells called macrophages (green) squeeze in between heart cells (red) in an area of the heart called the atrioventricular node, as seen in this reconstruction of a human AV node. This node is a cluster of muscle fibers that electrically connects the upper and lower chambers of the heart.

These symptoms pointed to a problem in the mouses atrioventricular node, a bundle of muscle fibers that electrically connects the upper and lower chambers of the heart. Humans with AV node irregularities may need a pacemaker to keep their heart beating in time. In healthy mice, researchers discovered macrophages concentrated in the AV node, but what the cells were doing there was unknown.

Isolating a heart macrophage and testing it for electrical activity didnt solve the mystery. But when the researchers coupled a macrophage with a cardiomyocyte, the two cells began communicating electrically. Thats important, because the heart muscle cells contract thanks to electrical signals.

Cardiomyocytes have an imbalance of ions. While in the resting state, there are more positive ions outside the cell than inside, but when a cardiomyocyte receives an electrical signal from a neighboring heart cell, that distribution switches. This momentary change causes the cell to contract and send the signal on to the next cardiomyocyte.

Scientists previously thought that cardiomyocytes were capable of this electrical shift, called depolarization, on their own. But Nahrendorf and his team found that macrophages aid in the process. Using a protein, a macrophage hooks up to a cardiomyocyte. This protein directly connects the inside of these cells to each other, allowing macrophages to transfer positive charges, giving cardiomyocytes a boost kind of like with a jumper cable. This makes it easier for the heart cells to depolarize and trigger the heart contraction, Nahrendorf says.

With the help of the macrophages, the conduction system becomes more reliable, and it is able to conduct faster, he says.

Nahrendorf and colleagues found macrophages within the AV node in human hearts as well but dont know if the cells play the same role in people. The next step is to confirm that role and explore whether or not the immune cells could be behind heart problems like arrhythmia, says Nahrendorf.

The rest is here:
Immune cells play surprising role in steady heartbeat - Science News

By The Associated Press on April 19, 2017.

MILFORD, Mass. Massachusetts prison officials say former NFL star Aaron Hernandez has hanged himself in his cell and has been pronounced dead at a hospital. He was 27.

An official with the Massachusetts Department of Corrections says Hernandez was found hanged in his cell just after 3 a.m. Wednesday. Authorities tried to revive the former New England Patriots tight end, and he was pronounced dead at UMass Memorial HealthAlliance Hospital in Leominster at 4:07 a.m.

Prison officials say the Hernandez was in a single cell in a general population housing unit at the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts They say he hanged himself using a bed sheet that he attached to a cell window.

Authorities say Hernandez tried to block the cell door from the inside by jamming the door with various items.

Hernandez, who was serving a life sentence for a 2013 murder, was acquitted Friday in a 2012 double slaying prosecutors said was fueled by his anger over a drink spilled at a nightclub.

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Ex-NFL star Aaron Hernandez dead after hanging self in cell - Medicine Hat News

Interested in learning about stem cell science and medicine and what it means to you? A public meeting will be held Thursday from noon to 1 p.m. at the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine in La Jolla.

Heres more details from my earlier story.

Not only will researchers and a patient advocate with Parkinsons disease discuss the state of stem cell treatments, the public will be able to ask questions.

The Sanford Consortium building is located across the street from the Salk Institute. For those seeking a bite to eat before or after the event, the building also hosts a bistro, the Bella Vista Social Club and Cafe.

The video with this story shows Sandra Dillon describing how she regained stamina and energy after an experimental treatment that blocked cancer stem cells. While not a cure, the treatment reversed what appeared to be an inevitable downward progression.

Dillions doctor, physician-researcher Catriona Jamieson, will be one of the speakers at tomorrows event.

Ill be on site at the event, and will have a report(s) up tomorrow afternoon.

bradley.fikes@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1020

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Reminder: San Diego stem cell meeting open to the public tomorrow - The San Diego Union-Tribune