Cell Biology

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ETH Zurich Researchers Accelerate Bacterial Evolution for Enhanced Cellulose Production

Bacteria produce materials that are of interest to humans, such as cellulose, silk and minerals. The advantage of producing bacteria in this way is that it is sustainable, takes place at room temperature and in water.

1 Aug 2024

Breakthrough Study Reveals Role of Tissue-Resident Memory T Cells in Lung Cancer Prognosis

An extensive analytical study performed at the Terasaki Institute and published in Frontiers in Immunology highlights the crucial role of tissue-resident memory T cells and how they influence the immune environment of patients with non-small cell lung cancer and their overall prognosis.

1 Aug 2024

Researchers Uncover Unique Protective Mechanism in Pancreatic Cells

Researchers from the University of Cologne have revealed a mechanism protecting pancreatic β-cells, which are crucial for insulin production from inflammatory cell death. The study investigated the role of receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1) in regulating β-cell survival.

1 Aug 2024

Swabbing Technique Reveals Diversity of Immune Cells in the Upper Airway

Scientists at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) have published the first-ever, in-depth analysis of immune cell memory in the upper airways of adult volunteers. Among these immune cells, the researcher spotted "tissue resident" memory cells, which stand ready to defend the airway from SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory diseases.

1 Aug 2024

Cryo-EM Reveals Structural Differences in Fetal and Adult Muscle Receptors

The connections between the nervous system and muscles develop differently across the kingdom of life. It takes newborn humans roughly a year to develop the proper muscular systems that support the ability to walk, while cows can walk mere minutes after birth and run not long after.

1 Aug 2024

Mucus-Based Bioink Shows Promise for 3D-Printed Lung Tissue

Each year, lung illnesses claim the lives of millions of people worldwide. There are few available treatments, and animal models used to research these conditions and potential drugs are insufficient. Researchers have now successfully developed a mucus-based bioink for 3D printing lung tissue.

31 Jul 2024

New Model Reveals Underlying Similarity in Mammalian Brain Shapes

A novel method for characterizing the cerebral cortex's shape has been devised by researchers, who also present evidence that cortices in all mammalian species share a common, fractal design.

31 Jul 2024

Uncovering the Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Liver Regeneration

The liver can renew itself quite well. Maintaining organ function and recuperating from surgery or injury depends on this quality. Using clinical samples, researchers from the University of Leipzig Medical Center, the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, TU Dresden, and ETH Zurich have examined the changes in liver cell types before and following regeneration.

31 Jul 2024

Rapid Parkinson's Model Opens Door to Personalized Treatments

Scientists at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a key member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, have created a model that swiftly transforms stem cells into brain cells exhibiting protein structures associated with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

30 Jul 2024

Innovative Model Creates Personalized Parkinson's Disease Brain Cells for Drug Testing

A new model developed by Brigham researchers rapidly converts stem cells to brain cells characteristic of Parkinson’s disease to create personalized stem cell models with opportunities to test treatments

29 Jul 2024

Effective Plasmid DNA Delivery Achieved with Zwitterionic Polymer Complex

Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have created a new drug delivering molecule, a zwitterionic polymer complex that can help get plasmid DNA inside cells when injected into skeletal muscle, a crucial step in the expression of therapeutic RNA and proteins. The new compound effectively bound to plasmid DNA without affecting its structure. Injected into mouse muscles, the team observed widespread gene expression, promising applications to treatments of serious muscle diseases.

29 Jul 2024

Plant-Based Diet Slows Down Biological Aging Markers

Eating a vegan diet for eight weeks is associated with reductions in biological age estimations based on levels of DNA methylation -; a type of chemical modification of DNA (known as an epigenetic modification) that alters gene expression but not DNA itself. Previous research has reported that increased DNA methylation levels are associated with aging. The findings, which are based on a small randomized controlled trial of 21 pairs of adult identical twins, are published in BMC Medicine.

29 Jul 2024

Unraveling the Complexities of X Chromosome Inheritance

A new study published in Nature Genetics by the Lymphoid Development Group at the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences has reveals that the contribution of cells expressing maternal or paternal X chromosomes can be selectively skewed in different parts of the body.

26 Jul 2024

Antisense Therapy Shows Promise Against Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease (PD), as well as many other neurodegenerative disorders, has shown a link between the abnormal aggregation of a protein called α-synuclein (aSyn) and neuronal death. These aggregates, known as Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites depending on their subcellular localization, can spread by continuously causing normal endogenous aSyn to misfold.

26 Jul 2024

Probing Plasma Membrane Dynamics with Cryo-Electron Microscopy

Cell membranes play a crucial role in maintaining the integrity and functionality of cells. However, the mechanisms by which they perform these roles are not yet fully understood.

25 Jul 2024

Traffic-Related Ultrafine Particles Cause Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Olfactory Mucosa

Ultrafine particles, UFPs, the smallest contributors to air pollution, hinder the function of mitochondria in human olfactory mucosa cells, a new study shows.

25 Jul 2024

Study Reveals Titin Mutation Effects on Cardiac Development and Atrial Fibrillation

Millions of adults have atrial fibrillation -; an irregular beating of the upper chambers of the heart that yields increased risk of heart failure, stroke and death.

25 Jul 2024

Understanding Gibberellin's Dual Role in Legume Nodule Development

Researchers at the University of Cambridge demonstrate that the plant hormone gibberellin (GA) is essential for the formation and maturation of nitrogen-fixing root nodules in legumes and can also increase nodule size.

24 Jul 2024

New Tool GeneMAP Unveils Key Insights into Cell Metabolism

There's a glaring gap in our knowledge of cell metabolism: in many cases, we still don't know exactly how nutrients are transported into the cell.

24 Jul 2024

Oligodendrocytes as Producers of Amyloid Beta in Alzheimer's Disease

Oligodendrocytes are an important source of amyloid beta (Aβ) and play a key role in promoting neuronal dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease (AD), according to a study published July 23, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Rikesh Rajani and Marc Aurel Busche from the UK Dementia Research Institute at University College London, and colleagues.

24 Jul 2024