A recent study by University Medicine Halle shows how sepsis can lead to dysfunction of vascular smooth muscle cells. The researchers found that elevated lactate levels and acidosis, which can occur acutely during sepsis due to metabolic derailment, only have a disrupting effect in synergistic combination. The study, published in the Journal of Biomedical Science, also provides a possible explanation for why some sepsis survivors experience long-lasting impairments. Treating sepsis poses a major challenge worldwide. Early diagnosis is crucial, as…

Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology have discovered a new partnership between a marine diatom and a bacterium that can account for a large share of nitrogen fixation in vast regions of the ocean. The newly-discovered bacterial symbiont is closely related to the nitrogen-fixing Rhizobia which live in partnership with many crop plants and may open up new avenues to engineer nitrogen-fixing plants. Nitrogen is an essential component of all living organisms. It is also the key…

A study from the Hackett group at EMBL Rome led to the development of a powerful epigenetic editing technology, which unlocks the ability to precisely program chromatin modifications. Understanding how genes are regulated at the molecular level is a central challenge in modern biology. This complex mechanism is mainly driven by the interaction between proteins called transcription factors, DNA regulatory regions, and epigenetic modifications – chemical alterations that change chromatin structure. The set of epigenetic modifications of a cell’s genome…

Most people with early-stage glaucoma don’t know they have it, even though early treatment is key to reducing vision loss. While detecting a subtle increase in eye pressure helps doctors to diagnose glaucoma, it’s challenging to monitor continuously, especially with the variety of temperatures eyes experience. Now, researchers in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces report a prototype “smart” contact lens that measures eye pressure accurately, regardless of temperature. About three million people in the U.S. have glaucoma, a group of…

Our human brain is not only bigger and contains more neurons than the brains of other species, but it is also connected in a special pattern: Thick bundles of neurons connect brain regions across long distances, such as the right and left brain hemispheres. A team of researchers at IMBA, including Catarina Martins-Costa, Nina Corsini and Jürgen Knoblich, now presents the first organoid model in which these information highways can be studied. Their results are published on May 7th in…

Macquarie University researchers have debunked a 75-year-old theory about how humans determine where sounds are coming from, and it could unlock the secret to creating a next generation of more adaptable and efficient hearing devices ranging from hearing aids to smartphones. In the 1940s, an engineering model was developed to explain how humans can locate a sound source based on differences of just a few tens of millionths of a second in when the sound reaches each ear. This model…

Scientists uncover how plants “see” shades of light, temperature. Plants’ ability to sense light and temperature, and their ability to adapt to climate change, hinges on free-forming structures in their cells whose function was, until now, a mystery. For the first time, UC Riverside researchers have determined how these structures work on a molecular level, as well as where and how they form. This information is described in two Nature Communications papers published this week. Scientists have long studied membrane-bound…

A new study at Hebrew University reveals insights into mRNA regulation during embryonic development. The study combines single-cell RNA-Seq and metabolic labeling in zebrafish embryos, distinguishing between newly-transcribed and pre-existing mRNA. This approach quantifies mRNA transcription and degradation rates within individual cell types, uncovering varied regulatory rates across genes and cell-type-specific differences in degradation. Understanding mRNA regulation during embryonic development helps decipher how genes are turned on and off in specific cells at precise times, informing our understanding of development,…

How cancer cells tug against each other determines whether they can migrate elsewhere in the body. Understanding how cancerous cells spread from a primary tumor is important for any number of reasons, including determining the aggressiveness of the disease itself. The movement of cells into the extracellular matrix (ECM) of neighboring tissue is an essential step in cancer progression that directly correlates to the onset of metastasis. In APL Bioengineering, by AIP Publishing, a team of researchers from Germany and…

Magnesium implants support coronary arteries and keep them open. Constricted coronary arteries harbor dangers: Because the heart is not supplied with blood properly, this can lead to pain, cardiac arrhythmia, cardiac insufficiency and sudden cardiac death. One way of eliminating a constriction in a vessel is to implant a stent. This involves the minimally invasive insertion of a small mesh tube into the vessel. Until now, all stents were made of metal and remained in the body, sometimes for decades,…

The MHH joint project TARGET-MPN is investigating why the disease persists and progresses in malignant bone marrow diseases from the group of myeloproliferative neoplasms despite targeted treatment. Haematopoietic stem cells supply us with fresh blood throughout our lives and ensure that our immune system functions properly. In adults, haematopoietic stem cells are found in the bone marrow. There they divide and develop into new mature blood cells such as red and white blood cells or platelets. Normally, this process is…

Patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) could benefit from a future treatment to repair nerve connections using red and near-infrared light. The method, invented by scientists at the University of Birmingham, U.K. and patented by University of Birmingham Enterprise, involves delivering light directly to the site of the injury. Their latest research, published today in the journal Bioengineering and Translational Medicine has determined an optimal ‘dose’ for this novel therapeutic approach, and shown that it can deliver significant therapeutic improvements…

A biomaterial vaccine enhances and sustains lymph node expansion following vaccination, boosting anti-tumor immunity in an animal model. Each one of us has around 600 lymph nodes (LNs) – small, bean-shaped organs that house various types of blood cells and filter lymph fluid – scattered throughout our bodies. Many of us have also experienced some of our LNs to temporarily swelling during infections with viruses or other pathogens. This LN expansion and subsequent contraction can also result from vaccines injected…

Pitt, Drexel, and Brookhaven engineers solve the “catalysis vs corrosion” mystery in electrochemical ozone production. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and Drexel University in Philadelphia, along with Brookhaven National Laboratory, are working to solve a multipart mystery to make water disinfection treatments more sustainable. Scalable electrochemical ozone production (EOP) technologies to disinfect dirty water may someday replace centralized chlorine treatments used today, whether in modern cities or remote villages. However, little is understood about EOP at the molecular level and…

Pan-cancer analysis uncovers a new class of promising CAR T–cell immunotherapy targets. Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital found 156 potential CAR targets across the brain and solid tumors, validating a top result in the laboratory. Targeting anti-cancer therapy to affect cancer cells but not healthy cells is challenging. For chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T–cell immunotherapy, where a patient’s own immune cells are re-engineered to attack cancer cells, many solid and brain cancers lack an effective target. St. Jude…

… improve active ingredient tests using human cell cultures. Many new drug candidates end up failing because they cause serious side effects in clinical trials. This is a common occurrence if the cells used come from animal tissue, for example. Specially prepared cell cultures made from human tissue known as human induced pluripotent stem (hiPS) cells enable greater reliability in testing, thereby also increasing the chances that a drug will be approved. Fraunhofer researchers have developed innovative solutions for optimized…