Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and University of Washington scientists have identified a class of immune cells that reside long-term in the genital skin and mucosa and are believed to be responsible for suppressing recurring outbreaks of genital herpes.
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Biologists at UC San Diego have identified eight genes never before suspected to play a role in wound healing that are called into action near the areas where wounds occur.
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A person's skin and a fruit fly's exoskeleton, called a "cuticle" may not look alike, but both coverings protect against injury, infection, and dehydration.
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Study findings show that a new injection-free vaccination technique, applied through a patch on the skin, can induce the same level of immune response as a standard vaccine injection when given to mice.
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Vaccines usually consist of inactivated viruses that prompt the immune system to remember the invader and launch a strong defense if it later encounters the real thing. However, this approach can be too risky with certain viruses, including HIV.
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These mechanisms, described in vivo in mice, engage molecule CD98hc, which is involved in epidermis renewal and could be an indicator of the skin's capacity for regeneration.
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Itch was actually defined by a German physician more than 350 years ago. His name was Samuel Hafenreffer. He defined itch as an unpleasant sensation that makes people want to scratch. You probably think this is a very simple definition but itch is really a very complex sensory modality.
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Our DNA, which stores our genetic information, is constantly submitted to damage. If not properly repaired, DNA damage can lead to cell death, which may in turn lead to tissue exhaustion and ageing, or induce mutations resulting in uncontrolled cell proliferation and cancer. Brca1 is a key gene that mediates DNA repair. Mutations in Brca1 lead to familial and sporadic breast and ovarian cancer in humans.
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Wrinkles, dryness, and a translucent and fragile appearance are hallmarks of old skin, caused by the natural aging of skin cells. But while most of us can recognize the signs of lost youth when we peer into the mirror each morning, scientists do not have a standardized way to measure the extent of age damage in skin. Now a group of Taiwanese researchers has used a specialized microscope to peer harmlessly beneath the skin surface to measure natural age-related changes in the sizes of skin cells.
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The differentiation of human epidermis is controlled and stabilized by a long noncoding RNA termed terminal differentiation-induced noncoding RNA acting through a post-transcriptional mechanism, the results of an innovative US study indicate.
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The surface of your skin, called the epidermis, is a complex mixture of many different cell types - each with a very specific job. The production, or differentiation, of such a sophisticated tissue requires an immense amount of coordination at the cellular level, and glitches in the process can have disastrous consequences. Now, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified a master regulator of this differentiation process.
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With increasing age the human skin shows a considerable loss of resistance and elasticity. These changes in skin texture, which are one of the main reasons for the appearance of wrinkles, is the age induced loss of skin thickness and the related degradation of elastin fibers within the skin. It has been proven that L-Fucose - a scarce sugar - slows down and even reverses age-related skin developments.
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Scientists have developed a plaster that is strongly adhesive but easily removable, which they hope will prevent skin damage in patients with fragile skin such as neonates and the elderly.
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UV radiation is a form of energy being transmitted. Sunlight is main source of UV radiation, although manmade sources also exist, such as the lamps used in sunbeds. At the earth’s surface sunlight consists of approximately 2 percent UV light, 47 percent visible light and 51 percent IR light.
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Reinhold Dauskardt, PhD, of Stanford's Department of Materials Science and Engineering has been studying skin for years. But when he sent his students to look for data on the mechanical properties of skin, they came back empty-handed. A lot was known about skin structure and disease, but few papers actually talked about its mechanical function - its ability to stretch and resist tension without tearing.
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An experiment has shown that strawberry extract added to skin cell cultures acts as a protector against ultraviolet radiation as well as increasing its viability and reducing damage to DNA. Developed by a team of Italian and Spanish researchers, the study opens the door to the creation of photoprotective cream made from strawberries.
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Ellman International, Inc., a global leader in advanced radiofrequency (RF) technology for precision surgical and aesthetic procedures today announced that it has acquired the assets of Sandstone Medical Technologies, LLC., a recognized leader in the aesthetic laser and IPL technology field.
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Skin squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a subtype of very aggressive skin cancers that usually develops in sunexposed body regions, but can also affect a large number of organs such as the bladder, esophagus, lungs etc. However, little is known about the biology of these cells, which consequently makes difficult the generation of new specific therapies; actually, the standard treatments are based on surgery and subsequent radiotherapy.
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In the July 6 issue of Cell Stem Cell, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine describe how human epidermal progenitor cells and stem cells control transcription factors to avoid premature differentiation, preserving their ability to produce new skin cells throughout life.
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The German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) has granted Moberg Derma approval to initiate a clinical phase II trial for Limtop. The aim is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of three different dose regimens of Limtop in a study involving 96 patients with Actinic Keratosis (AK) on the head or face.
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