Embryonic Development News and Research

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Embryonic development or embryogenesis is the process by which the embryo is formed and develops. It starts with the fertilization of the ovum, egg, which, after fertilization, is then called a zygote. The zygote undergoes rapid mitotic divisions, the formation of two exact genetic replicates of the original cell, with no significant growth (a process known as cleavage) and cellular differentiation, leading to development of an embryo.

World Cell Race pulls 70 entries for title of world's fastest cell

A "team" of fast-moving, bone marrow stem cells from a research laboratory in Singapore has run away with the first World Cell Race, finishing first with a cellular speed record of 5.2 microns per minute (or 0.000204 inches per minute) in results announced today at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB).

3 Dec 2011

New discovery of adult stem cells gives fresh possibilities for heart regeneration

Sydney researchers have discovered a new population of adult stem cells in the heart, which could augment the development of new regeneration and repair therapies for people who have suffered heart attack or heart failure, the leading cause of death in Australia.

1 Dec 2011

Scientists identify cellular protein that plays central role in formation of new blood vessels

Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have identified a cellular protein that plays a central role in the formation of new blood vessels.

29 Nov 2011

Mirna reports new preclinical data of miRNA-based therapeutic candidate for hepatocellular carcinoma

Mirna Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering microRNA replacement therapy for cancer, announced the presentation today of new preclinical data on the development of a miRNA-based therapeutic candidate for primary liver cancer at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in San Francisco, CA.

16 Nov 2011

Cultured ES cells can self-organize into three-dimensional tissue-like structures

The possibility that functional, three-dimensional tissues and organs may be derived from pluripotent cells, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), represents one of the grand challenges of stem cell research, but is also one of the fundamental goals of the emerging field of regenerative medicine.

14 Nov 2011

Tufts University professor earns March of Dimes Foundation award for tissue development

A new approach to studying tissue development has earned Catherine K. Kuo, Ph.D., an assistant professor of biomedical engineering in Tufts University's School of Engineering, the Basil O'Connor Starter Scholar Award from the March of Dimes Foundation.

9 Nov 2011

TWIST protein plays a major role in controlling estrogen resistance in breast cancer

In dozens of experiments in mice and in human cancer cells, a team of Johns Hopkins scientists has closely tied production of a cancer-causing protein called TWIST to the development of estrogen resistance in women with breast cancer.

8 Nov 2011

Mirna, Silence enter agreement to assess delivery systems for novel microRNAs

Silence Therapeutics plc, a leading RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics company, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Mirna Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company pioneering microRNA-based therapeutics for cancer, to assess the delivery capabilities of Silence's proprietary AtuPLEX and DBTC delivery systems for Mirna's novel microRNAs.

24 Oct 2011

ESCs express genes linked with early germ cell specification

Ordinarily, embryonic stem cells exist only a day or two as they begin the formation of the embryo itself. Then they are gone. In the laboratory dish, however, they act more like perpetual stem cells - renewing themselves and exhibiting the ability to form cells of almost any type, a status called totipotency.

14 Oct 2011

Stopping necroptosis in keratinocytes prevents skin inflammation

The outer layer of the skin, called the epidermis, forms a critical physical and immunological wall that serves as the body's first line of defense against potentially harmful microorganisms. Most of the epidermis consists of cells called keratinocytes that build a mechanical barrier but also perform immune functions.

14 Oct 2011

Study shows Sox2 expression in many adult stem cells

Investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Regenerative Medicine and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) have found that Sox2 - one of the transcription factors used in the conversion of adult stem cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) - is expressed in many adult tissues where it had not been previously observed.

7 Oct 2011

Scientists find a way to rapidly produce pure populations of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells

Scientists at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine found a way to rapidly produce pure populations of cells that grow into the protective myelin coating on nerves in mice. Their process opens a door to research and potential treatments for multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and other demyelinating diseases afflicting millions of people worldwide.

26 Sep 2011

NIH-funded project to develop new class of tissue regeneration therapeutics

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded nearly $2 million to researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University to develop a new class of therapeutics for treating traumatic injuries and degenerative diseases.

22 Sep 2011

Researcher identifies genetic mutation responsible for adermatoglyphia

Like DNA, fingerprints are unique to each person or set of identical twins. That makes them a valuable identification tool for everything from crime detection to international travel. But what happens when the tips of our fingers are missing those distinctive patterns of ridges?

19 Sep 2011

Biologists reveal why men's ring fingers are longer than their index fingers

Biologists at the University of Florida have found a reason why men's ring fingers are generally longer than their index fingers - and why the reverse usually holds true for women.

6 Sep 2011

Scientists show how scaling works in developing fruit fly wings

Weizmann Institute scientists have added a significant piece to the puzzle of scaling - how patterns stay in sync with size as an embryo or organism grows and develops. In a new study appearing in Current Biology, Institute scientists Profs.

24 Aug 2011

Scientists gain new insight on role of stem cells in embryonic heart development

Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have gained new insight into the delicate relationship between two proteins that, when out of balance, can prevent the normal development of stem cells in the heart and may also be important in some types of cancer.

16 Aug 2011

Study suggests link between gene variant and Proteus syndrome

Orthopaedic surgeons from Children's National Medical Center are part of a team of researchers that has identified the genetic mutation causing Proteus syndrome, a rare disorder in which tissue and bone grow massively out of proportion.

11 Aug 2011

Study: miR-200s play a paradoxical role in metastatic cancer development

While they may be small in size, a family of tiny molecules called microRNAs could potentially play a large role in the process of cancer metastasis, or the spread of cancer from one area of the body to another.

8 Aug 2011

Roadmap to overcome obstacles for using induced pluripotent stem cells

The possibility of developing stem cells from a patient's own skin and using them to treat conditions as diverse as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and cancer has generated tremendous excitement in the stem cell research community in recent years. Such therapies would avoid the controversial need for using stem cells derived from human embryos, and in theory, also bypass immunological problems inherent in using cells from one person to treat another.

5 Aug 2011