Skin Cells News and Research

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Household sun exposure in the UK increases skin cancer prevalence

More than 50 per cent of people who suffered sunburn last summer were burnt while at home in the UK, according to a Cancer Research UK survey released today as Bank Holiday temperatures are expected to soar.

8 Sep 2009

Molecularly targeted nanocarriers deliver the cytolytic peptide melittin specifically to tumor cells in mice, reducing tumor growth

When bees sting, they pump into their victims a peptide toxin called melittin that destroys cell membranes. Now, by encapsulating this extremely potent molecule within a nanoparticle, researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have created a potential new type of anticancer therapy with the potential to target a wide range of tumors. This work was reported in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

7 Sep 2009

Fashion show to help raise public awareness of psoriasis

Today, Tim Gunn, television host and fashion consultant ("Project Runway," "Tim Gunn's Guide to Style") and chief creative officer of Liz Claiborne, Inc., is hosting the Addressing Psoriasis(TM) Fashion Show, sponsored by Amgen and Wyeth, in New York City.

3 Sep 2009

First batch of cancer vaccine from Cancer Vaccine Collaborative goes into trial

The first batch of NY-ESO-1 recombinant protein produced in a facility supported entirely by non-profit entities has successfully cleared regulatory review and has entered clinical testing. The clinical trials are part of the Cancer Vaccine Collaborative, a joint program of the Cancer Research Institute, Inc. (CRI) and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research Ltd. (LICR).

13 Aug 2009

'Nanobee' drug delivery to tumors

When bees sting, they pump poison into their victims. Now the toxin in bee venom has been harnessed to kill tumor cells by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The researchers attached the major component of bee venom to nano-sized spheres that they call nanobees.

11 Aug 2009

Sensitizing tumor response to cancer treatment

Two forms of skin and brain cancer respond very poorly to chemotherapy and radiation: melanoma and glioblastoma multiforme brain cancer.

5 Aug 2009

Discovery of new gene mutations linked to leukemia

Decoding the complete DNA of cancer patients is giving scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis a clearer picture of the complexity of the disease and allowing them to see intriguing and unexpected genetic relationships among patients.

5 Aug 2009

Stem cell technology innovation could reduce the number of animal experiments

Researchers from the University of Bath are embarking on a project to use stem cell technology that could reduce the number of animal experiments used to study conditions such as motor neurone disease.

4 Aug 2009

Spermatagonial stem cells can be directly converted into other cell types

Researchers have found a way to directly convert spermatogonial stem cells, the precursors of sperm cells, into tissues of the prostate, skin and uterus. Their approach, described this month in the journal Stem Cells, may prove to be an effective alternative to the medical use of embryonic stem cells.

28 Jul 2009

Nanodiamonds hold promise for wound-healing applications

Bacterial infection is a major health threat to patients with severe burns and other kinds of serious wounds such as traumatic bone fractures. Recent studies have identified an important new weapon for fighting infection and healing wounds: insulin.

27 Jul 2009

Nanoparticle-based “chemical nose” sniffs out cancer earlier to improve treatment options

Using a "chemical nose" array of nanoparticles and polymers, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have developed a fundamentally new, more effective way to differentiate not only between healthy and cancerous cells but also between metastatic and nonmetastatic cancer cells. It is a tool that could revolutionize cancer detection and treatment, according to Vincent M. Rotello, Ph.D., M.Phil., and D. Joseph Jerry, Ph.D., M.S., the investigators who led the study.

21 Jul 2009

Obama administration releases final rules on stem cell research

The Obama administration released final regulations governing stem cell research on Monday. The New York Times reports that the rules will allow many older stem cell lines to be eligible for federally financed research.

7 Jul 2009

Low dose bisphenol-A exposure shows significant reproductive health effects in rats

New research from North Carolina State University and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) shows significant reproductive health effects in rats that have been exposed to bisphenol-A (BPA) at levels equivalent to or below the dose that has been thought not to produce any adverse effects.

17 Jun 2009

Skin cells provide new knowledge about brain functions

Until now diseases like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder have been difficult to study biologically, since this would entail taking samples from the patient's brain.

3 Jun 2009

Combination of gene therapy and induced pluripotent stem cells cure human genetic disease in vitro

A study led by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, has catapulted the field of regenerative medicine significantly forward, proving in principle that a human genetic disease can be cured using a combination of gene therapy and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology. The study, published in the May 31, 2009 early online edition of Nature, is a major milestone on the path from the laboratory to the clinic.

31 May 2009

Revealed - the culprit gene in hair loss!

Researchers at the Division of Mammalian Development at the National Institute of Genetics in Mishima, say the gene appears to determine cyclical hair loss in mice and they suspect it may also be the culprit in hair loss, or alopecia, in people.

26 May 2009

People with Down syndrome may have more cancer-protective genes

Most cancers are rare in people with Down syndrome, whose overall cancer mortality is below 10 percent of that in the general population. Since they have an extra copy of chromosome 21, it's been proposed that people with Down syndrome may be getting an extra dose of one or more cancer-protective genes.

20 May 2009

Researchers look at eczema asthma link

Many young children who get a severe skin rash develop asthma months or years later. Doctors call the progression from eczema, or atopic dermatitis, to breathing problems the atopic march. In the May 2009 issue of PLoS Biology, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report another step taken towards understanding the process of atopic march.

18 May 2009

Scientists coax skin cells to behave like muscle cells and vice versa

Even cells aren't immune to peer pressure. Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have now shown that skin cells can be coaxed to behave like muscle cells - and muscle cells like skin cells - solely by altering who they hang out with: the relative levels of the ingredients inside the cell.

5 May 2009

Breakthrough in generating safer, therapeutic stem cells from adult cells

The new technique solves one of the most challenging safety hurdles associated with personalized stem cell-based medicine because for the first time it enables scientists to make stem cells in the laboratory from adult cells without genetically altering them.

23 Apr 2009