Fibroblast News and Research

RSS

Fibroblasts are connective tissue cells which secrete an extracellular matrix rich in collagen and other macromolecules.

Research on autophagy and coronavirus, implicates ULK1

Researchers from the University of British Columbia have discovered that the betacoronavirus-encoded papain-like protease disrupts autophagy, partly by targeting ULK1. Their work is reported on the preprint server bioRxiv* in October 2020.

27 Oct 2020

New diagnostic method may allow for real-time detection of cancer growth patterns

Using a 2 ml blood sample from 100 gastric cancer patients, researchers succeeded in identifying cancer cells circulating in the bloodstream and trace them back to their origin tumor by detecting an overexpression of fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR2) in both the cancer cells and the tumor.

21 Oct 2020

Researchers report the discovery of innate immune signaling pathway in fibroblasts

Vanderbilt University researchers have reported the counterintuitive discovery that certain chemotherapeutic agents used to treat tumors can have the opposite effect of tissue overgrowth in normal, intact mammary glands, epidermis and hair follicles.

16 Oct 2020

Researchers receive NCI grant to study role of collagens in breast cancer

An MUSC Hollings Cancer Center researcher received a $3 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to study how patterns of collagens can serve as biomarkers of breast cancer risk and potentially reveal clues to what might be driving health disparities.

1 Oct 2020

Cancer chemotherapy changes the function of cells that repair heart injury

Cancer chemotherapy changes the function of cells that repair heart injury, researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) discovered.

30 Sep 2020

Faulty genes and an autoimmune condition linked to severe COVID-19 in young, healthy people

More than 10 percent of young and healthy people who develop severe COVID-19 have misguided antibodies that attack not the virus, but the immune system itself, new research shows. Another 3.5 percent, at least, carry a specific kind of genetic mutation.

25 Sep 2020

MDI Biological Laboratory receives €280,000 to address the problem of tendon injury

Modern medicine has made tremendous strides in replacing organs and hips. But what about those all-important tendons, which enable joint movement by connecting muscle to bone? Tendon injuries, such as those in the knee, elbow, Achilles tendon and rotator cuff (shoulder) exact a huge cost in terms of health care, productivity and quality of life.

17 Sep 2020

Researchers develop 3D functional heart organoids from mouse embryonic stem cells

Heart development as it happens in vivo, or in a living organism, is a complex process that has traditionally been difficult to mimic in vitro, or in the laboratory.

16 Sep 2020

3D bioengineered model could reveal new treatments for deadly lung disease

A 3D bioengineered model of lung tissue built by University of Michigan researchers is poking holes in decades worth of flat, Petri dish observations into how the deadly disease pulmonary fibrosis progresses.

14 Sep 2020

New insights into how the brain can induce diabetes remission in rodents

In rodents with type 2 diabetes, a single surgical injection of a protein called fibroblast growth factor 1 can restore blood sugar levels to normal for weeks or months. Yet how this growth factor acts in the brain to generate this lasting benefit has been poorly understood.

7 Sep 2020

Brain estrogen critical for astrocyte activation and neuroprotection

When the brain isn't getting enough oxygen, estrogen produced by neurons in both males and females hyperactivates another brain cell type called astrocytes to step up their usual support and protect brain function.

1 Sep 2020

Researchers identify roles of matrix stiffness and mechanotransduction in cardiac reprogramming

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in humans. Worldwide, as the population ages, the burden of treating heart failure is increasing; opportunities for heart transplantation cannot keep pace.

31 Aug 2020

Two discoveries can lead to a new wave of more-complex organoid development

In back-to-back reports published Aug. 27, 2020, in Nature Communications, a team of scientists from Cincinnati Children's and Japan report discoveries that will be vital to a new wave of more-complex organoid development.

27 Aug 2020

New approach to combination drug design could be applied to disease therapies beyond diabetes

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have shown that the efficacy of a two-pronged type 2 diabetes treatment increases when the drugs are linked by a heat-sensitive tether rather than simply concurrently administered.

27 Aug 2020

Study could reveal brain cells and circuits that influence human health and metabolism in response to dietary changes

A new federally funded study could reveal the nervous system cells and circuits in our brains that influence our metabolism and health in response to dietary changes.

21 Aug 2020

New insights into how high-protein diet protects against fatty liver

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common chronic liver disease in the world, with sometimes life-threatening consequences.

18 Aug 2020

Powerful treatment for IPF stops dangerous scar formation in mouse lungs

A pre-clinical study led by scientists at Cincinnati Children's demonstrates that in mice the drug barasertib reverses the activation of fibroblasts that cause dangerous scar tissue to build up in the lungs of people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).

6 Aug 2020

Study shows how aging causes lung regeneration to go awry

Researchers at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA have identified the process by which stem cells in the airways of the lungs switch between two distinct phases -- creating more of themselves and producing mature airway cells -- to regenerate lung tissue after an injury.

28 Jul 2020

Study identifies toxicological risks of environmental pollutants in finless porpoises

A recent study just published in Environmental Science & Technology identified the toxicological risks of environmental pollutants to finless porpoises (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis).

20 Jul 2020

Two new studies highlight possible treatment options for patients with neuroendocrine tumors

Two new studies led by Renuka Iyer, MD, Section Chief for Gastrointestinal Oncology at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, highlight possible new treatment options for patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) -; a rare and hard-to-treat cancer.

14 Jul 2020