Fibroblast News and Research

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

Newly discovered molecule in the lymphatic system could play a role in autoimmune diseases

A study by investigators at Hospital for Special Surgery has discovered a molecule in the lymphatic system that has the potential to play a role in autoimmune disease.

22 Mar 2020

Research demonstrates control mechanism of force-induced cell-to-cell attachment

Using the amphibian Xenopus laevis as a model, Drs. Noriyuki Kinoshita and Naoto Ueno from the National Institute for Basic Biology, Japan and Dr. Ileana Cristea from Princeton University, USA have demonstrated that physical forces, such as centrifugal force, enhance cell-to-cell attachment and increase the stiffness of embryonic tissues as a result of force-induced cell shape change.

18 Mar 2020

'Primitive' stem cells shown to replace and repair damaged blood vessels in the retina

Johns Hopkins Medicine scientists say they have successfully turned back the biological hands of time, coaxing adult human cells in the laboratory to revert to a primitive state, and unlocking their potential to replace and repair damage to blood vessels in the retina caused by diabetes.

9 Mar 2020

New inhalation therapy could relieve lung fibrosis in mice and rats

A new study published in the journal Nature Communications in February 2020 shows that secretions from stem cells in the lung can be utilized to nebulize injured lungs due to several types of lung fibrosis in rats and mice. This could well result in the development of less invasive and more effective therapies for lung fibrosis.

1 Mar 2020

Aggressive cancers set up a structural framework to keep the immune system at bay

Aggressive colorectal cancers set up an interactive network of checkpoints to keep the immune system at bay, scientists report.

26 Feb 2020

Scientists create world’s first model of pituitary disease using human iPS cells

Researchers at Kobe University's Graduate School of Medicine have developed the world's first congenital pituitary hypoplasia model using patient-derived iPS cells.

14 Feb 2020

Study shows how treatment resistance develops in patients with bile duct cancer

A new study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute shows how resistance to a promising targeted drug develops in patients with a rare, lethal cancer of the bile ducts called cholangiocarcinoma.

14 Jan 2020

Study reveals cellular cross-talk between regulatory T cells and fibroblast cells in pancreatic cancer microenvironment

A multidisciplinary Michigan Medicine team is shedding new light on the role of regulatory T cells in pancreatic cancer -; and, in mouse models, have uncovered a new potential target to improve immunotherapy approaches to the deadly disease.

9 Jan 2020

Loss of stress hormone is a hallmark of pancreatitis, shows study

In work that could have clinical implications, UT Southwestern researchers find that humans and mice with pancreatitis are deficient in a stress hormone called FGF21.

9 Jan 2020

Pancreatic cancer cells release signal to suppress immune system's attack on tumors

A key immune signal has a previously unknown role in turning off the immune system's attack on pancreatic cancer cells, a new study finds.

8 Jan 2020

New radiotracer can provide insights into how the heart recovers after myocardial infarction

Insights into how the heart recovers after myocardial infarction (heart attack) can be obtained with a new radiotracer that targets fibroblast activity prior to it causing permanent damage.

2 Jan 2020

Penn State researchers receive CDC grant to study effects of coal dust on lung disease in miners

Penn State researchers in the John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering received a $400,000 grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to research coal dust in underground mines and its effect on lung disease in miners.

21 Dec 2019

Harvard scientists demonstrate possible strategy for achieving herpes virus control

The herpes simplex virus, commonly known as the cold sore virus, is a devious microbe.

12 Dec 2019

Common cold virus could infect fetus via placenta

According to researchers, the common cold viruses are capable of infecting human placental cells and may thus transmit the infection to the fetus in the womb during pregnancy. The new study was published in the journal PLOS ONE, and provides the first concrete proof that this type of carriage is possible.

3 Dec 2019

Research findings provide novel therapeutic space to induce scarless regenerative healing

Abnormal scarring is a serious threat resulting in non-healing chronic wounds or fibrosis. Scars form when fibroblasts, a type of cell of connective tissue, reach wounded skin and deposit plugs of extracellular matrix.

27 Nov 2019

Study shows how fiber spacing could control cell sticking

Researchers from the Mechanobiology Institute at the National University of Singapore have shown that cells can attach to the fibrous protein meshwork that surrounds them only if the fibers are spaced close enough.

26 Nov 2019

UAB study suggests potential treatment target for IPF

Long-held dogma says lung fibrosis in diseases like idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF, results from recurrent injury to alveolar epithelium that is followed by dysregulated repair.

12 Nov 2019

Study uncovers how cells 'forget their past' while developing into a specific cell

All cells in the body contain the same genetic material. The difference between cells therefore depends solely on which genes are expressed or ‘turned on’.

7 Nov 2019

Molecular gatekeepers that regulate calcium ions vital for muscle health and repair

Calcium ions are essential to how muscles work effectively, playing a starring role in how and when muscles contract, tap energy stores to keep working and self-repair damage.

31 Oct 2019

Genetic variations linked to declines in blood oxygen levels during sleep identified

Researchers have identified 57 genetic variations of a gene strongly associated with declines in blood oxygen levels during sleep. Low oxygen levels during sleep are a clinical indicator of the severity of sleep apnea, a disorder that increases the risk of heart disease, dementia, and death.

24 Oct 2019