Fibroblast News and Research

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

Researchers explore novel strategy to improve the reprogramming efficiency of human fibroblasts

Not too long ago the idea of taking, for instance a skin cell and transforming it into a muscle cell was unthinkable. About 10 years ago, however, revolutionary research showed that it is indeed possible to reprogram differentiated adult cells into other types fully capable of conducting new functions.

6 Jan 2022

Study finds all three proteins required for SARS-CoV-2 infection present in human glossopharyngeal and vagal nerves

Researchers explored the presence of coronavirus receptors in the glossopharyngeal and vagal cranial nerves.

6 Jan 2022

Study confirms coronavirus RNA synthesis occurs inside membrane-bound compartments

Researchers have experimentally proved that virus-related double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) and the sites of viral RNA synthesis are associated with one another.

22 Dec 2021

Identification of a candidate effector gene at COVID-19 risk locus

A new study focuses on developing a comprehensive platform to decode the effects of sequence variation identified by GWAS.

8 Nov 2021

Study pinpoints an entirely new approach for treatment of biliary atresia

Biliary atresia is the largest cause of end-stage liver fibrosis in children and the main reason children need liver transplants. Despite many years of worldwide research, scientists have not yet found a way to prevent the condition.

7 Sep 2021

Novel assay helps identify factors that can convert normal cells into liver cancer cells

Researchers at the University of Helsinki could show for the first time that normal human fibroblast cells can be converted to specific cancer cells using only factors that are commonly detected in actual human patients.

7 Sep 2021

Study highlights the robustness of miRNA modulation during aging process

Aging-US published "miRNAs generated from Meg3-Mirg locus are downregulated during aging" which reported that Aging determines a multilevel functional decline and increases the risk for cardiovascular pathologies.

28 Aug 2021

Research reveals clues to how a molecule improves appearance of surgery scars

Surgical scars treated with a molecule called alphaCT1 showed a long-term improvement in appearance when compared to control scars, according to multicenter, controlled Phase II clinical trials - a finding that could help surgeons improve patient outcomes.

20 Jul 2021

Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals cells that could protect from fatal lung disease

Single-cell RNA sequencing has revealed a subset of cells that could provide protection from a rare, but severely debilitating and fatal, lung disease.

16 Jul 2021

Specialized protein appears to regulate key step in cancer metastasis

Researchers have identified a specialized protein that appears to help prevent tumor cells from entering the bloodstream and spreading to other parts of the body.

12 Jul 2021

Molecular imaging can improve therapeutic management of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas

For patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDAC), molecular imaging can improve staging and clinical management of the disease, according to research published in the June issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

7 Jul 2021

Elevated levels of circulating proteins linked with protection against diabetic kidney disease

Elevated levels of three specific circulating proteins are associated with protection against kidney failure in diabetes, according to research from the Joslin Diabetes Center that will be published 30th June in Science Translational Medicine.

30 Jun 2021

Study details health risks, growth patterns, and treatment outcomes of people with achondroplasia

In a retrospective study believed to be one of the largest of its kind, researchers say they have successfully charted the health risks, growth patterns, and medical and surgical outcomes of 1,374 people with the most common form of dwarfism, called achondroplasia, seen over a 60-year period at four academic medical centers, including Johns Hopkins Medicine.

21 Jun 2021

PET radiotracer can noninvasively identify and monitor pulmonary fibrosis

Positron emission tomography (PET) using a 68Ga-labeled fibroblast activation protein inhibitor (FAPI) can noninvasively identify and monitor pulmonary fibrosis, according to research presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging 2021 Annual Meeting.

13 Jun 2021

Protein in prostate cancer may prevent tumor from spreading to the bone

Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer among men, according to the American Cancer Society. It's also one of the trickiest cancers to diagnose and treat.

9 Jun 2021

Researchers create cellular and spatial “atlas” of the choroid plexus during different life stages

Once viewed merely as a producer of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) bathing the brain and spinal cord, the choroid plexus is now known to be a key player in brain development and immunity.

7 Jun 2021

Cdkn1a transcript variant 2 is selectively elevated during natural aging across mouse tissues

Aging published "Cdkn1a transcript variant 2 is a marker of aging and cellular senescence" which reported that cellular senescence is a cell fate response characterized by a permanent cell cycle arrest driven primarily the by cell cycle inhibitor and tumor suppressor proteins p16Ink4a and p21Cip1/Waf1.

3 Jun 2021

Penn State researchers develop a way to study microenvironment of breast cancer in 3D

Cancerous tumors thrive on blood, extending their roots deep into the fabric of the tissue of their host. They alter the genetics of surrounding cells and evolve to avoid the protective attacks of immune cells.

4 May 2021

New study reveals mechanisms that result in lethal COVID-19

A new study is drawing the most detailed picture yet of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the lung, revealing mechanisms that result in lethal COVID-19, and may explain long-term complications and show how COVID-19 differs from other infectious diseases.

30 Apr 2021

Host protein mimicry of SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding motif

In a new study, structural bioinformatics approaches are employed to investigate the potential mimicry of the receptor-binding motif (RBM) of these three coronaviruses, finding that several proteins from both human and non-human sources were similar to each, with implications regarding the mechanism of infection and tropism of SARS-CoV-2.

29 Apr 2021