Lysosomes News and Research

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Studies using yeast genetics provide new insights into cell-division cycle

Studies using yeast genetics have provided new, fundamental insights into the cell-division cycle, researchers at the University of Michigan Life Sciences Institute report.

2 Sep 2015

Two proteins that help cells eliminate trash may contribute to development of Parkinson's disease

Two proteins that share the ability to help cells deal with their trash appear to need each other to do their jobs and when they don't connect, it appears to contribute to development of Parkinson's disease, scientists report.

21 Aug 2015

Study suggests potential target for treating familial form of ALS

A healthy motor neuron needs to transport its damaged components from the nerve-muscle connection all the way back to the cell body in the spinal cord. If it cannot, the defective components pile up and the cell becomes sick and dies. Researchers at the NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke have learned how a mutation in the gene for superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), which causes ALS, leads cells to accumulate damaged materials.

13 Aug 2015

Researchers reveal how certain lipids help adenoviruses to enter the cell

Adenoviruses cause numerous diseases, such as eye or respiratory infections, and they are widely used in gene therapy. Researchers from the University of Zurich have now discovered how these viruses penetrate the cells, a key step for infection and gene delivery. The cell unwillingly supports virus entry and infection by providing lipids that are normally used to repair damaged membranes.

10 Jul 2015

Nanoparticles packed with chemotherapy drug and coated with chitosan target cancer stem-like cells

Nanoparticles packed with a clinically used chemotherapy drug and coated with an oligosaccharide derived from the carapace of crustaceans might effectively target and kill cancer stem-like cells, according to a recent study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute.

1 Jul 2015

Scientists develop small molecule drug that prevents autophagy from starting in cancer cells

As a tumor grows, its cancerous cells ramp up an energy-harvesting process to support its hasty development. This process, called autophagy, is normally used by a cell to recycle damaged organelles and proteins, but is also co-opted by cancer cells to meet their increased energy and metabolic demands.

26 Jun 2015

Early neuronal lysosomal dysfunction could help predict AD

Blood levels of altered lysosomal proteins may help detect preclinical Alzheimer’s disease, researchers report.

12 Jun 2015

Specialized brain proteins may be detected in the blood samples of individuals with Alzheimer's disease

Specialized brain proteins that are involved in the removal of damaged nerve cell materials may be detected in the blood of people who were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment or dementia due to Alzheimer's disease.

11 Jun 2015

Duke researchers reveal how bladder cells can eject UTI-causing bacteria

Duke Medicine researchers have found that bladder cells have a highly effective way to combat E. coli bacteria that cause urinary tract infections (UTIs).

29 May 2015

Scientists identify molecular 'lock' that enables Ebola virus to gain entry to cells

An international team including scientists from Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases has identified the molecular "lock" that the deadly Ebola virus must pick to gain entry to cells.

27 May 2015

Case Western Reserve researchers find potential game-changer for triple-negative breast cancer

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University combined finely crafted nanoparticles with one of nature's potent disrupters to prevent the spread of triple-negative breast cancer in mouse models.

13 May 2015

Gene therapy is key to addressing Sanfilippo Syndrome, say Ohio scientists and clinicians

Gene therapy is the delivery of DNA into a patient's cells to replace faulty or missing genes—or adds new genes—in an attempt to cure cancer or make changes so the body is better able to fight off disease. Scientists and clinicians have identified a number of different ways to do this, in an effort to correct malfunctioning or mutated genes. Many gene therapy clinical trials are ongoing to assess the safety and potential benefits in patients with rare diseases.

8 May 2015

Deben reports on the work of the Microscopy & Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen

Deben reports on the work of the Microscopy & Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen where a newly installed TEM and camera system have enhanced the services provided to users.

5 May 2015

New fluorescent probes detect problems related to lysosomes

Lysosomes are the garbage disposals of animal cells. As the resources are limited in cells, organic materials are broken down and recycled a lot -- and that's what lysosomes do.

10 Apr 2015

Synageva announces submission of Kanuma application to Cofepris for treatment of LAL Deficiency

Synageva BioPharma Corp., a biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutic products for rare disorders, announced today the submission to the Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios in Mexico for Kanuma as a treatment for patients with lysosomal acid lipase deficiency (LAL Deficiency), a rare genetic disease with significant morbidity and early mortality.

30 Mar 2015

RAB3GAP complex plays important role in autophagy

Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease are typically characterized by protein deposits in the brain. These are comprised of defective, insoluble proteins which no longer fulfill their function and which cells are unable to break down. The work group headed by Professor Christian Behl of the Institute of Pathobiochemistry of the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz has determined the RAB3GAP complex as a novel factor that influences the efficient degradation of proteins.

12 Feb 2015

Scientists identify new cellular pathway affected in cystinosis

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have identified a new cellular pathway that is affected in cystinosis, a rare genetic disorder that can result in eye and kidney damage.

11 Feb 2015

Study links lysosomal dysfunction with neonatal intestinal disorders

Neonatal intestinal disorders that prevent infants from getting the nutrients they need may be caused by defects in the lysosomal system that occur before weaning, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study.

28 Jan 2015

Researchers explore how M6P deficiency affects different kinds of immune cells

A group of white blood cells known as B cells, which play a key role in the human immune response, need a protein-targeting signal called mannose 6-phosphate (M6P) in order to proliferate, differentiate, and present immune cell-activating antigens, according to a study in The Journal of Cell Biology.

20 Jan 2015

Abnormal attachment of sugar to BACE1 enzyme leads to formation of Aβ plaques in the brain

Researchers at the RIKEN-Max Planck Joint Research Center in Japan have demonstrated that hallmark symptoms of Alzheimer's disease can be reduced when sugars are prevented from binding to one of the key enzymes implicated in the disease. The new findings, reported in EMBO Molecular Medicine, show that abnormal attachment of a particular sugar to the enzyme BACE1 is a critical factor leading to the formation of Aβ plaques in the brain, and that plaques were reduced and cognitive performance improved when this action was prevented in mice through loss of the enzyme GnT-III.

17 Jan 2015