Membrane Potential News and Research

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Synthetic compound derived from sea anemone toxin shows potential to treat obesity

Scientists at UC Irvine reported this week that a synthetic compound ShK-186, originally derived from a sea anemone toxin, has been found to enhance metabolic activity and shows potential as a treatment for obesity and insulin resistance.

28 May 2013

Novel infertility mechanism suggested in men with metabolic syndrome

Men diagnosed with the metabolic syndrome appear to have reduced fertility potential despite the absence of leucocytospermia, report researchers.

21 Jan 2013

Model-independent way to study ion channel gating

Two studies in The Journal of General Physiology (JGP) help pave the way for a "shortcut" model-free approach to studying activation of "polymodal" ion channels-channels that open in response to multiple stimuli. Transmembrane ion channels respond to various physiological stimuli to regulate numerous cellular functions. Different classes of channels respond to different types of stimuli; some channels, for instance, respond to changes in membrane potential whereas others are activated by ligand binding.

28 Dec 2012

Study shows how MCUR1 protein helps regulate movement of calcium into mitochondria

A team of scientists from Temple University School of Medicine and the University of Pennsylvania has moved another step closer to solving a decades-long mystery of how the all-important flow of calcium into the cell's power source, the mitochondria, is controlled.

26 Nov 2012

Heart cells starved of nutrients less likely to be damaged during ischemia, reperfusion

Heart cells starved of nutrients are less likely to be damaged during periods of decreased blood flow and sudden influxes of blood, known as ischemia and reperfusion, and are also less likely to get out of synch with their cellular neighbors, the damaging phenomenon called arrhythmia.

9 Apr 2012

Scientists investigate how rhythmic activity of nerve cells supports spatial navigation

Prof. Dr. Motoharu Yoshida and colleagues from Boston University investigated how the rhythmic activity of nerve cells supports spatial navigation.

16 Sep 2011

Discovery of a key protein’s role in cell clearance could impact future treatments of autoimmune diseases, obesity and atherosclerosis

The healthy human body is extremely efficient at cleaning house. Every day, we purge 100 to 200 billion dead or dying cells – a process called cell clearance, which is fundamental in our ability to maintain a healthy physiological balance and prevent a number of chronic diseases. Professional cleaning cells, called phagocytes, are responsible for ridding the body of dead, or ‘apoptotic,’ cells.

6 Sep 2011

Scientists analyze structural changes in calcium channels caused by Timothy-mutation

The human genome encodes 243 voltage-gated ion channels. Mutations in calcium channels can cause severe inherited diseases such as migraine, night blindness, autism spectrum disorders and Timothy syndrome, which leads to severe cardiovascular disorders.

15 Jul 2011

Study offers hints to why Parkinson's so selectively harms dopamine-producing cells

New data offer hints to why Parkinson's disease so selectively harms brain cells that produce the chemical dopamine, say researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

13 May 2011

Researchers create hiPS-RPE cells to treat age-related macular degeneration

The notion of transplanting adult stem cells to treat or even cure age-related macular degeneration has taken a significant step toward becoming a reality. In a study published today in Stem Cells, Georgetown University Medical Center researchers have demonstrated, for the first time, the ability to create retinal cells derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cells that mimic the eye cells that die and cause loss of sight.

24 Mar 2011

Single-wall carbon nanotubes targeted and killed cancer cells without harming the healthy cells

SouthWest NanoTechnologies’ (SWeNT) Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes (SWCNT) exhibit promising potential for use in biomedical treatments such as cancer photo thermal therapies, new research reveals.

8 Mar 2011

Novel bioelectric signals can cause stem cells to trigger melanoma-like growth in pigment cells

Biologists at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences have discovered that a change in membrane voltage in newly identified "instructor cells" can cause stem cells' descendants to trigger melanoma-like growth in pigment cells. The Tufts team also found that this metastatic transformation is due to changes in serotonin transport. The discovery could aid in the prevention and treatment of diseases like cancer and vitiligo as well as birth defects.

19 Oct 2010

Optical system for simultaneous imaging electrical and metabolic quantities in the heart

Cardiac rhythm disorders can result from disturbances in cardiac metabolism. These metabolic changes are tightly linked with specific cardiac electrophysiology (CEP) abnormalities, such as depressed excitability, impaired intra- and extracellular conductivities, wave propagation block, and alteration of conduction velocity, action potential amplitude, and duration.

24 Oct 2009

Chrysanthemum indicum extract holds promise for treating human cancer

A series of studies have demonstrated that Chrysanthemum indicum possesses antimicrobial, antiinflammatory, immunomodulatory, and neuroprotective effects. Recently, much attention has been devoted to the anticancer activity of Chrysanthemum indicum, especially in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, its anticancer mechanism of action is still not clear and needs further investigation.

19 Oct 2009

Researchers look at anti-tumor mechanisms of Scutellaria barbata

Medicinal plants have been used as traditional remedies for hundreds of years.

1 Jan 2009

New set of controls for stem cells discovered

Natural changes in voltage that occur across the membrane of adult human stem cells are a powerful controlling factor in the process by which these stem cells differentiate, according to research published by Tufts University scientists.

3 Dec 2008

Angina drug ranolazine potentially useful against heart rhythm disorders

A recently approved angina drug may also represent a powerful new treatment for a rare hereditary syndrome that places teens at risk for sudden cardiac death, according to research presented on April 1st at the 57th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) in Chicago.

9 Apr 2008

Angina drug ranolazine shows promise for heart rhythm disorders

A recently approved angina drug may also represent a powerful new treatment for a rare hereditary syndrome that places teens at risk for sudden cardiac death, according to research presented at the 57th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) in Chicago.

1 Apr 2008

New method found showing how nerve cells can selectively filter and transfer signals

Scientists from Gvttingen and Bochum find evidence for a new mechanism, with which our nerve cells are able to filter signals and transfer them selectively.

28 Apr 2006

New method allows heart beat triggers to be viewed and better understood

Researchers have developed unique chemical dyes that have made it possible to see what the naked eye has never seen before: action potentials, or voltage changes, of cardiac cells - including those deep inside the heart, which trigger and determine the pace of heartbeats.

25 Apr 2006