Petri Dish News and Research

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Research work holds promise for biological substitute for dental implants

A technique pioneered in the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Laboratory of Dr. Jeremy Mao, the Edward V. Zegarelli Professor of Dental Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center, can orchestrate stem cells to migrate to a three-dimensional scaffold infused with growth factor, holding the translational potential to yield an anatomically correct tooth in as soon as nine weeks once implanted.

24 May 2010

JCVI researchers construct first self-replicating, synthetic bacterial cell

Researchers at the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), a not-for-profit genomic research organization, published results today describing the successful construction of the first self-replicating, synthetic bacterial cell. The team synthesized the 1.08 million base pair chromosome of a modified Mycoplasma mycoides genome.

21 May 2010

Stanford researchers make hair-cell-like cells in a petri dish

Deep inside the ear, specialized cells called hair cells detect vibrations in the air and translate them into sound. Ten years ago, Stefan Heller, PhD, professor of otolaryngology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, came up with the idea that if you could create these cells in the laboratory from stem cells, it would go a long way toward helping scientists understand the molecular basis of hearing in order to develop better treatments for deafness.

14 May 2010

Neuroscientists show how individual neurons carry significant aspects of sensory processing

Pioneering a novel microscopy method, neuroscientist Arthur Konnerth and colleagues from the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) have shown that individual neurons carry out significant aspects of sensory processing: specifically, in this case, determining which direction an object in the field of view is moving.

7 May 2010

Tel Aviv researchers develop microscope-based cell scanner to speed research into fat-busting drugs

Anglers rely on fish finders to help them locate the big catch. Now Tel Aviv University researchers in tissue engineering have developed a "fat finder" that can help scientists accelerate their research into new fat-melting drugs.

7 May 2010

High doses of antioxidant nutritional supplements may predispose cells to develop cancer

High doses of antioxidant nutritional supplements, such as vitamins C and E, can increase genetic abnormalities in cells, which may predispose supplement-takers to developing cancer, according to a new study from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute.

5 May 2010

Team liberates cellular hostages by silencing Toxoplasma gondii's back-seat driving

Scientists studying a cunning parasite that has commandeered the cells of almost half the world's human population have begun to zero in on the molecular signals that must be severed to free the organism's cellular hostages.

23 Apr 2010

Nationwide Phase III clinical trial of OncoVEX for advanced melanoma

Rush University Medical Center is leading a nationwide Phase III clinical trial to determine whether a promising vaccine for advanced melanoma can effectively treat the deadly skin cancer.

7 Apr 2010

Bergen research group adopts nanotechnology for cancer research

Professor James Lorens and his team at the University of Bergen's Department of Biomedicine are using nanotechnology to study how to make cells form new blood vessels, both within the patient's body and in the laboratory. In the next phase the team will use this knowledge to investigate the molecular mechanisms that govern the progression of cancer.

24 Mar 2010

Novel ways of killing TB causing bacteria discovered

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found two novel ways of killing the bacteria that cause tuberculosis (TB), a disease responsible for an estimated two million deaths each year. The findings, published in the March 21 online issue of Nature Chemical Biology, could lead to a potent TB therapy that would also prevent resistant TB strains from developing.

22 Mar 2010

Houston scientists unveil new technique for growing 3-D cell cultures

The film "Avatar" isn't the only 3-D blockbuster making a splash this winter. A team of Houston scientists this week unveiled a new technique for growing 3-D cell cultures, a technological leap from the flat petri dish that could save millions of dollars in drug-testing costs. The research is reported in Nature Nanotechnology.

16 Mar 2010

New method to better study prostate cancer

Van Andel Research Institute researchers have developed a new method to better study the cells that line and protect the prostate in relation to the development of cancer. Using the model, they found that normal cells and cancer cells depend on different factors to survive, which could aid in discovering how to target cancer cells without affecting normal cells when developing treatments.

12 Mar 2010

Scientists explore household bacteria to produce top-quality cheese

The Norwegian dairy company TINE is now planning an in-depth study that will find out whether household bacteria can be used for their own sake.

4 Mar 2010

Study of complement reaction can help eliminate reperfusion injuries

Researchers have teased out the molecular process that can shut down a marauding, often deadly immune response that kills thousands each year who suffer battlefield casualties, heart attacks, strokes, automobile accidents and oxygen deprivation, according to an article published in the January edition of Molecular Immunology.

10 Feb 2010

New 3D scaffold for stem cell renewal

Medical researchers were shocked to discover that virtually all human embryonic stem cell lines being used in 2005 were contaminated. Animal byproducts used to line Petri dishes had left traces on the human cells. If those cells had been implanted in a human body they likely would have been rejected by the patient's immune system.

3 Feb 2010

Structure and activities to drive growth and profitability during pharmaceutical new product planning

With the prospect of health-care reform still looming, pharmaceutical and biotech companies face tremendous pressure to keep the costs of their products down.

30 Jan 2010

Mouse sperm can discriminate between its brethren and competing sperm, says study

Some mouse sperm can discriminate between its brethren and competing sperm from other males, clustering with its closest relatives to swim faster in the race to the egg. But this sort of cooperation appears to be present only in certain promiscuous species, where it affords an individual's sperm a competitive advantage over that of other males.

21 Jan 2010

Cordyceps mushroom extract for cancer treatment

A promising cancer drug, first discovered in a mushroom commonly used in Chinese medicine, could be made more effective thanks to researchers who have discovered how the drug works. The research is funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and was carried out at The University of Nottingham.

23 Dec 2009

Lab chip capable of growing cardiac tissue produced by biomedical engineers

Johns Hopkins biomedical engineers, working with colleagues in Korea, have produced a laboratory chip with nanoscopic grooves and ridges capable of growing cardiac tissue that more closely resembles natural heart muscle.

16 Dec 2009

Dermal stem cells may be useful for treating diabetic ulcers and neurological disorders

Scientists have discovered a new type of stem cell in the skin that acts surprisingly like certain stem cells found in embryos: both can generate fat, bone, cartilage, and even nerve cells.

10 Dec 2009