Red Blood Cells News and Research

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Stem cells - the answer to autoimmune diseases and cancer in the future

Stem cells are multipotent cells of the immune system. Scientists hope to use them for curing autoimmune diseases, cancer and innate genetic defects in the future.

16 Sep 2009

Disruption of the spectrin-actin network leads to lens cell in the eye to lose their shape: Study

A network of proteins underlying the plasma membrane keeps epithelial cells in shape and maintains their orderly hexagonal packing in the mouse lens, say Nowak et al. The study will appear in the September 21, 2009 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology (online September 14).

15 Sep 2009

Development of noninvasive imaging and treatment of the heart chronicled in a new article

Fifty-one years ago the average American home cost $30,000, Elvis Presley wooed listeners with Hard Headed Woman, and the hula hoop was introduced. That same year, 1958, a team comprised of a groundbreaking engineer -- Dean Franklin -- in concert with two exceptional physicians -- Drs. Robert Rushmer and Robert Van Citters - was laying the foundation for what would eventually become a radical new approach to health care: the noninvasive imaging and treatment of the heart.

15 Sep 2009

Blood collection professionals honored as part of the 5th Annual Blood Collectors Week

Blood collection professionals will be recognized in communities worldwide September 13-19, 2009, as part of the 5th Annual Blood Collectors Week, sponsored jointly by Fenwal, Inc. and AABB (formerly known as the American Association of Blood Banks). During the week, blood centers across the country will host celebrations, often with local government officials, to recognize their staffs and donors.

11 Sep 2009

Improving childhood immunization campaigns could reduce sickle-cell deaths in Africa, Study finds

By offering all children in Africa vaccines that protect against bacterial infections, researchers say the number of deaths among children living with sickle-cell anemia could be reduced, Reuters reports. An estimated 200,000 children in Africa annually are born with sickle-cell anemia, a genetic disease "in which red blood cells deform into a sickle shape and cluster, blocking blood flow and causing pain, vulnerability to infections and organ damage."

10 Sep 2009

Acceleron's Phase 1 trial of ACE-031 reveals its potential in treating neuromuscular diseases

Acceleron Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics that modulate the growth of cells and tissues including red blood cells, bone, and muscle, today announced preliminary results from the ACE-031 Phase 1 single dose clinical trial demonstrating that ACE-031 increased lean body mass and muscle volume. The results from this randomized, placebo-controlled study were presented at the 14th International Congress of the World Muscle Society in Geneva, Switzerland.

10 Sep 2009

Molecularly targeted nanocarriers deliver the cytolytic peptide melittin specifically to tumor cells in mice, reducing tumor growth

When bees sting, they pump into their victims a peptide toxin called melittin that destroys cell membranes. Now, by encapsulating this extremely potent molecule within a nanoparticle, researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have created a potential new type of anticancer therapy with the potential to target a wide range of tumors. This work was reported in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

7 Sep 2009

Olympic gold medalist Shannon Miller to campaign for Stemcyte

StemCyte, Inc., one of the world's preeminent cord blood banks, today announced that Shannon Miller, a 7-time Olympic Medalist and 9-time World Medalist, has signed an endorsement partnership agreement and will appear in a series of advertising and public awareness campaigns for the company.

5 Sep 2009

BF STEM tomography allows to visualize fine details of cell structure

Scientists in the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) Laboratory of Bioengineering and Physical Science have developed a new technique that allows researchers to visualize fine details of cell structure three-dimensionally in thick sections, thus providing greater insight into how cells are organized and how they function. The work is described in a report published online this week in Nature Methods.

4 Sep 2009

Study identifies key compound that quickens recovery from life-threatening blood cell shortages

A key compound resupplies bone marrow with fast-acting stem cells that can more quickly rekindle blood cell production, according to a study published online today in the journal Blood. While the study was in mice, in the study authors say it has the potential to increase survival among patients with life-threatening blood cell shortages.

3 Sep 2009

Phase 1 single dose clinical trial of Acceleron Pharma's ACE-031 increases lean body mass

Acceleron Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics that modulate the growth of cells and tissues including red blood cells, bone, and muscle, today announced preliminary results from the ACE-031 Phase 1 single dose clinical trial indicating that ACE-031 was safe and well-tolerated at all dose levels and increased lean body mass.

2 Sep 2009

Daxor's signed trial agreement with Pacific Cardiology to provide the BVA-100 instrument

Daxor Corporation, a medical instrumentation and biotechnology company, today announced the receipt of a signed trial agreement from Pacific Cardiology, LLC of Honolulu, Hawaii. This will provide Pacific Cardiology with a Blood Volume Analyzer-100 (BVA-100), an instrument which enables semi-automated measurement of a patient's total blood volume, red blood cell volume and plasma volume.

1 Sep 2009

Study reveals high levels of ergothioneine in RBCs of women with pre-eclampsia

A chemical compound found in unpasteurised food has been detected in unusually high levels in the red blood cells of pregnant women with the condition pre-eclampsia.

26 Aug 2009

University of Southampton develops a microfluidic single-cell impedance cytometer for blood cell analysis

A hand-held device which could offer point-of-care blood cell analysis in doctors' surgeries is being developed by academics at the University of Southampton and is described in a paper in Lab on a Chip this month.

25 Aug 2009

Consumer-friendly "finger stick" blood test to detect cardiovascular disease is broadly available now

A new blood test, measuring the level of omega-3 fatty acids in red blood cells, is now broadly available for the first time to the public everywhere as a consumer-friendly, at-home "finger stick" test. While scientists have long known of the benefits of fish and fish oil for overall heart health, over the past decade research has proven that the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish dramatically reduce one's risk for cardiovascular disease. Further, recent research indicates that omega-3 levels may be among the best predictors of future coronary heart disease - providing much stronger correlations to the risk of sudden cardiac death than traditional indicators, including HDL and LDL cholesterol.

20 Aug 2009

Massage therapy eases sickle cell disease pain in children

Massage offers both physical and psychological benefits and is used at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in many areas including Rehabilitation, Physical Medicine and in patients who have received organ transplants, just to name a few. Researchers at Nationwide Children’s recently published a study in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology that revealed the benefits of massage in reducing pain, anxiety and depression in children with Sickle Cell Disease.

12 Aug 2009

Research on blood transfusions points to a potential risk of transfusing donated platelets

Doctors have noticed a pattern in performing bone marrow transplants as a cure for diseases involving bone marrow failure: more transfusions before a bone marrow transplant correlates with a higher likelihood of rejection, says James Zimring, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at Emory University School of Medicine.

12 Aug 2009

New treatment for oxygen-starved newborns

Until now immediate cooling of the newborn infant was the only treatment that could possibly prevent brain damage following oxygen deprivation during delivery. New research findings from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden, in collaboration with Zhengzhou University in China, open up the possibility of a new and effective treatment that can be started as late as two days after birth.

12 Aug 2009

'Nanobee' drug delivery to tumors

When bees sting, they pump poison into their victims. Now the toxin in bee venom has been harnessed to kill tumor cells by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The researchers attached the major component of bee venom to nano-sized spheres that they call nanobees.

11 Aug 2009

Soliris (Eculizumab) granted orphan drug designation in Europe and U.S. for atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced today that Soliris® (eculizumab), its first-in-class complement inhibitor, has been granted Orphan Medicinal Product Designation by the European Commission for the treatment of patients with atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (aHUS). AHUS is an ultra-rare, inherited, and life-threatening complement-inhibitor deficiency disease that often progresses to end-stage kidney disease or failure. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted orphan drug designation to Soliris for the same indication in May 2009. Soliris is not approved for the treatment of patients with aHUS.

6 Aug 2009

Red Blood Cells News and Research

Stem cells - the answer to autoimmune diseases and cancer in the future

Disruption of the spectrin-actin network leads to lens cell in the eye to lose their shape: Study

Development of noninvasive imaging and treatment of the heart chronicled in a new article

Blood collection professionals honored as part of the 5th Annual Blood Collectors Week

Improving childhood immunization campaigns could reduce sickle-cell deaths in Africa, Study finds

Acceleron's Phase 1 trial of ACE-031 reveals its potential in treating neuromuscular diseases

Molecularly targeted nanocarriers deliver the cytolytic peptide melittin specifically to tumor cells in mice, reducing tumor growth

Olympic gold medalist Shannon Miller to campaign for Stemcyte

BF STEM tomography allows to visualize fine details of cell structure

Study identifies key compound that quickens recovery from life-threatening blood cell shortages

Phase 1 single dose clinical trial of Acceleron Pharma's ACE-031 increases lean body mass

Daxor's signed trial agreement with Pacific Cardiology to provide the BVA-100 instrument

Study reveals high levels of ergothioneine in RBCs of women with pre-eclampsia

University of Southampton develops a microfluidic single-cell impedance cytometer for blood cell analysis

Consumer-friendly "finger stick" blood test to detect cardiovascular disease is broadly available now

Massage therapy eases sickle cell disease pain in children

Research on blood transfusions points to a potential risk of transfusing donated platelets

New treatment for oxygen-starved newborns

'Nanobee' drug delivery to tumors

Soliris (Eculizumab) granted orphan drug designation in Europe and U.S. for atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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