T Cell News and Research

Latest T Cell News and Research

Enteroviruses may play role in type 1 diabetes

A team of researchers from the Peninsula Medical School in the South West of England, the University of Brighton and the Department of Pathology at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, has found that a common family of viruses (enteroviruses) may play an important role in triggering the development of diabetes, particularly in children.

5 Mar 2009

Better understanding of how stem cells develop into blood cells

How messages sent within stem cells through a specific communication pathway can trigger the cells to specialize and become blood cells in humans, has been discovered by scientists of the McMaster Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute.

5 Mar 2009

Small magnetic particles navigate therapeutic genes through the body

Health professionals send genes and healthy cells on their way through the bloodstream so that they can, for example, repair tissue damage to arteries.

5 Mar 2009

Genetic mutations suggest link between type 1 diabetes and common viral infection

Scientists from Cambridge University have discovered four rare mutations of a gene associated with type 1 diabetes (T1D) that reduce the risk of developing the disease.

5 Mar 2009

Hendra and Nipah viruses shown to be susceptible to chloroquine

Two highly lethal viruses that have emerged in recent outbreaks are susceptible to chloroquine, an established drug used to prevent and treat malaria, according to a new basic science study by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in the Journal of Virology.

5 Mar 2009

Discovery of new gene that causes Leber congenital amaurosis and retinitis pigmentosa

The team of Dr. Robert Koenekoop which includes Dr. Irma Lopez from the Research Institute of the MUHC at the Montreal Children's Hospital played a crucial role in the international collaboration that led to the discovery of a new gene that causes Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP), two devastating forms of childhood blindness.

5 Mar 2009

Discovery of stem cells that repair injured muscles

A University of Colorado at Boulder research team has identified a type of skeletal muscle stem cell that contributes to the repair of damaged muscles in mice, which could have important implications in the treatment of injured, diseased or aging muscle tissue in humans, including the ravages of muscular dystrophy.

5 Mar 2009

Breakthrough produces Parkinson's patient-specific stem cells free of harmful reprogramming genes

Deploying a method that removes potentially cancer-causing genes, Whitehead Institute researchers have "reprogrammed" human skin cells from Parkinson's disease patients into an embryonic-stem-cell-like state.

5 Mar 2009

Brain tumor treatment may increase number of cancer stem-like cells

A new study suggests that the standard treatment for a common brain tumor increases the aggressiveness of surviving cancer cells, possibly leaving patients more vulnerable to tumor recurrence.

5 Mar 2009

Bottom up assembly of cells into 3-D microtissues

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory can now control how cells connect with one another in vitro and assemble themselves into three-dimensional, multicellular microtissues.

5 Mar 2009

Dermatologists find new application for technique used to treat spider veins

Recent advances in skin rejuvenation can take years off one's appearance by softening or erasing fine lines and wrinkles, plumping sunken cheeks and erasing sun spots and uneven pigmentation.

5 Mar 2009

New study using combination of bioengineered skin and stem cells shows promise in treatment of non-healing wounds

Scleroderma is an autoimmune disease that leads to thickening and severe scarring of skin as well as thickening and failure of internal organs, including the lungs, heart, kidneys and intestines.

5 Mar 2009

Stem cells could halt osteoporosis, promote bone growth

While interferon gamma sounds like an outer space weapon, it's actually a hormone produced by our own bodies, and it holds great promise to repair bones affected by osteoporosis.

4 Mar 2009

RNA World: a new frontier in biomedical research

Research into RNA, a molecule found in every cell of our bodies, could lead to remarkable advances in the treatment of diseases such as cancer and diabetes, a meeting organised by the European Science Foundation was told.

4 Mar 2009

Rituximab reduces kidney inflammation in patients with severe lupus nephritis

Treatment with the targeted drug rituximab can significantly benefit some patients with severe lupus nephritis who do not respond to conventional therapy, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN).

4 Mar 2009