http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (Phys.org)—At any given moment, millions of cells are on the move in the human body, typically on their way to aid in immune response, make repairs, or provide some other benefit to the structures around them. When the migration process goes wrong, however, the results can include tumor formation and metastatic cancer. Little has been known about how cell migration actually works, but now, with the help of some tiny worms, researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have gained new insight into this highly complex task. http://phys.org/news267345137.html Biology Thu, 20 Sep 2012 07:32:26 EST news267345137 (Phys.org)—A new model system of the cellular skeletons of living cells is akin to a mini-laboratory designed to explore how the cells' functional structures assemble. A paper about to be published in European Physical Journal E by physicist Volker Schaller and his colleagues from the Technical University Munich, Germany, presents one hypothesis concerning self-organisation. It hinges on the findings that a homogeneous protein network, once subjected to stresses generated by molecular motors, compacts into highly condensed fibres. http://phys.org/news267271788.html Physics Wed, 19 Sep 2012 11:09:56 EST news267271788 Ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) displays biological and mechanical properties that make it a promising choice for promoting epidermal cell migration on percutaneous implant surfaces. Percutaneous implants are commonly used for treatment of medical and dental conditions. Biocompatibility of the implant material plays a crucial role in preventing infections that cause premature failure. Recent studies have shown that microporous membranes can facilitate migration of epidermal cells, enabling the development of a seal that resists movement of fluid and microorganisms and therefore improving the implant life. http://phys.org/news258629036.html Nanotechnology Mon, 11 Jun 2012 10:26:58 EST news258629036 In a paper published today in the journal, Cell, a team from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has explained for the first time how a long-studied protein complex affects cell migration and how external cues affect cell's ability to migrate. http://phys.org/news249830105.html Biology Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:15:14 EST news249830105 (PhysOrg.com) -- Cancer cells must prepare for travel before invading new tissues, but new Cornell research has found a possible way to stop these cells from ever hitting the road. http://phys.org/news249115368.html Chemistry Wed, 22 Feb 2012 06:42:57 EST news249115368 A protein called "fascin" appears to play a critical transformation role in TGF beta mediated tumor metastasis, say researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., who published a study in a recent issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry. http://phys.org/news240065690.html Chemistry Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:55:01 EST news240065690 (PhysOrg.com) -- Avian embryos could join the list of model organisms used to study a specific type of cell migration called epiboly, thanks to the results of a study published this month in the journal Developmental Dynamics. The new study provides insights into the mechanisms of epiboly, a developmental process involving mass movement of cells as a sheet, which is linked with medical conditions that include wound healing and cancer. http://phys.org/news220114730.html Medicine & Health Wed, 23 Mar 2011 16:01:22 EST news220114730 For years, doctors have used platelet rich plasma (PRP) to promote healing in various surgeries, but a recent study demonstrates that a type of PRP did not improve healing after rotator cuff repair. The study, conducted by Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) investigators, will be presented at the upcoming American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM) 2011 Specialty Day meeting, held Feb. 19 in San Diego, Calif., following the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. http://phys.org/news217251774.html Medicine & Health Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:43:02 EST news217251774 By sticking a chemical group to it at a specific site, a protein arrests an enzyme that may worsen and spread cancer, an international research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports in the January issue of Nature Cell Biology. http://phys.org/news213279918.html Biology Mon, 03 Jan 2011 12:25:34 EST news213279918 University of Cincinnati (UC) researchers have found that applying a stem cell-infused patch together with overexpression of a specific cell instruction molecule promoted cell migration to damaged cardiac tissue following heart attack and resulted in improved function in animal models. http://phys.org/news209061491.html Medicine & Health Mon, 15 Nov 2010 17:30:09 EST news209061491 Two regulators of protein filament assembly use dramatically different -- and competing -- methods to inhibit a common target. http://phys.org/news203599584.html Biology Mon, 13 Sep 2010 12:26:37 EST news203599584 A newly discovered molecular mechanism helps control the amount and effectiveness of a substance that mimics an active ingredient in marijuana, but that is produced by the body's own nerve cells. http://phys.org/news200321879.html Medicine & Health Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:58:23 EST news200321879 Long before a baby can flash her first smile, sprout a first tooth or speak a first word, the neurons that will form her central nervous system must take their first, crucial steps. And these steps must be careful to take the right neurons to the right places and avert developmental disasters that could thwart those other baby firsts from ever coming to pass. Now new research promises a deeper understanding of how this essential form of cell migration occurs, finding a gene that works behind the scenes to control a closely related adhesion gene that helps keep young neurons on the right track. http://phys.org/news199468952.html Medicine & Health Tue, 27 Jul 2010 17:02:46 EST news199468952 (PhysOrg.com) -- The spread of cancer cells in the tongue may be reduced if a gene that regulates cancer cell migration can be controlled, according to new research at the University of Illinois at Chicago. http://phys.org/news199086172.html Medicine & Health Fri, 23 Jul 2010 07:30:01 EST news199086172 Showing movies in 3-D has produced a box-office bonanza in recent months. Could viewing cell behavior in three dimensions lead to important advances in cancer research? A new study led by Johns Hopkins University engineers indicates it may happen. Looking at cells in 3-D, the team members concluded, yields more accurate information that could help develop drugs to prevent cancer's spread. http://phys.org/news196355609.html Biology Mon, 21 Jun 2010 16:13:43 EST news196355609 A new study uses a sophisticated genomic analysis to unravel some of the complex cellular signals that drive the deadly invasive spread of lung cancer. The research, published by Cell Press in the June issue of the journal Cancer Cell, identifies specific molecules involved in the often fatal metastasis of a common type of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and uses this information to design effective therapeutic strategies. http://phys.org/news195736831.html Medicine & Health Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:10:01 EST news195736831 Several years ago, scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and other laboratories made a paradoxical discovery regarding the Akt molecular pathway, a popular target for cancer drug therapies. They discovered that while one Akt protein - Akt1 - was actively preventing cancer cells from spreading, another closely related family member - Akt2 - was actually promoting breast cancer cell migration. And, indeed, subsequent studies in mouse models of breast cancer revealed that blocking the Akt pathway resulted in enhanced metastasis to the lungs. http://phys.org/news192976550.html Medicine & Health Thu, 13 May 2010 13:36:15 EST news192976550 Rho proteins have been described as "molecular switches" and play a role in cell migration, cell proliferation, cell death, gene expression, and multiple other common cellular functions. http://phys.org/news190913482.html Biology Mon, 19 Apr 2010 16:31:51 EST news190913482 (PhysOrg.com) -- Like microscopic inchworms, cancer cells slink away from tumors to travel and settle elsewhere in the body. Now, researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College report in today’s online edition of the journal Nature that new anti-cancer agents break down the looping gait these cells use to migrate, stopping them in their tracks. http://phys.org/news190482866.html Medicine & Health Wed, 14 Apr 2010 17:30:01 EST news190482866 Research led by T. Cooper Woods, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, and Director of the Molecular Cardiology Research Laboratory at Ochsner Clinic Foundation, has identified the mechanism of how a drug commonly used on stents to prevent reclosure of coronary arteries, regulates cell movement which is critical to wound healing and the progression of diseases like cancer. The study is published in the April 16th issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry. http://phys.org/news190469972.html Chemistry Wed, 14 Apr 2010 14:00:08 EST news190469972 The molecular machinery that switches on a gene known to cause breast cancer to spread and invade other organs has been identified by an international team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. The paper was published Sunday in Nature Cell Biology's advanced online publication. http://phys.org/news190315225.html Biology Mon, 12 Apr 2010 18:21:18 EST news190315225 (PhysOrg.com) -- Suppose you could get immune cells to move just where you wanted them to in the body - to fight infection or kill a tumor? It may sound like science fiction or magic, but it's not. http://phys.org/news189183823.html Medicine & Health Tue, 30 Mar 2010 16:50:01 EST news189183823 (PhysOrg.com) -- When cells move about in the body, they follow a complex pattern similar to that which amoebae and bacteria use when searching for food, a team of Vanderbilt researchers have found. http://phys.org/news188067824.html Biology Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:05:49 EST news188067824 University of Chicago scientists have successfully used geometrically patterned surfaces to influence the development of stem cells. The new approach is a departure from that of many stem-cell biologists, who focus instead on uncovering the role of proteins in controlling the fate of stem cells. http://phys.org/news188059951.html Biology Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:52:47 EST news188059951 University of Adelaide researchers in Australia are finding new ways to block the movement of cells in the body which can cause autoimmune diseases and the spread of cancer. http://phys.org/news185021232.html Medicine & Health Wed, 10 Feb 2010 10:47:42 EST news185021232 Pancreatic cancer cell invasion along nerves is regulated by a paracrine pathway that involves glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor, which may be a possible target for preventing the invasion, according to a new study published online January 12 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. http://phys.org/news182582301.html Medicine & Health Wed, 13 Jan 2010 07:40:02 EST news182582301 Two signaling pathways essential to normal human development - the Wnt/Wingless (Wnt) and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathways - interact in ways that can promote tumor cell invasion and metastasis, researchers from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the Nov. 25 issue of Molecular Cell. http://phys.org/news178377136.html Medicine & Health Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:30:02 EST news178377136 Researchers at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research have discovered that reactive oxygen species, such as superoxide and hydrogen peroxide, play a key role in forming invadopodia, cellular protrusions implicated in cancer cell migration and tumor metastasis. Sara Courtneidge, Ph.D., professor and director of the Tumor Microenvironment Program at Burnham's NCI-designated Cancer Center, and colleagues have found that inhibiting reactive oxygen reduces invadopodia formation and limits cancer cell invasion. The study was published on September 15 in the journal Science Signaling. http://phys.org/news172313995.html Medicine & Health Wed, 16 Sep 2009 10:00:32 EST news172313995 A new study identifies a molecule that acts cooperatively with a well known oncoprotein to drive progression of noninvasive breast cancer to metastatic, life-threatening disease. The research findings, published by Cell Press in the September issue of the journal Cancer Cell, could have a significant impact on therapeutic decisions by facilitating identification of high risk patients. http://phys.org/news171633603.html Medicine & Health Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:00:41 EST news171633603 Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have found that the activity of a protein in brain cells helps stimulate the spread of an aggressive brain cancer called glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). In a move toward therapy, the researchers showed that a small designer protein can block this activity and reduce the spreading of GBM cells grown in the laboratory. http://phys.org/news169820163.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:50:03 EST news169820163