Nanotechnology developed at Rutgers University-New Brunswick could boost research on stem cell transplantation, which may help people with Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, other neurodegenerative diseases and central ...
Bio & Medicine
Aug 14, 2019
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364
Transcription factors control gene activation in cells. By binding to specific segments of DNA, they enable the blueprints that code for cellular proteins to be produced. But how are such factors themselves regulated?
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 30, 2019
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7
From a biological standpoint, the earliest stages of life are the most mysterious. A developing human embryo undergoes a flurry of rapid changes, and these changes are exceedingly difficult to study because they transpire ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 01, 2019
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0
It's no surprise that using human embryos for biological and medical research comes with many ethical concerns. Correct though it is to proceed with caution in these matters, the fact is that much science would benefit from ...
Biotechnology
Jun 27, 2019
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0
A pioneering new study led by Florida State University biologists could fundamentally change our understanding of how embryonic stem cells differentiate into specific cell types.
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 20, 2019
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1
ETH researchers have combined embryonic cells and liver cells in a new cell culture test. This combination lets them detect adverse effects that new medications may have on embryos early on in the drug development process.
Biochemistry
May 14, 2019
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6
In the last six years, a tool called CRISPR-Cas9 has transformed genetic research, allowing scientists to snip and edit DNA strands at precise locations like a pair of tiny scissors.
Biotechnology
Apr 08, 2019
2
557
Tissue engineering is a medical solution that uses living cells to repair or replace structural tissue, such as blood vessels, bone, cartilage, etc. Polymeric hydrogels, in both solid and liquid forms, are used as a delivery ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 26, 2019
0
5
Rice University scientists have found significant differences between the methods signaling pathways use to prompt cells to differentiate – that is, whether to become organs, bone, blood vessels, nerves or skin.
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 07, 2019
0
43
The union of an ovule and a spermatozoon initiates a complex cell division process that will ultimately yield a new living being. In fact, all the body's cells come from embryonic stem cells that must divide in a controlled ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 06, 2019
0
35
Embryonic stem cells (ES cells) are stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of an early stage embryo known as a blastocyst. Human embryos reach the blastocyst stage 4–5 days post fertilization, at which time they consist of 50–150 cells.
Embryonic Stem (ES) cells are pluripotent. This means they are able to differentiate into all derivatives of the three primary germ layers: ectoderm, endoderm, and mesoderm. These include each of the more than 220 cell types in the adult body. Pluripotency distinguishes ES cells from multipotent progenitor cells found in the adult; these only form a limited number of cell types. When given no stimuli for differentiation, (i.e. when grown in vitro), ES cells maintain pluripotency through multiple cell divisions. The presence of pluripotent adult stem cells remains a subject of scientific debate; however, research has demonstrated that pluripotent stem cells can be directly generated from adult fibroblast cultures.
Because of their plasticity and potentially unlimited capacity for self-renewal, ES cell therapies have been proposed for regenerative medicine and tissue replacement after injury or disease. However Diseases treated by these non-embryonic stem cells include a number of blood and immune-system related genetic diseases, cancers, and disorders; juvenile diabetes; Parkinson's; blindness and spinal cord injuries. Besides the ethical concerns of stem cell therapy (see stem cell controversy), there is a technical problem of graft-versus-host disease associated with allogeneic stem cell transplantation. However, these problems associated with histocompatibility may be solved using autologous donor adult stem cells or via therapeutic cloning.
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