Cellular waste may supercharge immune cell function
The immune cells that protect us from infection and cancer seek out a wide array of fuel sources to power their function — including some long thought to be cellular waste products. The findings, published today in Cell Metabolism, lay the foundation for future personalized dietary recommendations designed to supercharge the immune system and augment […]
Circadian clocks play a key role in fat cell growth
Disruption of the circadian clocks that keep the body and its cells entrained to the 24-hour day-night cycle plays a critical role in weight gain, according to a pair of studies by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. One study, published June 27, in Cell Reports revealed that stress caused by chronically administering glucocorticoid stress hormones and […]
Colorectal cancer tumors both helped and hindered by T cells
Colorectal tumors are swarming with white blood cells, but whether these cells help or hinder the cancer is hotly debated. While some studies have shown that white blood cells heroically restrict tumor growth and combat colorectal cancer, equally compelling evidence casts the white blood cells as malignant co-conspirators — bolstering the tumor and helping it […]
‘Senolytic’ Therapy Shows Promise in Neovascular Eye Disease
NEW YORK CITY — An investigational drug targeting senescent cells achieved sustained improvement in visual acuity in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) or neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a small pilot study showed. After single doses of UBX1325, four of eight evaluable patients with advanced DME had at least 10 letters of improvement in […]
Molecule boosts fat burning: Study identifies a new signaling molecule that increases the energy consumption of brown fat cells
Normally, fat cells store energy. In brown fat cells, however, energy is dissipated as heat — brown fat thus serves as a biological heater. Most mammals therefore have this mechanism. In humans it keeps newborns warm, in human adults, brown fat activation positively correlates with cardio-metabolic health. “Nowadays, however, we’re toasty warm even in winter,” […]
Muscle biopsy test for biomarker could lead to earlier diagnosis of ALS
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive disease of the nervous system. It affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord called motor neurons. Motor neurons control muscle movement and ALS causes them to deteriorate and eventually die. The motor neurons lose the ability to send messages to the muscles in the body, affecting […]
New model helps identify mutations that drive cancer: The system rapidly scans the genome of cancer cells, could help researchers find targets for new drugs.
Cancer cells can have thousands of mutations in their DNA. However, only a handful of those actually drive the progression of cancer; the rest are just along for the ride. Distinguishing these harmful driver mutations from the neutral passengers could help researchers identify better drug targets. To boost those efforts, an MIT-led team has built […]
Fluorescence microscopy shows how living cells form vesicles to transport cargo like growth factors
Cells have a clever way to transport cargos like growth factors across the cell membrane and into the cell. It is called clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Molecules of the protein clathrin gather on the inside of the cell membrane, and they deform the membrane to make what looks like a pit as seen from the outside. After […]
Stress protein in fibroblasts may be a good target for future cancer drugs: ATF4 protein works in tumors and tumor-supporting fibroblasts to promote tumor survival
A stress protein that is overactive in many types of tumor cells also has a key role in tumor-supporting cells called fibroblasts, and may be a good target for future cancer treatments, suggests a study from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The researchers, whose findings appear in Nature […]
Immunotherapy may get a boost
T cells are usually very good at eliminating diseased cells. But they seem to fail when it comes to tumor cells. In JCI Insight, MDC teams led by Armin Rehm and Uta Höpken describe what inhibits this immune function, how they can release the brake and boost the immune response against cancer. T cells are […]