Archive for December, 2009
Researchers Grow Skin Tissue in Preclinical Study
by andreas on Dec.02, 2009, under general research
Researchers from France and Spain have succeeded in growing complete human skin epidermis from skin-derived stem cells on laboratory mice. The finding could lead to the rapid production of one’s own skin patches for people with burns and other severe skin problems.
From the Lancet:
Background
Cell therapy for large burns is dependent upon autologous epidermis reconstructed in vitro. However, the effectiveness of current procedures is limited by the delay needed to culture the patient’s own keratinocytes. To assess whether the keratinocyte progeny of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) could be used to form a temporary skin substitute for use in patients awaiting autologous grafts, we investigated the cells’ capability of constructing a pluristratified epidermis.
Methods
hESCs from lines H9 and SA01 were seeded at least in triplicate on fibroblast feeder cells for 40 days in a medium supplemented with bone morphogenetic protein 4 and ascorbic acid. Molecular characterisation of cell differentiation was done throughout the process by quantitative PCR, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, and immunocytochemical techniques. Keratinocyte molecular differentiation and functional capacity to construct a human epidermis were assessed in vitro and in vivo.
What’s New in Plasma Medicine
by andreas on Dec.01, 2009, under general research
This introductory review on plasma health care is intended to provide the interested reader with a summary of the current status of this emerging field, its scope, and its broad interdisciplinary approach, ranging from plasma physics, chemistry and technology, to microbiology, biochemistry, biophysics, medicine and hygiene. Apart from the basic plasma processes and the restrictions and requirements set by international health standards, the review focuses on plasma interaction with prokaryotic cells (bacteria), eukaryotic cells (mammalian cells), cell membranes, DNA etc. In so doing, some of the unfamiliar terminology—an unavoidable by-product of interdisciplinary research—is covered and explained. Plasma health care may provide a fast and efficient new path for effective hospital (and other public buildings) hygiene—helping to prevent and contain diseases that are continuously gaining ground as resistance of pathogens to antibiotics grows. The delivery of medically active ’substances’ at the molecular or ionic level is another exciting topic of research through effects on cell walls (permeabilization), cell excitation (paracrine action) and the introduction of reactive species into cell cytoplasm. Electric fields, charging of surfaces, current flows etc can also affect tissue in a controlled way. The field is young and hopes are high. It is fitting to cover the beginnings in New Journal of Physics, since it is the physics (and non-equilibrium chemistry) of room temperature atmospheric pressure plasmas that have made this development of plasma health care possible.
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