general research
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.
More from MedGadget.
Could A Contact Lens Save Your Vision?
by andreas on Nov.20, 2008, under general research
Soon contact lenses won’t just correct eyesight; they could save your vision.
By applying electrically conductive, antibiotic nanosilver particles to contact lenses, researchers at the University of California, Davis, can continuously map the pressure inside the eye while administering medication directly and painlessly into it.
The new lenses promise to advance understanding of diseases like glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness worldwide, and could save the eyesight of millions, say the researchers.
Scientists take a step closer to an elixir of youth
by andreas on Nov.20, 2008, under cardiology, general research
Crystal structure of HLA-A*2402 complexed with a telomerase peptide.
Researchers believe boosting the amount of a naturally forming enzyme in the body could prevent cells dying and so lead to extended, healthier, lifespans. The protein telomerase helps maintain the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes which act like the ends of shoelaces and stop them unravelling.
Researchers Sequence Woolly-Mammoth Genome
by admin on Nov.20, 2008, under general research
OK, so this is a little off topic, but it does show how far researchers have come in sequencing genomes. Scientists at Penn State reported the genome-wide sequence of the woolly mammoth, an extinct elephant species adapted to living in cold environments. In all, four billion DNA bases were sequenced.
Previous studies on extinct organisms have generated only small amounts of data,” explains Stephan C. Schuster, Penn State professor of biochemistry and molecular biology. “Our dataset is 100 times more extensive than any other published dataset for an extinct species, demonstrating that ancient DNA studies can be brought up to the same level as modern genome projects.”
“Only after the genome of the African elephant has been completed will we be able to make a final assessment about how much of the full woolly-mammoth genome we have sequenced,” Miller says.
The team sequenced the mammoth’s nuclear genome using DNA from the hairs of a mammoth body buried in the Siberian permafrost for 20,000 years and a second mammoth mummy that is at least 60,000 years old.
Source: http://www.physorg.com
