#How rabies hijacks neurons to attack brain Rabies causes acute inflammation of the brain, producing psychosis and violent aggression.
is always deadly for those unable to obtain vaccines in time. Some 55,000 people die from rabies every year.
For the first time, Tel aviv University scientists have discovered the exact mechanism this killer virus uses to efficiently enter the central nervous system,
where it erupts in a toxic explosion of symptoms. The study, published in PLOS Pathogens,
was conducted by Dr. Eran Perlson and Shani Gluska of TAU's Sackler Faculty of medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience,
"Rabies not only hijacks the nervous system's machinery, it also manipulates that machinery to move faster,
"We have shown that rabies enters a neuron in the peripheral nervous system by binding to a nerve growth factor receptor, responsible for the health of neurons, called p75.
and when disrupted it can lead to neurodegenerative diseases, "said Dr. Perlson.""Understanding how an organism such as rabies manipulates this machinery may help us in the future to either restore the process
or even to manipulate it to our own therapeutic needs.""Hijacking the hijacker"A tempting premise is to use this same machinery to introduce drugs or genes into the nervous system,"Dr. Perlson added.
By shedding light on how the virus hijacks the transport system in nerve cells to reach its target organ with maximal speed and efficiency,
the researchers hope their findings will allow scientists to control the neuronal transport machinery to treat rabies and other neurodegenerative diseases.
Disruptions of the neuron train system also contribute to neurodegenerative diseases, like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS.
because they have a large amount of crop pathogen. However this species has other subspecies that does not harm their host plants
Both research studies are about the same discovery made for two different viruses namely that viruses can convert their DNA to liquid form at the moment of infection.
Our results explain the mechanism behind herpes infection by showing how the DNA of the virus enters the cell said Alex Evilevitch a researcher in biochemistry and biophysics at Lund University and Carnegie mellon University.
Evilevitch hopes that the research findings will lead to a new type of medicine that targets the phase transition for virus DNA
which could then reduce the infection capability and limit the spread of the virus. A drug of this type affects the physical properties of the virus's DNA
in order to facilitate infection indicates that this could be a general mechanism found in many types of virus. In previous studies Alex Evilevitch
and his colleagues have succeeded in measuring the DNA pressure inside the virus that provides the driving force for infection.
and biotechnology to precisely manipulate small volumes of fluids for use in applications such as enzymatic or DNA analysis pathogen detection clinical diagnostic testing and synthetic chemistry.
#Artificial membranes on silicon Artificial membranes mimicking those found in living organisms have many potential applications ranging from detecting bacterial contaminants in food to toxic pollution in the environment to dangerous diseases in people.
because they offer the possibility of containing membrane proteins--biological molecules that could be used for detecting toxins diseases and many other biosensing applications.
--and cancer Scientists reveal the structure of one of the most important and complicated proteins in cell division--a fundamental process in life
and the development of cancer--in research published in Nature. Images of the gigantic protein in unprecedented detail will transform scientists'understanding of exactly how cells copy their chromosomes
A team from The Institute of Cancer Research London and the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular biology in Cambridge produced the first detailed images of the anaphase-promoting complex (APC/C). The APC/C
Discovering its structure could ultimately lead to new treatments for cancer which hijacks the normal process of cell division to make thousands of copies of harmful cancer cells.
In the study which was funded by Cancer Research UK the researchers reconstituted human APC/C
Dr David Barford who led the study as Professor of Molecular biology at The Institute of Cancer Research London before taking up a new position at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular biology in Cambridge said:
Professor Paul Workman Interim Chief executive of The Institute of Cancer Research London said: The fantastic insights into molecular structure provided by this study are a vivid illustration of the critical role played by fundamental cell biology in cancer research.
The new study is a major step forward in our understanding of cell division. When this process goes awry it is a critical difference that separates cancer cells from their healthy counterparts.
Understanding exactly how cancer cells divide inappropriately is crucial to the discovery of innovative cancer treatments to improve outcomes for cancer patients.
Dr Kat Arney Science Information Manager at Cancer Research UK said Figuring out how the fundamental molecular'nuts and bolts'of cells work is vital
The above story is provided based on materials by Cancer Research UK. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.
Using this EHPS approach to create the nanocrystalline spinel the NRL research team did not observe any decline in density or fracture resistance due to residual porosity.
but they have had all problems with the final product such as a reduced density reduced fracture resistance or reduced transparency.
which can reduce hardness fracture resistance and transparency. NRL's Wollmershauser notes that some theories suggest that fracture resistance should decrease
when you make a ceramic material nanocrystalline. However in their work the NRL researchers have shown that the fracture resistance does not change suggesting that nanocrystalline ceramics can have an equivalent toughness to microcrystalline ceramics
which is important for high window lifetimes. The Hall-Petch relationship has been used to describe the phenomenon where a material's strength
#Advantages, potential of computer-guided spinal surgery In a series of research studies Cedars-Sinai spinal surgeons show that a new method of computer-guided spine surgery is beneficial for spinal reconstruction
and for treating complex tumors and degenerative spine problems resulting in fewer complications and better outcomes for patients.
The Cedars-Sinai surgeons highlight the advantages of a spinal navigation technique that uses high-speed computerized tomography (CT) imaging to navigate in and around the spinal column from different angles.
They present their findings in six articles published in the current issue of Neurosurgical Focus an online peer-reviewed journal published by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.
It allows surgeons to more precisely and accurately place reconstruction screws in the narrow bony corridors of the spine avoiding nerves blood vessels and other critical structures.
and the need for follow-up surgeries they write. Computer-guided surgical navigation technology delivers on quality
and safety said J. Patrick Johnson MD a neurosurgery spine specialist and director of Spine Education and the Neurosurgery Spine Fellowship program in the Department of Neurosurgery.
It clearly improves outcomes in spine care. The computerized navigation system uses a mobile CT SCANNER to take cross-sectional images of the spine
while a patient is in surgery. The images are transferred to a computer which displays them on overhead monitors that allow precise tracking of surgical instruments as surgeons insert screws for reconstruction
and perform other complex procedures on the spine. Surgeons said the technique is superior to existing methods because of its precision and speed.
They point out that even small miscalculations with two-dimensional technology can cause problems that require follow-up operations
The Cedars-Sinai surgeons say they have cut these to nearly zero by using computer-guided methods.
The surgeons said the technology has others applications for treating spinal disorders serving as a tool to remove tumors decompress the spinal column
and perform minimally-invasive surgery. This approach represents a major leap forward for instrumented spine surgery said Terrence T. Kim MD an orthopedic spine surgeon in the Cedars-Sinai Spine Center and expert in the computer-guided navigation field.
We're looking at the future. Joining Drs. Johnson and Kim as study co-authors are Doniel Drazin MD a senior resident in the Department of Neurosurgery and Robert S. Pashman MD a clinical associate professor and orthopedic spine surgeon at the Cedars
-Sinai Spine Center. The group's studies accounted for six of 10 articles in the March issue of Neurological Focus.
A spokeswoman at the online journal said it is highly unusual for a single institution to publish a majority of articles in a single journal issue.
and computer-aided system used during minimally invasive surgery increased the accuracy of screw placement into vertebral pedicle bones.
and the mobile CT SCANNER allowed for more accurate surgical placement even within the narrowest parts of the thoracic spine particularly challenging regions in women
A third study determined that the image-guided technique can be useful for other minimally invasive procedures including thoracic endoscopic spine surgery to remove tumors infections
The final two articles offer an overview of computer-guided surgery of the spine including its use in revision
or redo spine surgeries that are often the most complex; and the potential future use of robotic spine surgery with computer navigation.
The special issue of the journal can be accessed at: http://thejns. org/toc/foc/36/3story Source:
The above story is provided based on materials by Cedars-Sinai Medical center. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length h
and treat human waste result in serious health problems and death--food and water tainted with pathogens from fecal matter results in the deaths of roughly 700000 children each year.
Linden's team is one of 16 around the world funded by the Gates Reinvent the Toilet Challenge since 2011.
and transferred to the fiber-optic cable system--similar in some ways to a data transmission line--can heat up the reaction chamber to over 600 degrees Fahrenheit to treat the waste material disinfect pathogens in both feces and urine and produce char.
#A plague of fleas: Tiny Eurasian exotic is upending watery ecosystems across the northern Great lakes The zooplankton never saw it coming.
Unfortunately that doesn't stop the odd Typhoid Mary. In some places along Highway 41 in Upper Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula every lake we tested with a boat ramp had Bythotrephes.
#Painting robot lends surgeons a hand in the operating room Would you let an artist perform lifesaving surgery on you?
and shapes a surgeon makes with a scalpel using a paintbrush and canvas. His invention a creative blend of art and science could one day lend doctors a hand in practicing complex robot-assisted surgeries without having to step foot in an operating room.
Rethinking roboticslee a sophomore who plans to major in chemistry spent his high school years building everything from a robot that can balance on a beam to a robotic arm that can throw a ball.
and that prompted the idea of robotic surgery. Lee said painting and surgery have more in common than initially meets the eye.
A painter has to be nimble and precise with his brushstrokes much like a surgeon must be nimble and precise with a scalpel.
When you are dissecting a part of the human body you have to be one hundred percent perfect he said.
With the support of a grant from the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URECA) Center Lee teamed up with Craig Hamilton an associate professor of biomedical engineering at Wake Forest Baptist Medical center
and shapes a surgeon makes with a scalpel all on its own he said. You can think of a painting canvas as a body and the brush as a surgeon's knife.
Practicing in a surgeon's studiocurrently surgical robots are controlled by a human operator and do not perform procedures autonomously.
While Lee's robot may never be put to work in an operating room it and other robots like it could one day help researchers to design fully autonomous robotic surgeons.
In addition to teaching the robot to paint autonomously Lee also explored the idea of using his robot as a training tool for surgeons who need practice operating a Da vinci surgical arm.
At the Wake Forest Medical center doctors use replica bodies to help train surgeons to use the Da vinci system Lee said.
These replicas are compared pretty expensive to my robotic arm which cost around $1500. This April Lee will represent Wake Forest at the ACC Meeting of the Minds an event where outstanding undergraduate researchers from each ACC university gather at one member university to present their research either verbally or as a poster.
#Cell-Squeezing Device Opens New Possibilities for Cell-Based Vaccines A newly published study details how researchers from MIT developed a new microfluidic cell-squeezing device, opening new possibilities for cell
-based vaccines. MIT researchers have shown that they can use a microfluidic cell-squeezing device to introduce specific antigens inside the immune system B cells,
providing a new approach to developing and implementing antigen-presenting cell vaccines. Such vaccines, created by reprogramming a patient own immune cells to fight invaders,
hold great promise for treating cancer and other diseases. However, several inefficiencies have limited their translation to the clinic
and only one therapy has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. While most of these vaccines are created with dendritic cells,
a class of antigen-presenting cells with broad functionality in the immune system, the researchers demonstrate in a study published in Scientific Reports that B cells can be engineered to serve as an alternative. e wanted to remove an important barrier in using B cells as an antigen-presenting cell population,
helping them complement or replace dendritic cells, says Gregory Szeto, a postdoc at MIT Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and the paper lead author.
Darrell Irvine a member of the Koch Institute and a professor of biological engineering and of materials sciences and engineering, is the paper senior author.
A new vaccine-preparation approachdendritic cells are the most naturally versatile antigen-presenting cells. In the body, they continuously sample antigens from potential invaders,
which they process and present on their cell surface. The cells then migrate to the spleen or the lymph nodes,
where they prime T cells to mount an attack against cells that are infected cancerous or, targeting the specific antigens that are ingested and presented.
Despite their critical role in the immune system dendritic cells have used drawbacks when for cell-based vaccines:
They have a short lifespan, they do not divide when activated, and they are relatively sparse in the bloodstream.
B cells are also antigen-presenting cells, but in contrast to dendritic cells, they can proliferate
when activated and are abundant in the bloodstream. However, their functionality is limited more: Whereas dendritic cells constantly sample antigens they encounter,
A b cell is programmed genetically only to bind to a specific antigen that matches the receptor on its surface.
As such, A b cell generally will not ingest and display an antigen if it does not match its receptor.
Using a microfluidic device, MIT researchers were able to overcome this genetically programmed barrier to antigen uptake by squeezing the B cells.
Through ellsqueeze, the device platform originally developed at MIT, the researchers pass a suspension of B cells and target antigen through tiny, parallel channels etched on a chip.
A positive-pressure system moves the suspension through these channels which gradually narrow, applying a gentle pressure to the B cells.
This queezeopens small, temporary holes in their membranes, allowing the target antigen to enter by diffusion.
This process effectively loads the cells with antigens to prime a response of CD8 or illert cells,
which can then kill cancer cells or other target cells. The researchers studied the squeezed B cells in culture
and found that they could expand antigen-specific T cells at least as well as existing methods using antibody-coated beads.
As proof of concept, the researchers then transferred squeezed B cells and antigen-specific T cells into mice
observing that the squeezed B cells could expand T cells in the spleen and in lymph nodes. The researchers also say that this is the first method that decouples antigen delivery from B-cell activation.
A b cell becomes activated when ingesting its antigen or when encountering a foreign stimulus that forces it to ingest nearby antigen.
This activation causes B cells to carry out very specific functions, which has limited options for B-cell-based vaccine programming.
Using Cellsqueeze circumvents this problem, and by being able to separately configure delivery and activation,
researchers have greater control over vaccine design. Gail Bishop a professor of microbiology at the University of Iowa Carver School of medicine and director of the school Center for Immunology and Immune-Based Diseases, says that this paper presents a reative new approach with considerable potential in the development
of antigen-presenting cell vaccines.?The antigen-presenting capabilities of B cells have often been underestimated, but they are being appreciated increasingly for their practical advantages in therapies,
says Bishop, who was involved not in this research. his new technical approach permits loading B cells effectively with virtually any antigen
and has the additional benefit of targeting the antigens to the CD8 T-cell presentation pathway, thus facilitating the activation of the killer T cells desired in many clinical applications. ain squeezearmon Sharei, now a visiting scientist at the Koch Institute,
developed Cellsqueeze while he was a graduate student in the laboratories of Klavs Jensen, the Warren K. Lewis Professor of Chemical engineering and a professor of materials science and engineering,
and Robert Langer, the David H. Koch Institute Professor and a member of the Koch Institute.
Sharei, Jensen, and Langer are also authors of this paper. In a separate study published last month in the journal PLOS ONE, Sharei and his colleagues first demonstrated that Cellsqueeze can deliver functional macromolecules into immune cells.
The platform has benefits over existing delivery methods, including electroporation and genetically engineered viruses, which are limited to delivering nucleic acids.
While nucleic acids can code a cell for a target antigen these indirect methods have drawbacks:
They have limited ability in coding for difficult-to-identify antigens, and using nucleic acids bears a risk for accidental genome editing.
These methods are also toxic, and can cause cell damage and death. By delivering proteins directly into cells with minimal toxicity,
Cellsqueeze avoids these shortcomings and, in this new study, demonstrates promise as a versatile platform for creating more effective cell-based vaccines. ur dream is to spawn out a whole class of therapies
which involve taking out your own cells, telling them what to do, and putting them back into your body to fight your disease,
whatever that may be, Sharei says. After developing Cellsqueeze at MIT, Sharei co-founded SQZ Biotech in 2013 to further develop
Future stepsthe researchers say they now plan to refine their B-cell-based vaccine to optimize distribution and function of the immune cells in the body.
A b-cell-based approach could also reduce the amount of patient blood required to prepare a vaccine.
patients receiving cell-based vaccines must have drawn blood over several hours each time a new dose must be prepared.
and cost required to engineer cell-based vaccines. e envision a future system, if we can take advantage of its microfluidic nature,
you could do it in your hospital or your doctor office. s the biology and technology become further refined,
the authors say that their approach could potentially be a more efficient, more effective, and less expensive method for developing cell-based therapies for patients. own the road,
you could potentially get enough cells from just a normal syringe-based blood draw, run it through a bedside device that has the antigen you want to vaccinate against,
and then you have the vaccine, Szeto says. This research was funded by the Kathy and Curt Marble Cancer Research Fund through the Koch Institute Frontier Research Program, the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of General medicine Sciences
and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Publication: Armon Sharei, et al. x Vivo Cytosolic Delivery of Functional Macromolecules to Immune Cells, PLOS One, 2015;
DOI: 10.1371/journal. pone. 0118803source: Kevin Leonardi, Koch Instituteimage: SQZ Biotec 8
#CCNE1 Gene Turns Back Cellular Clock Yale researchers have discovered a gene that turns back the cellular clock,
greatly aiding the reprogramming of mature cells. An exhaustive analysis of factors that allow mature cells to become like embryonic stem cells again has revealed a spliced form of a gene found only in primates that greatly aids the reprogramming of mature cells.
and one day develop customized cell therapies for individual patients. The Yale team used a new form of transciptome analysis that allowed them to more fully explore impact of all types of RNA on cell reprogramming.
releasing a bit of stress, and making it easier for a second atom to climb out of a trough
a discovery that could have therapeutic potential for diabetes, obesity, and other metabolic diseases. Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) scientists have found a way to both make more energy-burning human brown fat cells
and make the cells themselves more active, a discovery that could have therapeutic potential for diabetes, obesity,
and other metabolic diseases. Unlike energy-storing white, or ad, fat cells, oodbrown fat cells make a protein called UCP1 that converts energy stored in glucose
and fatty acids into heat to keep the body warm. When active brown fat cells can also use energy stored by white fat cells,
and at Harvard-affiliated Joslin Diabetes Center and led by HSCI principal faculty member Yu-Hua Tseng,
The research was published online today in the journal Nature Medicine. Tseng collaborated with HSCI Lee Rubin and researchers at the National institutes of health, the Joslin, Boston University, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital,
and Fudan University in China. Knowing which genes control UCP1 should help scientists develop therapies. e could take fat samples from patients undergoing liposuction
and we could purify this specific population of progenitor cells, keeping only those that would eventually make highly active brown fat cells,
Tseng hopes this technique could eventually replace invasive procedures such as liposuction and gastric bypass surgery.
Tseng believes cell therapy would be uch safer and much less invasive. ontrolling the genes might allow scientists to make mediocre brown fat cells work better.
This could potentially allow the brown fat cells to remove the high numbers of circulating glucose associated with type 2 diabetes
and circulating fatty acids and triglycerides that are the hallmark of metabolic syndrome. y further understanding how adipose cells become thermogenically active,
we may discover novel therapeutics for the treatment of obesity and metabolic disease, said Chad Cowan, an HSCI principal faculty member who, among other things,
also studies the therapeutic potential of brown fat cells. In 2014, Cowan identified two drugs with the potential to convert stem cells that make white fat into those that would make brown. his latest study gives us new tools and targets to use in the battle against obesity
Cowan said. Publication: Ruidan Xue, et al. lonal analyses and gene profiling identify genetic biomarkers of the thermogenic potential of human brown and white preadipocytes, Nature Medicine, 2015;
doi: 10.1038/nm. 3881source: Hannah Robbins, Harvard Gazetteimage: Tseng Laboratory, Joslin Diabetes Cente T
#Deriving Power Directly from Evaporation Eva, the first evaporation-powered car, rolls along, thanks to a moisture mill a turbine engine driven by water evaporating from wet paper strips lining its walls.
Eva is one of the many devices created to harness evaporation energy. Credit: Sahin Laboratory, Columbia University An immensely powerful yet invisible force pulls water from the earth to the top of the tallest redwood
While conventional lithium-ion batteries are composed of brittle electrodes that can crack under stress the new formulation produces battery cells that can be bent,
-or right-handed form may have a multitude of practical applications, potentially leading to new and improved drugs, diagnosis methods, and pesticides.
The breakthrough could be important in developing effective molecules for use in a wide range of industries everything from the development of safer new drugs and disease diagnosis to less toxic pesticides.
for instance the well-known malformation of the limbs of infants of pregnant women taking the Thalidomide drug to relieve morning sickness that occurred around 1960.
In addition to the development of effective new drugs and diagnosis methods for diseases including cancer, it could potentially lead to new reenpesticides using pheromones tailored specifically to attract pollinators
and trees when under stress and detectors to identify concentrations in air samples could be used to monitor our changing ecology.
Such devices could be used to diagnose diseases, especially skin conditions, or to detect environmental pollutants and food conditions,
or analyzing tissue samples for biomedical research and diagnostics. Replacing that bulky optical equipment with quantum dots allowed the MIT team to shrink spectrometers to about the size of a U s. quarter,
The new technique harnesses the regenerative capacity of stem cells to generate an immune response to the virus. The findings were published today in the journal Molecular Therapy. e hope this approach could one day allow HIV-positive individuals to reduce
and a member of the Broad Stem Cell Research center. e also think this approach could possibly be extended to other diseases.
and an associate professor of medicine in the division of hematology and oncology at the David Geffen School of medicine at UCLA. Kitchen and his colleagues were the first to report the use of an engineered molecule called a chimeric antigen receptor,
In a healthy immune system, T cells can usually rid the body of viral or bacterial infection.
which is a two-part receptor that recognizes an antigen, was engineered to be carried by T cells
As a result, HIV infection causes disease similar to that in humans. The researchers found that the CAR-carrying blood stem cells successfully turned into functional T cells that could kill HIV-infected cells in the mice.
The findings strongly suggest that stem cell-based gene therapy with a CAR may be a feasible and effective treatment for chronic HIV infection in humans.
This kills the T cells and weakens the immune system so much that the body can fight even a simple infection.
and millions more at risk of infection, do not have adequate access to prevention and treatment,
and there is still no practical cure, said Jerome Zack, professor of medicine and of microbiology,
immunology and molecular genetics in the UCLA David Geffen School of medicine and a co-author of the study. ith the CAR approach,
we aim to change that. Zack is co-director of the UCLA AIDS Institute and is affiliated with UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and a member of the Broad Stem Cell Research center.
Previous studies by Kitchen and Zack demonstrated similar results with other T cell receptors, although it is known that HIV could mutate away from those receptors.
The study first author was Anjie Zhen, a postdoctoral fellow at UCLA in the Division of Hematology/Oncology, the UCLA AIDS Institute and the Broad Stem Cell Research center.
IV-specific Immunity Derived From Chimeric Antigen Receptor-engineered Stem Cells, Molecular Therapy,(8 june 2015;
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