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    Category Biology/Biotechnology

    Compounds found in green tea and red wine may block formation of toxic metabolites

    July 3, 2018, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Green tea. Credit: © Kittiphan / Fotolia

    Green tea. Credit: © Kittiphan / Fotolia

    Discovery may pave the way for therapies to treat inborn congenital metabolic disorders. A new Tel Aviv University study suggests there is hope of treating certain inborn congenital metabolic diseases – a hope found in green tea and in red wine. Most people with inherited metabolic disorders are born with a defective gene that results in a critical enzyme deficiency. In the absence of a cure, many patients with inborn congenital metabolic disorders must adhere to a strict and demanding diet their entire lives. This new research finds that certain compounds found naturally in green tea and red wine may block the formation of toxic metabolites.
     
    The researchers considered two compounds: epigallocatechin gallate, known as EGCG, found n...
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    Eat ’em up: Next-Generation Therapeutic helps Immune cells Detect, Destroy Cancer

    July 3, 2018, Categories  Biology/Biotechnology, Health/Medical

    Design of a TAM-targeting supramolecular therapeutic.

    Design of a TAM-targeting supramolecular therapeutic.

    Supramolecule provides a double whammy to knock out cancer’s ‘eat-me-not’ signaling, keep macrophages on the attack. Researchers have found that cancer cells evade destruction by macrophages in 2 ways – by converting cells to become docile, M2 macrophages, and by sending out an ‘eat me not’ signal that tricks M1 macrophages into letting them be. Investigators have developed a therapeutic that delivers a double whammy to knock out both mechanisms.

    Macrophages play a paradoxical role, with M1 macrophages rousing the immune system to action and M2 macrophages quelling inflammation...

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    Scientists found means to Inhibit Capillary Leakage in Sepsis

    July 1, 2018, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Leakage of the vascular tracer (red) from dermal blood vessels (green) in systemic inflammation. Credit: Laura Hakanpaa / Saharinen Lab.

    Leakage of the vascular tracer (red) from dermal blood vessels (green) in systemic inflammation.
    Credit: Laura Hakanpaa / Saharinen Lab.

    Increased capillary permeability and subsequent leakage from the capillaries is associated with numerous difficult-to-cure diseases, including acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), severe Dengue fever and malaria, and sepsis. Currently, there is no effective therapy to inhibit capillary leakage and to maintain vessel stability in these diseases. The latest research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences indicates that a monoclonal antibody targeted against β1-integrin inhibits vascular leakage in a mouse model of sepsis.

    Integrins are heterodimeric cell surface receptors that mediate interactions between cells and the surro...

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    Researchers develop Synthetic T cells that Mimic Form and Function of Human Version

    June 29, 2018, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    UCLA scientists developed artificial T cells that, like natural T cells, can deform to squeeze between tiny gaps in the body, as shown in this schematic. Credit: Fatemeh Majedi

    UCLA scientists developed artificial T cells that, like natural T cells, can deform to squeeze between tiny gaps in the body, as shown in this schematic.
    Credit: Fatemeh Majedi

    Discovery could be a step toward developing treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases. UCLA researchers have developed synthetic T lymphocytes, or T cells, that are near-perfect facsimiles of human T cells. The ability to create the artificial cells could be a key step toward more effective drugs to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases and could lead to a better understanding of human immune cells’ behavior. Such cells also could eventually be used to boost the immune system of people with cancer or immune deficiencies.

    The research team comprised scientists from the UCLA School of Dentistry, the UCLA Samueli Sch...

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