Category Biology/Biotechnology

Schematic representation of the contribution of soluble ADAM33 (sADAM33) as a local tissue susceptibility gene in asthma pathobiology.

A potential novel way of preventing asthma at the origin of the disease has been found, a finding that could challenge the current understanding of the condition. Insight, analysed the impact of the gene ADAM33, which is associated with the development of asthma. ADAM33 makes an enzyme, which is attached to cells in the airway muscles. When the enzyme loses its anchor to the cell surface, it is prone to going rogue around the lung causing poorer lung function in people who have asthma.

The studies in human tissue samples and mice, led by A/Prof Hans Michel Haitchi suggests that if you inhibit ADAM33 or prevent it from going rouge, the features of asthma – a...

This is an overview of designing and building a custom lab instrument using the Multifluidic Evolutionary Component (MEC) system created at UC Riverside. Credit: UC Riverside

Uni of CA, Riverside researchers have created a Lego-like system of blocks that enables users to custom make chemical and biological research instruments quickly, easily and affordably. The system of 3D-printed blocks can be used in university labs, schools, hospitals, and anywhere there is a need to create scientific tools.

Each block, called Multifluidic Evolutionary Components (MECs) because of their flexibility and adaptability, performs a basic task found in a lab instrument, like pumping fluids, making measurements or interfacing with a user...

Primary hippocampal neurons from mice express G2019S-LRRK2. The neurons were treated with alpha-synuclein fibrils, and 18 days later immunofluorescence was performed. The magenta shows phospho-alpha-synuclein inclusions in the cell bodies and throughout the axons, which are visualized as green. Credit: UAB

A team has shown the most common genetic cause of Parkinson’s disease – a mutant LRRK2 kinase enzyme – contributes to the formation of inclusions in neurons, resembling one of the hallmark pathologies seen in Parkinson’s disease. These inclusions are made up of aggregated alpha synuclein protein, which – the research also shows – can be prevented from forming by using 2 LRRK2 kinase inhibitor drugs now being developed for clinical use.

The interaction between mutant LRRK2 kinase and alph...

The synapses of pyramid cells in the cerebral cortex form functional groups. Some of the related synapses are shown in green in the reconstruction. Credit: MPI of Neurobiology / Scheuss

The contact points of cells in the cerebral cortex form functional groups. The cerebral cortex resembles a vast switchboard. Countless lines carrying information about the environment, for example from the sensory organs, converge in the cerebral cortex. In order to direct the flow of data into meaningful pathways, the individual pyramidal cells of the cerebral cortex act like miniature switchboard operators. Each cell receives information from several thousand lines. Scientists have shown for the first time that synapses between specific neuron types are clustered in groups on the target neuron...