macrophages tagged posts

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease characterized by nerve damage and consequent impairments in vision, movement, balance and mental function. In MS, the immune system mistakenly starts attacking myelin, the protective sheath that surrounds axons (i.e., nerve fibers) in the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves.

Macrophages, immune cells responsible for detecting damaged cells, germs or other debris in the central nervous system (CNS) and eliminating them, have been found to play a key role in MS...

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and AlveoliX have developed the first human lung-on-chip model using stem cells taken from only one person. These chips simulate breathing motions and lung disease in an individual, holding promise for testing treatments for infections like tuberculosis (TB) and delivering personalized medicine.

The research is published in the journal Science Advances.

Air sacs in the lungs called alveoli are the essential site of gas exchange and also an important barrier against inhaled viruses and bacteria that cause respiratory diseases like flu or TB.

Researchers have been working to recreate the battle between human cells and bacteria in the lab by building a lung-on-a-chip: small units of human lung on a plast...

AI uncovers how a severed bond between two gut proteins sparks Crohn’s disease, and how restoring it could heal inflammation. UC San Diego researchers combined artificial intelligence with molecular biology to unravel how immune cells in the gut decide between inflammation and healing, a process gone awry in Crohn’s disease...

Fat tissue, for as much as it’s been vilified, is an incredibly complex and essential bodily organ involved in energy storage and hormone production, among other functions. Yet, modern lifestyles have led to a worldwide epidemic of obesity, and a corresponding increase in related conditions like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Researchers are attempting to uncover the basics of how fat tissue is structured and, specifically, inflammation associated with obesity, in the hopes of unlocking the connection between the accumulation of fat and poor health outcomes.

A new study from Lindsey Muir, Ph.D., Ph.D...