Harvard scientists identify compounds that stimulate stem cell growth in the brainSeptember 01, 2006BETHESDA, Md.-Scientists at Harvard University have identified key compounds that stimulate stem cell growth in the brain, which may one day lead to restored function for people affected by Parkinson's disease, strokes, multiple sclerosis, and a wide range of neurological disorders. These findings, which appear in the September 2006 issue of The FASEB Journal, provide important clues as to which compounds may be responsible for causing key brain cells, neurons, to regenerate and ultimately restore brain function. The research study focused on two compounds-LTB4 and LXA4. Both play a role in inflammation and are regulators of proliferation of several cell types. When stem cells isolated from the brains of mouse embryos were exposed to LTB4 they proliferated and differentiated, giving rise to additional stem cells and to differentiated neurons with limited or absent capacity to divide. When exposed to LXA4, these cells experienced decreased growth and apoptosis. "This study opens doors to new therapeutic approaches for a wide range neurological disorders and injuries that were once considered incurable," said Gerald Weissmann, MD, Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal. The study also provided so insight into the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved when LTB4 stimulates neuronal stem cells. According to the study, cells generated as the result of LTB4 exposure had high levels of LTB4 receptors, whereas the level of LTB4 receptors was considerably lower in similar cells not generated by LTB4 stimulation. The investigators were further able to show that LTB4 up-regulated several molecules involved in cell cycling and growth, such as cyclins and epidermal growth factor receptor, and decreased those such as caspase 8 which play a role in apoptosis. LXA4 had the opposite effects. Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology |
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| Related Stem Cell Growth Current Events and Stem Cell Growth News Articles Blood stem cell growth factor reverses memory decline in mice A human growth factor that stimulates blood stem cells to proliferate in the bone marrow reverses memory impairment in mice genetically altered to develop Alzheimer's disease, researchers at the University of South Florida and James A. Haley Hospital found. Tumor suppressor gene in flies may provide insights for human brain tumors In the fruit fly's developing brain, stem cells called neuroblasts normally divide to create one self-renewing neuroblast and one cell that has a different fate. But neuroblast growth can sometimes spin out of control and become a brain tumor. Making flies sick reveals new role for growth factors in immunity A Salmonella infection is not a positive experience. However, by infecting the common laboratory fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster with a Salmonella strain known for causing humans intestinal grief, researchers in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University have shed light on some key cell regulatory processes - with broad implications for understanding embryonic development, immune function and congenital diseases in humans. Mechanism in cells that generate malignant brain tumors may offer target for gene therapy Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute who first isolated cancer stem cells in adult brain tumors in 2004 have now identified a molecular mechanism that is involved in the development of these cells from which malignant brain tumors may originate. Scientists identify genes capable of regulating stem cell function Scientists from The Forsyth Institute, Boston, MA, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of Utah School of Medicine have developed a new system in which to study known mammalian adult stem cell disorders. Recipe for cell reprogramming adds protein A drug-like molecule called Wnt can be substituted for the cancer gene c-Myc, one of four genes added to adult cells to reprogram them to an embryonic-stem-cell-like state. Cancer stem cells: know thine enemy Stem cells -- popularly known as a source of biological rejuvenation -- may play harmful roles in the body, specifically in the growth and spread of cancer. A new method of adult stem cell growth efficacious in treatment of disorders of the cornea A new method of adult stem cell growth, designed in the Area of Cellular Therapy of the University Clinic (University of Navarra), has demonstrated its efficacy for its capacity to grow cornea stem cells. Minimal cocktail for growing human embryonic stem cells established Researchers at Yale have established the minimal nutritional requirements for growing and maintaining human embryonic stem cells, a recipe that is critical for clinical application and for developmental studies. Neural Stem Cells Are Long-Lived New studies in mice have shown that immature stem cells that proliferate to form brain tissues can function for at least a year - most of the life span of a mouse - and give rise to multiple types of neural cells, not just neurons. More Stem Cell Growth Current Events and Stem Cell Growth News Articles |
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