Archive for the ‘Skin Stem Cells’ Category

Dr. Jim Surrell, Journal columnist

The overall function of our human immune system is to prevent or limit infection. The primary job of our immune system is to distinguish between our normal, healthy cells and possible other dangerous cells, such as viruses and bacteria that may come into our blood stream. Our immune system is always on duty to look for and recognize these possible infectious viruses and bacteria.

The immune system looks closely at these potentially infectious cells to do all it can to prevent us from getting an infection.

Know that we rely on our immune system every day to help us fight off infections and keep us healthy. Our immune system contains numerous cell types that either circulate throughout the body or reside in our particular body tissues. Each cell type plays a unique role, with different ways of performing their function to fight off infections. Further, our great medical and scientific researchers continuously work to optimize our immune responses to confront specific potential infectious issues, such as is being done at this time with regard to the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Let us now take a look at the many components of our human immune system and how our body works to fight off infections. All of our numerous immune cells come from basic immune cells in our bone marrow and develop into mature cells through a series of changes that can occur in different parts of the body. Following is a brief look at our various body components that make up our immune system.

Skin: Our skin is usually the first line of defense against infectious organisms. Skin cells produce and secrete important antimicrobial proteins, and immune cells can be found in specific layers of our skin.

Bone marrow: Our bone marrow contains stem cells that can develop into a variety of cell types. These stem cells in our bone marrow develop our many various types of immune cells that are very important first-line responders to infection. These stem cells create our essential infection-fighting cells, called B cells and T cells. These B cells and T cells are responsible for mounting a response to specific microbes that may cause infections. We also have natural niller (NK) immune cells that also provide defenses to fight off infections. These immune system B cells, T cells, and NK cells are also called lymphocytes.

Bloodstream: Immune cells constantly circulate throughout the bloodstream, patrolling for problems. When blood tests are used to monitor white blood cells, another term for immune cells, a snapshot of the immune system is taken. If our white blood cells are too few, or overabundant in the bloodstream, this may reflect a problem that should be addressed by a professional health care provider.

Thymus Gland: Immune system T cells mature in our small thymus gland, located in the upper chest.

Lymphatic system: The lymphatic system is a network of vessels and tissues composed of lymph, an extracellular fluid, and our lymph nodes. The lymphatic system is the essential part of our immune system that provides communication between our various body tissues and our bloodstream. Immune cells are carried through the lymphatic system and converge in lymph nodes. Lymph nodes are a communication hub where immune cells sample information brought in from the body. Thus, doctors may check patients for swollen lymph nodes, which may indicate an active immune response.

Spleen: The spleen is an organ located behind the stomach. Immune cells are found in the spleen and if there are any blood-borne infectious organisms, these immune cells activate and respond accordingly.

Lastly, be aware that our human immune system regenerates and repairs itself every night when we sleep. Studies show that people who dont get quality sleep or enough sleep are more likely to get sick after being exposed to an infectious virus or bacteria. Lack of sleep can also affect how fast you recover if you do get sick. To keep you and your immune system healthy, get the recommended seven to eight hours of sleep each and every night. And yes, these are Doctors Orders!

EDITORS NOTE: Dr. Jim Surrell is the author of The ABCs For Success In All We Do and the SOS (Stop Only Sugar) Diet books. Requests for health topics for this column are encouraged. Contact Dr. Surrell by email at sosdietdoc@gmail.com.

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TORONTO, March 31, 2020 /CNW/ - The Gairdner Foundation is pleased to announce the 2020 Canada Gairdner Award laureates, recognizing some of the world's most significant biomedical research and discoveries. During these challenging times, we believe it is important to celebrate scientists and innovators from around the world and commend them for their tireless efforts to conduct research that impacts human health.

2020 Canada Gairdner International AwardThe five 2020 Canada Gairdner International Award laureates are recognized for seminal discoveries or contributions to biomedical science:

Dr. Masatoshi TakeichiSenior Visiting Scientist, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, Kobe, Japan; Professor Emeritus, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

Dr. Rolf KemlerEmeritus Member and Director, Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics, Freiburg, Germany

Awarded "For their discovery, characterization and biology of cadherins and associated proteins in animal cell adhesion and signalling."

Dr. Takeichi

The Work: The animal body is made up of numerous cells. Dr. Takeichi was investigatinghow animal cells stick together to form tissues and organs, and identified a key protein which he named 'cadherin'.Cadherin is present on the surface of a cell and binds to the same cadherin protein on the surface of another cell through like-like interaction, thereby binding the cells together. Without cadherin, cell to cell adhesion becomes weakened and leads to the disorganization of tissues. Dr. Takeichi found that there are multiple kinds of cadherin within the body, each of which are made by different cell types, such as epithelial and neuronal cells. Cells with the same cadherins tend to cluster together, explaining the mechanism of how different cells are sorted out and organized to form functional organs.

Further studies by Dr. Takeichi's group showed that cadherin function is supported by a number of cytoplasmic proteins, includingcatenins, and their cooperation is essential for shaping of tissues. His studies also revealed that the cadherin-dependent adhesion mechanism is involved in synaptic connections between neurons, which are important for brain wiring.

Dr. Kemler

The Work: Dr. Kemler, using an immunological approach, developed antibodies directed against surface antigens of early mouse embryos. These antibodies were shown to prevent compaction of the mouse embryo and interfered with subsequent development. Both Dr. Kemler and Dr. Takeichi went on to clone and sequence the gene encoding E-cadherin and demonstrate that it was governing homophilic cell adhesion.

Dr. Kemler also discovered the other proteins that interact with the cadherins, especially the catenins, to generate the machinery involved in animal cell-to-cell adhesion. This provided the first evidence of their importance in normal development and diseases such as cancer. It has been discovered that cadherins and catenins are correlated to the formation and growth of some cancers and how tumors continue to grow. Beta catenin is linked to cell adhesion through interaction with cadherins but is also a key component of the Wnt signalling pathway that is involved in normal development and cancer. There are approximately 100 types of cadherins, known as the cadherin superfamily.

Dr. Takeichi

The Impact: The discovery of cadherins, which are found in all multicellular animalspecies, has allowed us to interpret how multicellular systems are generated and regulated. Loss of cadherin function has been implicated as the cause of certain cancers, as well as in invasiveness of many cancers. Mutations in special types of cadherin result in neurological disorders, such as epilepsy and hearing loss. The knowledge of cadherin function is expected to contribute to the development of effective treatments against such diseases.

Dr. Kemler

The Impact: Human tumors are often of epithelial origin. Given the role of E-cadherin for the integrity of an epithelial cell layer, the protein can be considered as a suppressor of tumor growth. The research on the cadherin superfamily has had great impact on fields as diverse as developmental biology, cell biology, oncology, immunology and neuroscience. Mutations in cadherins/catenins are frequently found in tumors. Various screens are being used to identify small molecules that might restore cell adhesion as a potential cancer therapy.

Dr. Roel NusseProfessor & Chair, Department of Developmental Biology; Member, Institute for StemCell Biology andRegenerativeMedicine, Stanford University, School of Medicine.Virginia and Daniel K. Ludwig Professor of Cancer Research. Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Awarded"For pioneering work on the Wnt signaling pathway and its importance in development, cancer and stem cells"

The Work: Dr. Nusse's research has elucidated the mechanism and role of Wnt signaling, one of the most important signaling systems in development. There is now abundant evidence that Wnt signaling is active in cancer and in control of proliferation versus differentiation of adult stem cells, making the Wnt pathway one of the paradigms for the fundamental connections between normal development and cancer.

Among Dr. Nusse's contributions is the original discovery of the first Wnt gene (together with Harold Varmus) as an oncogene in mouse breast cancer. Afterwards Dr. Nusse identified the Drosophila Wnt homolog as a key developmental gene, Wingless. This led to the general realization of the remarkable links between normal development and cancer, now one of the main themes in cancer research. Using Drosophila genetics, he established the function of beta-catenin as a mediator of Wnt signaling and the Frizzleds as Wnt receptors (with Jeremy Nathans), thereby establishing core elements of what is now called the Wnt pathway. A major later accomplishment of his group was the first successful purification of active Wnt proteins, showing that they are lipid-modified and act as stem cell growth factors.

The Impact: Wnt signaling is implicated in the growth of human embryos and the maintenance of tissues. Consequently, elucidating the Wnt pathway is leading to deeper insights into degenerative diseases and the development of new therapeutics. The widespread role of Wnt signaling in cancer is significant for the treatment of the disease as well. Isolating active Wnt proteins has led to the use of Wnts by researchers world-wide as stem cell growth factors and the expansion of stem cells into organ-like structures (organoids).

Dr. Mina J. Bissell Distinguished Senior Scientist, Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Faculty; Graduate Groups in Comparative Biochemistry, Endocrinology, Molecular Toxicology and Bioengineering, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA

Awarded "For characterizing "Dynamic Reciprocity" and the significant role that extracellular matrix (ECM) signaling and microenvironment play in gene regulation in normal and malignant cells, revolutionizing the fields of oncology and tissue homeostasis."

The Work: Dr. Mina Bissell's career has been driven by challenging established paradigms in cellular and developmental biology. Through her research, Dr. Bissell showed that tissue architecture plays a dominant role in determining cell and tissue phenotype and proposed the model of 'dynamic reciprocity' (DR) between the extracellular matrix (ECM) and chromatin within the cell nucleus. Dynamic reciprocity refers to the ongoing, bidirectional interaction between cells and their microenvironment. She demonstrated that the ECM could regulate gene expression just as gene expression could regulate ECM, and that these two phenomena could occur concurrently in normal or diseased tissue.

She also developed 3D culture systems to study the interaction of the microenvironment and tissue organization and growth, using the mammary gland as a model.

The Impact:Dr. Bissell's model of dynamic reciprocity has been proven and thoroughly established since its proposal three decades ago and the implications have permeated every area of cell and cancer biology, with significant implications for current and future therapies. Dr. Bissell's work has generated a fundamental and translationally crucial paradigm shift in our understanding of both normal and malignant tissues.

Her findings have had profound implications for cancer therapy by demonstrating that tumor cells can be influenced by their environment and are not just the product of their genetic mutations. For example, cells from the mammary glands grown in two-dimensional tissue cultures rapidly lose their identity, but once placed in proper three-dimensional microenvironments, they regain mammary form and function. This work presages the current excitement about generation of 3D tissue organoids and demonstrates Dr. Bissell's creative and innovative approach to science.

Dr. Elaine FuchsHoward Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Rebecca C. Lancefield Professor and Head of the Robin Chemers Neustein Laboratory of Mammalian Cell Biology and Cell Biology; The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA

Awarded"For her studies elucidating the role of tissue stem cells in homeostasis, wound repair, inflammation and cancer."

The Work: Dr. Fuchs has used skin to study how the tissues of our body are able to replace dying cells and repair wounds. The skin must replenish itself constantly to protect against dehydration and harmful microbes. In her research, Fuchs showed that this is accomplished by a resident population of adult stem cells that continually generates a shell of indestructible cells that cover our body surface.

In her early research, Fuchs identified the proteins---keratinsthat produce the iron framework of the skin's building blocks, and showed that mutations in keratins are responsible for a group of blistering diseases in humans. In her later work, Fuchs identified the signals that prompt skin stem cells to make tissue and when to stop. In studying these processes, Fuchs learned that cancers hijack the fundamental mechanisms that tissue stem cells use to repair wounds. Her team pursued this parallel and isolated and characterized the malignant stem cells that are responsible for propagating a type of cancer called "squamous cell carcinoma." In her most recent work, she showed that these cells can be resistant to chemotherapies and immunotherapies and lead to tumor relapse.

The Impact: All tissues of our body must be able to replace dying cells and repair local wounds. Skin is particularly adept at performing these tasks. The identification and characterization of the resident skin stem cells that make and replenish the epidermis, sweat glands and hair provide important insights into this fountain of youth process and hold promise for regenerative medicine and aging. In normal tissues, the self-renewing ability of stem cells to proliferate is held in check by local inhibitory signals coming from the stem cells' neighbours. In injury, stimulatory signals mobilize the stem cells to proliferate and repair the wound. In aging, these normal balancing cues are tipped in favour of quiescence. In inflammatory disorders, stem cells become hyperactivated. In cancers, the wound mechanisms to mobilize stem cells are hijacked, leading to uncontrolled tissue growth. Understanding the basic mechanisms controlling stem cells in their native tissue is providing new strategies for searching out refractory tumor cells in cancer and for restoring normalcy in inflammatory conditions.

2020 John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health AwardThe 2020 John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award laureate is recognized for outstanding achievements in global health research:

Professor Salim S. Abdool KarimDirector of CAPRISA (Centre for the AIDS Program of Research in South Africa), the CAPRISA Professor in Global Health at Columbia University, New York and Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa

Professor Quarraisha Abdool KarimAssociate Scientific Director of CAPRISA, Professor in Clinical Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York and Professor in Public Health at the Nelson Mandela Medical School and Pro Vice-Chancellor (African Health) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa

Awarded"For their discovery that antiretrovirals prevent sexual transmission of HIV, which laid the foundations for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the HIV prevention strategy that is contributing to the reduction of HIV infection in Africa and around the world."

The Work: UNAIDS estimates that 37 million people were living with HIV and 1.8 million people acquired HIV in 2017. In Africa, which has over two thirds of all people with HIV, adolescent girls and young women have the highest rates of new HIV infections. ABC (Abstinence, Be faithful, and use Condoms) prevention messages have had little impact - due to gender power imbalances, young women are often unable to successfully negotiate condom use, insist on mutual monogamy, or convince their male partners to have an HIV test.

In responding to this crisis, Salim and Quarraisha Abdool Karim started investigating new HIV prevention technologies for women about 30 years ago. After two unsuccessful decades, their perseverance paid off when they provided proof-of-concept that antiretrovirals prevent sexually acquired HIV infection in women. Their ground-breaking CAPRISA 004 trial showed that tenofovir gel prevents both HIV infection and genital herpes. The finding was ranked inthe "Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of 2010" by the journal, Science. The finding was heralded by UNAIDS and the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the most significant scientific breakthroughs in AIDS and provided the first evidence for what is today known as HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

The Abdool Karims have also elucidated the evolving nature of the HIV epidemic in Africa, characterising the key social, behavioural and biological risk factors responsible for the disproportionately high HIV burden in young women. Their identification of the "Cycle of HIV Transmission", where teenage girls acquire HIV from men about 10 years older on average, has shaped UNAIDS policies on HIV prevention in Africa.

The impact: CAPRISA 004 and several clinical trials of oral tenofovir led tothe WHO recommending a daily tenofovir-containing pill for PrEP as a standard HIV prevention tool for all those at high risk a few years later. Several African countries are among the 68 countries across all continents that are currently making PrEP available for HIV prevention. The research undertaken in Africa by this South African couple has played a key role in shaping the local and global response to the HIV epidemic.

2020 Canada Gairdner Wightman AwardThe 2020 Canada Gairdner Wightman Award laureate is a Canadian scientist recognized for outstanding leadership in medicine and medical science throughout their career:

Dr. Guy Rouleau Director of the Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital (The Neuro); Professor & Chair of the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University; Director of the Department of Neuroscience, McGill University Health Center

Awarded "For identifying and elucidating the genetic architecture of neurological and psychiatric diseases, including ALS, autism and schizophrenia, and his leadership in the field of Open Science."

The Work: Dr. Rouleau has identified over 20 genetic risk factors predisposing to a range of brain disorders, both neurological and psychiatric, involving either neurodevelopmental processes or degenerative events. He has defined a novel disease mechanism for diseases related to repeat expansions that are at play in some of the most severe neurodegenerative conditions. He has significantly contributed to the understanding of the role of de novo variants in autism and schizophrenia. In addition, he has made important advances for various neuropathies, in particular for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) where he was involved in the identification of the most prevalent genetic risk factors -which in turn are now the core of innumerable ALS studies worldwide.

Dr. Rouleau has also played a pioneering role in the practice of Open Science (OS), transforming the Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital (The Neuro) into the first OS institution in the world. The Neuro now uses OS principles to transform research and careand accelerate the development of new treatments for patients through Open Access, Open Data, Open Biobanking, Open Early Drug Discovery and non-restrictive intellectual property.

The Impact: The identification of genetic risk factors has a number of significant consequences. First, allowing for more accurate genetic counselling, which reduces the burden of disease to affected individuals, parents and society. A revealing case is Andermann syndrome, a severe neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative condition that was once relatively common in the Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region of Quebec. Now this disease has almost disappeared from that population. Second, identifying the causative gene allows the development of treatments. For instance, his earlier work on a form of ALS linked to the superoxide dismutase-1 gene (SOD1) opened up studies which are now the focal point of phase 2 clinical studies showing great promise.

Byactingasalivinglabforthelast coupleofyears,TheNeuroisspearheading the practice of OpenScience (OS).TheNeurois alsoengagingstakeholdersacross Canadawiththegoal of formalizinganational OSallianceforthe neurosciences.Dr.Rouleau'sworkinOScontributesfundamentallytothetransformationoftheveryecosystemofsciencebystimulatingnewthinkingandfosteringcommunitiesofsharing.InspiredbyTheNeuro'svision,theglobalsciencecommunityisreflecting oncurrentresearchconventionsandcollaborativeprojects,andthemomentumforOSisgainingafootholdinorganizationsandinstitutionsinallcornersoftheearth.

About the Gairdner Foundation:

The Gairdner Foundation was established in 1957 by Toronto stockbroker, James Gairdner to award annual prizes to scientists whose discoveries have had major impact on scientific progress and on human health. Since 1959 when the first awards were granted, 387scientists have received a Canada Gairdner Award and 92 to date have gone on to receive the Nobel Prize.The Canada Gairdner Awards promote a stronger culture of research and innovation across the country through our Outreach Programs including lectures and research symposia. The programs bring current and past laureates to a minimum of 15 universities across Canada to speak with faculty, trainees and high school students to inspire the next generation of researchers. Annual research symposia and public lectures are organized across Canada to provide Canadians access to leading science through Gairdner's convening power.

http://www.gairdner.org

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They say its the little things that matter, and when it comes to skincare, we have to agree. Few things feel better than the sensation of a freshly scrubbed face. Trouble is, few of us know how to actually get that feeling consistently. Sure, you may know that the key to a clear, healthy complexion is exfoliation (i.e., shedding the uppermost layer of dead skin cells). But what you use to exfoliate makes a big difference in whether you come away with a radiant glow or a mask of raw, irritated epidermis.

There are a few types of products that will do the job, but exfoliating face scrubs are often the most preferred. Known as physical exfoliants (as opposed to chemical exfoliants), these facial scrubs use tiny abrasive grains that act like sandpaper on your face, using friction to buff dead skin cells away. Physical exfoliants can be made from natural ingredients like apricot kernels, sugar, even coffee, or they can be synthetic beads that dissolve as you use them. Some guys love this type of exfoliant because you can really feel it working. However, it can be pretty harsh on some sensitive skin, leaving your face red and irritated, which leads to dry skin, increased oil production, or even scarring (and not in a sexy Jason Momoa kind of way).

That doesnt mean you shouldnt use an exfoliating scrub. It just means you have to do your homework or, if youd rather, have us do it for you. Weve put together a list of our favorite exfoliating face scrubs that contain quality ingredients for buffing away dead skin, and soothing the new skin underneath so that it stays happy, hydrated, and balanced. Gently (and we mean gently) massage these facial exfoliator scrubs into your forehead, chin, and cheeks, splash with cold water, pat dry, and finish with a kiss of moisturizer, and youll feel your face glowing all day long.

Finely ground apricot seed sloughs away yesterdays skin, with a little extra help from papaya extract enzymes, while chamomile, aloe, and sea kelp nourish and hydrate whats underneath.

For nights when youre ready to do some deep cleaning, pick this ultra-pure exfoliating mask. Activated charcoal and bentonite clay absorb impurities from your skin while the mask remains on your face. Scrubbing it off leaves your face not only clear, but also unbelievably soft, thanks to the addition of willow bark, rosemary extract, and sulfur mud.

Ground walnut shells and bamboo stem polish your skin, while jojoba esters and tropical fruit extracts break down pore-clogging oils, and special hydrating sugar technology blend rebuilds your skins moisture barrier before you rinse clean.

This super-concentrated, double-action exfoliating face scrub doesnt play around. Tiny jojoba beads offer a physical exfoliation that is boosted with the chemical exfoliating power of glycolic and salicylic acid. Five minutes with this scrub, and youll look and feel like a new man.

Sometimes, the simplest solutions are the best. This easy-to-find face scrub boasts natural ingredients such as aloe, hemp, and other nutrient-rich botanicals that ensure your newly scrubbed skin doesnt get dry or irritated.

Excerpt from:
Give Your Face a Spring Refresh With These Exfoliating Face Scrubs - The Manual

During this process the cells not only shed any memories of their previous identities, but they revert to a younger state. They accomplish this transformation by wiping their DNA clean of the molecular tags that not only differentiate, say, a skin cell from a heart muscle cell, but of other tags that accumulate as a cell ages.

Recently researchers have begun to wonder whether exposing the adult cells to Yamanaka proteins for days rather than weeks could trigger this youthful reversion without inducing full-on pluripotency. In fact, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies found in 2016 that briefly expressing the four Yamanaka factors in mice with a form of premature aging extended the animals life span by about 20%. But it wasnt clear whether this approach would work in humans.

Sarkar and Sebastiano wondered whether old human cells would respond in a similar fashion, and whether the response would be limited to just a few cell types or generalizable for many tissues. They devised a way to use genetic material called messenger RNA to temporarily express six reprogramming factors the four Yamanaka factors plus two additional proteins in human skin and blood vessel cells. Messenger RNA rapidly degrades in cells, allowing the researchers to tightly control the duration of the signal.

The researchers then compared the gene-expression patterns of treated cells and control cells, both obtained from elderly adults, with those of untreated cells from younger people. They found that cells from elderly people exhibited signs of aging reversal after just four days of exposure to the reprogramming factors. Whereas untreated elderly cells expressed higher levels of genes associated with known aging pathways, treated elderly cells more closely resembled younger cells in their patterns of gene expression.

When the researchers studied the patterns of aging-associated chemical tags called methyl groups, which serve as an indicator of a cells chronological age, they found that the treated cells appeared to be about 1 to 3 years younger on average than untreated cells from elderly people, with peaks of 3 years (in skin cells) and 7 years (in cells that line blood vessels).

Next they compared several hallmarks of aging including how cells sense nutrients, metabolize compounds to create energy and dispose of cellular trash among cells from young people, treated cells from old people and untreated cells from old people.

We saw a dramatic rejuvenation across all hallmarks but one in all the cell types tested, Sebastiano said. But our last and most important experiment was done on muscle stem cells. Although they are naturally endowed with the ability to self-renew, this capacity wanes with age. We wondered, Can we also rejuvenate stem cells and have a long-term effect?

When the researchers transplanted old mouse muscle stem cells that had been treated back into elderly mice, the animals regained the muscle strength of younger mice, they found.

Finally, the researchers isolated cells from the cartilage of people with and without osteoarthritis. They found that the temporary exposure of the osteoarthritic cells to the reprogramming factors reduced the secretion of inflammatory molecules and improved the cells ability to divide and function.

The researchers are now optimizing the panel of reprogramming proteins needed to rejuvenate human cells and are exploring the possibility of treating cells or tissues without removing them from the body.

Although much more work needs to be done, we are hopeful that we may one day have the opportunity to reboot entire tissues, Sebastiano said. But first we want to make sure that this is rigorously tested in the lab and found to be safe.

Other Stanford co-authors are former postdoctoral scholar Marco Quarta, PhD; postdoctoral scholar Shravani Mukherjee, PhD; graduate student Alex Colville; research assistants Patrick Paine, Linda Doan and Christopher Tran; Constance Chu, MD, professor of orthopaedic surgery; Stanley Qi, PhD, assistant professor of bioengineering and of chemical and systems biology; and Nidhi Bhutani, PhD, associate professor of orthopaedic surgery.

Researchers from the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, the University of California-Los Angeles and the Molecular Medicine Research Institute in Sunnyvale, California, also contributed to the study.

The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health (grants R01 AR070865, R01 AR070864, P01 AG036695, R01 AG23806, R01 AG057433 and R01 AG047820), the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research, the American Federation for Aging Research and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Sarkar, Quarta and Sebastiano are co-founders of the startup Turn Biotechnologies, a company that is applying the technology described in the paper to treat aging-associated conditions. Rando is a member of the scientific advisory board.

Excerpt from:
Old human cells rejuvenated with stem cell technology - Stanford Medical Center Report

Global Cell-Based Immunotherapy Market By Application (Prostate Cancer, Breast Cancer, Skin Cancer, Ovarian Cancer, Brain Tumor, Lung Cancer, Other), End- User (Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centers, Specialized Cancer Institutes), Geography (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa) Industry Trends and Forecast to 2026

Market Analysis:

Global cell-based immunotherapy market is set to witness a substantial CAGR in the forecast period of 2019- 2026. The report contains data of the base year 2018 and historic year 2017. Improvement in healthcare infrastructure and rising healthcare expenditure are the factor for the market growth. Few of the major competitors currently working in the global cell-based immunotherapy market are AbbVie Inc., Genentech USA, Inc., Amgen Inc, AstraZeneca, Bayer AG, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH., Eli Lilly and Company, GlaxoSmithKline plc., Novartis AG, Pfizer Inc, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Takara Bio Inc., Bausch Health, Lonza Group AG, Precision Biosciences., Marker Therapeutics, Inc., Kiadis Pharma, Lyell Immunopharma, Inc., among others.

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Key Developments in the Market:

Competitive Analysis:

Global cell-based immunotherapy market is highly fragmented and the major players have used various strategies such as new product launches, expansions, agreements, joint ventures, partnerships, acquisitions, and others to increase their footprints in this market. The report includes market shares of cell-based immunotherapy market for Global, Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific, South America and Middle East & Africa.

Market Definition:Global Cell-Based Immunotherapy Market

Cell-based immunotherapy is a potential future-oriented cancer treatment approach. It is evolving quickly as an alternative to traditional cancer treatment based on chemotherapy. Stem cells are used for the diagnosis of different types of cancer in cell-based immunotherapy. These cells have the ability to create extra placental or embryonic cells to cure cancer. This therapy is widely used in application such as breast cancer, skin cancer, ovarian cancer, lung cancer and prostate cancer.

Market Drivers

Market Restraints

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Segmentation: Global Cell-Based Immunotherapy Market

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Global Cell-Based Immunotherapy Market Future Growth Analysis, Business Demand and Opportunities to 2027 | AbbVie Inc., Genentech USA, Inc., Amgen...

Global Stem Cell Therapy Market: Overview

Also called regenerative medicine, stem cell therapy encourages the reparative response of damaged, diseased, or dysfunctional tissue via the use of stem cells and their derivatives. Replacing the practice of organ transplantations, stem cell therapies have eliminated the dependence on availability of donors. Bone marrow transplant is perhaps the most commonly employed stem cell therapy.

Osteoarthritis, cerebral palsy, heart failure, multiple sclerosis and even hearing loss could be treated using stem cell therapies. Doctors have successfully performed stem cell transplants that significantly aid patients fight cancers such as leukemia and other blood-related diseases.

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Global Stem Cell Therapy Market: Key Trends

The key factors influencing the growth of the global stem cell therapy market are increasing funds in the development of new stem lines, the advent of advanced genomic procedures used in stem cell analysis, and greater emphasis on human embryonic stem cells. As the traditional organ transplantations are associated with limitations such as infection, rejection, and immunosuppression along with high reliance on organ donors, the demand for stem cell therapy is likely to soar. The growing deployment of stem cells in the treatment of wounds and damaged skin, scarring, and grafts is another prominent catalyst of the market.

On the contrary, inadequate infrastructural facilities coupled with ethical issues related to embryonic stem cells might impede the growth of the market. However, the ongoing research for the manipulation of stem cells from cord blood cells, bone marrow, and skin for the treatment of ailments including cardiovascular and diabetes will open up new doors for the advancement of the market.

Global Stem Cell Therapy Market: Market Potential

A number of new studies, research projects, and development of novel therapies have come forth in the global market for stem cell therapy. Several of these treatments are in the pipeline, while many others have received approvals by regulatory bodies.

In March 2017, Belgian biotech company TiGenix announced that its cardiac stem cell therapy, AlloCSC-01 has successfully reached its phase I/II with positive results. Subsequently, it has been approved by the U.S. FDA. If this therapy is well- received by the market, nearly 1.9 million AMI patients could be treated through this stem cell therapy.

Another significant development is the granting of a patent to Israel-based Kadimastem Ltd. for its novel stem-cell based technology to be used in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and other similar conditions of the nervous system. The companys technology used for producing supporting cells in the central nervous system, taken from human stem cells such as myelin-producing cells is also covered in the patent.

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Global Stem Cell Therapy Market: Regional Outlook

The global market for stem cell therapy can be segmented into Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa. North America emerged as the leading regional market, triggered by the rising incidence of chronic health conditions and government support. Europe also displays significant growth potential, as the benefits of this therapy are increasingly acknowledged.

Asia Pacific is slated for maximum growth, thanks to the massive patient pool, bulk of investments in stem cell therapy projects, and the increasing recognition of growth opportunities in countries such as China, Japan, and India by the leading market players.

Global Stem Cell Therapy Market: Competitive Analysis

Several firms are adopting strategies such as mergers and acquisitions, collaborations, and partnerships, apart from product development with a view to attain a strong foothold in the global market for stem cell therapy.

Some of the major companies operating in the global market for stem cell therapy are RTI Surgical, Inc., MEDIPOST Co., Ltd., Osiris Therapeutics, Inc., NuVasive, Inc., Pharmicell Co., Ltd., Anterogen Co., Ltd., JCR Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., and Holostem Terapie Avanzate S.r.l.

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Stem Cell Therapy Market to Witness Growth Acceleration During 2017 2025 - Daily Science

The electronic newsletter I Love My Freedom on a regular basis blasts out e-mails hawking ostentatious rip-offs as well as serpent oil, such as a dementia-reversing miracle therapy, a diabetes destroyer material as well as a life-saving cancer cells treatment that a Nazi drug store allegedly established at Hitlers command. Peppered in between these messages funded by third-party hucksters are main advertisements from Donald Trumps governmental reelection campaign.

For months, participants of the head of states internal circle consisting of Donald Trump Jr., Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky), previous House Speaker Newt Gingrich as well as also Trump himself have actually been releasing require contributions with the newsletter, which usually heads out 5 or even more times each day. Many receivers were most likely unintentionally subscribed; I Love My Freedom, the team that runs the eponymous newsletter, has actually obtained an expanding checklist of Americans call info with a concealed e-mail collecting system including an internet of pro-Trump Facebook web pages.

Right- wing political leaders, companies as well as media electrical outlets have a background of dealing with unethical entities behind the scenes to earn money as well as press their programs. The Trump campaigns service with I Love My Freedom is no exemption.

I Love My Freedom (e-mail information multiplied by HuffPost).

By layout, its e-mails seem theyre sent out straight from Trump as well as his allies, though theyre in fact dispersed by means of [emailprotected] At all-time low, they birth please notes noting they were spent for by either the National Republican Senatorial Committee, its House equivalent, the McConnell Senate Committee, or the Trump Make America Great Again Committee (which is collectively run by the Republican National Committee as well as Trumps reelection campaign).

Renting out accessibility to collected e-mail listings is a typical as well as very profitable method worked out by traditional as well as liberal teams alike, commonly for political fundraising objectives. But points obtain morally dirty when e-mail representatives do not veterinarian their enrollers which can lead to e-mail receivers being flooded with ripoffs as well as scams, like the counterfeit cancer cells treatment. In this instance, nonetheless, the genuine inquiry is whether Trumps group troubled to veterinarian I Love My Freedom.

The campaign did not react to HuffPosts ask for remark.

I Love My Freedom, which makes up the newsletter as well as a conservative blog site called Trending Politics, belongs to Making Web LLC, a rare advertising company thats signed up in Minnesota to a 51- year-old male called Allan G. Ferretti.

Through the newsletter alone, I Love My Freedom has actually enhanced a list of aggressive rip-offs consisting of some that misleadingly link Trump, in spite of its negotiations with his campaign. Hours prior to dispersing a fundraising e-mail from the McConnell Senate Committee this month, I Love My Freedom discharged off a funded message advertising a breakthrough stem cell therapy which it baselessly suggested Trump is getting.

This has got Liberals jumping out of their seats, the e-mail checks out. President Trump is in perfect health how is it that hes so seemingly immune to old age? Well in recent years, billionaires like President Trump have increasingly turned to the power of Stem Cells.

Titled Trump Health Bombshell, the e-mail web links to a rambling item pitch that promotes $67 containers of stem cell tablets as the Holy Grail of aging backwards. These tablets make cells inside your body become physically younger, it asserts, without supplying a shred of clinical proof. I Love My Freedom has likewise spammed its customers with enrollers get-rich-quick plans consisting of a secret IRS loophole, as well as has actually routed them to video clips recommending elders ought to exchange their recommended medicines for tricksters supplements also advising that they can pass away if they do not.

Recent newsletter versions have actually circulated actual phony information, as well, installing advertisements camouflaged as write-ups that connect to internet sites stealthily copying genuine media electrical outlets.

I Love My Freedom e-newsletters have actually included misleading advertisements resulting in phony information websites copying genuine electrical outlets..

One such advertisement includes the message Royal Family Mourns As Tragedy Is Confirmed, along with a picture of Meghan Markle, the Duchess ofSussex Clicking on it causes a web site imitating U.S.A. Today that goes crazy regarding a skin care line, which it incorrectly asserts Markle released. Another, birthing the heading [BREAKING NEWS] Prayers Go Out to Oprah Winfrey, web links to a fraudulent information website marketing a Brain Booster supplement, which it brazenly states is in charge of Winfreys occupation success.

In enhancement to Trump, his oldest kid, McConnell as well as Gingrich, I Love My Freedom has actually likewise sent fundraising e-mails in behalf of previous White House press assistant Sarah Huckabee Sanders, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif), House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (R-La), previous United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley,Rep Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.),Rep David Joyce (R-Ohio), previous White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove as well as National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman TomEmmer

All were spent for by the NRCC, NRSC, McConnell Senate Committee or the Trump Make America Great AgainCommittee Only the NRCC reacted to an ask for remark.

We rented this list to prospect new donors. We do our best to vet each vendor, but similar to renting a car, it is impossible to know or control what every other renter does with a list they too are renting, spokesperson Chris Pack informed HuffPost.

We will not be using this vendor going forward.

I Love My Freedom constructed its cash-cow e-mail realm by spending virtually $2 million right into Facebook advertisements, which attract individuals in with clickbait surveys or pledges of free MAGA equipment, as well as result in web pages advising them to send their e-mail addresses. This immediately indications them as much as obtain the newsletter, in addition to its numerous funded messages.

The team likewise earns money by marketing Trump- themed product such as Make Liberals Cry Again hats, as well as organizing third-party advertisements on Trending Politics which was seen a million times last month alone, according to electronic analytics device ComparableWeb

I Love My Freedom did not accept HuffPosts ask for a meeting.

I Love My Freedom makes use of clickbait Facebook advertisements to gather individualss e-mails, after that subscribes them to its newsletter.

Ferretti released ilovemyfreedom.org in addition to the Facebook web page Trump for President Fan Club (currently President Donald Trump Fan Club, which has 1.6 million fans) in the summertime of 2015, as reporter April Glaser reported last loss in a write-up regarding I Love My Freedoms viral development on Facebook.

Its among greater than a lots preferred web pages the team runs to run its countless Facebook advertisements, consisting of Donald Trump Is My President, Donald Trump 2020 Voters, President Trump Has My Vote, Donald Trumps Americans, Team Trump Fan Club, The President Trump Fan Club, We Need Trump 2020 as well as President Trumps Patriot Army.

These web pages create a stream of hyper-partisan memes as well as Trending Politics post to their target market of millions. Boosted by Facebooks formula, the advertisements which largely target elders are in some cases seen thousands of countless times each.

This looks like an operation thats got a very highly engaged audience that would be a prime target for a lot of conservative politicians to try to raise grassroots money from, stated Michael Beckel, research study supervisor at the political reform team Issue One.

When you run a pro-Trump Facebook team with greater than a million participants, that can make your [email] checklist an appealing possession.

Trumps campaign has actually currently gathered a citizen e-mail checklist thats so big it leases it out to outdoors celebrations. So why would certainly his group wish to fundraise with I Love My Freedoms checklist particularly provided the teams historical connections to grifters as well as scam artist?

Its type of striking that the Trump campaign is making a financial investment in [I Love My Freedoms] checklist, kept in mindBeckel But a t completion of the day, he stated, much more e-mails still means more potential voters or donors for them.

Calling all HuffPost superfans!

Sign up for subscription to come to be a starting participant as well as aid form HuffPosts following phase

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Donald Trump Is Using An Insanely Sketchy Newsletter To Find Campaign Donors - The Union Journal

Hair loss has long been a chief complaint among women, especially as they age. It affects some 30 million women in the United States alone, according to the Cleveland Clinic, and will significantly impact more than 50 percent of women during their lifetime. The most common cause is female-pattern hair loss (FPHL), also known as androgenetic alopecia. It's a chronic and progressive condition that has a genetic component, but it's also caused by factors related to the actions of hormonesovarian cysts, use of high androgen index birth control pills, pregnancy, and menopause, explains Ken L. Williams Jr., D.O., hair restoration specialist, surgeon, founder of Orange County Hair Restoration in Irvine, California.

Other medical conditions are also to blame for hair loss in women, including thyroid disorders, polycystic ovary syndrome, anemia, and chronic illnessand the use of certain medications, many of which treat these conditions, can also lead to hair loss in women. "Certain types of autoimmune disorders result in a slightly different and often less dramatic hair loss problem known as alopecia areata, an inflammatory condition that causes hair to come out in clumps or patches," says Dr. Williams Jr.

Luckily, we've come a long way in terms of treating hair loss. After all, 100 years ago, remedies involved things like snake oil and bat and chicken dung. "In more recent years, clinically tested topical and oral products, such as Minoxidil and Propecia, have become available, as well as procedures like PRP (platelet rich plasma therapy), and hair transplants," shares Anabel Kingsley, consultant trichologist and brand president for Philip Kingsley. She finds a holistic, personalized, multi-pronged approach to be the most effective way to treat any form of hair loss. "Since there is no 'one size fits all,' you want to optimize all possible factors that can affect the hair growth cycle, such as general health, nutrition, and stress levels, as well as the condition of your hair and scalp," she says.

At Philip Kingsley, she treats clients with their Trichotherapy Regime ($215, saksfifthavenue.com), which is specifically formulated for women with fine hair and reduced volume. "It tackles hair loss from all possible angles via the scalp with intensive daily Scalp Drops($89, neimanmarcus.com),a daily Stimulating Scalp Tonic ($28, net-a-porter.com), a thickening protein spray, and targeted masks to optimize the scalp environment," Kinglsey explains. "It also contains carefully formulated nutritional supplements to help give hair support from within."

Related: The Best Shampoos to Support Thinning Hair and Fight Female Hair Loss

Over-the-counter solutions won't work for every person suffering from hair loss, but there are a number of medical interventions that can stimulate hair growthanti-androgen medication, for example, is recommended for clients experiencing prolonged hair loss. "These medications help prevent further hair loss and encourage some hair regrowth from dormant hair follicles," says Dr. Williams Jr. There is also stem cell therapy, which has expanded greatly over the last few years in treating medical disease. "As opposed to embryonic cells, the initial stigma of using stem cells has decreased since the discovery of using bone marrow, fat cells, umbilical cord cells, and even skin cells to extract stem cells," he explains.

Surgery is also an option, and there are currently two primary surgical techniques or methods used in performing hair transplantation: Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) and Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE). "With the FUT technique, a section of scalp is excised with a scalpel, the scalp is brought together with sutures or staples and the hair follicles or hair grafts are inserted into tiny slits placed by the surgeon in the balding recipient area," Dr. Williams Jr. says. "The follicles with a single hair are placed in the front rows to define and create a natural hairline and the more dense, natural occurring follicular units are placed by hand in areas where hair density is needed the most."

FUE, a minimally invasive technique that is being hailed as the most significant improvement in hair surgery, uses a minimal depth scoring punch device to loosen the follicle from the surrounding tissues. "With the FUE procedure, a 0.9 or 1.0 millimeter punch minimal depth scoring excision is used in the skin around the upper part of the follicular unit (hair follicles)," he continues. "The hair follicle is then extracted directly from the scalp and manually placed into tiny slits in the balding area similar to the strip method."

There are still several hair restoration solutions left to be discoveredand experts believe most of us will see the concept of hair cloning come to fruition in their lifetime. "Hair cloning would in effect, disassemble a few hair follicles, multiply these cells in the laboratory and then reintroduce them into the scalp to both rejuvenate miniaturizing hair follicles and induce brand new hairs," Dr. Williams Jr. says. "Other groups have tried this but it has been found that when human follicle cells are cultured, they rapidly lose their functionality."

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The Forefront of Treating Hair Loss in Women - Yahoo Lifestyle

California: In a breakthrough study, researchers have found a potential treatment for life-threatening cardiac diseases by using gene therapy.

Danon disease is a very rare, life-threatening condition where the fundamental biological process of removing and recycling proteins does not work.

This impairment results in dysfunction of the heart, skeletal muscle, neurologic system, eyes, and liver. Most patients die or require heart transplants by the third decade of life.

In the study, which was published in Science Translational Medicine, researchers have identified a novel way to treat Danon disease using gene therapy.

Heart transplant is not always available for patients and does not treat the other organs affected in Danon disease. We knew we needed to find therapies specifically designed to address the underlying cause, said the lead researcher Eric Adler.

Danon disease is a result of mutations in the gene LAMP2. For nearly a decade, Adler and a team of researchers at UC San Diego Health have been working to determine whether gene therapy could provide a new treatment approach.

Gene therapy involves either replacing or repairing a gene that causes a medical problem or adding genes to help the body treat disease. In this case, Adler and the team focused on adding a specially designed gene that restores the LAMP2 function, resulting in improved cardiac and liver function.

We utilised mice that were a model for Danon disease and missing this specific LAMP gene. We applied gene therapy to a group of these mice and compared to mice that did not receive treatment, said Adler.

The mice that received gene therapy expressed positive results in heart, liver and muscle function. The hearts overall function of ejecting blood and relaxing improved, as did the bodys ability to degrade proteins and metabolism.

Danon disease is more common in males, and symptoms begin in early childhood or adolescence.

In many cases, the condition is inherited by a parent, typically the mother. We believe Danon disease is actually more common than we think, but it is often misdiagnosed, said Adler.

By utilising gene therapy, we were able to identify a possible new treatment approach other than a heart transplant. This study is a significant step for patients with Danon disease, Adler added.

Prior studies in Adlers lab have focused on using a patients skin cells to create stem cells. These stem cells were used to create a heart model, allowing researchers to study Danon disease at the cellular level.

The approach has provided new insight into the diseases pathology and led to the idea of using gene therapy. Our work is also proof that using stem cells to model diseases has great potential for helping develop new medicines, said Adler.

The next step, said Adler, is testing in patients with Danon disease. A Phase I clinical trial for safety and efficacy has begun.

This is the first trial using gene therapy to treat a genetic cardiac disorder and three patients are currently being treated, which means were that much closer to finding a cure for this terrible disease, and may be able to use similar methods to treat other diseases, said Adler.

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Study reveals gene therapy may help in treating cardiac disease - The Siasat Daily

LEXINGTON, Mass., March 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Partner Therapeutics, Inc. (PTx) announced that Leukine (sargramostim, rhu-GM-CSF)is being assessed in the SARPAC trial (sargramostim inpatients withacute hypoxic respiratory failure due toCOVID-19 EudraCT #2020-001254-22) at University Hospital Ghent to treat patients with respiratory illness associated with COVID-19. Major medical centers in Germany, Italy and Spain are considering joining the study. The study will evaluate the effect of Leukine on lung function and patient outcomes.

"Patients with COVID-19 who progress to acute hypoxic respiratory failure due to COVID-19 have very limited treatment options and a high mortality rate," said Prof. Bart Lambrecht, Principal Investigator for the trial at University Hospital Ghent and the Flanders Institute of Biotechnology (VIB). "We rapidly initiated this study with Leukine, because GM-CSF has profound effects on antiviral immunity, can provide the stimulus to restore immune homeostasis in the lung, and can promote lung repair mechanisms."

Granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is essential for the health of the lungs. Alveolar macrophages, a cell type found in the lungs, are dependent on GM-CSF for differentiation and normal functioning. GM-CSF is an immunomodulator that plays a critical role in host defense against pathogens and maintaining proper functioning of the immune system.1 GM-CSF confers resistance to influenza by enhancing innate immune mechanisms.2 In animal studies, GM-CSF reduced morbidity and mortality due to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) from viral pneumonia.3 In clinical studies, use of Leukine showed beneficial effects in patients with viral pneumonia.4,5 Recent data highlight the importance of understanding the immune status of patients and role of immunomodulating agents like GM-CSF to activate the immune system to help clear virus and reduce the risk of secondary infections.6

"Partner Therapeutics is committed to investigating Leukine in patients with COVID-19 and we are working with academic and government agencies here in the US and in Europe in this effort," said Dr. Debasish Roychowdhury, Chief Medical Officer at Partner Therapeutics. "We believe, like many investigators and scientists, that GM-CSF has multiple ways by which it may help these patients, including playing a role in clearing the infection, boosting the immune system and repairing damaged tissues."

"In pre-clinical studies, GM-CSF protects the lungs from viral pneumonia and the influenza A virus", stated E. Scott Halstead, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Penn State University College of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. "Preliminary data indicate an apparent benefit of inhaled Leukine therapy for autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis ("aPAP") and suggest it has reduced the need for whole lung lavage therapy for patients receiving treatment. Collectively, the data suggest that aerosolized Leukine may prove to be a meaningful therapy to decrease mortality and increase ventilator-free days in patients with respiratory disorders associated with viruses such as COVID-19 and Influenza A."

For the treatment of COVID-19 associated acute hypoxic respiratory failure and ARDS, Leukine will be used in nebulized form for direct inhalation or through intravenous administration for patients already on a respirator. Nebulized Leukine has been studied in phase 2 and phase 3 randomizedtrials in pulmonary conditions that affect alveolar macrophages, such as aPAP. IV administration of Leukine has been studied extensively in other conditions and in phase 2 randomized trials in ARDS.

Leukine was initially approved in the United States in 1991 and has been approved for use in five clinical indications. Its safety and tolerability profile are well understood. In 2018, Leukine was approved for use as a medical countermeasure to treat Acute Radiation Syndrome (ARS) and has been procured for use by the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile. Leukine is distributed outside the U.S. on a named-patient basis through PTx's designated program manager, Tanner Pharma Group. The use of Leukine to treat respiratory disorders associated with COVID-19 is investigational and has not been fully evaluated by any regulatory authority.

Please see full Prescribing Information for LEUKINE at http://www.leukine.com

About Leukine(sargramostim)Leukine is a yeast-derived recombinant humanized granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (rhuGM-CSF) and the only FDA approved GM-CSF. GM-CSF is an important leukocyte growth factor known to play a key role in hematopoiesis, epithelial repair, and augmentation of innate host defense by effecting the growth and maturation of multiple cell lineages as well as the functional activities of these cells in antigen presentation and cell mediated immunity.

Important Safety Information for LEUKINE (sargramostim)

Contraindications

Warnings and Precautions

Adverse Reactions

Adverse events occurring in >10% of patients receiving LEUKINE in controlled clinical trials and reported in a higher frequency than placebo are:

Please see full Prescribing Information for LEUKINE at http://www.leukine.com

Indications and Usage

LEUKINE (sargramostim) is a leukocyte growth factor indicated for the following uses:

About Partner Therapeutics, Inc.: PTx is an U.S.-based commercial-stage biotech company focused on the development and commercialization of therapeutics that improve health outcomes in the treatment of cancer. PTx's development focus spans the entire range of cancer therapy from primary treatments to supportive care. The company believes in delivering great products with the purpose of creating the best possible outcomes for patients and their families.

References

Cited References

Other RelevantReferences

SOURCE Partner Therapeutics, Inc.

http://www.partnertx.com

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Partner Therapeutics Announces Initiation of Clinical Trial to Evaluate Leukine in Patients with COVID-19 Associated Respiratory Illness - PRNewswire

Updated March 23, 2020 19:48:55

With the whole world talking, reading, posting and sharing all sorts of information about coronavirus, it can be hard to sort through what is actually a fact and what is a myth.

Maybe you've got a friend writing on Facebook about how coronavirus will die with a change of season, or another who thinks they've got an excellent home remedy to prevent themselves from getting the disease?

Whatever the case, there are some myths that keep popping up over and over again. So, we've gone to the experts.

Here's what our correspondents say are some of the most popular myths around, and two experts' takes on them.

Who is saying this? The President of the United States.

What's being said exactly? Donald Trump told Fox Business: "You know in April, supposedly, it dies with the hotter weather."

According to CNN, he also told state governors: "You know, a lot of people think that goes away in April with the heat as the heat comes in. Typically, that will go away in April."

How widespread is this? Well, Donald Trump's quotes have been reported by major news outlets.

Professor of respiratory diseases at the University of Technology Sydney Brian Oliver says it would depend on the temperature you're talking about.

"For example, your body temperature is 37 degrees Celsius and we know coronavirus can survive in that, so if it's 37C or 40C outside, it would probably survive," Professor Oliver said.

"If it were something like 50C, well then it probably wouldn't survive too well. But how many places reach 50C?"

Infectious disease experts have also told CNN that it's too early to say whether warmer weather could impact the virus, and "nobody knows enough about the novel coronavirus to make assessments about its behaviour".

However, Professor Oliver said extreme heat can be useful.

"Extreme heat is used as a form of sterilisation in hospitals," he said.

"And if it's a really sunny day, the UV rays contained in the sun could kill the virus as well. Basically, the UV light destroys the genetic material. But we don't know how long is needed to kill the virus.

"So heat can be useful, but a warm day and 37C would be regarded as a warm day is not going to do much."

As told by South-East Asia correspondent Amy Bainbridge and Indonesia correspondent Anne Barker

Who is saying this? Residents in Bangkok, Indonesians and even Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

What exactly are they doing? There is a clinic outside Bangkok that doubles as a medicinal cannabis clinic. It looks like they're being run off their feet producing pills that contain a special herb called Andrographis Paniculata.

It's traditionally believed to be a treatment for colds and sore throats and apparently people are lining up to use it.

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, herbs have also become popular with residents looking to ward off coronavirus. Indonesians have rushed to buy herbal and medicinal plants such as turmeric, curcumin, lemongrass and ginger.

They believe that 'jamu' medicinal drinks made with such ingredients can boost stamina and health, and help strengthen the immune system.

Mr Widodo even last week told an agricultural and food conference that he drinks the herbal elixir three times a day to help prevent infection by coronavirus.

"I drink the mixture instead of tea now," he said.

"I give the drinks to my guests, be it the morning, afternoon or evening."

How widespread is this? Jamu is popular across Indonesia, although its ingredients might differ from one province to another.

The demand for ginger and turmeric has soared in the capital Jakarta and much of Java, where the price of red ginger has almost doubled in some places, and turmeric has tripled.

University of Melbourne professor of virology Damian Purcell says we haven't seen any scientific validation of those kinds of things.

"It's a risky strategy to believe something works without proper clinical trials and as yet there are no trials focused on examining whether specific herbs would be effective."

As told by South Asia correspondent James Oaten

Who is saying this? Fringe Hindu groups and a politician.

What exactly are they doing? Dozens of Hindu activists gathered in New Delhi on the weekend to hold a cow-urine drinking party, believing the drink would ward off coronavirus (and many other illnesses).

Others have also touted the health benefits of cow urine and even cow dung, including recently a politician from the Prime Minister's own party in the north-eastern region of Assam.

Many Hindus regard the cow as sacred.

Is this a common belief? It's mostly being touted by fringe groups so is far from being a popular myth.

Professor Oliver says it would "not do anything good for you".

While he says urine would have some slightly disinfectant properties on surfaces, "you'd have to drown someone in urine to save them from coronavirus".

"The only thing it could partially be useful for is, if you didn't have access to soap and water, you could use it to partially disinfect surfaces," he said.

As told by Middle East correspondent Eric Tlozek

Who is saying this? People in Iran.

What's being said exactly? Some believe drinking alcohol can be a way of killing coronavirus, according to Iranian sources I've spoken to.

One contact told me: "You know how alcohol is prohibited in Iran so, one of the good businesses here is some people make alcoholic drinks at home and they sell it [at a high price]."

Is it a common belief? It doesn't appear to be too common at this stage.

That's unlikely, Professor Oliver says. He points out that "you'd need a high concentration of alcohol to kill a virus".

"In the handwash you use for example, you need 60-70 per cent ethanol to be effective," he said.

"If people are drinking spirits, the relative concentration of that is relatively low. So the amount you would need to drink would kill you before it kills the virus."

Professor Purcell agrees, adding "very few spirits have above 30 to 40 per cent which would not be enough to kill the virus".

As told by Papua New Guinea correspondent Natalie Whiting

Who is saying this? It appears to have started in the United States but is also being spread on social media in PNG.

What exactly are they saying? The most common myth that has been raised with me, and one I've seen shared widely on social media, is that black people can't get coronavirus.

When the virus first started making headlines, I was asked about this rumoured immunity by a few people in PNG. Some posts on social media here were claiming there was a link between the virus and melanin levels.

How widespread is this? Now that the virus has spread further and there have been cases recorded in the Pacific, there have been more people trying to debunk this myth on social media.

"That's crackers."

According to Professor Oliver, the theory makes "absolutely no sense".

"Whatever pigmentation you have is of no interest to the virus because it doesn't impact the skin," he said.

"It would perhaps play a role if the virus infected the skin. But in this case, it doesn't so I'm not sure where people are getting this idea from."

Professor Purcell says: "The virus doesn't replicate in skin."

"It targets cells where there is no melanin, in the lungs and gastrointestinal tract, and there are no difference in melanin levels in those tissues," he said.

"Nobody is immune."

As told by Indonesia correspondent Anne Barker

Who is saying this? Social media users in Indonesia.

What are they saying? Posts on social media in the past few weeks have claimed coronavirus does not attack people who smoke because the composition of tobacco and cloves can resist the attack.

One Facebook user said cigarette smoke is effective in killing the virus.

How widespread is this? The original claim has gone viral on Twitter and other social media. That's despite there also being many health messages warning of the dangers of smoking.

The claims have been denied by health experts, including Eijkman Institute for Biology and Higher Education molecular biologist Professor Amin Soebandrio.

He says smoking increases ACE 2 receptors in the lungs that cause the COVID-19 virus.

Professor Soebandrio says each receptor acts like a port, so if there are more berths, more "ships" will come.

Professor Oliver agrees, saying if anything "smoking makes the outcomes worse".

Who is saying this? The internet. Social media. Your neighbours/friends/family?

What exactly are they saying? According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, there have been a couple of myths around swallowing or gargling essential oils, salt water and other home remedies as a way to cure coronavirus.

How widespread is this? It appears to be a common enough query to prompt Johns Hopkins to respond to it on their website.

Once you're infected there is very little chance these would work, Professor Purcell says.

"The virus introduces genetic material into your body, so you have to get rid of the cell itself," he said.

"While some of these things [antibacterial mouth washes] can kill a virus on a sheet of stainless steel, once it's in your system, you might reduce the amount of virus that you're shedding, but you need your immune system to do the job."

Professor Oliver agrees, although he suggests that traditional medicines do "have some efficacy around various conditions".

"But even when they work, they don't work as well as Western medicines," he said.

"Even if they are successful one day, like with herbal teas and so on, part of the problem is that it's really hard to know whether that effect could be replicated on the next day.

"Whereas a drug designed in a lab is made to be the same each time, and you also know something of the safety measures used to make the drug."

Professor Purcell says one reason that you might see these myths pop up is because it's difficult to understand the science behind viruses, so people begin to introduce their own ideas.

"You can't see it, so you can't relate to the chemistry," he said.

Professor Oliver agrees, adding that some of these cures or prevention techniques are the equivalent of old wives' tales.

Or, sometimes, they can stem from cultural beliefs that are passed down.

Topics:respiratory-diseases,infectious-diseases-other,diseases-and-disorders,health,world-politics,government-and-politics,china,indonesia,united-states,thailand,iran-islamic-republic-of

First posted March 23, 2020 17:41:27

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Coronavirus 'cures' and prevention techniques are popping up all over the world. So we asked the experts what actually works - ABC News

A team of University of California, Irvine researchers have published the first comprehensive overview of the major changes that occur in mammalian skin cells as they prepare to heal wounds. Results from the study provide a blueprint for future investigation into pathological conditions associated with poor wound healing, such as in diabetic patients.

"This study is the first comprehensive dissection of the major changes in cellular heterogeneity from a normal state to wound healing in skin," said Xing Dai, PhD, a professor of biological chemistry and dermatology in the UCI School of Medicine, and senior author. "This work also showcases the collaborative efforts between biologists, mathematician and physicists at UCI, with support from the National Institute of Arthritis & Musculoskeletal & Skin Diseases-funded UCI Skin Biology Resource-based Center and the NSF-Simons Center for Multiscale Cell Fate Research.

The study, titled, "Defining epidermal basal cell states during skin homeostasis and wound healing using single-cell transcriptomics," was published this week in Cell Reports.

"Our research uncovered at least four distinct transcriptional states in the epidermal basal layer as part of a 'hierarchical-lineage' model of the epidermal homeostasis, or stable state of the skin, clarifying a long-term debate in the skin stem cell field," said Dai.

Using single-cell RNA sequencing coupled with RNAScope and fluorescence lifetime imaging, the team identified three non-proliferative and one proliferative basal cell state in homeostatic skin that differ in metabolic preference and become spatially partitioned during wound re-epithelialization, which is the process by which the skin and mucous membranes replace superficial epithelial cells damaged or lost in a wound.

Epithelial tissue maintenance is driven by resident stem cells, the proliferation and differentiation dynamics of which need to be tailored to the tissue's homeostatic and regenerative needs. However, our understanding of tissue-specific cellular dynamics in vivo at single-cell and tissue scales is often very limited.

"Our study lays a foundation for future investigation into the adult epidermis, specifically how the skin is maintained and how it can robustly regenerate itself upon injury," said Dai.

Reference:Haensel, D., Jin, S., Sun, P., Cinco, R., Dragan, M., Nguyen, Q., Dai, X. (2020). Defining Epidermal Basal Cell States during Skin Homeostasis and Wound Healing Using Single-Cell Transcriptomics. Cell Reports, 30(11), 3932-3947.e6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2020.02.091

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

Link:
How Skin Cells Prepare To Heal Wounds - Technology Networks

It's not your imagination, it turns out. Stress can turn a person's hair gray. It's said that if you look at before and after pictures of any eight-year U.S. president the impact of the office on hair color is clear, though in fairness, it may be that candidates dye their hair and then at some point stop doing so. Nonetheless, scientists from Harvard have not only verified the conventional wisdom on our graying noggins, but have also figured out why stress is so brutal to our follicular pigmentation.

The new research from Harvard scientists is published in the journal Nature.

Image source: Ververidis Vasilis/Evan El-Amin/Vacclav/Shutterstock/Big Think

Senior author of the study Ya-Chieh Hsu, professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard, explains what prompted her research:

"Everyone has an anecdote to share about how stress affects their body, particularly in their skin and hair the only tissues we can see from the outside. We wanted to understand if this connection is true, and if so, how stress leads to changes in diverse tissues. Hair pigmentation is such an accessible and tractable system to start with and besides, we were genuinely curious to see if stress indeed leads to hair graying."

It turns out that stress activates nerves associated with our basic fight-or-flight system, and these nerves permanently damage pigment-regenerating melanocyte stem cells in hair follicles, causing them to cease production of melanin that normal provides color to hair follicles.

Hsu's team studied the issue using mice, and was somewhat stunned at their findings. "When we started to study this, I expected that stress was bad for the body but the detrimental impact of stress that we discovered was beyond what I imagined," recalls Hsu.

The scientists stressed the mice using a combination of three methods:

Image source: Helga Lei/Shutterstock

Hsu and her colleagues first suspected an immune system reaction was at the root of graying hairs only to discover that mice without immune systems still turned gray in response to stressors. The next suspect was cortisol produced by the adrenal glands however, this proved not to be so. "Stress always elevates levels of the hormone cortisol in the body," says Jsu, "so we thought that cortisol might play a role. But surprisingly, when we removed the adrenal gland from the mice so that they couldn't produce cortisol-like hormones, their hair still turned gray under stress."

Image source: Judy Blomquist/Harvard University

Finally, the researchers investigate the possibility that the system responding to stressors was the mice's sympathetic nervous systems, the part of the nervous system that kicks into action with the fight-or-flight impulse. The sympathetic nervous system is a vast network of nerves that connects, among other places, to hair follicles in the skin. In response to stress, the system sends a rush of the chemical norepinephrine to the follicles' melanocyte stem cell, causing them to quickly burn through and deplete their stores of pigment.

Say Hsu, "After just a few days, all of the pigment-regenerating stem cells were lost. Once they're gone, you can't regenerate pigments anymore. The damage is permanent." Great for survival, not so good for hair color.

Sympathetic system nerves are magenta above. Melanocyte stem cells are yellow.

Image source: Hsu Laboratory, Harvard University

"Acute stress," says lead author of the study Bing Zhang, "particularly the fight-or-flight response, has been traditionally viewed to be beneficial for an animal's survival. But in this case, acute stress causes permanent depletion of stem cells."

The research, done in collaboration with other Harvard researchers, presents a new appreciation of the effect the sympathetic system can have on the body's cells during stress.

One of these collaborators, Harvard immunologist Isaac Chu, notes, "We know that peripheral neurons powerfully regulate organ function, blood vessels, and immunity, but less is known about how they regulate stem cells. With this study, we now know that neurons can control stem cells and their function, and can explain how they interact at the cellular and molecular levels to link stress with hair graying."

Given this finding regarding the direct impact of stress on follicular stem cells, the question of what it else it may affect becomes an obvious one. As Hsu sums it up, "By understanding precisely how stress affects stem cells that regenerate pigment, we've laid the groundwork for understanding how stress affects other tissues and organs in the body."

This importance of the study therefore goes way beyond graying heads. "Understanding how our tissues change under stress is the first critical step," says Hsu, "toward eventual treatment that can halt or revert the detrimental impact of stress. We still have a lot to learn in this area."

Related Articles Around the Web

Read the rest here:
An unusual chance to see stress at work - Big Think

A breakthrough study provides a blueprint for future investigation into pathological conditions associated with poor wound healing, such as in diabetic patients. A team of researchers from the University of California has published the first comprehensive overview of the major changes that occur in mammalian skin cells as they prepare to heal wounds.

The study, "Defining epidermal basal cell states during skin homeostasis and wound healing using single-cell transcriptomics", was published this week in Cell Reports. According to Xing Dai, Ph.D., a professor of biological chemistry and dermatology in the UCI School of Medicine, and senior author, "This study is the first comprehensive dissection of the major changes in cellular heterogeneity from a normal state to wound healing in the skin."

This work also showcases the collaborative efforts between biologists, mathematicians and physicists at UCI, with support from the National Institute of Arthritis & Musculoskeletal & Skin Diseases-funded UCI Skin Biology Resource-based Center and the NSF-Simons Center for Multiscale Cell Fate Research. "Our research uncovered at least four distinct transcriptional states in the epidermal basal layer as part of a 'hierarchical-lineage' model of the epidermal homeostasis, or stable state of the skin, clarifying a long-term debate in the skin stem cell field," said Dai.

Using single-cell RNA sequencing coupled with RNAScope and fluorescence lifetime imaging, the team identified three non-proliferative and one proliferative basal cell state in homeostatic skin that differ in metabolic preference and become spatially partitioned during wound re-epithelialization, which is the process by which the skin and mucous membranes replace superficial epithelial cells damaged or lost in a wound. Epithelial tissue maintenance is driven by resident stem cells, the proliferation and differentiation dynamics of which need to be tailored to the tissue's homeostatic and regenerative needs. However, our understanding of tissue-specific cellular dynamics in vivo at single-cell and tissue scales is often very limited.

"Our study lays a foundation for future investigation into the adult epidermis, specifically how the skin is maintained and how it can robustly regenerate itself upon injury," said Dai.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Download The Devdiscourse News App for Latest News.

Read more here:
Study reveals how skin cells prepare to heal wounds - Devdiscourse

It's not your imagination, it turns out. Stress can turn a person's hair gray. It's said that if you look at before and after pictures of any eight-year U.S. president the impact of the office on hair color is clear, though in fairness, it may be that candidates dye their hair and then at some point stop doing so. Nonetheless, scientists from Harvard have not only verified the conventional wisdom on our graying noggins, but have also figured out why stress is so brutal to our follicular pigmentation.

The new research from Harvard scientists is published in the journal Nature.

Image source: Ververidis Vasilis/Evan El-Amin/Vacclav/Shutterstock/Big Think

Senior author of the study Ya-Chieh Hsu, professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard, explains what prompted her research:

"Everyone has an anecdote to share about how stress affects their body, particularly in their skin and hair the only tissues we can see from the outside. We wanted to understand if this connection is true, and if so, how stress leads to changes in diverse tissues. Hair pigmentation is such an accessible and tractable system to start with and besides, we were genuinely curious to see if stress indeed leads to hair graying."

It turns out that stress activates nerves associated with our basic fight-or-flight system, and these nerves permanently damage pigment-regenerating melanocyte stem cells in hair follicles, causing them to cease production of melanin that normal provides color to hair follicles.

Hsu's team studied the issue using mice, and was somewhat stunned at their findings. "When we started to study this, I expected that stress was bad for the body but the detrimental impact of stress that we discovered was beyond what I imagined," recalls Hsu.

The scientists stressed the mice using a combination of three methods:

Image source: Helga Lei/Shutterstock

Hsu and her colleagues first suspected an immune system reaction was at the root of graying hairs only to discover that mice without immune systems still turned gray in response to stressors. The next suspect was cortisol produced by the adrenal glands however, this proved not to be so. "Stress always elevates levels of the hormone cortisol in the body," says Jsu, "so we thought that cortisol might play a role. But surprisingly, when we removed the adrenal gland from the mice so that they couldn't produce cortisol-like hormones, their hair still turned gray under stress."

Image source: Judy Blomquist/Harvard University

Finally, the researchers investigate the possibility that the system responding to stressors was the mice's sympathetic nervous systems, the part of the nervous system that kicks into action with the fight-or-flight impulse. The sympathetic nervous system is a vast network of nerves that connects, among other places, to hair follicles in the skin. In response to stress, the system sends a rush of the chemical norepinephrine to the follicles' melanocyte stem cell, causing them to quickly burn through and deplete their stores of pigment.

Say Hsu, "After just a few days, all of the pigment-regenerating stem cells were lost. Once they're gone, you can't regenerate pigments anymore. The damage is permanent." Great for survival, not so good for hair color.

Sympathetic system nerves are magenta above. Melanocyte stem cells are yellow.

Image source: Hsu Laboratory, Harvard University

"Acute stress," says lead author of the study Bing Zhang, "particularly the fight-or-flight response, has been traditionally viewed to be beneficial for an animal's survival. But in this case, acute stress causes permanent depletion of stem cells."

The research, done in collaboration with other Harvard researchers, presents a new appreciation of the effect the sympathetic system can have on the body's cells during stress.

One of these collaborators, Harvard immunologist Isaac Chu, notes, "We know that peripheral neurons powerfully regulate organ function, blood vessels, and immunity, but less is known about how they regulate stem cells. With this study, we now know that neurons can control stem cells and their function, and can explain how they interact at the cellular and molecular levels to link stress with hair graying."

Given this finding regarding the direct impact of stress on follicular stem cells, the question of what it else it may affect becomes an obvious one. As Hsu sums it up, "By understanding precisely how stress affects stem cells that regenerate pigment, we've laid the groundwork for understanding how stress affects other tissues and organs in the body."

This importance of the study therefore goes way beyond graying heads. "Understanding how our tissues change under stress is the first critical step," says Hsu, "toward eventual treatment that can halt or revert the detrimental impact of stress. We still have a lot to learn in this area."

Related Articles Around the Web

Excerpt from:
Scientists figure out why stress turns your hair gray - Big Think

Jagasia was concerned that although G.V.H.D. was the most likely diagnosis, it might not be the right one. The patient had already been tested for the usual infections seen in immune-suppressed patients. So he looked for other possible causes of the patients diarrhea. He didnt find any. The patient lost another 15 pounds. When he looked in the mirror, he hardly recognized himself. Jagasia arranged for the patient to start getting intravenous nutrition and began tapering one immune-suppressing medication in order to start another.

The patients son was in medical school in another part of the state and called home frequently. When his father finally told him how sick he was, his son got scared. His father was a minimizer. If he was saying this, things must be bad.

When he got off the phone, the young man immediately turned to the internet. He typed in gastroenteritis after ... stem-cell transplant. The first results that came up referred to a paper in a medical journal, Clinical Infectious Diseases, published nearly a decade earlier that identified an unexpected culprit: norovirus.

Norovirus is one of the most common causes of gastroenteritis in the world. In the United States, its linked to an estimated 21 million cases of nausea and vomiting every year. Diarrhea can be present but is not typically as severe as other symptoms. In a normal host, the infection resolves on its own after 48 to 72 hours, thanks to the hard work of the immune system. Even so, norovirus was not a common cause of diarrhea in those who are immunosuppressed. But in the medical-journal paper, the first of its kind, 12 patients who had a stem-cell transplant and developed a persistent diarrheal illness were found to have norovirus. And of those 12, 11 were initially thought to have G.V.H.D. In most of those cases, it was only after the immune-suppressing medications were reduced that the patients own defenses could come to the rescue and vanquish the virus.

The son immediately sent the paper to his father. Had he been tested for norovirus? he asked. The patient wasnt sure. He forwarded the journal article to Jagasia and asked if hed had this test. He hadnt. Jagasia was 99 percent certain that this was a wild-goose chase. Hed never seen norovirus in patients with compromised immune systems. Still, testing was easy.

When the test came back positive, Jagasia was stunned. He repeated the test. Positive again. He immediately started to taper the immune-suppressing medications. As the doses came down, the diarrhea slowed, and after a few weeks, it stopped completely. With the help of the IV nutrition, and a slowly improving appetite, the patient began to gain back the weight he lost. From the patients point of view, his son saved his life.

Go here to read the rest:
His Immune System Went Out of Whack. The Usual Treatment Didnt Work. Why? - The New York Times

It's not your imagination, it turns out. Stress can turn a person's hair gray. It's said that if you look at before and after pictures of any eight-year U.S. president the impact of the office on hair color is clear, though in fairness, it may be that candidates dye their hair and then at some point stop doing so. Nonetheless, scientists from Harvard have not only verified the conventional wisdom on our graying noggins, but have also figured out why stress is so brutal to our follicular pigmentation.

The new research from Harvard scientists is published in the journal Nature.

Image source: Ververidis Vasilis/Evan El-Amin/Vacclav/Shutterstock/Big Think

Senior author of the study Ya-Chieh Hsu, professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard, explains what prompted her research:

"Everyone has an anecdote to share about how stress affects their body, particularly in their skin and hair the only tissues we can see from the outside. We wanted to understand if this connection is true, and if so, how stress leads to changes in diverse tissues. Hair pigmentation is such an accessible and tractable system to start with and besides, we were genuinely curious to see if stress indeed leads to hair graying."

It turns out that stress activates nerves associated with our basic fight-or-flight system, and these nerves permanently damage pigment-regenerating melanocyte stem cells in hair follicles, causing them to cease production of melanin that normal provides color to hair follicles.

Hsu's team studied the issue using mice, and was somewhat stunned at their findings. "When we started to study this, I expected that stress was bad for the body but the detrimental impact of stress that we discovered was beyond what I imagined," recalls Hsu.

The scientists stressed the mice using a combination of three methods:

Image source: Helga Lei/Shutterstock

Hsu and her colleagues first suspected an immune system reaction was at the root of graying hairs only to discover that mice without immune systems still turned gray in response to stressors. The next suspect was cortisol produced by the adrenal glands however, this proved not to be so. "Stress always elevates levels of the hormone cortisol in the body," says Jsu, "so we thought that cortisol might play a role. But surprisingly, when we removed the adrenal gland from the mice so that they couldn't produce cortisol-like hormones, their hair still turned gray under stress."

Image source: Judy Blomquist/Harvard University

Finally, the researchers investigate the possibility that the system responding to stressors was the mice's sympathetic nervous systems, the part of the nervous system that kicks into action with the fight-or-flight impulse. The sympathetic nervous system is a vast network of nerves that connects, among other places, to hair follicles in the skin. In response to stress, the system sends a rush of the chemical norepinephrine to the follicles' melanocyte stem cell, causing them to quickly burn through and deplete their stores of pigment.

Say Hsu, "After just a few days, all of the pigment-regenerating stem cells were lost. Once they're gone, you can't regenerate pigments anymore. The damage is permanent." Great for survival, not so good for hair color.

Sympathetic system nerves are magenta above. Melanocyte stem cells are yellow.

Image source: Hsu Laboratory, Harvard University

"Acute stress," says lead author of the study Bing Zhang, "particularly the fight-or-flight response, has been traditionally viewed to be beneficial for an animal's survival. But in this case, acute stress causes permanent depletion of stem cells."

The research, done in collaboration with other Harvard researchers, presents a new appreciation of the effect the sympathetic system can have on the body's cells during stress.

One of these collaborators, Harvard immunologist Isaac Chu, notes, "We know that peripheral neurons powerfully regulate organ function, blood vessels, and immunity, but less is known about how they regulate stem cells. With this study, we now know that neurons can control stem cells and their function, and can explain how they interact at the cellular and molecular levels to link stress with hair graying."

Given this finding regarding the direct impact of stress on follicular stem cells, the question of what it else it may affect becomes an obvious one. As Hsu sums it up, "By understanding precisely how stress affects stem cells that regenerate pigment, we've laid the groundwork for understanding how stress affects other tissues and organs in the body."

This importance of the study therefore goes way beyond graying heads. "Understanding how our tissues change under stress is the first critical step," says Hsu, "toward eventual treatment that can halt or revert the detrimental impact of stress. We still have a lot to learn in this area."

Related Articles Around the Web

More:
Who's in charge here? - Big Think

For Earth, bleak times lay ahead. TheCOVID-19 diseaseis known to cause respiratory illness and fever, but some extra symptoms sweeping across the globe right now seem to be stress, fear, and anxiety. To provide some light relief in these dark times, weve collated 15 of our favorite good news stories to remind you that not everything is awful. Hold tight everybody, 2021 will come eventually.

The Super Pink Moon is comingYou might be stuck at home as part of your self-isolation, but luckily the night sky is about to put on quite a show as April sees the return of the Super Pink Moon. Full moons happen every month and were given different names by the Native Americans to map out the year based on significant events that ran in tandem with the occurrence of a full Moon. Aprils is known as the pink moon because it appeared at the same time as pink spring flowers. This Aprils will be a Super Pink Moon as it is the second supermoon of the year, a term used to describe the slightly enlarged appearance of the Moon as its fully illuminated by the Sun due to Earths position between the two. Quarantine or no, if you've got access to a window you should be able to catch sight of this beauty on April 7 and when you do, think of all the other people looking up at the same moon. Self isolation doesn't mean you're alone.

Mice have been cured of diabetesAn astonishing discovery at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has revealed that human stem cells could be successfully engineered to cure diabetes in mice, offering an avenue of hope for the treatment of this debilitating disease. They used human pluripotent stem cells, cells that have the capacity to become any cell in the body, to create insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells. The engineered stem cells supplemented the diabetic mices inability to produce insulin, curing them of the disease for 9 months to a year before relapse occurred.

Theres a new green fuel in townHydrogen fuel was fast shaping up to be a hopeful route for a zero-emissions means of running things, but its costly production in terms of energy was affecting hopes for it being a sustainable resource. A team in Tokyo has now managed to refine the process to yield 25 times more hydrogen than previous methods all while using thrifty ingredients including light and a specific kind of rust. Combined with all the solar power breakthroughs currently occurring, green energy is on the up.

A crash course in what not to do, according to one Stanford University psychologist.

Babies love baby talkEven if it makes your skin crawl to hear adults cooing over little uns, it turns out babies across the globe are universally partial to baby talk. The news comes fromStanford psychologist Michael Frank who led the largeststudyto date looking at how the different ways adults speak is received by babies across the world. While all babies were fans, older babies liked it best and even showed a preference for baby talk in their native language as they likely recognized it most even if they couldnt speak it yet. The overall winner was oohs and coos, so think twice before scorning your new-parent friends for embarrassing you in public the babies have spoken.

Important change in the winds for HIV treatmentShortly after a UK man became the second person cured of HIV a fantastic breakthrough in the treatment of this once devastating disease theres more good news in the UK as PrEP, a preventative drug that prevents HIV infection, will finally be available nationwide on the NHS having already been made available in Scotland. After a 3-year study involving 20,000 participants, the drug will be made available to those at higher risk of exposure from April. PrEP is already available in the US and you can find PrEP providers near you here.

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Plasters finally take a step towards racial inclusivityMajor UK superstore Tesco has taken the long-awaited step to introduce skin tone diversity into their range of bandaids. Previously, widely available bandaids, or plasters in the UK, have mainly catered to Caucasian individuals and the racial oversight was brought to light by a moving Tweet from Domonique Apollon in April 2019 after he wore a bandaid suitable for his skin tone for the first time. Longtime readers of Malorie Blackman's literary series Noughts and Crosseswill appreciate this poignant detail becoming a reality, as will those watching the current BBC dramatization available to watch via iPlayer in the US (excellent for those self-isolating).

Universal flu vaccine passes integral stageWatchers of the Pandemic documentary on Netflix (we wouldnt recommend catching up now if you missed it) may remember the plight of flu-fighting epidemiologists as the constantly shape-shifting nature of influenza meant strains were annually moving beyond existing vaccinations. Now, a universal vaccine is becoming a reality as for the first time a vaccine, called FLU-v, has been developed that can induce immune responses that last at least six months. Phase I and II of the clinical trial have been approved meaning its safety for use in human subjects and we hotly await what comes next for the groundbreaking vaccine.

Top marks for lights out in dark sky nationSometimes a bit of darkness can be a good thing, and when it comes to nighttime, the tiny South Pacific island of Niue tops the charts. The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) is a non-profit working to protect our most precious natural spaces from light pollution, and this year chose Niue as the first entire country ever to be accredited as a Dark Sky Place. This classification recognizes responsible lighting policies that preserve the natural darkness of nighttime carrying with it endless benefits for the biological cycles of animals, plants and humans.

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People hating on National Parks created beautiful artIn a glimmering example of you cant please everybody, artist Amber Share decided to take some of the best worst reviews of National Parks in America and turn them intotourism posters, showing that we can still make something funny in the face of people's negativity. You can see the whole collection on her Instagram account @subparparks, but a personal favorite has to be the above magnificent minimization of Yellowstone.

CRISPR may hold the key for curing genetic blindnessSurgeons at Oregon Health & Science Institute have attempted to use gene hacking to cure Leber congenital amaurosis, a genetic condition that leads to the onset of blindness in early childhood. By directly gene editing within the patients eye, researchers hope to ...take people who are essentially blind and make them see," according to researchers.

The Arctic seed vault in Svalbard is thrivingLast month saw an enormous glut of 60,000 seed samples added to the ever-growing collecting in the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. Tucked beneath a mountain in Norway's Svalbard archipelago, the initiative began with hopes to create a Noahs ark for plant diversity to protect our green spaces should a global catastrophe occur up top. The collection now includes 1.05 million seed varieties including the first-ever donation from an indigenous US tribe. Nicknamed the "Doomsday vault", we may need it sooner than thought.

Sea sponges can sneeze, and the footage is amazingThe aah and choo of asneezing sea spongehas been caught on camera for the first time and the recording is hilarious. Stumbled upon almost by accident, the discovery came about while researchers were observing sea cucumbers and sea urchins sniffing the sea floor. The video shows the two-part sneeze of a tulip-shaped sponge as it expands before contracting, expelling particles as it goes. Researchers arent yet sure what the sneezes are in response to. Lets hope its not a case ofthe suds.

Vernal equinox brings early springThe times might be dark but for the Northern hemisphere, the days wont be, as spring arrives on March 19, the earliest date in 124 years. The variation in the date is the result of leap years and daylight savings time. It should be noted this is the astronomical definition of spring, which refers specifically to the position of Earth's orbit in relation to the Sun, so perhaps dont expect to hear a gay little spring song in your garden just yet.

Its possible some dinosaurs could GLOW IN THE DARKA titillating discovery published in the journal Historical Biology recently revealed that some dinosaurs may have glowed in the dark thanks to ultraviolet fluorescing feathers and horns. Many extant bird species are tetrachromats, defined by a fourth cone in their retina that means they can see the UV spectrum. Co-author Jamie Dunning's work on the photoluminescence of puffin beaks under UV light inspired the questions, could dinosaurs have this too? We'd like the answer to be yes, please. The only thing cooler than dinosaurs is glow-in-the-dark dinosaurs.

If you need more positivity in your life right now, take a look at these ingenious social distancing moments from around the world that will restore your faith in humanity.

More here:
15 Good News Stories To Tackle The COVID-19 Sadness - IFLScience

Blood cancer prevents your blood cells from functioning properly. Which symptom, that appears at night, could signal you may have the deadly disease?

When stem cells in your bone marrow which creates red blood cells mutates, the blood cells may grow abnormally or fail to die when they should this is cancerous cells.

There are three main types of blood cancer: leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

These types of blood cancers affect different cells: leukaemia is the name given when white blood cells become cancerous; lymphoma happens certain white blood cells are affected; and myeloma is when plasma cells become cancerous.

Drenching night sweats is one symptom of the blood cancer lymphoma.

It's currently not known why this happens for this certain type of cancer.

The NHS states: "Night sweats are when you sweat so much that your night clothes and bedding are soaking wet, even though where you're sleeping is cool."

Bloodwise list other symptoms of blood cancer, which include unexplained bruising or bleeding.

In addition to these symptoms, Bloodwise list the following as symptoms of blood cancer:

An unexplained rash, bruising or bleeding is caused by low levels of blood-clotting cells.

The rash could be purple in colour (purpura), and the bruising could be tiny pin-sized red spots on the skin, called petechiae.

Lumps and swelling may be caused by abnormal white blood cells building up in lymph nodes. This is most noticeable in the neck, groin and armpit.

Read more:
Blood cancer symptoms: Watch out for this sign at night - it could be the deadly disease - Express

When the World Health Organization (WHO)labeled the new COVID-19a "pandemic", that is, a disease that is occurringall over the world at the same time, there were moments reminiscentof times of war: thedeserted streets, supermarkets overwhelmed by hundreds of people scrambling for goods, and the constant media monitoring of the infection's progress the number of sick and dead increasing daily.Although our health system is not what it was in 1918, when the Spanish Fluwreaked havoc, nor will the coronavirus be as lethal as smallpox the most deadly pandemic some people will still make historical comparisons.To keep you up to date with what's happening now and what's happened in the past, here's tour of the five most devastating pandemics that we've emerged from.

HIV/AIDS

It has killed more than 25 million people worldwide, and although preventive treatments such as PrEP have been developed toreduce infections by 90%, a global cure has yet to be found.HIV originated in Africa, where apes have an HIV-like virus known as SIV.

Scientists still speculate on whether interspecies contagion occurred from hunting or eating infected chimp meat.AIDS wasn't detected as a disease until the 1980s, when it was observed in the United States, especially among homosexual patients in New York and California. It was later determined an evolution of the HIV infection, which transmitted through any passage of bodily fluid (intravenous drug usage and sexual intercourse were the most common). Doctors named it acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)because the virus attacks the white blood cells that help fight infection.Today, there are two patients worldwide who have been cured of HIV thanks to a stem cell transplant whose donor carried a mutation known as CCR5-delta 32.

The Black Death or Bubonic Plague

It ravaged the European continent from the mid-14th century until its last outbreak three hundred years later and is responsible for more than 75 million deaths.

Although at that time the devastating epidemic was attributed to Divine Cholera and even to the passage of a comet, the origin was a bacterium that appeared in Asia and spread through parasites such as rat fleas. Its spread originated at trade ports, and was helped by the poor hygiene conditions and diet of the time period.

Death occurred in less than a week after the disease manifested, with the appearance of buboes - or swelling of nodes in the lymphatic system - accompanied by high fevers, delirium, chills and stinking suppurations. The sick were confined to their homes along with their families as means of containment. In some cases, it wiped out whole villages in Europe, which were sometimes discovered hundreds of years later.

Spanish Flu

The disease gotits name during WWI fromSpanish newspapers, which remained neutral in the conflict, and were the only ones to report on its lethality without censorship.

It is believed that Spanish Flu was responsible for between 50 and 100 million deaths and some the first cases reported were among the United States military, who could have broughtit to Europe when they landed to fight the Germans. Regardless, there are many theories around its origin.

As deadly as it is heartbreaking, there were cases in the United States of people rising with fever and dying on their way to work.

In a previous article, we commented on why its fatality rate, which is often used incomparisontoCovid-19, is wrong, as it is well over the 2% reported by WHO.

Smallpox

Holding the position of the most devastating global pandemic,Smallpoxhas contributed to the decline of entire civilizations such as the Aztec and Inca Empires when theSpanish brought the disease in their "conquest" of the New World in 1519. It is estimated that 90% of indigenous deaths during European colonization were not due to "fire," but rather, disease.

In Europe, smallpox killed 60 million people in the 18th century alone, and a hundred years later there were 300 million deaths worldwide.

Its Latin name means "spotted", because of the bumps and bruises that appeared on the faces of those afflicted. It was highly contagious and those who survived would carry marks on their skin for the rest of their lives, and some even wentblind.

One of modern medicine's greatest achievements was the creation of a vaccine for smallpox in 1979. As a result, Smallpox is considered eradicated.

See the rest here:
Four pandemics that changed the world - AL DIA News

Boca Raton, Florida--(Newsfile Corp. - March 20, 2020) - LifeGaines reaches out to its patients and community who are concerned about COVID-19, the novel coronavirus.

"Dear LifeGaines Medical & Aesthetics Family,

"The staff at LifeGaines takes your health and safety seriously and we won't compromise when it comes to protecting our patients. We are closely monitoring the World Health Organization and CDC with regard to ongoing developments of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and we are committed to providing you a safe and clean environment.

"In an effort to reassure our patients, we want to inform you that we are continuing our rigorous routines to keep our practice sanitized and clean and will continue to take every precaution to keep you safe. Our daily safety standards include disinfecting our treatment rooms and equipment after each treatment and thoroughly washing our hands. We also wear new, clean gloves when applying products to our patients' skin and discard after each use. Also, our office is cleaned daily including wiping down tabletops, doorknobs, and equipment using medical-grade disinfectants."

Dr. LifeGaines reaches out to patients and community in light of COVID-19

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6848/53638_6ce3ae9244cd7992_001full.jpg

Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns at (561) 931-2430. We look forward to seeing you soon.

https://www.facebook.com/LifeGaines/posts/1067452740282001 - Dr. Gaines gives a message on Facebook about how he is boosting his immune system as the COVID-19 virus spreads across the U.S.

Dr. Gaines talks about the benefits of IV ozone therapy. In addition to immunotherapy which helps boost someone's immune system, one should also drink plenty of water and get enough rest.

LifeGaines is mobile and visiting patients at their homes with the IV ozone therapy treatment. Inquire about this by calling LifeGaines.Learn about IV Vitamin Therapy here: https://lifegaines.com/wellness-therapies/iv-vitamin-therapy/

Don't hesitate to contact LifeGaines with any questions or concerns at (561) 931-2430.

About Dr. Gaines' LifeGaines team:

LifeGaines is one of the most highly respected age management medical teams anywhere. Age management medicine pioneer Dr. Richard Gaines has years of experience specializing in hormone replacement therapy, sexual wellness, platelet-rich plasma, stem cells, aesthetics, and advanced age management protocols.

About Dr. Gaines:

Dr. Richard Gaines graduated from Boston University School of Medicine in 1981. He completed his internship at Tufts University School of Medicine in 1981 and his residency at Harvard Medical School in 1985, where he was an anesthesiology fellow at Brigham and Women's Hospital. He served as a physician at Huntington General Hospital, as an anesthesiologist at Harvard Community Health Plan and at Sheridan Healthcorp. Dr. Gaines opened an age management and wellness practice after a 40-year career as a physician and health care executive. He has a Fellowship in Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine (FAARM) from the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine, he's board-certified from the American Board of Anti-Aging & Regenerative Medicine (ABAARM) and he's certified as a Functional Medicine Practitioner with advanced training at The Institute for Functional Medicine.

LifeGaines is responsible for this press release.

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Dr. Gaines Provides Insight Into How People Can Best Protect Themselves and Their Families From the COVID-19 Virus - Marketscreener.com

They're extremely now. Covetable, even the kind of thing some celebrity would Instagram from their "survival condo" in Kansas. In a series of large photographs, Elaine Whittaker sits for a variety of "face mask selfies" closeup portraits of the artist wearing hand-painted respirators. Cholera makes for a pleasingly haphazard pattern of kidney-shaped blobs. Ebola, that stringy so-and-so, could double for a handwritten logo a black-market YSL dupe. (An extremely busted one, maybe, but masks were the breakout dystopian trend at this year's Paris Fashion Week, after all.)

"A quick little story about the masks," says Whittaker, calling the same afternoon COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. "When I first displayed the photographs in a gallery, there were some people standing way at the back [of the room]. One was saying: 'Oh my god, she put ebola on your face! She has malaria on her face!'"

That was in 2015, when this project (Screened For) debuted at Toronto's Red Head Gallery. Like much of Whittaker's art, the series is meant to connect us with the unseen world of microorganisms in this case, infectious diseases. It wasn't her doomsday prediction of a global outbreak, and it's not a house of bio-horrors images designed to terrify the impressionable,like that panicked duo who thought a photo could give them SARS.

"They read them literally," says Whittaker. "It's interesting, that instinct we have to be fearful."

I wonder how those two are dealing with the news right now. In pictures alone, the story of coronavirus is empty shelves, empty airports,mobbed Costcos. It's people in surgical masks, just like the ones in Screened For. (And to repeat the official advice: save those items for healthcare workers and the ill, please. They help stop the spread of disease.)

It's a time for acting with caution, not panic. But if pictures of COVID-19 or any contagion prick at our reflex to freak out, how do we, as viewers, manage what we're seeing?

Earlier this month, Toronto's Photo Laureate Michle Pearson Clarke raised a few points on the subject of how we're illustrating COVID-19. "I've been thinking about the visual representation of this public health crisis, with the most commonly used images depicting people wearing masks," she wrote on Instagram. "We can't photograph this virus, which perhaps makes it more threatening for some folks."

It's Clarke's job to be thinking about issues of representation, she explains. And since the novel coronavirus was discovered in China, media images of COVID-19 have raised her concern. There's a lot of history to consider when reading images of COVID-19, Clarke says. When humans are facing some new invisible menace, they have a long track record of blaming an easier target, and Asian communities have borne the brunt. To pull one widely cited example, when New York's first confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported in early March, outlets including the New York Times and New York Post initially ran the piece with photos of Chinatown, though the patient caught the virus in Iran. Lazy editorial choices can wind up spreading a racist narrative, one that's textbook "fear of the other."

When Clarke was musing on the visual culture of COVID-19, she didn't Instagram a news photo. Instead, she posted a scientific illustration, a now-familiar 3-D rendering of the virus. "I just Googled COVID-19 that day, just to see what was coming up, and then saw that CDC image," she says. "And that particular illustration it is so stunning. It's gorgeous, you know? But also, right away seeing that image, seeing the kind of spikes on the virus you think about how a virus spreads."

That instant lesson is the power of medical illustration: communicating scientific data as quickly as your brain can process an image (which is as little 13 milliseconds.) And for scientists like Tahani Baakdhah, a PhD student at the University of Toronto, information is her Purell for panic.

"As a science communicator, I like to explain everything using a model," says Baakdhah, who teaches workshops to the general public. Past topics include neuroscience and retinal stem cells (her area of research). Her hand-made visual aids, however, are unique. Baakdhah crochets them.

Unlike the potential threat of contagion, there is absolutely nothing scary about a huggable pink virus with a super-kawaii grin. That's a strategic move on Baakdhah's part. Her Instagram photos are cute-overload clickbait, but the captions summarize the latest research. Says Baakdhah: "People all over the world are talking about this. Why not design a model to explain what COVID is?"

Baakdhah also sells her visual aids on Etsy, which has caused at least one goofy misunderstanding at the post office. (Question: "What are you shipping today?" Answer: "Coronavirus!") As of last week, she'd already made more than 40, and had 20 additional orders in progress.

Etsy, however, has banned all listings that mention COVID-19 or coronavirus, a policy they put in effect earlier this month. As of writing, if you try searching those terms, you'll be served a corporate statement explaining the action. The online marketplace says it's working to protect shoppers from snake-oil salesmen sellers out to hock phony remedies. But the ban's also stymied Baakdhah's educational outreach. Her coronavirus models and patterns are still available through the site (shop name: PurpleLilacAmigurumi) but can't be found if you search the disease.

"You cannot prevent scientists from explaining their science in whatever way they like," she says. "Some scientists like to talk, some scientists like to draw, some scientists like to crochet!"

Some, like California-based biologist David S. Goodsell, prefer painting. He debuted this illustration of a coronavirus on Twitter last month. "Art is the work of transforming fear and pain into beauty," one user replied. Tweeted another: "Would be a good puzzle to do while in quarantine." Luke Jerram, the same American artist behind the "Museum of the Moon" installation that appeared in Edmonton and Toronto (among other cities) in recent years, makes sculptures out of clear glass an instructional choice. Per his website: "Viruses have no colour as they are smaller than the wavelength of light."

"We need to do something to visualize the unknown, because it makes it less threatening and less frightening," says Tagny Duff. But as an artist, not a scientist, Duff approaches the challenge differently.

"It's the unknown that I find really exciting," says Duff. "It's the big question, right? How can we know something we don't see?"

Based in Montreal, Duff says she began researching viruses in 2007. At the time, she was teaching a course on the HIV/AIDS epidemic at Concordia University. "I realized that for all the knowledge I had about the social and cultural aspects of it, I didn't really understand the biological reality of HIV," she explains. And after learning some of the basic science, she was inspired to not just make work about viruses, but with them.

"I really felt this responsibility to not only teach myself but students the deeper levels of what a virus is, and how it can be used as a way to really teach us about different kinds of phenomena."

Living Viral Tattoos, an ongoing project she launched more than 10 years ago, expresses both the actual process of infection and the fear that surrounds it. Using a synthetic retrovirus (Lentivirus), Duff effectively inks lumps of actual skin. (A cosmetic surgery patient donated the samples.) As part of the project, Duff outlines her process in exhaustive detail, explaining the steps through video and written instruction. It's the same methodology used in gene therapy, a treatment for conditions including HIV/AIDS, she explains. But here, dye used to mark the site of a cellular reaction appears as bruised skin or, per the title, a tattoo.

"I wanted to be able to show how this was done, and demystify the fear around it," she says. Like a scientist, information is Duff's top strategy. But, she says: "I'm certainly not a science communicator. I mean, first and foremost, I'm interested in people having an experience, having conversations and having a kind of philosophical encounter with visual objects."

"These 3D graphics of a coronavirus: they're very colourful and easy to look at. And they kind of look not so intimidating," she says. "It's easier for people to look at [a scientific illustration] than, say, people with masks, running away from each other in the metro."

"But it's also very removed from the relationship to us as humans," she continues. And as an artist, that's where she comes in.

For Whittaker, her art invites people to think beyond a disaster scenarioand consider our larger relationship with the environment, including the organisms we can't see. "What I'm interested in is people seeing the natural world," she says. "And they can be enchanted by it, and they can be in awe of it and they can have respect for it."

"Looking at microscopic images, they're absolutely gorgeous. They're just really beautiful," she says. "I love that double-sidedness that right beside this beauty there is this terror and fear that we can't see them. They're invisible and we get sick from them. And that plays in all my work all my work about infectious diseases."

"[I'm] hoping to encourage people to think about what the critical role that microorganisms play in our lives, play on this earth, and how they've been here longer than we have and are due their respect. I want people to think about them culturally, historically, scientifically and I want to empower them to see the world in new and different ways by looking at them."

Beyond fear and crisis, viruses can symbolize change. They invade and transform host cells, sure, but there's a positive spin to consider, too. Facing a pandemic, how do we, as humanity, respond?

There's a strain of that in Duff's work, and her latest project, Wastelands, builds a speculative sci-fi world,suggesting a possible future where we've developed a new sustainable fuel. The stuff's generated using bacteriophages (viruses that attack bacteria). "It's really thinking about how these bacteriophages could be our friends," she says, chuckling. "Viruses could help us survive." Maybe they're not as friendly as one of those crocheted COVID-19s, but still.

As communities work to "flatten the curve," so to speak working from home, limiting travel, cancelling large gatherings, etc. these actions could ripple into our habits going forward. "I know it sounds really utopian," Duff says, "but right now, the coronavirus has been instrumental in reducing carbon emissions around the globe."

That consequence comes with complications, but it's a thought to chew before reacting to the latest COVID-19 update. And reflection is needed if we are going to prevent panic. Maybethis moment is a prompt to seek out art like Whittaker's, for instance: images that might scare people, but ask them to consider where the fear is coming from, too.

"I think there is an important role for art at this time," says Whittaker. "I think it's important to empower people, so that they can see art as a way of aiding them in living through these difficult times."

CBC News is keeping track ofdevelopments in the COVID-19 pandemic. This guide toCOVID-19 and its impact on life in Canada is regularly updated with the latest information.

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What is the role of art in helping us better understand coronavirus? - CBC.ca

a Team of researchers from the University of Minnesota tested a new approach to growing human blood vessels. It will allow you to get unlimited number of vessels for transplantation, the risk of rejection is minimized.

Scientists have long known that human physiology has a lot to do with the physiology of pigs, so the latter often act as models for the design and testing of various drugs and treatment strategies.

In the new work, the team tried to grow human blood vessels in the body of a pig.

Specialists have got the Mature skin cells of a patient and reprogrammed them into induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSC), giving rise to endothelial cells. The latter, as we lined the inner surface of blood vessels.

the IPSC were injected into the fetal pig, and he was hoisted to a surrogate mother.

In the first phase of the test, the embryo has developed over 27 days. No non-target effects were found, all endothelial cells were of human origin.

the Team believes that proved the viability of its concept, and is now awaiting approval for further study of the embryo in the later stages of pregnancy.

as planned By the scientists, their method permits to obtain a viable piglets with blood vessels that will precisely fit the vessels of each patient awaiting transplantation. Thus, after the operation the man will not need to take immunosuppressants drugs for artificial immunosuppression.

the Authors hope that their approach will help patients with many chronic and incurable diseases requiring organ transplantation, and patients with damage to the peripheral arteries, for example, due to Smoking or diabetes (in many cases this disease leads to amputation of limbs).

Scientific article on the results of this work are presented in the journal Nature Biotechnology.

by the Way, earlier News.Science (nauka.vesti.ru) wrote about the universal acellular blood vessels and the artificial blood vessels from cells of patients and drug administration.

Text: To.Science

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Human blood vessels began to grow in the body of pigs - The KXAN 36 News

The world of Netflix's Altered Carbon is one where consciousness is no longer tethered to the physical body. It can be, and regularly is, uploaded into "cortical stacks," which are implanted at the base of the neck. In the event of death, a persons consciousness can be reloaded into a new body, known as a "sleeve." For those less fortunate, like protagonist Takeshi Kovacs, that might mean receiving a body thats not your own. In one particularly existential example from the series first episode, it might even mean a young child being uploaded into the body of an adult.

For those with means, however, the mind can be placed into a swiftly made, identical clone, allowing them to return to their lives with little interruption. We've covered what it might take to create a digital copy of a persons mind before (spoiler: it wouldnt be easy), but Altered Carbon's techno-immortality requires a second piece: the swift creation of replacement bodies.

One of the major hurdles that has kept real-world cloning from being the game changer everyone suspected it might be after the birth of Dolly, the first successfully cloned mammal, is the relatively slow development of human bodies. If you wanted to clone a 50-year-old human and get them back to the same stage of development, it would take you 50 years. That's a little too slow to make use of in the same way science fiction does.

We don't have the means to artificially age a body at a rapid pace, but what if we were able to shortcut these limitations to put it plainly, what would it take to build an adult body from scratch?

BONES

If you want to build a person from scratch, you must first make the universe. Carl Sagan said something like that, I think. Just after that, though, youll need a skeleton. Without bones, youll be left with little more than a Cronenbergian nightmare, cool in its own way, but not what were shooting for.

Today, if you have trouble with your bones, your options are limited. The first option, and in most cases the best one, is to let the bone heal itself. Your body is pretty resilient and capable of repairing most day-to-day injuries, even the ones accompanied by a sickening crack. If the injury is really bad, things get a little more medieval. Surgeons might use a series of metal plates and screws to hold your bones in place and give them time for your bodys healing processes to do their work. But those solutions only work for relatively minor injuries where the bone tissue is at least moderately intact.

When it comes to bone replacements, things are a little tougher.

Again, we can return to metal. Like the Wolverine, you might have part of your skeleton replaced or covered over with metal. This might be sufficient in specific cases, but it all feels a little crude.

Ramille Shah, Ph.D., headed a team out of Northwestern's McCormick School of Engineering to create a new material capable of instigating rapid bone regeneration. The team used 3D printers (the invention that never stops giving) and a mixture of 90 percent hydroxyapatite, a natural element of human bones, and 10 percent medical polymer to build bone constructs.

The result is a bit of artificial bone modeled in whatever shape the patient needs. It is porous, allowing for blood vessels and other tissues to easily integrate. The elastibone (perhaps the worst superhero name, trademark pending) stimulates bone regeneration and degrades over time. The intent is for the artificial structure to dissipate, leaving actual bone in its place. A technology like this would go a long way to repairing complex bone defects in all manner of patients, but is particularly promising in pediatrics, where the patients are still growing.

But, in order to truly build a bone from scratch, well need something even better. Thats where Nina Tandon and EpiBone come in.

This technology would work by taking a sample of fatty tissue, something readily available if your plan is to build a copy of an existing person, and use it to extract stem cells. Those cells would then be applied to a 3D printed scaffold of a cows bone which has been scrubbed of all its living cells. Those undifferentiated stem cells would then be placed into a bioreactor (something which sounds made up but is very real) and coaxed into growing into a fully formed bone in just a few weeks. Given enough bioreactors, and enough cows (pour one out for our fallen bovine brethren) you could feasibly grow an entire skeleton in the time it takes for you to finally fold the laundry thats been sitting in the corner of your room.

Now that youve got a skeleton, youre going to need some

ORGANS

For a long time, there weren't many ways to get a new organ if you needed one. The most commonly used method (we hope) was to get your name on a list and wait for a donor. The unfortunate reality of organ donation is that there are more people who need organs than there are organs available. Even when an organ does become available, the odds are against you that theyll match your bodys preferences, and even if you get a match, theres always the threat of rejection.

Organ transplants are a veritable miracle procedure and, while we sometimes take them for granted, they are evidence of our living in truly wizardly times in medical science. But science is never content with the status quo and humanity is forever wondering if we can further laugh in the face of nature. The preferred solution would be to develop a way to craft bespoke organs, made from the recipients' own cells.

Growing cells in a petri dish is old hat. Weve been doing that for longer than many of us have been alive. The trouble is, you can take a heart cell and induce it to multiply in a dish, but all you end up with is a dish-shaped collection of heart cells. That might be good for studying cellular biology, not so good for pumping blood through a person.

A collection of cells does not an organ make. You need something more a scaffold. Each of your organs is a complex collection of various cell types clinging to a protein structure. You can think of that structure as the framing around which the rest of a house is built. Without it, you've got little more than some insulation and drywall tossed into a haphazard stack. You need that scaffold.

There are hopes that one day well be able to build them via (drum roll please) 3D printing, but were not there yet. The level of minute detail involved is beyond our current ability. So, we have to borrow from nature.

Scientists are able to take an existing organ and strip it of its surface cells by pumping detergent through it (good for removing pesky stains and unwanted biological material). Whats left is a ghostly protein structure ready for seeding.

All that's left is to take tissue samples from the recipient and seed them onto the structure, pop it into one of those handy bioreactors, and let the cells get to work. Eventually, youll end up with an organ made of the patients own tissues. Current tests are pretty impressive, but were still a ways off from having a functioning process. The number of different tissue types involved in complex organs is a barrier and the complexity of small structures like circulatory vessels is another. Still, the technology is promising and would not only allow us to build any and all organs in record time, it would solve the organ transplant shortage and save countless lives.

So, now youve got a rigid skeleton filled with juicy oozing organs. Your neighbors are starting to wonder about the smell coming from your garage and youre grateful this abominable creature is not yet sentient because it would very likely go running for the hills. At least it would if it had

MUSCLES

Look, we all know its been a while since youve been to the gym. You bought a membership for the new year and you went a few times. You really meant well but life happened and, somehow, it all got away from you. We get it. It happens to the best of us.

While you might not have the muscle mass you wish you had, you still have quite a lot. The average persons body is comprised of somewhere between 35 and 40 percent muscle, give or take. Thats a lot. Even after all of your efforts with bioreactors, youve only managed to make 60 percent of a person. Its nothing to be scoffed at, but you arent done yet.

In order to complete next steps, youre going to need more tissue samples and a few friends from Duke University.

Using human cells that were no longer stem cells but not yet muscle cells, Nenad Bursac and Lauran Madden, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and a postdoctoral researcher, respectively, were able to successfully create functioning muscle tissues in a lab.

They grew the tissue samples and, using a 3D scaffold and a nutritive gel, ended up with working muscle fibers. These bundles of muscle fibers included receptors capable of taking in external stimuli and contracted when acted on by electricity.

For their part, the intent is not to build novel muscular structures, but to test the efficacy of drugs to treat diseases. According to Bursac, drug tests in the laboratory matched results seen in living patients. Those patients with muscular ailments could provide a tissue sample, that sample could then be grown into fiber bundles and used to test various drug treatments, ex vivo, to find a workable treatment without all the trial and error usually required.

Thanks to Bursac and the team at Duke, youve now built almost all of Takeshi Kovacs. Hes twitching and moving around on the table. He might be screaming a little, thanks to those vat-grown lungs and hes still oozing a bit. Most of all, hes embarrassed by his nakedness. A lots changed in the intervening centuries, but not the need for

SKIN

Youve got your terrible Frankensteinian gift all put together, all thats left is the wrapping. Here, too, is an area were moderately familiar with. When a patient loses skin through injury, a graft can be taken from elsewhere and used to replace the damaged tissue. It gets the job done, some skin is better than no skin of course, but theres still room for improvement.

More recently, bioengineers have had some success in growing sheets of epithelial tissue for implantation but they lacked oil and sweat glands. Again, close, but not quite. Until

A study undertaken at the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology, led by Takashi Tsuji took cells from the gums of mice and used chemicals to revert them to a stem-cell-like state. The cells were used to grow complex skin tissues.

Once the tissues were ready, they were transplanted onto living mice and were found to develop normally. Not only did those tissues function as a protective barrier, the primary function of skin, but they also succeeded in developing hair follicles and sweat glands. Even more importantly, they successfully integrated with surrounding tissue systems like muscle groups and nerves.

There are, of course, other tissue types weve not covered, each of them important to the successful functioning of a body, but if these emerging technologies are any indication, were well on our way in those areas as well.

So, youve done it. Youve made a full-grown human from scratch in months rather than decades. All thats left is to upload a mind and youre well on your way to cyberpunk chicanery. Go forth, Kovacs, we're rooting for you. And dont mess up this body, please. It was really hard to make. Thanks.

Read more:
How to build a body from scratch, Altered Carbon-style - SYFY WIRE

I'm just going to come out and say it: Everyone has been complimenting my skin lately. My co-workers, random peopleat the grocery store, my friends and familyeveryone. While I've never dealt with any major skin woes like acne, I still never considered myself to be someone with particularly good skin (whatever that means). My skin has always been on thedry side, and like many women of color, I've dealt with my fair share of stubborn hyperpigmentation. The sudden influx of complimentshasn't just been a nice little boost to my newly 30-year-old ego but also a testament to my current skincare routine, which I've tweaked to perfectionover the course of several months.

As a beauty editor, I have access to every product under the sun. But ever since last fall, I felt like my skin had just lost something. When I think back, it makes sense, as there was lot was happening at the time. I had moved, turned 30, gotten engaged, andmade a major professional moveall in a matter of months, and while each of these life developments was exciting and positive, I found myself overwhelmed with stress. I wasn't sleeping well, I wasn't eating properly, my skincare routine had fallen by the wayside, and all of that was showing up on my face. I was getting pimples, my skin tone was blotchy and uneven, and my skin texture was less than smooth.

But then, something started to happen around January: Every time I posted a photo of my mug on Instagram, a sea of adulation would flood into my comments. I started catching glimpses of my makeup-free face and being truly happy with what I saw staring back at me. Maybe it was the newfound self-love I'd been practicing in therapy, or maybe it was my skincare regimen, whichhadadmittedly reached an all-time level of bougie, even for me. Now, I'm at a place where I'llfreely leave the house without makeup on and am genuinely pleased with how healthy and smooth my skin looks. I'm not perfect, by any means, but Iamgenuinely happy, and I have to believe that my fresh, smooth skin has something to do with it. So here it goes: the exact skincare routine thatdelivered smooth, glowing skin in a month's time and continues to do so to this day. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think.

Klur Gentle Matter ($22)

I thoroughly cleanse my skin at night, so I don't always use a cleanser in the morning. Most days, I find that warm water is enough. When I do feel the need to cleanse in the morning, though,this gel cleanser is the onlyone I'll reach for. It's so gentle and actually adds moisture and nutrients like green tea, dandelion, and olive oil into my skin instead ofjust pulling everything out.

SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic ($166)

Vitamin C is probably the most important component of my skincare routine right now. While there's a lot of debate around L-ascorbic acid and whether or not its potency is actually good for the skin (jury's still out on that one), I find thatmy skin responds really well to it. Vitamin E and ferulic acid round out this formula with extra skin lipid and antioxidant protection. I can alwaystell when I've gotten lazy with my vitamin C regimen because marks from old blemishes will start to deepen, and my skin will lose some of the glow and refinement that earns me an insane amount of compliments.

Bioderma Sensibio Eye Contour Gel ($20)

I'll admit that I didn't take eye cream seriously until about a year ago, and this non-intimidating tube is to thank for that change of heart. The cream inside is lightweight and easy to lightly tap into my eye area. When I'm using eye cream consistently, I notice that any fine lines in the area soften over time, giving me that smooth, even texture I'm always after.

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream ($32)

This moisturizer has been an on-again, off-again staple on my vanity for years now. It's unscented, lightweight, and super effective. If I'm feeling extra dry, I'll even add afew small drops of marula oil to give it an extra hit of moisture.

Victoria Beckham by Augustinus Bader Cell Rejuvenating Priming Moisturizer ($145)

This moisturizing primer is basically like a blurring filter for your skin. It has tiny sparkly particles and theproprietary TFC-8 technology found in Augustinus Bader's other famous creams (more on those later). It makes my skin look way smoother, even when I don't layer any makeup on top.

Elta MD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46 ($28)

Say it with me: SPF, all the time, no matter what. UV protection is important for so many reasons, but for me, it's all about mitigating hyperpigmentation and making sure any scars or blemishes on my face aren't getting exposed to the sun. This sunscreen by Elta MD is a dermatologist favorite, and it's one of my favorites, too. It doesn't irritate my skin or leave an unsightly white cast.

Farmacy Green Clean Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm ($34)

I'm a makeup wearer, so my nighttime cleansing ritual has always been serious. I need every stitch ofgunk off of my face before I can relax for the evening. This cleansing balm melts even the most stubborn eye makeup with ease. I usually massage it into the rest of my face for about 30 seconds before concentrating on my eyes. After just a few seconds of gentle rubbing, any makeup is melted down to an inky oil that rinses away without leaving any residue behind.

Reflekt Daily Exfoliating Wash ($48)

This exfoliator is said to be gentle enough for daily use, and I've found that to be true for me. Although I've backed off from using it every single day, I still love how clean and soft my face feels after use. The multitasking jojoba beads are small and smooth, so they aren't at all harsh on the skin and also meltdown to impart moisture instead of stripping the skin.

IS Clinical Cleansing Complex ($44)

This slippery cleanser clings to every trace of grime to remove it while also retexturizing. When I want a flat wash at night instead of a gritty, exfoliating one, this is the cleanser for the job. I used to have a serious attitude about paying more than $20 for cleanser (come on, it's literally money down the drain), but this is the one that taught me the power of investing in a high-quality cleanser.

U Beauty Resurfacing Compound ($148)

I've been using the U Beauty Resurfacing Compound pretty consistently since it launched last winter, and I can honestly say that it's ascended to my skincare top five. It's so good. If smooth skin is your goal, you need to try this stuff. It's patent-pending siren capsules are designed to carry active ingredients wherever your skin needs them and bypass the healthy skin cells that don't. That's why you won't experience any redness, irritation, or peeling that typically arises when starting a retinoid. This has definitely been the hero product in my smooth-skin journey.

Moon Juice Beauty Shroom Plumping Jelly Serum ($58)

It was love at first pump with this magical, hyaluronic acid and mushroom-packed elixir. There aren't many products that make a big difference in your skin's texture after just one use, but this one does. Every time I use it, my skin instantly looks plumped and smoother.

IS Clinical Youth Eye Complex ($105)

This eye cream plumps and moisturizes my delicate under-eye skin before bed. It has a little retinol in it, which honestly freaked me out at first, but over time has resulted in major refinement of fine lines.

Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream ($170)

Are you sick of editors telling you how much they love this cream? Well, I'm sorry to tell you that I'm about to do it, too. When I'm running on fumes and can only manage to get my makeup off and slap one product on my face before bed, this is the indispensable one I can't ever skip. Maybe it's the stem cellstimulating TFC-8 technology, maybe it's some sort of sorcery, but all I know is my skin has legitimately changed in texture since I started using this cream. Real talk: It's worth every penny.

Dr. Dennis Gross Clinical Grade Resurfacing Liquid Peel ($95)

I love a good resurfacing peel, but I have to admit that I've calmed way down on the acids. I found my skin becoming more sensitized and reactive, and while I can't say for sure that my nightly resurfacing toners were to blame, I'm way better off since scaling back. Now, once a week, I'll do a pass of this two-step, clinical-grade lactic and glycolic acid peel, and it immediately makes my skin look smooth, bright, and alive. As with any super-potent acid compound, it's a good idea to patch test this one to make sure your skin doesn't have an adverse reaction.

Goldfaden MD Facial Detox ($65)

I love this clean detox mask because it's cooling and tingly on the skin but doesn't dry down so hard that it makes my face feel dry or depleted. Rinsing off the sulfur-infused paste feels like taking the biggest breath of fresh air.

Dr. Dennis Gross Hyaluronic Marine Hydrating Modeling Mask ($48)

If you know me at all, then you already know how obsessed I am with this modeling mask. I firmly believe that I could stay awake for three days straight, not drink any water the whole time, and still look fresh as a daisy after 20 minutes with this goop slopped on my face.

Klorane Smoothing and Relaxing Patches ($24)

Whether I'm prepping for a photo shoot, getting ready for a night out, or just looking to minimize puffy eyes after a couple of glasses of wine, these cornflower eye patches by Klorane get the job done like no other. The soothing hydrogeleye masks actually stay put so I can move around without them slipping off, which is a huge plus.

Pai Rosehip BioRegenerate Oil ($44)

Not only is this fatty acidrich rose-hip oil an ultra-luxe finishing touch to my nighttime routine, but it also helps to get rid of imperfections caused by an imbalance in my skin's pH. I know that using oil to treat breakouts sounds counterintuitive, but this oil does just as much to calm and soothe the skin as it does to moisturize it.

Osea Malibu Blemish Balm ($48)

Speaking of soothing salves, this coolingbalmfeels so good on top of congested skin. Whenever I notice a pimple or that my pores are looking rough, I'll spot-treat with this clean cream and let it penetrate into my skin tocalmany inflammation that's plaguing me. I'll work it in as the first step in my routine whenever I need it, and it really sets the tone for the entire day.

Up next, the 25 best products to keep your skin right and tight well past your 20s.

This article originally appeared on Who What Wear

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