(Press-News.org) The thick and tough skin on our palms and soles, called volar skin, stands up well under high-pressure conditions. This type of skin would be welcome on the limb stumps of amputees, since these points of contact with prostheses are covered in thin, non-volar skin that can be damaged over time. Now, Sam Lee and colleagues demonstrate that an injection of volar fibroblasts into non-volar skin in a group of human volunteers can promote volar features in the thin skin that last up to five months. Based on their analysis, Lee et al. are now enrolling amputees in a phase 2 clinical trial to further explore volar fibroblasts as a future therapy for treating pressure-caused skin damage. In the United States, more than 1.7 million people have lost limbs, most often from trauma, diabetes or vasculopathy, and may be reluctant to wear prostheses due to pain or skin breakdown. The researchers used a combination of live imaging of cells, gene expression analysis, mechanical pressure testing and bioprinting to characterize volar and non-volar fibroblasts and their features related to resilience to pressure. Fiona Watt discusses these results in a related Perspective.
END
Injected fibroblasts transform to give thin skin a tough new identity
Summary author: Becky Ham
2024-09-05
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Novel study reveals how aging immune system fuels cancer growth, potentially opening new avenues for prevention
2024-09-05
New York, NY [September 5, 2024]—A novel study by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai addresses a critical yet under-explored question in cancer research: Why is aging the biggest risk factor for cancer? The study reveals how an aging immune system spurs tumor growth, offering new insights into cancer prevention and treatment, especially for older adults.
Details on the findings were reported in the September 5 Online First Release of Science [DOI:10.1126/science.adn0327]. In preclinical models, the research team found that anakinra, a drug typically used for inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, can be repurposed to block harmful signals between ...
Researchers prove 120-million-year-old volcanism on moon
2024-09-05
Extensive geologic evidence of ancient volcanic activity can be found on the Moon, but how long this volcanism persisted has been unclear. However, Prof. LI Qiuli’s Lab at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IGGCAS) has recently identified three volcanic glass beads from lunar soil samples collected by the Chang’e-5 mission. Their research shows that the beads were formed 123±15 million years ago (Ma), thus representing the youngest lunar ...
State-by-state data boosts bird conservation planning
2024-09-05
ITHACA, N.Y. – New data summaries from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s eBird platform will help state wildlife planners assess the status of bird populations that live in or pass through their state – a crucial tool in protecting species.
A team of data scientists at eBird, the participatory science platform, has packaged summaries covering every bird species, in every state, and made them available online for free. These data summaries will help states prepare their federally required ...
Study on E. coli outbreak in the UK demonstrates increasing impact of climate change on public health and food security
2024-09-05
A study published in Eurosurveillance to investigate an outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 in the UK identified contaminated lettuce as the most likely source of the infection, and determined that heavy rainfall and flooding may have carried STEC from animal faeces to the lettuce crops. More heavy rainfall events are expected due to climate change in the future, leading to increased impacts on health and food security.
Ahead of Field Epidemiology Day 2024, this study demonstrates the value of field investigations in quickly responding to outbreaks, improving preparedness, and protecting public health, and possible ...
Using 3D imaging to transform plastic waste recycling
2024-09-05
In a global first, University of Waterloo researchers have used 3D imaging technology to understand the fine details of microplastics, paving the way for more effective methods of plastic waste recycling.
Micro and nanoplastics, tiny particles of plastic that come from the breakdown of larger plastic items, have become an exponentially worsening environmental crisis. Due to their difficulties in safely decomposing, plastic pollution poses significant threats to ecosystems, wildlife and human health.
Scientists have struggled to understand the exact process of ...
Case for inflammatory memory for hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells in AML niche
2024-09-05
“In this research perspective, we discuss recent work from our lab describing an active role of HSPCs in AML and the potential implications.”
BUFFALO, NY- September 5, 2024 – A new research perspective was published in Oncotarget's Volume 15 on September 4, 2024, entitled, “Trained and ready - the case for an inflammatory memory for hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells in the AML niche.”
As noted in the abstract of this paper, lifelong hematopoiesis is sustained by the crosstalk between hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) and specialized bone marrow ...
For many animals sleep is a social activity, but it’s usually studied as an individual process
2024-09-05
Group sleeping can impact when animals sleep, how long they sleep for, and how deeply they sleep. For example, groups of meerkats time their sleep according to “sleep traditions”; olive baboons sleep less when their group size increases; bumblebees suppress sleep in the presence of offspring; and co-sleeping mice can experience synchronized REM sleep. To fully understand both sleep and animal social structures, we need to pay more attention to the “social side” of sleep, animal behaviorists argue in an opinion paper publishing September 5 in the Cell Press journal ...
Human brain cancers fire electrical impulses – researchers reveal unexpected hybrid cell spiking the signals
2024-09-05
Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital have uncovered a new cell type in the human brain.
The study published in Cancer Cell reveals that a third of the cells in glioma, a type of brain tumor, fire electrical impulses. Interestingly, the impulses, also called action potentials, originate from tumor cells that are part neuron and part glia, supporting the groundbreaking idea that neurons are not the only cells that can generate electric signals in the brain. The scientists also discovered ...
Pancreatic cancer: study finds most early staging inaccurate
2024-09-05
Staging of patients with early pancreatic cancer is inaccurate as much as 80% of the time, according to a new Cedars-Sinai Cancer study published in the peer-reviewed journal JAMA. The finding underscores the urgent need for advancements in diagnostic technology and staging, which could significantly alter early pancreatic cancer treatment and research.
In this study, investigators looked at data from more than 48,000 patients in the National Cancer Database. Based on preoperative imaging, all of the patients in the study had either stage 1 or stage 2 pancreatic cancer.
Following surgery to remove their tumors, more than 78% of stage ...
Study shows fentanyl’s role in Oregon overdose spike after policy decriminalizing drug possession
2024-09-05
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — When overdose rates spiked in Oregon in 2021 after the state decriminalized low-level drug possession, blame quickly turned to the new state law. But a new study by researchers at the Brown University School of Public Health implicates another factor: the introduction of fentanyl into Oregon’s unregulated drug market.
“What's compelling about this analysis is that it follows the path of fentanyl across the country and offers testament to the ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
New antibody-drug conjugate shows promising efficacy in EGFR-mutated NSCLC patients
Iza-Bren in combination with osimertinib shows 100% response rate in EGFR-mutated NSCLC, phase II study finds
COMPEL study shows continuing osimertinib treatment through progression with the addition of chemotherapy improves progression-free survival in EGFR-mutated NSCLC
CheckMate 77T: Nivolumab maintains quality of life and reduces symptom deterioration in resectable NSCLC
Study validates AI lung cancer risk model Sybil in predominantly Black population at urban safety-net hospital
New medication lowered hard-to-control high blood pressure in people with chronic kidney disease
Innovative oncolytic virus and immunotherapy combinations pave the way for advanced cancer treatment
New insights into energy metabolism and immune dynamics could transform head and neck cancer treatment
Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Steven Heymsfield named LSU Boyd Professor – LSU’s highest faculty honor
Study prompts new theory of human-machine communication
New method calculates rate of gene expression to understand cell fate
Researchers quantify rate of essential evolutionary process in the ocean
Innovation Crossroads companies join forces, awarded U.S. Air Force contract
Using new blood biomarkers, USC researchers find Alzheimer’s disease trial eligibility differs among various populations
Pioneering advances in in vivo CAR T cell production
Natural medicines target tumor vascular microenvironment to inhibit cancer growth
Coral-inspired pill offers a new window into the hidden world of the gut
nTIDE September2025 Jobs Report: Employment for people with disabilities surpasses prior high
When getting a job makes you go hungry
Good vibrations could revolutionize assisted reproductive technology
More scrutiny of domestic fishing fleets at ports could help deter illegal fishing
Scientists transform plastic waste into efficient CO2 capture materials
Discovery of North America’s role in Asia’s monsoons offers new insights into climate change
MD Anderson and Phoenix SENOLYTIX announce strategic cross-licensing agreement to enhance inducible switch technologies for cell and gene therapies
Researchers discover massive geo-hydrogen source to the west of the Mussau Trench
Even untouched ecosystems are losing insects at alarming rates, new study finds
Adaptive visible-infrared camouflage with wide-range radiation control for extreme ambient temperatures
MD Anderson research highlights for September 5, 2025
Physicists create a new kind of time crystal that humans can actually see
Reminder: Final media invitation for EPSC-DPS2025 and details of media briefings on RAMSES and Juno missions
[Press-News.org] Injected fibroblasts transform to give thin skin a tough new identitySummary author: Becky Ham