A New Way to Create Stem Cells?
By Ben Irving, Georgina Johnson, Scott Kaufman

Stem cells are non-specialized cells that are both capable of renewing themselves and becoming specialized tissue and organ cells through cell division (cloning/asexually reproducing). In some organs or tissue, like bone marrow, stem cells regularly divide to repair and replace worn out or damaged tissues. In other organs, however, such as the pancreas and the heart, stem cells only divide under special conditions. Their ability to regenerate and repair tissues and organs makes them a fascinating area of exploration and hope for curing disease.
Until recently, two kinds of stem cells from animals and humans were used: embryonic stem cells and non-embryonic "somatic" or "adult" tissue stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are undifferentiated cells taken from embryos, whereas adult stem cells are undifferentiated cells found in some organs. The controversy over embryonic stem cells has raged on since their usefulness was discovered. Many believe that the gathering of embryonic stem cells kill innocent children, thus never giving them a chance to experience the world. Others believe that by doing this, they save an unwanted child, and help someone receive urgent medical care. Adult stem cells are rare to find and also have a limited capacity for reproducing and differentiating. So adult stem cells are not very useful.
In 2006, researchers developed a way to genetically "reprogram" some specialized adult cells to become stem cell-like. This new type of stem cell is called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). It is not known how iPSCs differ from embryonic stem cells. IPSCs have been created from mouse embryos as well as human embryos.
Now scientists at the University of Missouri have developed new a way of creating stem cells from regular cells taken from pig tissue, known as fibroblasts. These scientists have have been able to convert the fibroblasts to stem cells through inserting four specific genes into the fibroblast cells. Being able to use pigs is helpful because they are more similar to humans as opposed to mice. In addition, the pigs have a longer lifespan than mice, allowing the scientist to observe the long term effects. However, the scientists have not yet figured out how to program the stem cells to develop into one type of specialized cell rather than a mixture. They will need to learn how to achieve this before the new tissues can be transplanted back into the animal.
Despite all the progress made it could still take years before these stems cells can be put to the test. A major benefit of this research would be having tissue that could be transplanted back into the donor, so as to eliminate incompatibility between donor and receiver (rejection). The stem cells could also be used to create good cells to try out therapies, such as drug therapies, on tissues more similar to humans than mice tissues. They also provide a good testing opportunity to research how to reprogram the cells. However, other problems with stem cell research may not be solved with pig tissues, such as the problem of tumor growth. Finally, some may wonder if it is ethical or humane to sacrifice pigs for this research.

Here is the link to the article - http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090625141508.htm

Acknowledgements:

http://www.animaldefense.com/A_images/pig.jpg

http://dawnofanewera.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/baby-pig.jpg

http://www.innocentenglish.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/valentines-day-pig.jpg

http://9freepictures.com/d/file/animals-pictures/200908/baby-pig-68-2.jpg

http://www.hedweb.com/animimag/piglets.jpg

http://www.troedyrhiw.com/Kune%20Kune%20Pigs/kune%20kune%20piglets.jpg

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/food/piglets440.jpg

http://oldstersview.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/four-piglets-front-view-jpg.jpg

https://www.shopelysiumartists.com/images/Piglets---w.jpg

http://www.vetscite.org/publish/articles/000075/Figure%2010.%20Piglets%20in%20nursery%20pen%20without%20sowverkl.jpg

http://www.animalpicturesarchive.com/animal/a1/White_Domestic_Piglets_J01.jpg

http://www.hedweb.com/animimag/piglet2.jpg

http://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/img/Piglets.jpg

http://www.hedweb.com/animimag/pig.jpg

http://www.uth.tmc.edu/schools/med/neurology/specialty-programs/ut-stroke/images/stem-cells.jpg

http://trickyrelativity.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/fetus.jpg

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090625141508.htm

http://stemcells.nih.gov

http://www.isscr.org/science/faq.htm#2

http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2005/05/Federal-Stem-Cell-Research-What-Taxpayers-Should-Know

http://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0AXCgd83IlAm3ZGducDQ2OTlfOTBkcjUyajNkcw&hl=en

A New Way to Create Stem Cells?

A New Way to Create Stem Cells?
By Ben Irving, Georgina Johnson, Scott Kaufman

Stem cells are non-specialized cells that are both capable of renewing themselves and becoming specialized tissue and organ cells through cell division (cloning/asexually reproducing). In some organs or tissue, like bone marrow, stem cells regularly divide to repair and replace worn out or damaged tissues. In other organs, however, such as the pancreas and the heart, stem cells only divide under special conditions. Their ability to regenerate and repair tissues and organs makes them a fascinating area of exploration and hope for curing disease.
Until recently, two kinds of stem cells from animals and humans were used: embryonic stem cells and non-embryonic "somatic" or "adult" tissue stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are undifferentiated cells taken from embryos, whereas adult stem cells are undifferentiated cells found in some organs. The controversy over embryonic stem cells has raged on since their usefulness was discovered. Many believe that the gathering of embryonic stem cells kill innocent children, thus never giving them a chance to experience the world. Others believe that by doing this, they save an unwanted child, and help someone receive urgent medical care. Adult stem cells are rare to find and also have a limited capacity for reproducing and differentiating. So adult stem cells are not very useful.
In 2006, researchers developed a way to genetically "reprogram" some specialized adult cells to become stem cell-like. This new type of stem cell is called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). It is not known how iPSCs differ from embryonic stem cells. IPSCs have been created from mouse embryos as well as human embryos.
Now scientists at the University of Missouri have developed new a way of creating stem cells from regular cells taken from pig tissue, known as fibroblasts. These scientists have have been able to convert the fibroblasts to stem cells through inserting four specific genes into the fibroblast cells. Being able to use pigs is helpful because they are more similar to humans as opposed to mice. In addition, the pigs have a longer lifespan than mice, allowing the scientist to observe the long term effects. However, the scientists have not yet figured out how to program the stem cells to develop into one type of specialized cell rather than a mixture. They will need to learn how to achieve this before the new tissues can be transplanted back into the animal.
Despite all the progress made it could still take years before these stems cells can be put to the test. A major benefit of this research would be having tissue that could be transplanted back into the donor, so as to eliminate incompatibility between donor and receiver (rejection). The stem cells could also be used to create good cells to try out therapies, such as drug therapies, on tissues more similar to humans than mice tissues. They also provide a good testing opportunity to research how to reprogram the cells. However, other problems with stem cell research may not be solved with pig tissues, such as the problem of tumor growth. Finally, some may wonder if it is ethical or humane to sacrifice pigs for this research.

Here is the link to the article - http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090625141508.htm

Acknowledgements:

http://www.animaldefense.com/A_images/pig.jpg

http://dawnofanewera.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/baby-pig.jpg

http://www.innocentenglish.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/valentines-day-pig.jpg

http://9freepictures.com/d/file/animals-pictures/200908/baby-pig-68-2.jpg

http://www.hedweb.com/animimag/piglets.jpg

http://www.troedyrhiw.com/Kune%20Kune%20Pigs/kune%20kune%20piglets.jpg

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/food/piglets440.jpg

http://oldstersview.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/four-piglets-front-view-jpg.jpg

https://www.shopelysiumartists.com/images/Piglets---w.jpg

http://www.vetscite.org/publish/articles/000075/Figure%2010.%20Piglets%20in%20nursery%20pen%20without%20sowverkl.jpg

http://www.animalpicturesarchive.com/animal/a1/White_Domestic_Piglets_J01.jpg

http://www.hedweb.com/animimag/piglet2.jpg

http://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/img/Piglets.jpg

http://www.hedweb.com/animimag/pig.jpg

http://www.uth.tmc.edu/schools/med/neurology/specialty-programs/ut-stroke/images/stem-cells.jpg

http://trickyrelativity.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/fetus.jpg

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090625141508.htm

http://stemcells.nih.gov

http://www.isscr.org/science/faq.htm#2

http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2005/05/Federal-Stem-Cell-Research-What-Taxpayers-Should-Know

Is This The "Silver Bullet" of Antivirals?

Benhur Lee, a professor at UCLA has possibly discovered an antiviral that can stop Pandemic HIV, Ebola, flu, and any virus you can think of.

That isn't even the best part. Lee believes that viruses will not be able to become resistant to this antiviral.

So why aren't we using this to get rid of all viruses in the world? Well, this has only worked in the labs at UCLA.

Then what is it? It is a compound that inhibits viral entry by disabling the viral envelope. It does not destroy the virus it just stops it from entering our cells, therefore, rendering it harmless. More specifically, the compound binds to the lipids in the viral envelope and to the cell the virus is invading. The virus does not have any repair mechanisms, unlike our cells. Therefore, the virus cannot work its magic, while our cells can easily repair the lipids.

This finding is amazing. Unfortunately, Lee says that this compound is not quite ready for mass production. The researchers at UCLA say that this compound may be more toxic to the human body than they had thought in the beginning of their research. It has not proven to very toxic in their research, but there haven't been any trials of the compound to date.

The compound should be researched more heavily and studied before trials start. However, this is an incredible finding. An antiviral that renders all viruses harmless? Seems legendary, but we have to find out how we can safely use this compound in our favor.

"The breadth of antiviral activity is fascinating but I fear that with the underlying mechanism of membrane disruption, there might be a lot more toxicity than is currently appreciated. Primary cells often are much more sensitive than laboratory-adapted cells," -UCLA researcher.

We will see if this "silver-bullet" lives up to the hype.

Works Cited: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=broad-spectrum-anti-viral

More On Antivirals:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiviral_drug

www.cdc.gov/flu/professionals/treatment/



-Nathaniel B. Chumley

Startling Link Between Our Immune and Nervous Systems

Recently, many scientists have found new leads as to how our immune system might actually cause certain nervous system diseases while fighting other pathogens. A few years ago it was discovered that neurons have major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules on their surface. These proteins, are antigens, which allow our immune system to recognize cells that have been infected by a virus and mark them for destruction. It was thought for many years that neurons were the only cells in the body that did not have the MHC class I molecules.

This discovery prompted testing on mice that lacked this MHC class I molecule. It was discovered that this molecule acts as a “‘molecular brake’ on synaptic plasticity, the ability of brain cells to rewire themselves”. This ability which the MHC class I molecules block is essential to learning and memory functions. These studies also revealed the possibility that these MHC class I molecules may trigger neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s by causing the immune system to attack brain cells. This same issue is seen in rheumatoid arthritis where the immune system attacks the joints of a person.

Another immune system protein, immunoglobulin-like receptor-B (PirB), was more recently discovered to be expressed by neurons. This protein could lead to the inability to repair neurons damaged in s spinal cord injury or stroke.

These new discoveries unlock a possible cause to disease like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, which are currently incurable. If these discoveries can lead to preventative and curative measures then it would be a great leap for medical science.

However, with a discovery like this the question of whether or not this discovery is a matter of science overstepping its bounds. Some may wonder if because these diseases are caused by our body, whether or not it is our right to stop them.

Society For Neuroscience. "Immune System Research Hold Promise For Alzheimer's, Stroke, And Mental Disorders." ScienceDaily 7 November 2007. 25 April 2010 /releases/2007/11/071106124045.htm>.

-Graham

HIV Patients Hold Clues to Salmonella Vaccine Development

As we all know, HIV causes deficiencies in the immune system which lead to infections that the body would otherwise be able to fight off. In most cases these infections can be fatal and are part of what makes HIV/AIDS so destructive. Though the links between certain conditions and HIV are known, not all have been scientifically explained. One such case, until recently was Non-Typhoidal Salmonella.

Non-Typhoidal Salmonella, in high income countries, is essentially what we consider food poisoning. It causes vomiting, diarrhea, and results from eating raw foods. In low income areas it is much more destructive and for people with immune system deficiencies, in this case HIV infected people, it can be fatal. There are antibiotics for the condition but it has built an increased immunity to many of these treatments.

Though it was known that HIV prevented the body from killing the NTS cells, it was not known why. One of the researchers said of the old assumptions, "We normally think of HIV patients as being more susceptible to bacterial infections because of deficiencies in their immune systems, and often they have problems making antibodies when given vaccinations."

Yet the discovery proved quite to the contrary.

In order to kill invaders like NTS, antibodies bind to the proteins on the membranes of the invaders and consequently kill it in two ways. First, the antibody marks, or opsonizes the microbe which signals the phagocytes to ingest the cell. Secondly, some of the components collect on the membrane to form MACs or membrane attack complexes, which as we know open up a hole in the membrane.

It was discovered that in fact, HIV patients had very high levels of these antibodies which combat salmonella, yet they were still not functioning. These HIV patients had high levels of certain types of antibodies which instead of attaching to the proper point on the NTS membrane would latch on to LPS or lipopolysaccharides. The large numbers of antibodies bind to the LPS structures which effectively blocks the "killing" antibodies from binding to the cell. Though the antibodies are present, they are prevented from killing by these 'blocking' antibodies that bind to the wrong place on the cell.

When the blocking antibodies were removed, the killing antibodies went back to successfully opsonizing and MAC assembling. "In the present study, we found that it's actually an excess of antibodies that causes the problem," explained Dr MacLennan, a researcher on the project.

These findings and further investigations of LPS may lead to a vaccine which will allow those with HIV to survive NTS, a condition that is treatable for some, and should be for all.

More on antibodies:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibody

Supplementary info on NTS:

http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/13/3/501.htm

-hp

Bacteria on Easter Island

Bacteria on Easter Island

Rapamycin is a drug that keeps the immune system from attacking and potentially destroying transplanted organs (heart, lungs, kidneys, etc.). This drug has another use, which fights Alzheimers. The drug was first found isolated in soil on Easter Island (Rapa Nui). A team from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio reported that the drug rescued memory in a mouse with Alzheimers. The team also found a reduced amount of brain lesions, similar to the ones found in humans that die of Alzheimers. Because Rapamycin is a approved United States drug it could be used to start fighting Alzheimers. Three institutions reported that the life of the lab mice was extended. It was the first pharmacologic intervention shown to extend the life of an aging animal.

During a 10 week period mice with Alzheimers were fed chow containing the drug Rapamycin. Each mouse 6 months old (age of a young adult), and showed signs of having Alzheimers. At the end of the 10 weeks the mice were put through the Morris water maze (miniature swimming pool used for memory testing). The brains were then tested to see if the Rapamycin made a difference on the lesions. The drug is also being tested on cancer mice to see if it can stop or help cancer. The conductors of the test are still unsure as to whether or not this could work on humans.

By Venice Gordon, Cindy Cochran, Matthew Winter

Source:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100224165259.htm

There May be a Way to Stop Cancer Growth

Lately researchers from the University of Texas, Anderson Cancer Center, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have been researching the Skp2 gene. Many scientists believe that if they understand the Skp2 gene well enough they should be able to make novel agents, which could stop or suppress tumor growth in many common types of cancer. After conducting experiments the scientists saw that certain types of cancer could be prevented or controlled by disabling the Skp2 gene. The Skp2 controls cell proliferation, cell cycle regulation, and the growth of new cells. In cancer where the cells are out of control the deactivation of Skp2 completely halts tumor growth.A special kind of cancer cell called an oncogene which has the power to become or make other cells cancer cells has also been shown to be directly linked to the Skp2. In these progressive forms of cancer the oncogenes are heavily expressed by the Skp2.When the Skp2 is deactivated however not only does it stop the over expression of the oncogenes but it also stops the growth of the newly cancerous cells through a process known as senescence.Senescence is the irreversible loss of a cells ability to divide or grow.

Researchers performed experiments on mice to confirm whether they could feasibly create a therapeutic drug as well as whether or not the cancer was stopped. They found that they were able to stop the growth of the tumors in mice who were deficient in two chemicals Pten and p19Arf these chemicals usually suppress cancer growth but are deficient in most kinds of human cancer.By deactivating the Skp2 they were able to stop cancer in mice with both deficiencies even though it was previously thought to only be able to stop cancer in p19Arf-deficeint models. Further testing on mice showed that not only can the Skp2 halt tumors taking advantage of faulty tumor suppressor chemicals it also emits oncogenic activity all by itself so its permanent removal reduces likelihood of cancer in the future.

Although the deactivation of the Skp2 gene will be revolutionary break through the application and usage still is flawed. In most forms of senescence the DNA is destroyed thus halting growth. But with Skp2 when the cells stop dividing they release proteins which protect their DNA. These proteins however cause inflammation and damage to their surrounding tissue. This damage has been proven to accelerated aging as well as lead to age related diseases including cancer (irony).

Hui-Khan-Lin lead researcher, said that the researchers would try to find out if the Skp2 or other genes can cause senescence in HER2-decient model to determine whether the Skp2 "is globally required for an oncogenic event."

Sources:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100317144636.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Netvibes

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081201233454.htm

Sam, Dylan, and Alex. Red.