Macrophages are white blood cells that help prevent and alert the immune system to the threat of a pathogenic infection. Interestingly, macrophages are present in the uterus and ovaries at the time of conception. In this issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Sarah Robertson and colleagues at the University of Adelaide investigated the role of macrophages in early pregnancy. The team utilized a mouse model in which macrophages could be depleted immediately after embryo implantation. They found that without macrophages, embryos were unable to implant in the uterus.
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The number of tumor-associated immune cells is correlated with poor prognosis in cancer patients. Reducing these cells in mouse models of breast cancer reduces tumor metastasis, indicating that tumor-immune interactions are critical for cancer progression. In this issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Shelley Earp and colleagues at the University of North Carolina a Chapel Hill demonstrate that removal of the protein MerTK from immune cells decreased tumor growth in mouse models of breast cancer, melanoma, and colon cancer.
Two drugs, telmisartan and valsartan, which are used to reduce blood pressure in people with diabetes, are associated with a lower risk of hospitalization for heart attack, stroke or heart failure, according to a study published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).
Researchers have discovered the genetic processes that cause specific types of bowel cancer. Using this knowledge, they identified cancer drugs that target these genes. Their findings offer the opportunity to develop personalised treatment based on a person's genetic profile.
Professor Visvader said there was a need to improve treatments for luminal B breast cancers, which are a more aggressive type of ER-positive breast cancer, associated with a poorer prognosis. In the study, the researchers used preclinical models of breast tumour samples donated by Melbourne women undergoing cancer surgery to understand how real human cancers would respond to the treatment.
New research from the University of Adelaide shows for the first time that immune cells known as macrophages are critical to fertility by creating a healthy hormone environment in the uterus.
Laboratory studies led by researchers in the University's Robinson Institute have shown that macrophages play an essential role in production of the hormone progesterone, which is crucial for embryo implantation and the initiation of pregnancy.
A 10-year study of Chesapeake Bay fishes by researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science provides the first quantitative evidence on a bay-wide scale that low-oxygen "dead zones" are impacting the distribution and abundance of "demersal" fishes—those that live and feed near the Bay bottom.
The affected species—which include Atlantic croaker, white perch, spot, striped bass, and summer flounder—are a key part of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and support important commercial and recreational fisheries.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- In the global war against disease-carrying mosquitoes, scientists have long believed that a single molecular door was the key target for insecticide. This door, however, is closing, giving mosquitoes the upper hand.
In this week's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a team of researchers led by Michigan State University has discovered a second gateway that could turn the tide against the mosquitoes' growing advantage.
Working to identify key genes in the root development of poplar trees, three Michigan Technological University scientists have come up with a new model for how genes interact and affect each other's function. They also identified a network of genes that cause poplar roots to grow well in low-nitrogen soil, making them ideal candidates for biofuel tree plantations on marginal lands.
Moths are nocturnal, and they have one major enemy; the bat. As a defense many moths developed ears sensitive to the bat´s echolocation cries, and they have also developed different behaviors to avoid bats. Now it turns out that many moths are able to use both their hearing and their avoidance behavior to an entirely different purpose: to communicate about sex. According to a Danish/Japanese research team the various moth species probably talk about sex in a great number of different ways. This sheds new light on the evolution of sound communication and behavior.
Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new metallic bubble wrap that is lighter, stronger and more flexible than sheet metal and more heat- and chemical-resistant than plastic or other polymer-based bubble wraps. Potential applications include automobile body panels, the wing edges of airplanes, suitcases, helmets and cases for computers and other electronic devices.
A new study, by Marco Malagodi from the Università degli Studi di Pavia in Italy and colleagues, uses a range of analytical methods to identify the techniques used by violin master Antonio Stradivari in the 17th century, and attempts to replicate his craftsmanship. The work is published online in Springer's journal, Applied Physics A - Materials Science & Processing.
New Orleans, LA -- Research led by Priyanshi Ritwik, DDS, MS, LSUHSC Associate Professor of Pediatric Dentistry at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, reports important findings about side effects and how long they linger after discharge of common oral drugs used to sedate some children during dental procedures. The results of the study, published in the current issue of Anesthesia Progress, provide pediatric dentists and parents with new information on this previously little-investigated aspect of children's dental health care.
London, 8 July 2013: Studies over the past 20 years have suggested (though not unequivocallyconfirmed) that semen quality is in decline, reflected most evidently in falling sperm counts andreduced sperm motility.(1) The explanations have been controversially attributed toenvironmental factors (such as exposure to toxins) and to male smoking.
London, 8 July 2013: The first birth has been achieved following the analysis of embryos using anew genome sequencing technique which promises to revolutionise embryo selection for IVF.The technique, which has never before been applied in the screening of embryos, is reportedtoday at the annual meeting of ESHRE by Dr Dagan Wells of the NIHR Biomedical ResearchCentre at the University of Oxford, UK.