Cell Guidance Systems Blog

Tissue remodeling and homeostasis are the processes that modulate and maintain the size and shape of tissues. Phagocytosis plays an important role in these processes. A recent publication in PNAS provides evidence that a mutation that reduces the efficiency of phagocytosis may lead to abnormalities in brain development that are associated with enlarged brains seen in some instances of autism.

Exosomes are now reaching the clinic in trials for a wide variety of diseases. One of their most exciting applications is the treatment of retinal degeneration which may even be able to reverse the process of sight loss.

A recent review paper in Frontiers in Immunology highlights the possibility that free cytokine contaminants in isolated exosome samples may actually be causing biological effects seen in immunomodulation studies that have been attributed to exosomes.

Many infectious diseases, including TB and HIV are adept at forming reservoirs of disease hiding in immune cells where the virus can lay dormant hidden from immune surveillance. It has been shown that some molecules including HDAC inhibitors and some cytokines can act as latency reversing agents (LRAs) by stimulating transcriptional activity cells acting as a reservoir of infection.

Everyone is familiar with the causes (infection, irritation, injury, and others) and symptoms (swelling, heat, pain, and redness) of inflammation. But what is the process that connects the cause with symptoms of inflammation? In this article, we provide a brief overview of one of the most important processes in the human body.

Companies are now working to bring modified versions of IL-2 to market to treat cancer, combining this cytokine with checkpoint inhibitors. These companies are well funded, and the diversity of approach, with at least three distinct strategies, offers hope that more than one improved IL-2 drug may eventually be approved.

Not all scientists are aware of the difference between serum and plasma. So, let’s explain. As well as red and white blood cells and nutrients, blood contains fibrinogen and blood clotting factors which cause clotting when blood is exposed to air. This clotting is important to prevent excessive bleeding following injury. The action of these clotting components can be stopped using anti-coagulants and this prevents any clots forming.

Microcarrier-based biomanufacturing has become well established and now represents a large market across all scales of production. Bioreactors on offer which can use microcarriers range from lab sized, with a few liters of capacity, to factory sized, at hundreds or thousands of liters.

A new wave of innovation is leading to the development of a 2nd generation of ever-more complex organoids, known as assembloids, that will enable more powerful studies to be conducted within the confines of a culture dish allowing greater insights and reducing our reliance on animal models.

Cochlear implants can help restore hearing, but without functional sensory ganglion neurons to integrate the implant with the brain, their performance is limited. At present, there are no approved medications specifically targeting sensory recovery.