Whether healthy or diseased, human cells exhibit behaviors and processes that are largely dictated by growth factor molecules, which bind to receptors on the cells. For example, growth factors tell the cells to divide, move, and when to die — a process known as apoptosis. When growth factor levels are too high or too low,… Read More »
Silencing brain cells in mice can make them no longer care about pain Eva Mueller/Getty By Sam Wong Pain doesn’t have to be painful. That’s the conclusion of a study that identified a set of nerve cells that add emotional content to pain signals in the brains of mice. The discovery could lead to new… Read More »
Stem cells (so-called “master cells”) are unique and important in the body because they can do almost anything, and scientists have only begun to discover their potential. That’s why researchers’ use of them has created controversy, attracting the attention of scientists, policymakers, and bioethicists across the globe. Stem cells can transform into any of the… Read More »
A team of Rutgers scientists, including Leonard Lee and Shaohua Li, have taken an important step toward the goal of making diseased hearts heal themselves — a new model that would reduce the need for bypass surgery, heart transplants or artificial pumping devices. The study, recently published in Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, involved… Read More »
A new discovery could explain why obese people are more likely to develop cancer, scientists say. A type of cell the body uses to destroy cancerous tissue gets clogged by fat and stops working, the team, from Trinity College Dublin, found. Obesity is the biggest preventable cause of cancer in the UK after smoking, Cancer… Read More »