Pitt’s McGowan Institute aims to study stem cells, 3D printers in space

The University of Pittsburgh is teaming up with the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory (ISSNL) to study how the low-gravity environment of space can improve treatments for kidney disease, traumatic brain injury and juvenile diabetes. Pitt’s McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine will collaborate with the ISSNL Industrial Biomedicine Program on research that will look

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Health Technology Assessment of Gene Therapies in Europe and the USA: Analysis and Future Considerations

Gene therapies constitute a new concept of transformative therapies, administered once in a lifetime. The value assessment of these innovative therapies constitutes a challenge for health technology assessment (HTA) bodies. The HTA reports for all seven gene therapies that have to date been granted a market authorization in the European Union (EU) and/or the United

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#Snack Tax may be more effective than a #Sugary Drink Tax To Tackle Obesity

Taxing sugary snacks like cookies and cakes may have a substantially larger impact in fighting obesity than levies on sweetened drinks, suggests a new study. Using economic modeling, UK researchers found that increasing sugary snack prices by 20% had an effect on annual calorie intake, body mass index (BMI), and obesity prevalence much greater than that of a

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Heart regeneration: Scientists uncloak one of nature’s deepest secrets

Scientists at the University of Texas Southwestern have uncloaked the molecular mechanisms underlying heart regeneration in the only mammals currently known to regrow a significant portion of their hearts after injury: neonatal mice. These newborns have long held the secret to regenerating approximately 15 percent of their ventricular tissue, a capability that occurs within a fleeting window of about

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Using MicroRNA to Starve a Tumor?

Source September 5th, 2019 by Dr. Francis Collins Tumor cells thrive by exploiting the willingness of normal cells in their neighborhood to act as accomplices. One of their sneakier stunts involves tricking the body into helping them form new blood vessels. This growth-enabling process of sprouting new blood vessels, called tumor angiogenesis, remains a vital area of

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Printing Bioceramic Scaffolds

In ‘3D Printing of Bioceramic Scaffolds—Barriers to the Clinical Translation: From Promise to Reality and Future Perspectives,’ authors Kang Lin, Rakib Sheikh, Sara Romanazzo, and Iman Roohani explore 3D printing bioceramics and ‘hurdles’ for the clinical setting, along with current limitations and required parameters. Bone regeneration is a very common motivator behind the fabrication of

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Brain disease drug delivery platform developed by researchers

So-called ‘nanodiamonds’ could serve as a platform for diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for neurodegenerative diseases. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (MPI-P) have produced tiny diamonds, so-called ‘nanodiamonds’, which could serve as a platform for both the therapy and diagnosis of brain diseases. Led by Dr Jana Hedrich, Professor Heiko Luhmann and

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NIH, Cincinnati Children’s scientists develop potential strategy against leukemia drug resistance

Two-pronged approach stymies AML escape plan, could have applications to many cancers. Scientists from the National Institutes of Health and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center have devised a potential treatment against a common type of leukemia that could have implications for many other types of cancer. The new approach takes aim at a way that

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Magenta Therapeutics Announces FDA Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy (RMAT) Designation Granted to MGTA-456 for the Treatment of Inherited Metabolic Disorders

 Magenta Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel medicines to bring the curative power of stem cell transplant to more patients, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Regenerative Medicine Advance Therapy (RMAT) designation for MGTA-456, a one-time cell therapy for the treatment of multiple inherited metabolic disorders. “This RMAT designation was based

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Don’t Believe Everything You Hear about Stem Cells

The science is progressing rapidly,but bad actors have co-opted stem cells’ hope and promise by preying on unsuspecting patients and their families Source Scientific American By Deepak Srivastava on September 4, 2019 Stem cell science is moving forward rapidly, with potential therapies to treat intractable human diseases on the horizon.Clinical trials are now underway to test the safety

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