Critically, the growth of children’s bones depends on growth plates situated close to the end of all long bones in the body. These plates are narrow discs of cartilage providing … Continue Reading New mechanism of bone growth uncovered.
An intricate sensory network intertwined across our bodies, the nervous system requires a specialized network of blood vessels for its development and survival. However, it is still unclear as to … Continue Reading Study shows that neurons modulate the growth of blood vessels.
Infertility affects up to 15% of couples, with roughly one-third of all cases being caused by male infertility. One major cause of male infertility is the failure of precursor germ … Continue Reading Stem cell technique makes first ever viable sperm-in-a-dish.
During embryonic development, billions of neurons nimbly reposition themselves within the brain and spinal cord, and connect branches to form the neural circuits that ultimately control our movements, perception, and … Continue Reading Previously unknown molecule critical for neurodevelopment identified.
Irreversible degeneration of the cardiac conduction system is a common disease with high rates of mortality. While electronic pacemakers provide effective treatment, alternative approaches are needed with long-term implanted hardware … Continue Reading Extensive lit review performed on harnessing stem cells to generate biological pacemakers.
Researchers at the University of Illinois have identified a molecular mechanism that directs embryonic stem cells to mature into endothelial cells, the specialized cells that form blood vessels. Understanding the … Continue Reading Researchers begin to map the epigenetics that turn stem cells into blood vessel cells.
Crucial bodily functions like heart rate, blood flow, breathing and digestion are regulated by the neurovascular unit. The neurovascular unit is made up of the blood–brain barrier, blood vessels, microglia … Continue Reading The formation of the neurovascular unit, blood brain-barrier tracked in real-time for the first time.
Previous studies have shown that the connection in the adult brain are hard to change, while in children, novel experiences rapidly mold new connections during critical periods of brain development. … Continue Reading Researchers reactivate juvenile neural plasticity in adult brains.
A molecular switch that seems to be essential for embryonic heart cells to grow into more mature, adult-like heart cells has been discovered by researchers at University of Washington. The … Continue Reading Researchers identify the molecular switch that promotes heart cell maturation.
Pre-eclampsia is a disease that affects 5 to 8 percent of pregnancies in America. Complications from this disease can lead to emergency cesarean sections early in pregnancies to save the … Continue Reading Researchers discover previously unknown transitional stem cell.
Telomeres are short stretches of repeated nucleotides that protect the ends of chromosomes. In somatic cells, these protective sequences become shorter with each cellular replication until a critical length is … Continue Reading Large scale human study shows longer telomere length leads to higher cancer mortality.
During pregnancy, the mother supplies the fetus with nutrients and oxygen via the placenta. If placental development is impaired, this may lead to growth disorders of the embryo or to … Continue Reading Researchers discover a new signaling pathway in embryonic development.
A team from the University of Poitiers and the Institute of Interdisciplinary Research in Human and Molecular Biology (IRIBHM), has just taken an important step in the area of cell … Continue Reading Researchers repair the cerebral cortex using engineered cells in a world’s first.
A protein that helps embryonic stem cells retain their identity also promotes DNA repair, according to a study in The Journal of Cell Biology. The findings raise the possibility that … Continue Reading Researchers identify protein responsible for DNA repair at a stem cell level.
Researchers from the NYU Langone Medical Center and New York University have demonstrated that a specialized DNA-binding protein called CTCF is essential for the precise expression of genes that control … Continue Reading Researchers identify specialized protein crucial for normal neurodevelopment.
The signal molecule, retinoic acid, is a product of vitamin A which helps to instruct how different types of tissue are to be formed in the growing embryo. For the … Continue Reading Previously unknown effect of vitamin A on embryonic development identified.