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Valbuena lifts France, Van Persie double

May 27, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

New blood and a change of formation paid dividends for France as debutant Mathieu Valbuena netted the winner in a 2-1 World Cup warm-up win over Costa Rica on Wednesday.

With 16 days until the start of the tournament in South Africa, the Netherlands also secured a morale-boosting win as Robin van Persie scored twice in a 2-1 victory over Mexico.

France, playing in a 4-3-3 formation instead of the usual 4-2-3-1 under coach Raymond Domenech, produced some neat football but looked shaky at the back.

Midfielder Carlos Hernandez put Costa Rica ahead early but an own goal restored parity and Valbuena struck seven minutes from time.

The Dutch, without a number of regular starters including Arjen Robben, Mark van Bommel and Wesley Sneijder, followed England’s example by overcoming Mexico.

Van Persie proved his worth as central striker with two fine volleys to give Mexico coach Javier Aguirre some thinking to do after another inconsistent performance, following their 3-1 defeat by England at Wembley. Javier Hernandez headed a consolation for the Mexicans 16 minutes from time.

“Van Persie was excellent tonight with two beautiful goals, but we missed the power in the second half and allowed Mexico to play much better,” Netherlands Bert van Marwijk said.

Australia became the first team to arrive for the World Cup when they landed in Johannesburg.

“For everybody, this is a new experience to train and to play in altitude,” coach Pim Verbeek said at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo airport.

“So we have to find out how it works and what we can do the upcoming days, we still have work to do, but that’s why we have 15, 16 days to prepare ourselves.”

If the World Cup suddenly seemed a lot closer for the Australians, Spain midfielder Cesc Fabregas was still being forced to duck questions about his club future.

Fabregas, a transfer target for Barcelona, had hoped to get his future sorted out well before the start of the tournament but the Arsenal man had to leave his fate in the hands of club manager Arsene Wenger.

“He told me to concentrate on my football and to concentrate on the World Cup,” Fabregas told reporters at Spain’s training camp in Madrid.

“He told me to leave it in his hands and he will deal with whatever happens with my future. That’s what I’m doing. Just concentrating on football.”

TIPPING THEM

If economists are correct, Fabregas and his national team mates will be concentrating on football right up to the final on July 11, with a poll released on Wednesday tipping them as winners.

Reuters polled a global field of 74 soccer fan economists and 24 respondents said Spain would follow up their Euro 2008 success with triumph in South Africa.

A total of 23 expected Brazil to make it six World Cups, while just one economist expected Italy to retain their title.

There are more serious calculations to be done by coaches, of course, with the June 1 deadline for naming their final 23-man squads looming.

United States coach Bob Bradley named his party on Wednesday, keeping faith with central defender Oguchi Onyewu.

Experienced striker Brian Ching was the surprise ommission from the U.S. squad.

Germany coach Joachim Loew has named his final squad. It has already been reduced to 22 by an injury to midfielder Christian Traesch and the coach will be relieved it was not reduced still further.

Striker Thomas Mueller crashed during a mountain bike run with squad members at their Italian pre-World Cup training camp, needing several stitches to his injured chin, but avoided any bone or muscle injuries.

The opening match at the World Cup will be played at Soccer City, where South African tribal chiefs and healers have slaughtered a cow outside the stadium as part of rituals to appease the spirits of ancestors and welcome fans.

Phepsile Maseko, national coordinator for the Traditional Healers’ Organisation, said on Wednesday the ceremony was intended to cleanse the air and ensure spirits were not frightened by the many languages that would be spoken during the month-long tournament.

(Writing by Kevin Fylan and Justin Palmer; editing by Ed Osmond

To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: australians, Bert Van Marwijk, Carlos Hernandez, Cesc Fabregas, consolation, debutant, Inconsistent Performance, Javier Aguirre, Mark Van Bommel, mexicans, new blood, new experience, parity, Raymond Domenech, Robin Van Persie, Tambo, target, Volleys, Wembley, Wesley Sneijder

Hormone therapies ”up breast cancer metastasis risk in post-menopausal women”

May 7, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Washington, May 7 (ANI): A University of Missouri study has found that hormone therapies not just increase the risk of breast cancer in post-menopausal women, they can also increase the chance of the cancer metastasising.

After menopause, women take hormone therapies, which are often a combination of estrogen and progestin, to replace hormones lost from inactive ovaries.

Progestin is a hormone that is used to counteract the potentially negative effects of estrogen therapy on the uterus.

Previous studies have shown that estrogen and progestin in hormone therapies increase the risk of breast cancer in post-menopausal women.

Now, the new study has demonstrated that progestins can also increase the chance of the cancer metastasizing, or spreading to the lymph nodes.

“In our study, we found that progestins increase the number of blood vessels that are responsible for transporting existing cancer cells,” said Salman Hyder, the Zalk Endowed Professor in Tumour Angiogenesis and professor of biomedical sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center.

“The more the blood vessels increase, the higher the chance of cancer cell metastasizing. Progestins could even be more harmful to women who have functionally abnormal p53, a protein that acts as a tumour suppressor. In the absence of p53, progestins increase the release of a protein from tumour cells that allows formation of new blood vessels within tumours.”

In the study, researchers compared the effects of several types of commonly used progestins on breast cancer tumours in an animal model. Researchers found that all types of progestin tested act in the same way and increased the risk of metastasis.

Also, results showed that estrogen and progestin acted the same way whether taken together or separately. Although Hyder said that the study was independent of whether or not the ovaries were intact, it”s still unclear whether progestins have the same effects in pre-menopausal women.

“Especially if there”s a family history of breast cancer, it”s advisable not to take progestins. It”s a difficult call that must be made on an individual basis by a physician,” Hyder said.

“The next step for this research is finding a type of progestin that does not cause tumor progression but still protects the uterus. Also, we”re trying to see if it”s possible to give patients something in addition to estrogen and progestin that can protect the breast,” Hyder added.

The study has been accepted for publication in the Journal Menopause. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: angiogenesis, animal model, breast cancer, Breast Cancer Metastasis, cancer cell, cancer cells, cancer tumours, cardiovascular research center, college of veterinary medicine, estrogen, Hormone Therapies, menopausal women, Missouri Study, new blood, p53, post menopausal, progestin, study researchers, tumour cells, tumour suppressor

New breakthrough in stem cell research offers hope to heart patients

April 26, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

London, Apr 26 (ANI): Veins left over from lifesaving bypass surgery could yield “master” cells to help treat future heart problems, according to scientists at University of Bristol.

The researchers extracted stem cells from the veins, then used them to stimulate new blood vessel growth in mice, according to reports in Circulation.

The researchers have claimed that their findings could bring treatments to repair damaged heart muscle one step closer.

However, a stem cell expert warned that they remained some years away.

The latest discovery uses a “waste” product from thousands of operations carried out on heart patients each year.

In a heart bypass operation, the surgeon takes a section of vein, usually from the patient”s leg, and uses it to replace a blocked or narrowed section of heart artery.

Normally, they select a slightly longer section than is actually required.

In the study, the researchers took the leftover piece and, in the laboratory, they managed to extract “progenitor” cells from the veins and persuade them to increase in number.

When the stem cells were injected into the leg muscle of a mouse, which had been deprived of blood to simulate conditions in a damaged heart, the cells appeared to trigger the development of new blood vessels and improve blood flow.

“This is the first time that anyone has been able to extract stem cells from sections of vein left over from heart bypass operations,” the BBC quoted professor Paolo Madeddu, who led the research.

“These cells might make it possible for a person having a bypass to also receive a heart treatment using their body”s own stem cells.”

However, other experts said much more work would be needed before such cells could be used widely in humans. (ANI)

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Hull wants more time for family life

April 8, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Retiring federal Nationals’ MP Kay Hull says she wants to devote more time to her family.

Ms Hull was elected the Member for Riverina in 1998 after eight years on Wagga Wagga City Council, including time as deputy mayor.

She famously crossed the floor to vote against the Howard government over the sale of Telstra.

The MP says she is proud of her record and will work strongly until the election, but says it is time to move aside.

Nationals’ leader Warren Truss says it means the departure from politics of one of the nation’s best loved and hardest working local parliamentarians.

Ms Hull had recently publicised her intent to recontest the next election, but now says she wants to devote more time to her family.

“It has been different circumstances since Christmas that has had me look to reconsider, particularly when preselection opened last Friday,” she said.

“I had to make a decision to talk with my family and we’ve decided now that we would like some more family time together and it is time for me to move aside and let some new blood and energy come forward.”

Preselection

Ms Hull says she is confident a strong candidate will be chosen at the preselection in May.

Among her highlights of the past 12 years, Ms Hull cites helping to save the Wagga Air Force base, helping to get the Regional Express airline and new veterinary science and dentistry courses at Charles Sturt University started.

“I’ve put the Riverina first. I’ve been offered advancements in my political career that I have refused in order that I can do that, so that I could speak for the Riverina without any obligation to put any politics before the people,” she said.

Ms Hull says she is confident the Nationals will hold the seat if there is a three-cornered contest when she retires.

Senator Bill Heffernan was the last Liberal to contest Riverina in 1993, but lost to the Nationals’ Noel Hicks, Kay Hull’s predecessor.

“It does open that option, but I’m very confident that the Nationals are in good standing in the Riverina,” she said.

“I’m sure that when the preselection takes place there will be somebody selected who will be just as energetic, just as enthusiastic and as passionate about the Riverina’s development and continued growth as the past members have been.”

Ms Hull says she has interests in aid and charity work so will not be pulling out of public life.

She says she will also remain focused on the Riverina and its growth.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Bill Heffernan, charles sturt university, Dentistry Courses, deputy mayor, Family Time, howard government, Kay Hull, last friday, nationals, new blood, Parliamentarians, political career, predecessor, Regional Express Airline, Riverina, senator bill, telstra, Veterinary Science, Wagga Wagga City Council, Warren Truss

Boffins find clues to pregnancy-associated breast cancer

March 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 30 (ANI): Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago claim to have explained the reason behind the aggressiveness and frequency of pregnancy-associated breast cancer.

According to the new research, expression of inflammatory-related genes in breast tissue of women who have previously given birth may be behind the crime.

Pregnancy at a relatively young age reduces the risk of breast cancer over the long term, but epidemiological studies have found that women are at an increased risk for breast cancer during pregnancy and for up to 10 years after giving birth, said Debra Tonetti, associate professor of pharmacology and lead researcher on the study.

She added that these pregnancy-associated breast cancers also carry an unusually high risk of spreading to nearby organs and for lethality as compared to breast cancers in women who have never been pregnant.

To reach the conclusion, Tonetti and her research team examined the level of expression of 64 genes in tissue from benign breast biopsies and breast-reduction surgeries at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago.

The women, who were between the ages of 18 and 45, were divided into three categories: those who had never been pregnant, those who had been pregnant within the past two years, and those who had been pregnant five to 10 years previously.

The set of examined genes included genes known to be related to immunity and inflammation, extracellular matrix remodeling, angiogenesis (the growth of new blood vessels vital to wound healing) or hormone signaling.

Twenty-two percent of the examined genes showed significant difference in expression in the breast tissue of women who had never given birth compared with those who had. Inflammation-related genes, as a class, were more active in women who had borne a child. Involution — the process by which the breast returns to normal following lactation — could be a cause of the inflammation, she said.

“Our results showed an increase in immune/inflammatory activity in the post-pregnant breast,” Tonetti said. “Interestingly, this response was not limited to the recently pregnant group, but also characterized more distant pregnancies as well.”

A surprising finding was evidence of a protective effect of pregnancy as well, since the expression of many hormone and growth factor signaling genes suggests protection. These findings indicate that a balance between high risk inflammatory and protective hormone signaling gene expression may ultimately determine a woman”s individual breast cancer risk, she said. (ANI)

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Scientists unveil biological process that spurs blood vessels growth

September 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 15 (ANI): In a novel study, scientists from University of North Carolina and the College of Arts and Sciences have identified a novel mechanism that triggers blood vessel growth.

They have found that vascular networks form and expand by “sprouting” similar to the way trees grow new branches.

The process allows fresh oxygen and nutrients to be delivered to tissues, whether in a developing embryo or a cancerous tumour.

Earlier, scientists believed that the molecular signals to form new sprouts came from outside the vessel.

However, the new study has shown that signals can also come from within the blood vessel, pushing new blood vessel sprouts outward.

While analysing mouse embryonic stem cells and mouse retinas, the researchers found that defects in a protein called Flt-1 lead to abnormal sprouts and poor vessel networks.

Other research recently showed that levels of Flt-1 protein are particularly low in the dilated and leaky blood vessels that supply tumours with oxygen.

“The blood vessels themselves seem to participate in the process guiding the formation of the vascular network,” said senior study author Dr Victoria L. Bautch, professor of biology at UNC.

“They do not just passively sit there getting acted upon by signals coming from the outside in. Rather, they produce internal cues that interact with external cues to grow,” she added.

The growth of new blood vessels can be stimulated by cascades of events within the cell – known as pathways – the most notable of which centers around the three proteins Flt-1, Flk-1 and VEGF.

During the study, the researchers mixed two different types of mouse embryonic stem cells – one batch with normal Flt-1 protein levels, the other with no Flt-1 protein.

They found that the genetic makeup of the area at the base of the sprout – rather than at the sprout itself – determined whether the sprout behaved normally or abnormally.

“The cells on each side of sprout produce and send out the soluble form of the protein, blocking the sprout from forming anywhere but in one spot and in one direction,” says Bautch. “

So when the sprout first forms, instead of flopping back onto its parent vessel, it has a corridor to push it forward away from the parent,” she added.

The findings have been published in the journal Developmental Cell. (ANI)

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Here’s how exposure to diesel fumes causes cancer

September 3, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 3 (ANI): American scientists have for the first time shown how exposure to diesel fumes causes cancer.

Qinghua Sun, an assistant professor of Environmental Health Sciences at Ohio State University, says that diesel exhaust has the ability to induce the growth of new blood vessels that serve as a food supply for solid tumours.

The researchers found that in both healthy and diseased animals.

According to them, more new blood vessels sprouted in mice exposed to diesel exhaust than did in mice exposed to clean, filtered air.

They say that this finding indicates that previous illness is not required to make humans susceptible to the damaging effects of the diesel exhaust.

The researchers say that inhaled diesel particles are very tiny in size, which is why they can penetrate the human circulatory system, organs, and tissues.

This suggests that diesel fumes can cause damage just about anywhere in the body, they add.

Diesel exhaust exposure levels in the study were designed to mimic the exposure people might experience while living in urban areas and commuting in heavy traffic.

The levels were lower than or similar to those typically experienced by workers who use diesel-powered equipment, who tend to work in mines, on bridges and tunnels, along railroads, at loading docks, on farms and in vehicle maintenance garages, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

“The message from our study is that exposure to diesel exhaust for just a short time period of two months could give even normal tissue the potential to develop a tumour,” said Qinghua Sun, senior author of the study.

“We need to raise public awareness so people give more thought to how they drive and how they live so they can pursue ways to protect themselves and improve their health. And we still have a lot of work to do to improve diesel engines so they generate fewer particles and exhaust that can be released into the ambient air,” Sun added.

A research article on the study, supported by Health Effects Institute awards and grants from the National Institutes of Health, has been published in the online edition of the journal Toxicology Letters. (ANI)

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Natural compound can prevent diabetic retinopathy

July 3, 2009 By admin 1 Comment

Washington, July 3 (ANI): A natural compound can be used to stop diabetic retinopathy, one of the leading causes of blindness around the world, according to researchers at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

Diabetic retinopathy is a disease, which affects people with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

But the discovery of the compound’s function in inflammation and blood vessel formation related to eye disease can help scientists develop new therapies, including eye drops, to stop the disease.

“There is no good treatment for retinopathy, which is why we are so excited about this work. This opens an entirely new area for pharmaceutical companies to target,” said Jay Ma, the principal investigator on the project.

Diabetic retinopathy is caused by changes in blood vessels of the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye.

In some people with diabetic retinopathy, blood vessels may swell and leak fluid. In other people, abnormal new blood vessels grow on the surface of the retina.

Over time, diabetic retinopathy can worsen and cause some vision loss or blindness.

The Oklahoma researchers found that the inflammation and leakage is caused by an imbalance of two systems in the eye, and to restore balance, they delivered the new compound to cells using nanoparticle technology.

The treatment in research models stopped the leakage, blocked inflammation, and kept unwanted blood vessels from growing.

The researchers are now testing the compound’s uses for cancer and age-related macular degeneration.

The research has appeared online this month in the journal Diabetes, a publication of the American Diabetes Association. (ANI)

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Simple blood test can reveal IVF’s suitability for individual patients

July 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 2 (ANI): A simple blood test can now tell whether In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) would be successful in a particular patient or not.

Dr. Cathy Allen and her team from the Rotunda Hospital, Dublin, Ireland, have for the first time identified genetic predictors of the potential success or failure of IVF treatment in blood-a discovery, they reckon, can help understand why IVF works for some patients but not for others.

Earlier studies focussed at gene profiles in such tissues as the uterine lining, but in the current study, the researchers chose to examine the gene expression patterns in RNA extracted from peripheral (circulating) blood-an easily accessible biological sample.

They took blood samples at eight different stages during the period around conception and the early stages of the IVF cycle.

Five of the samples came from women who had achieved clinical pregnancies, three from those who had had implantation failure, and three from subfertile women who had conceived spontaneously.

The analysis revealed that 128 genes showed a more than two-fold difference in expression in early clinical pregnancy compared with a non-pregnant state.

The molecular pathways that were most over-represented in this expression were concerned with angiogenesis (the growth of new blood vessels), endothelin signalling (blood vessel constriction), inflammation, oxidative stress (damage to cell structures), vascular endothelial growth factor (signalling processes in blood vessel growth), and pyruvate metabolism (the supply of energy to cells).

“All these processes are important in the achievement and maintenance of pregnancy,” said Allen.

She added: “We found that the gene expression profiles in blood of patients at the time of pituitary down-regulation showed interesting patterns of gene clustering. Over 200 genes were differentially expressed in patients who went on to achieve an IVF pregnancy compared with those who did not.”

It was found that the peripheral blood gene expression “signature”-also known as the transcriptome-before IVF was predictive of IVF outcome.

The researchers said that the finding had demonstrated the power of high-dimensional technology in biomarker discovery, and highlighted the potential for developing clinically useful tools.

They hope that the results generated by their work will lead to the development of a test to aid in IVF decision-making.

They said that the work would help to identity biomarkers that can identify events occurring at implantation, the maintenance of pregnancy and successful or unsuccessful pregnancy outcome.

The findings of the study were presented at the 25th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.(ANI)

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Turmeric may help reduce your tummy’s size

May 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, May 19 (ANI): Turmeric may help reduce weight gain and suppress the growth of fat tissue, according to a new study on mice.

Researchers at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University (USDA HNRCA) claim that curcumin, the major polyphenol found in turmeric, appears to cut weight gain in mice.

The research team studied mice fed high fat diets supplemented with curcumin and cell cultures incubated with curcumin.

“Weight gain is the result of the growth and expansion of fat tissue, which cannot happen unless new blood vessels form, a process known as angiogenesis.” said senior author Mohsen Meydani, DVM, PhD, director of the Vascular Biology Laboratory at the USDA HNRCA.

“Based on our data, curcumin appears to suppress angiogenic activity in the fat tissue of mice fed high fat diets,” the expert added.

Meydani continued, “It is important to note, we don’t know whether these results can be replicated in humans because, to our knowledge, no studies have been done.”

One of turmeric’s components is curcumin, a type of phytochemical known as a polyphenol. Research findings suggest that phytochemicals, which are the chemicals found in plants, appear to help prevent disease. As the bioactive component of turmeric, curcumin is readily absorbed for use by the body.

Meydani and colleagues studied mice fed high fat diets for 12 weeks. The high fat diet of one group was supplemented with 500 mg of curcumin/ kg diet; the other group consumed no curcumin. Both groups ate the same amount of food, indicating curcumin did not affect appetite, but mice fed the curcumin supplemented diet did not gain as much weight as mice that were not fed curcumin.

“Curcumin appeared to be responsible for total lower body fat in the group that received supplementation,” said Meydani, who is also a professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts.

“In those mice, we observed a suppression of microvessel density in fat tissue, a sign of less blood vessel growth and thus less expansion of fat. We also found lower blood cholesterol levels and fat in the liver of those mice. In general, angiogenesis and an accumulation of lipids in fat cells contribute to fat tissue growth,” the research added.

Writing in the May 2009 issue of the Journal of Nutrition, the authors note similar results in cell cultures. Additionally, curcumin appeared to interfere with expression of two genes, which contributed to angiogenesis progression in both cell and rodent models. (ANI)

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Why thalidomide causes severe birth defects revealed

May 12, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, May 12 (ANI): Scot researchers claim to have unravelled the medical mystery that has left scientists scratching their heads for nearly 50 years: why thalidomide, a drug used to treat morning sickness in pregnant women, caused severe birth defects in the late Fifties and early Sixties.

Dr. Neil Vargesson, of Aberdeen University, accords the reason to a component of the drug that prevented the growth of new blood vessels, and subsequently caused limb defects in the developing embryo.

“We have put to rest a 50-year puzzle, in finally deducing how thalidomide triggers limb defects and why it appears to target limbs preferentially. This is an important discovery. Many models have been suggested as to how these defects were caused but now we know how it worked,” the Scotsman quoted the lecturer in Developmental Biology as saying.

“This is the first paper to conclusively show that it is the anti-angiogenic property of the drug – that element that inhibits new blood vessel formation – that is to blame for the defects. The drug prevented early blood vessels going into the limb,” Vargesson added.

But Martin Johnson, the director of the Thalidomide Trust cast a shadow of doubt on the claims, saying: “These findings are a puzzle to me. A number of people believe this mystery was solved ten years ago when the theory these people are following was comprehensively demolished.”

He added: “The theory that is now accepted, and has been for several years, is that the best explanation for thalidomide damage is that the developing nervous system within the embryo was poisoned at the stage the critical nerve endings start to emerge. The fact that this is a nerve poison explains all the known effects – not just limb damage but heart disease and massive central nervous system damage. There was not an organ in the body that could not be trashed by thalidomide.”

Ray Stokes, a professor of business history at Glasgow University who is researching the history of thalidomide, said: “I cannot comment on these latest findings, but clearly there does seem to e consensus that it has to do with damage to the neural crest at a particularly important time in the gestation of the child that was the problem. The damage that was done to babies was only part of the damage that was done by the drug.” (ANI)

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‘Molecular key’ to successful blood stem cell transplants identified

April 23, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, April 23 (ANI): Researchers at University of British Columbia have identified a ‘molecular key’ that has the potential to increase the success of blood stem cell transplants.

Blood stem cell transplants are currently used to treat diseases such as leukemia, Hodgkin’s lymphoma and aplastic anemia.

During the procedure, donor blood stem cells – which can produce red and white blood cells and platelets – are injected into the recipient to produce new blood.

The stem cells then need to travel to the thymus – an organ near the heart – and produce T-cells, a type of white blood cell that orchestrates the body’s immune system.

A common problem with blood stem cell transplants is the failure of stem cells to repopulate the thymus and generate T-cells. Without T-cells the patient is unable to fight infection and post-transplant prognosis is poor.

Now, Prof. Hermann Ziltener and his research team at UBC’s Biomedical Research Centre have identified a molecule called S1P that can tell the thymus to ‘open the gates’ and accept more stem cells.

“This discovery gives us a handle on determining whether the thymus will be receptive to migrating stem cells. By treating patients with drugs that control S1P, scientists can now manipulate the thymic gates to either open or close,” said Ziltener, a professor in the Dept. of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.

The new study is published in the April issue of The Journal of Experimental Medicine. (ANI)

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Scientists grow blood vessels using stem cells

April 7, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, April 7 (ANI): Researchers at University of Western Ontario have succeeded in growing new blood vessels using stem cells from bone marrow, a medical advance that could be used to treat patients with diseases such as peripheral artery disease.

It’s one of the severe complications often faced by people who’ve had diabetes for a long time.

Reduced blood flow (ischemia) in their limbs can lead to resting pain, trouble with wound healing and in severe cases, amputation.

During the research, David Hess of the Robarts Research Institute at the university drew human bone marrow and simultaneously isolated three different types of stem cells that co-ordinate together to form new blood vessels. These are called pro-angiogenic stem cells.

They were purified to remove any inflammatory or contaminated cells, and then injected into the circulation of mice, which had one of their leg arteries ligated and removed.

The researchers showed how these stem cells have a natural ability to hone in on the area of ischemia to induce blood vessel repair and improve blood flow.

Hess said that this research is clinically applicable because they studied the function of human stem cells in immune-deficient mice.

The preclinical data from Hess’ research was used by a biopharmaceutical company, Aldagen to receive FDA approval for a multi-center clinical trial now underway in Houston, Texas, involving 21 patients with end-stage peripheral artery disease.

“We can select the right stem cells from the patient’s own bone marrow and put them back in the area of ischemia to allow these cells to coordinate the formation of new blood vessels.” said Hess.

“These principles could be applied not only to ischemic limbs, but to aid in the formation of new blood vessels in ischemic tissue anywhere in the body, for example after a stroke or heart attack,” he added.

The research is published in Blood. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: biopharmaceutical company, blood vessel, blood vessels, david hess, Deficient Mice, different types of stem cells, Fda Approval, human bone marrow, ischemia, leg arteries, medical advance, Natural Ability, new blood, peripheral artery disease, preclinical data, robarts research institute, types of stem cells, university of western ontario, vessel repair, wound healing

Blood protein may hold key to stopping cancer progression

April 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, April 1 (ANI): Scientists at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have reached a step closer to developing a new drug to inhibit tumour growth in cancer patients, and potentially help in the healing of wounds.

The researchers looked at angiogenesis – the body’s formation of new blood vessels from existing blood vessels – and how some blood proteins are involved in that process and affect blood vessel growth during a study.

They found that a protein called ferritin binds to and cripples the ability of another blood protein, called HKa, to shut down blood vessel growth.

The researcher point out that new blood vessels supply a steady stream of nutrients and oxygen, which are essential for tumour growth.

According to them, their study showed that the binding of the two proteins actually assists in new blood vessel formation by removing HKa’s influence, and therefore promotes tumour growth.

Based on their observations, the researchers hypothesised that if the binding of ferritin and Hka could somehow be prevented, it would help block the growth of tumours.

The finding also has possible implications for wound care, as the healing of wounds needs blood vessel growth.

Thus, according to the researchers, it is possible that by increasing the binding of ferritin to HKa, one could increase the rate at which a serious wound heals.

“It’s been known for a long time that levels of ferritin are increased in people with tumours, but it’s never been understood why that happens,” said Dr. Suzy V. Torti, the study’s lead investigator, an associate professor of biochemistry and an expert in iron biology at the School of Medicine.

“Ferritin appears to play an important role in blood vessel formation. Further, the interaction between ferritin and HKa may represent a new area of interest for possible drug development,” Torti added.

During the study, mice were injected with prostate cancer cells to determine how ferritin and HKa affected the formation of new blood vessels.

The mice injected with the cancer cells grew tumours.

However, upon mixing HKa with the tumour cells, the researchers found that the blood vessel formation was inhibited. hen the team added ferritin to the mixture of HKa and cancer cells, the blood vessel formation was restored, and it allowed the tumours to grow again.

“Blood vessels can either be helpful, for example in wound healing, or they can be harmful, for example by favouring tumour growth,” Torti said.

“Our new finding is that the interaction between ferritin and HKa can influence blood vessel formation. This finding could serve as the basis for strategies to either inhibit or stimulate blood vessels. This opens up a new realm of potential ways to treat tumors or other conditions that depend on new blood vessel formation,” Torti added.

The study has been reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (ANI)

Filed Under: Health News Tagged With: april 1, associate professor, biochemistry, blood protein, blood proteins, blood vessel formation, blood vessel growth, blood vessels, cancer patients, cancer progression, cripples, new blood, Prostate Cancer, prostate cancer cells, school of medicine, Steady Stream, suzy, tumours, wake forest university, wake forest university school, wake forest university school of medicine, wound care

Novel tool to control growing blood vessels

February 22, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Feb 22 (ANI): As part of a major achievement in tumour research, scientists at Uppsala University have developed a new tool that can study signals in body that control the generation of blood vessels.

The findings of the study can help in learning which signals in the body attract or repel blood vessels that can further improve the knowledge in tumour research.

The tool is a tiny cell cultivation chamber of silicon plastic in which researchers can cultivate blood-vessel-rich tissue and simultaneously create targeted signals that instruct the vessels to go in a certain direction.

Angiogenesis is the process in the body that forms new blood cells, a process that is vital for life but can also be fatal in the worst case.

Usually, angiogenesis is desirable, for instance, in connection with wound healing, when new tissue needs to be grown. But, undesirable angiogenesis often occurs in connection with tumour growth.

By making use of the newly generated blood vessels in the vicinity of the tumour, tumour cells receive nourishment and oxygen, which creates the conditions for tumour growth.

Thus, one way to limit tumour growth may be to counteract the new formation of blood vessels in the tumour, thereby cutting off the supply of nourishment and oxygen to the diseased area.

Thus, scientists Irmeli Berkefors and Johan Kreuger, focussed their study on understanding the signals that control both normal and pathological angiogenesis.

For this, it is important to construct experimental model systems in which they can study how concentration gradients of various signal proteins affect the direction in which a vessel grows.

“Our new method enables us to recreate and study gradients that control how blood vessels grow in the body. This is something of a research breakthrough. Now we can systematically evaluate newly identified signals that we hope can ultimately be used to control angiogenesis,” said Johan Kreuger.

The method can also be used to gain new knowledge regarding how tumour cells and nerve cells grow and move toward gradients of signal proteins.

The study is published in the new issue of Lab on a Chip. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: angiogenesis, blood cells, blood vessel, blood vessels, cell cultivation, concentration gradients, diseased area, experimental model systems, johan, kreuger, new blood, nourishment, research breakthrough, research scientists, tiny cell, tumour cells, uppsala university, vicinity, worst case, wound healing