Fundamental beliefs about atherosclerosis overturned
Doctors' efforts to battle the dangerous atherosclerotic plaques that build up in our arteries and cause heart attacks and strokes are built on several false beliefs about the fundamental composition...
View ArticleSpray application of respiratory cells holds promise for tissue engineering
A new study showing the ability to apply a thin coating of viable respiratory epithelial cells to tissue engineered constructs using a commercially available spray device is especially promising for...
View ArticleRevolutionizing the revolutionary technology of optogenetics
The revolution that optogenetics technology has brought to biology—neuroscience in particular—could be transformed all over again if a new project getting underway at Brown University and Central...
View ArticleContrary to previous studies, diabetes affects diaphragm, smooth muscle cells...
Previous studies have shown that diabetes adversely affects breathing and respiratory function. However, in the past, researchers have not differentiated diaphragm muscle cells and the muscle cells of...
View ArticleStudy provides hope for some human stem cell therapies
An international team of scientists headed by biologists at UC San Diego has discovered that an important class of stem cells known as human "induced pluripotent stem cells," or iPSCs, which are...
View ArticleAnti-aging tricks from dietary supplement seen in mice
In human cells, shortened telomeres, the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes, are both a sign of aging and contribute to it. Scientists at Emory University School of Medicine have found that the...
View ArticlePeriodontitis and heart disease: Researchers connect the molecular dots
Periodontitis is a risk factor for heart disease. Now a team of researchers has shown that a periodontal pathogen causes changes in gene expression that boost inflammation and atherosclerosis in aortic...
View ArticleA tool for isolating progenitor cells from human heart tissue could lead to...
A*STAR researchers and colleagues have developed a method to isolate and expand human heart stem cells, also known as cardiac progenitor cells, which could have great potential for repairing injured...
View ArticleDiscovery could lead to new heart disease treatments
By tracking a single cell in a growing heart, scientists from Stanford University have discovered a cell type that could repair damaged arteries.
View ArticleHow mechanical stretching forces impact human vascular cells
Cardiovascular diseases are globally the main cause of death and vascular tissue integrity is important for the proper functionality and homeostasis of the blood system. Therefore, a profound...
View ArticleResearchers examine how neurofibromatosis causes premature cardiovascular...
It's a fairly common genetic condition that can surface as a series of dark skin spots and result in a host of maladies from tumors to premature cardiovascular disease.
View ArticleStudy says Alzheimer's plaques can also affect the brain's blood vessels
Amyloid beta, the plaque that accumulates in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease, may also contribute to Alzheimer's by interfering with normal blood flow in the brain, according to...
View ArticleProliferation of pulmonary endothelial cells is controlled by small RNA...
Pulmonary hypertension is an umbrella term used for many conditions that all result in elevation of the pulmonary arterial pressure. Of interest, many of these completely different clinical and...
View ArticleThe age-related change of angiotensin receptor promotes hypertension
Hypertension is a major risk factor of various diseases including stroke, heart failure, vascular disease, and kidney disease. Angiotensin II, which is produced by the renin-angiotensin system,...
View ArticleNew method for producing heart cells may hold the key to treating heart failure
Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have discovered how to make a new type of cell that is in between embryonic stem cells and adult heart cells, and that may hold the key to treating heart disease....
View Article'Transient contractions' in urinary bladder may lead to therapeutic...
Researchers at the University of Vermont College of Medicine have made a discovery that helps explain how we know when to empty our bladders and may lead to new therapeutic interventions for bladder...
View ArticleIvacaftor improves smooth muscle function in cystic fibrosis patients
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is caused by mutations in the chloride channel CFTR, which disrupts fluid transport in the lungs. CF patients have a variety of complications, including airway obstruction,...
View ArticleScientists identify genes that control smooth muscle contraction in digestive...
Researchers at UMass Medical School have identified a new molecular pathway critical for maintaining the smooth muscle tone that allows the passage of materials through the digestive system. This...
View ArticleProcessed fat cells show potential as treatment for refractory ischemia patients
Patients treated with processed autologous adipose-derived regenerative cells (ADRCs) injected into the heart muscle demonstrated symptomatic improvement and a trend towards lower rates of heart...
View ArticleGene helps prevent heart attack, stroke—and may offer way to block effects of...
A gene that scientific dogma insists is inactive in adults actually plays a vital role in preventing the underlying cause of most heart attacks and strokes, researchers at the University of Virginia...
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