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Category: biotech/medical – Page 2,612

Type of Human Monocytes Found to Undergo Senescence

Scientists found out that nonclassical monocites can become senescent.

Scientists from the A*STAR Singapore Immunology Network have discovered that immune cells called nonclassical monocytes undergo cellular senescence, contradicting what was previously thought of them [1].

Abstract

Human primary monocytes comprise a heterogeneous population that can be classified into three subsets based on CD14 and CD16 expression: classical (CD14high/CD16−), intermediate (CD14high/CD16+), and non-classical (CD14low/CD16+). The non-classical monocytes are the most pro-inflammatory in response to TLR stimulation in vitro, yet they express a remarkably high basal level of miR-146a, a microRNA known to negatively regulate the TLR pathway. This concurrence of a pro-inflammatory status and a high miR-146a level has been associated with cellular senescence in other cell types. Hence, we assessed the three monocyte subsets for evidence of senescence, including proliferative status, telomere length, cellular ROS levels, and mitochondrial membrane potential. Indeed, the non-classical subset exhibited the clearest hallmarks of senescence, followed by the intermediate and then the classical subset. In addition, the non-classical subset secreted pro-inflammatory cytokines basally in vitro.

Why China is going all out to invent new, stronger, cheaper drugs … it’s not all about challenging the West

In the United States – the world’s biggest and most advanced pharmaceutical market – of the 46 new drugs given consent for marketing by regulators last year, 28 were developed by US firms and the realisation of all but four of the rest were led by European firms. None were Chinese.

China’s big ambitions to become a powerhouse of pharmaceutical innovation is as much about the well-being of its people as it is about narrowing the gap with the West.

Engineers build smallest integrated Kerr frequency comb generator

Optical frequency combs can enable ultrafast processes in physics, biology, and chemistry, as well as improve communication and navigation, medical testing, and security. The Nobel Prize in Physics 2005 was awarded to the developers of laser-based precision spectroscopy, including the optical frequency comb technique, and microresonator combs have become an intense focus of research over the past decade.

A major challenge has been how to make such comb sources smaller and more robust and portable. In the past 10 years, major advances have been made in the use of monolithic, chip-based microresonators to produce such combs. While the microresonators generating the are tiny—smaller than a human hair—they have always relied on external lasers that are often much larger, expensive, and power-hungry.

Researchers at Columbia Engineering announced today in Nature that they have built a Kerr frequency comb generator that, for the first time, integrates the together with the , significantly shrinking the system’s size and power requirements. They designed the laser so that half of the laser cavity is based on a semiconductor waveguide section with high optical gain, while the other half is based on waveguides, made of , a very low-loss material. Their results showed that they no longer need to connect separate devices in the lab using fiber—they can now integrate it all on photonic chips that are compact and energy efficient.

Destroying Misfolded Proteins to Combat Neurodegenerative Diseases

Today, we are going to be taking a look at GAIM and what it might mean for treating amyloid-based diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and amyloidosis. This approach has the potential to treat multiple age-related diseases at once by targeting a common characteristic that they all share.

Misfolded proteins cause multiple age-related diseases

Proteins are large, complex molecules that regulate almost everything in our bodies, either directly or indirectly. They do the majority of the work in cells and are critical for the function, regulation, and structure of tissues and organs.

Can supplementation with NMN Increase Longevity?

Recently, we have shown that by administering the NAD+ precursor NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide)in normal drinking water to older mice, NAD+ levels were restored to those normally associated with younger healthy animals. By administering NMN to mice for just one week, our lab demonstrated a robust correction in age-associated metabolic dysfunction and restored muscle mitochondrial function in old mice to levels seen in younger control mice (Gomes et al. 2013).

https://www.lifespan.io/campaigns/can-nmn-increase-longevity…019dfcda6c