Sandia researchers take new approach to studying how cells respond to pathogens
...of human immune cells. They obtained "immortalized mouse immune cells" from a collaborator at UCSF that have the needed life span, and are accepted as a model system by the immunology research community. "We're starting with robust and well-characterized cells, which really simplifies development of our ...In young mice, gregariousness seems to reside in the genes
...s in social motivations among juveniles of the two mouse strains - behavioral variations that could only be...ss was the order of the day, says Lahvis: "A young mouse will seek social interaction and avoid isolation. The social life of these animals is a rich integra...NIH establishes Center of Excellence for influenza research at Mount Sinai
...covered that the reconstructed 1918 flu virus in a mouse model replicates so fast that it triggers a very strong immune system response that fails to protect animals from severe lung disease and death. This study gave insight into how highly pathogenic influenza viruses, such as the 1918 flu, cause disease...Donald Metcalf receives American Association for Cancer Research Lifetime Achievement Award
...led to the successful cloning of the genes for all mouse and human CSFs, and the mass production of these hormones by bacterial, yeast, and other cells for therapeutic use. Dr. Metcalfs work provided the pivotal demonstration that CSFs, when injected into animals, stimulated the formation and regulated ...Mutation in HNF4A associated with an increase in birthweight and macrosomia
...ose who did not. In mice who lacked the equivalent mouse gene (Hnf4a) the researchers were able to show that there was high insulin during development and low blood sugar at birth. Although this study is in patients with an unusual mutation, these results have wider implications as they establish that H...Joslin study indicates insulin receptors play a critical role in promoting islet growth
... these states that overt diabetes develops. Two mouse models were used in the study. In the first model, an insulin-resistant mouse was crossed with a mouse lacking insulin receptors in the beta cell. The resulting offspring had ins...Switching genes to overdrive improves muscular dystrophy symptoms in mice
...eir muscles. Also available for the research was a mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, the MDX mous...e muscular dystrophy gene is carried by females in mouse and in humans.) As a result, the offspring of these matings had muscular dystrophy but also had elev...New therapeutic insight into duchenne muscular dystrophy
...olleagues analyzed the function of PGC-1alpha in a mouse model of DMD. They found that PGC-1alpha activates the expression of several genes that are aberrantly inactivated in DMD. In fact, by inducing PGC-1alpha expression in these transgenic mice, the scientists were able to improve DMD symptoms. "These...Scientists identify a candidate gene for osteoporosis
... in Genome Research . "If our finding using the mouse model is confirmed in humans, then we may be able ...revious genetic studies had pointed to a region on mouse chromosome 1 as containing a gene responsible for BMD regulation. In the current project, Mohan and...Study shows metabolic strategy of stressed cell
...archers studied the response to decreased CoA in a mouse model by blocking CoA production with hopantenate (HoPan). HoPan is a chemical that interferes with pantothenate kinase (PanK), the enzyme that triggers the first step of CoA production. Following the shutdown of CoA production, the cells quickly rec...NIH announces phase III clinical trial of creatine for Parkinson's disease
...unds that are harmful to cells in the brain. In a mouse model of PD, creatine is able to prevent loss of the cells that are typically affected. "Creatine, or any compound that may slow the progression of PD, could have very important long-term benefits for people who are living with this disease," says ...Genetic studies endow mice with new color vision
...r vision by introducing a single human gene into a mouse chromosome. The human gene codes for a light senso...perience, he explained. Our observation that the mouse brain can use this information to make spectral discriminations implies that alterations in receptor...Viral enzyme recruited in fight against ear infection
...e developed at St. Jude that represented the first mouse model in which acute otitis media develops in a si...of the "PLoS" paper. The researchers developed a mouse model of acute otitis media by first establishing colonization of S. pneumoniae in the noses of mice...The Parkinson's Institute to conduct Phase III Clinical Trial of creatine for Parkinson's disease
...unds that are harmful to cells in the brain. In a mouse model of PD, creatine is able to prevent loss of the cells that are typically affected. The study will enroll people who have been diagnosed with PD within the past five years and who have been treated for two years or less with levodopa or other d...Blood's clotting cells harbor 'ticking time bombs,' finding may help extend blood supply
...w platelet counts. Their search uncovered two such mouse strains, each bearing different mutations in Bcl-xL. Mice specifically engineered to lack Bcl-xL also were deficient in platelets, they showed. It was an unexpected result, and the seed for the whole story, Kile said of the initial discovery. The...Making mice with enhanced color vision
...n the study, the researchers designed a "knock-in" mouse that has one copy of its medium wavelength recepto..., mice with both the human long wavelength and the mouse middle wavelength receptors learned to tell the difference, although it took over 10,000 trials to l...Jefferson scientists uncover gene mutation that cuts colon polyps, may suppress cancer
...g that both gene mutations Apc and Atp5a1 are on mouse chromosome 18. If the other normal chromosome is lost for some reason, or mice have two copies of the mutant Atp5a1, they die in embryonic development, presumably because the cells lack an energy source. The corresponding human gene, ATP5A1, is a...Scientists identify a gene that may suppress colorectal cancer
...xpression, is the first mutation identified in the mouse Atp5a1 gene. In trypanosomes (tiny parasitic pr... population. Therefore, scientists have turned to mouse models, which have nearly identical genetic backgrounds and are housed in controlled conditions. T...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
...atory drug in Tg-SwDI mice. Decoding the name, the mouse is a transgenic strain that expresses human amyloid precursor protein carrying the Dutch- and Iowa-type familial CAA mutations. The anti-inflammatory drug minocycline did not affect fibrillar amyloid deposits in the microvasculature of Tg-SwDI mice, ...Gene controlling circadian rhythms may be involved in onset of bipolar disorder
...er findings a step further by engineering a mutant mouse model displaying an overall profile that is striki...mportant because it establishes the first complete mouse model for studying bipolar disorder. "The lack of an animal model for bipolar disorder has been a ...