An international team of researchers led by an endocrinologist at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich has identified genetic mutations that result in uncontrolled synthesis and secretion of the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone that is produced by the adrenal gland in response to stressful events, and modulates a whole spectrum of physiological processes. An international research collaboration has now identified genetic mutations that lead to the production and secretion of cortisol in the absence of an underlying stressor. The discovery emerged from the genetic characterization of benign tumors of the adrenal gland which produce cortisol in excess amounts. Patients who develop such tumors suffer from weight gain, muscle wasting, osteoporosis, diabetes and hypertension. This condition, known as Cushing's syndrome, can be successfully treated by surgical removal of the affected adrenal gland. Overproduction of cortisol The team, which included researchers from Germany, France and the US and was led by Professors Felix Beuschlein and Martin Fassnacht of the LMU Medical Center, were able to show that in one-third of a patient population with such adrenal tumors, a mutation in the gene for the enzyme phosphokinase A was specifically associated with the continuous production of cortisol. This mutation had occurred in … Continue reading →

The power of regenerative medicine appears to have turned science fiction into scientific reality-by allowing scientists to transform skin cells into cells that closely resemble beating heart cells. However, the methods required are complex, and the transformation is often incomplete. But now, scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have devised a new method that allows for the more efficient-and, importantly, more complete-reprogramming of skin cells into cells that are virtually indistinguishable from heart muscle cells. These findings, based on animal models and described in the latest issue of Cell Reports, offer newfound optimism in the hunt for a way to regenerate muscle lost in a heart attack. Heart disease is the world's leading cause of death, but recent advances in science and medicine have improved the chances of surviving a heart attack. In the United States alone, nearly 1 million people have survived an attack, but are living with heart failure-a chronic condition in which the heart, having lost muscle during the attack, does not beat at full capacity. So, scientists have begun to look toward cellular reprogramming as a way to regenerate this damaged heart muscle. The reprogramming of skin cells into heart cells, an approach pioneered by Gladstone Investigator, … Continue reading →

Stem Cell Therapy | Stem cells from osteoarthritis patients as good as controls? http://wwwarthritistreatmentcenter.com Stem cells from patients with osteoarthritis are as good as normal controls Alwin Scharstuhl and colleagues, in an art... By: Nathan Wei … Continue reading →

13 Nanomedicine part 2 By: Carlos Mora … Continue reading →

13 Nanomedicine Part 1 By: Carlos Mora … Continue reading →