Menstrual Stem-Cells
AUSTRALIA
A biologist Caroline Gargett went in search of some remarkable cells in tissue that had been removed during hysterectomy surgeries. The cells come from the endometrium, which lines the inside of the uterus. Before she could claim that the cells were truly stem cells, the team had to put them through a series of rigorous tests. Stem cells from the endometrium can be collected through a biopsy or in menstrual blood. Under the right conditions, they can differentiate into other cell types.
Microbes and me
IRELAND
For nearly two decades, neuroscientist John Cryan has been uncovering ways in which intestinal microbes affect the brain and behaviour of humans and other animals. Most remarkably, research has shown that transplanting microbes from the guts of people with psychiatric disorders like depression to rodents can cause comparable symptoms in animals. Even though it will take much more research to pin down the mechanisms and figure out how to apply the insights, there are some things we can do already.
Immune to damage?
CANADA
There is a long-held belief that acute viral infections like Zika or COVID-19 are directly responsible for neurological damage, but researchers from McMaster University have now discovered that it’s the immune system’s response that is behind it. To come to this conclusion, the team focused on Zika virus. Researchers say the aggressive response of specific T cells, is responsible for neurological damage suffered from infections like COVID-19 and maybe even septic shock.
Fighting superbugs with medical nanomachines
SPAIN
Instruments smaller than a human hair are being designed to eradicate antibiotic-resistant bacteria and fight cancer. Of which there are six types that inflict the most harm. Antibiotics often latch onto a specific bacterial protein, much like a key fit into a lock. However today bacteria are able to undergo a physical change so that the key no longer fits the lock. Leaving antibiotics outside. The idea behind the nanomachines would be a tough new weapon against bacteria. To deploy this new weapon against resistant bacteria. However, researchers will need to ensure that the nanomachines are safe and don’t target human cells too.
