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Researchers have found a stem cell enzyme copy edits more than 20 tumor types, providing new therapeutic target for preventing cancer cell resistance to chemotherapy and radiation. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Scientists have succeeded for the first time in directly reprogramming human blood cells into a previously unknown type of neural stem cell. These induced stem cells are similar to those that occur during the early embryonic development of the central nervous system. They can be modified and multiplied indefinitely in the culture dish and can represent an important basis for the development of regenerative therapies. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

As mammals age, their sense of smell deteriorates. In a study published in the journal ‘Cell Reports’, an interdisciplinary research team at Helmholtz Zentrum München and the University Medical Centre Mainz investigated why this is the case. For their study, the researchers tracked the development of stem cells in the brains of mice using what are known as confetti reporters. They then analysed the complex data obtained using intelligent algorithms. (Mehr in: Pressemitteilungen – idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft)

Organism aging is characterized by increases in inflammation and decreases in stem cell function. The relationship between these processes remains incompletely understood. Researchers of the Leibniz Institute on Aging in Jena identified a new role of the protein cohesin in mediating inflammatory signaling in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Cohesin is required for gene regulation during normal differentiation, but chronic inflammation in aging impairs the function and self-renewal of HSCs by constant activation of cohesin-mediated inflammatory signals. HSC with reduced cohesin, increased self-renewal and skewed differentiation are selected, resembling the hallmarks of hematopoietic aging. (Mehr in: Pressemitteilungen – idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft)

Einem Team aus Forschern des Deutschen Zentrums für Herz-Kreislauf-Forschung (DZHK) und des Universitätsklinikums Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) ist es gelungen, aus Hautzellen schlagendes menschliches Herzmuskelgewebe der Vorhöfe zu züchten. Die in Stem Cell Reports veröffentlichte Studie könnte zu einer personalisierten Behandlung von Herzerkrankungen wie Vorhofflimmern führen und Tierversuche verringern. (Mehr in: Pressemitteilungen – idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft)

Rapid screening of leukemia cells for drug susceptibility and resistance are bringing scientists closer to patient-tailored treatment for acute myeloid leukemia. Research on the differing drug response patterns of leukemia stem cells and blasts may show why some attempts to treat are not successful and why some patients relapse. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Improving outcomes for patients with myeloid cancers who undergo stem cell transplantation is a focus of several studies being presented this week. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Scientists have discovered the signals that determine the fate of immature cells in the pancreas. The research shows that they are very mobile and that their destiny is strongly influenced by their immediate environment. This breakthrough published in the journal ‘Nature’ will facilitate the manufacturing of pancreatic islet cells from stem cells and might help combating type 1 diabetes. Prof. Dr. Henrik Semb who led the study recently joined Helmholtz Zentrum München. Follow the link to see Henrik Semb explaining the paper in a nutshell: https://vimeo.com/303012751 (Mehr in: Pressemitteilungen – idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft)

Researchers have developed a way to grow human platelets in the laboratory from stem cells derived from fat tissue. The achievement suggests manufactured platelets could eventually reduce the reliance on donated platelets to help patients with cancer and other disorders. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Researchers have shown that the number of mutations in healthy and leukemic blood stem cells does not differ. Rather the location of the mutations in the DNA is relevant. Using the mutation patterns in the hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) the team was able to trace the developmental lineage tree of the cells. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

In modern biomedicine, cell therapeutics are produced from reprogrammed stem cells (induced pluripotent stem cells, iPS). For this purpose, these cells can also undergo an additional genetic modification. However, unintentional mechanisms frequently occur, which can deactivate gene expression. Researchers from the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut (PEI) have developed inducible vectors containing ubiquitous chromatin opening elements (UCOE) which keep the relevant gene modified locus permanently open so that it remains active. The journal Biomaterials reports on these results in its online version of 24 November 2018. (Mehr in: Pressemitteilungen – idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft)

A new study shows that cancer stem cells switch from metabolizing sugar to metabolizing protein. Clinical trial based on this observation may revolutionize care for older adults with acute myeloid leukemia. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Scientists are pursuing a cross-collaborative effort that could potentially change the way cellular immunotherapies such as stem cell transplantation and CAR T-cell therapies are performed. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Scientists have discovered how the growth of milk-producing mammary glands is triggered during puberty. Sleeping stem cells in the mammary gland are awoken by a protein dubbed FoxP1, according to the research. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

The embryonic stem cells that form facial features, called neural crest cells, use an unexpected mechanism of moving from the back of the head to the front to populate the face, finds a new study. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

An new study shows that CDK1 directly interacts with Sox2 to keep cancer cells ’stemmy.‘ (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Universitätsmedizin Mainz veröffentlicht neue Erkenntnisse zum Verständnis neurodegenerativer Erkrankungen in „Cell Stem Cell“ (Mehr in: Pressemitteilungen – idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft)

Researchers have identified the mechanism by which an important enzyme involved in the differentiation of stem cells is brought to the DNA. Their results describe a new way in which proteins interact with the genome, a novel approach that shakes up our previous knowledge in the field. The work sheds light on fundamental processes such as the formation of pluripotent stem cells and expands our understanding of blood cancer. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Researchers have shown that autologous fecal microbiota transplantation (auto-FMT) is a safe, effective way to replenish beneficial gut bacteria in cancer patients requiring intense antibiotics during allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

A new review looks at the major factors affecting bone health in mematologic stem cell transplant recipients, and provides expert guidance for the monitoring, evaluation and treatment of bone loss in these patients. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Researchers have successfully deployed a Zika virus vaccine to target and kill human glioblastoma brain cancer stem cells, which had been transplanted into mice. In a new study, the team shows that a live, attenuated version of the Zika virus could form the basis of a new treatment option for this fatal brain cancer. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Adult humans have ten times more blood-creating stem cells in their bone marrow than previously thought, ranging between 50,000 and 200,000 stem cells. Researchers developed a new approach for studying stem cells, based on methods used in ecology. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Researchers showed they could shrink tumors in laboratory models of medulloblastoma, and extend life. The study is a necessary step toward developing clinical trials that would see if the approach works for children. (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)

Scientists have uncovered a reason for the uncanny likeness between cells in the most malignant cancers and the embryonic cells of the organ in which the cancer originated: cells in human basal-like breast cancers share features with the embryonic mammary (breast) stem cells that are the progenitors of all cell types in the mammary gland (of a mouse). (Mehr in: Cancer News — ScienceDaily)