What would happen if you stuck your body inside a particle accelerator? The scenario seems like the start of a bad Marvel comic, but it happens to shed light on our intuitions about radiation, the vulnerability of the human body, and the very nature of matter.

Particle accelerators allow physicists to study subatomic particles by speeding them up in powerful magnetic fields and then tracing the interactions that result from collisions. By delving into the mysteries of the Universe, colliders have entered the Zeitgeist and tapped the wonders and fears of our age.

As far back as 2008, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), operated by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), was charged with creating microscopic black holes that would allow physicists to detect extra dimensions. To many, this sounds like the plot of a disastrous science-fiction movie.

It came as no surprise when two people filed a lawsuit to stop the LHC from operating, lest it produce a black hole powerful enough to destroy the world. But physicists argued that the idea was absurd and the lawsuit was rejected.

Then, in 2012, the LHC detected the long-sought Higgs boson, a particle needed to explain how particles acquire mass. With that major accomplishment, the LHC entered popular culture; it was featured on the album cover of Super Collider (2013) by the heavy metal band Megadeth, and was a plot point in the US television series The Flash (2014-).

Yet, despite its accomplishments and glamour, the world of particle physics is so abstract that few understand its implications, meaning, or use. Unlike a NASA probe sent to Mars, CERNs research doesnt produce stunning, tangible images.

Instead, the study of particle physics is best described by chalkboard equations and squiggly lines called Feynman diagrams. Aage Bohr, the Nobel laureate whose father Niels invented the Bohr model of the atom, and his colleague Ole Ulfbeck have even gone as far as to deny the physical existence of subatomic particles as anything more than mathematical models.

Which returns us to our original question: what happens when a beam of subatomic particles traveling at nearly the speed of light meets the flesh of the human body? Perhaps because the realms of particle physics and biology are conceptually so far removed, its not only laypeople who lack the intuition to answer this question, but also some professional physicists.

In a 2010 YouTube interview with members of the physics and astronomy faculty at the University of Nottingham, several academic experts admitted that they had little idea what would happen if one were to stick a hand inside the proton beam at the LHC. Professor Michael Merrifield put it succinctly: Thats a good question. I dont know is the answer. Probably be very bad for you.

Professor Laurence Eaves was also cautious about drawing conclusions. [B]y the scales of energy we notice, it wouldnt be that noticeable, he said, likely with a bit of British understatement. Would I put my hand in the beam? Im not sure about that.

Such thought experiments can be useful tools for exploring situations that cant be studied in the laboratory. Occasionally, however, unfortunate accidents yield case studies: opportunities for researchers to study scenarios that cant be experimentally induced for ethical reasons. Case studies have a sample size of one and no control group.

But, as the neuroscientist V S Ramachandran has pointed out in Phantoms in the Brain (1998), it takes only one talking pig to prove that pigs can talk. On 13 September 1848, for example, an iron rod pierced through the head of the US railway worker Phineas Gage and profoundly changed his personality, offering early evidence of a biological basis for personality.

And on 13 July 1978, a Soviet scientist named Anatoli Bugorski stuck his head in a particle accelerator. On that fateful day, Bugorski was checking malfunctioning equipment on the U-70 synchrotron the largest particle accelerator in the Soviet Union when a safety mechanism failed and a beam of protons traveling at nearly the speed of light passed straight through his head, Phineas Gage-style.

Its possible that, at that point in history, no other human being had ever experienced a focused beam of radiation at such high energy. Although proton therapy a cancer treatment that uses proton beams to destroy tumors was pioneered before Bugorskis accident, the energy of these beams is generally not above 250 million electron volts (a unit of energy used for small particles). Bugorski might have experienced the full wrath of a beam with more than 300 times this much energy, 76 billion electron volts.

Proton radiation is a rare beast indeed. Protons from the solar wind and cosmic rays are stopped by Earths atmosphere, and proton radiation is so rare in radioactive decay that it was not observed until 1970. More familiar threats, such as ultraviolet photons and alpha particles, do not penetrate the body past skin unless a radioactive source is ingested.

Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko, for instance, was killed by alpha particles that do not so much as penetrate paper when he unknowingly ingested radioactive polonium-210 delivered by an assassin. But when Apollo astronauts protected by spacesuits were exposed to cosmic rays containing protons and even more exotic forms of radiation, they reported flashes of visual light, a harbinger of what would welcome Bugorski on the fateful day of his accident.

According to an interview in Wired magazine in 1997, Bugorski immediately saw an intense flash of light but felt no pain. The young scientist was taken to a clinic in Moscow with half his face swollen, and doctors expected the worst.

Ionizing radiation particles such as protons wreak havoc on the body by breaking chemical bonds in DNA. This assault on a cells genetic programming can kill the cell, stop it from dividing or induce a cancerous mutation. Cells that divide quickly, such as stem cells in bone marrow, suffer the most. Because blood cells are produced in bone marrow, for instance, many cases of radiation poisoning result in infection and anemia from losses of white blood cells and red blood cells, respectively.

But unique to Bugorskis case, radiation was concentrated along a narrow beam through the head, rather than being broadly distributed from nuclear fallout, as was the case for many victims of the Chernobyl disaster or the bombing of Hiroshima.

For Bugorski, particularly vulnerable tissues, such as bone marrow and the gastrointestinal track, might have been largely spared. But where the beam shot through Bugorskis head, it deposited an obscene amount of radiation energy, hundreds of times greater than a lethal dose by some estimates.

And yet, Bugorski is still alive today. Half his face is paralyzed, giving one hemisphere of his head a strangely young appearance. He is reported to be deaf in one ear. He suffered at least six generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Commonly known as grand mal seizures, these are the seizures most frequently depicted in film and television, involving convulsions and loss of consciousness.

Bugorskis epilepsy is likely a result of brain tissue-scarring left by the proton beam. It has also left him with petit mal or absence seizures, far less dramatic staring spells during which consciousness is briefly interrupted. There are no reports that Bugorski has ever been diagnosed with cancer, though that is often a long-term consequence of radiation exposure.

Despite having nothing less than a particle accelerator beam pass through his brain, Bugorskis intellect remained intact, and he successfully completed his doctorate after the accident. Bugorski survived his accident. And as frightening and awesome as the inside of a particle accelerator might be, humanity has thus far survived the nuclear age.

This article by Joel Frohlich was originally published at Aeon and has been republished under Creative Commons.

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Heres what happens when a beam of subatomic particles hits you in the face - The Next Web

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New Delhi: People woke up to terrible news of actor-politician Kirron Kher suffering from multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. She is currently undergoing treatment in Mumbai. Chandigarh BJP President and Kirrons colleague, Arun Sood revealed this at a press conference on Wednesday after which Anupam Kher also confirmed the same in a long note on Thursday morning. Also Read - Confirmed: Kirron Kher Diagnosed With Blood Cancer, Anupam Kher Calls Her a 'Fighter'

She had suffered a broken left arm at her Chandigarh house on November 11 last year. After her medical tests at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh, she was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. The disease had spread to her left arm and right shoulder. For treatment she had to go to Mumbai on December 4, Sood said at the press conference. Also Read - Anupam Kher And Kirron Kher Wish Each Other on 35th Wedding Anniversary With This Romantic Picture

Fans and well-wishers of Kirron are devastated by the news with many fans not being able to comprehend the shocking news. Here are a few things to know about the disease Multiple Myeloma that Kirron has been diagnosed with: Also Read - Kirron Kher-Anupam Kher's Mushiness in THESE Throwback Pictures on 34th Anniversary is All Hearts

It is a type of cancer that forms in a type of white blood cells known as a plasma cell. Your healthy plasma cells will fight infections and make antibodies that will attack germs, as per Mayoclinic. The cancerous plasma cells accumulate in the bone marrow. In this case, the cancer cells start producing an abnormal protein which further leads to complications. In simpler words, Multiple Myeloma happens when plasma cells become cancerous and grow out of control.

The symptoms can vary depending on an individual. Few reports suggest that initial symptoms may not be noticeable. But after a while, when it starts getting aggressive, as per Healthline, 4 major symptoms are noticeable which are referred to by the acronym CRAB which means:

Body gets a high level of calcium which can cause:

The cause is still unknown. It initiates with abnormal plasma cells which multiply in the bone marrow. Myeloma cells do not multiple and die, they divide indefinitely, as per Healthline.

Till now there is no cure for multiple myeloma. There are multiple treatments available including chemotherapy, interventional radiology, radiation therapy, stem cell transplantation, targeted therapy. Treatments are used when the disease starts getting worse.

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All About Multiple Myeloma, Type of Blood Cancer Kirron Kher is Suffering From - India.com

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Stem cell therapy, also known as regenerative medicine, has been around for decades, but in recent years, the use of and interest in stem cell therapy has increased exponentially. The dramatic utilization of stem cell therapy, and the increasing government spend related to these novel techniques, have now caught the eye of federal regulators and prosecutors. In this client alert, we profile some brief context of stem cell therapy, the governments regulations governing these techniques, and some of the best practices for those interested in this emerging space.

Stem cells are cells from which all other cells with specialized functions are generated (i.e., the bodys raw materials). Stem cells may duplicate themselves to create more stem cells or they may generate cells with a specific function like blood or brain cells.

Stem cell therapy is used to repair or replace damaged tissue or cells within the body. Many in the medical community are hopeful that stem cell therapy can be used to treat a wide array of conditions and diseases from multiple sclerosis to vision loss to traumatic spinal cord injuries to Lou Gehrigs disease just to name a few.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees and regulates stem cell therapy treatments. While the FDA has acknowledged that stem cell therapy has the potential to treat diseases or conditions for which few treatments exist, there are still only a few treatments that have actually been approved by the FDA. Many treatments are still only in early investigatory stages.

The FDA has recognized the massive potential that stem cell therapy has in allowing patients treatments for various conditions. Consequently, in 2017, the FDA issued guidance indicating its intent to exercise enforcement discretion as a means to support and expedite the development of regenerative medicine products. This enforcement discretion period was to allow innovators time to determine whether to submit an Investigational New Drug (IND) or marketing application and, if such an application is needed, to prepare and submit the application as appropriate. The FDA, however, has made clear its enforcement discretion policy only applies to products that do not raise potential significant safety concerns. What the FDA considers significant is debatable, creating uncertainty and ambiguity for those who might be relying on the FDAs enforcement discretion period.

Initially, the FDA stated that its enforcement discretion period would last through November 2020. But in July 2020, the FDA extended its enforcement discretion period through May 2021 a fast-arriving date. It remains unclear whether the FDA intends to extend the time period of its enforcement discretion any further, but either way, stem cell therapy providers would be well-served by planning for and expecting enforcement efforts to ramp up in the near future.

In 2019, the FDA went to great lengths to warn consumers of the potential fraud that may arise from what it called stem cell therapy hype, and encouraged consumers to make sure any stem cell therapy treatments were either approved or being studied as an IND. The FDAs concerns have led to multiple enforcement actions, including one just last month. On February 1, 2021, for example, the government announced the indictment of Ashton Derges, a healthcare provider in Missouri, who marketed stem cell shots as a successful treatment for various conditions, including COVID-19. According to the indictment, Derges was paid nearly $200,000 by patients for the stem cell shots, none of which actually contained stem cells at all. While this alleged fraud was not particularly sophisticated, it nonetheless marked a significant development: the governments first criminal prosecution of those touting stem cell therapies.

But blatant fraud is not the only type of stem cell therapy case the government has expressed interest in investigating. A primary concern of the government is the marketing and use of unproven stem cell treatments as miracle cures. A good case study of the risks associated with aggressive marketing of stem cell therapy is a case out of Florida involving US Stem Cell Clinic Inc. The clinic was marketing stem cell therapy to treat conditions and diseases such as Parkinsons disease, stroke, and brain injuries none of which were approved by the FDA. And, much of the marketing that US Stem Cell Clinic used promised almost miraculous results. As a result, last year, the FDA successfully permanently enjoined the US Stem Cell Clinic from selling or providing those stem cell therapy treatments. Notably, this case was pursued by the FDA despite the FDA explicitly stating its intent to be lenient with emerging stem cell therapy treatments.

Stem cell therapy is a groundbreaking medical tool with great possibilities to treat a plethora of diseases and conditions. As the industry continues to expand, so will the governments interest. Our firm continues to see an uptick in cases involving stem cell therapy treatments. And we have successfully assisted clients in avoiding unnecessary scrutiny by the FDA and other government regulators.

If you are in the stem cell therapy industry or are considering offering stem cell therapy treatments, we recommend that you:

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The Governments Watchful Eye on Fraud Stemming from Stem Cell Therapy - JD Supra

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Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes a wide range of symptoms involving the brain, optic nerves, and spinal cord. Research is only just beginning to reveal who is at risk and what causes the condition.

MS is a chronic condition affecting 2.8 million people worldwide. While treatment options are currently limited, trials of several new approaches are underway.

Researchers believe that MS is an autoimmune disorder. This type of illness involves the immune system attacking healthy cells, much as it would attack viruses or bacteria.

In the case of MS, the immune system attacks the myelin sheath that surrounds nerve cells. The attack causes lesions to form, and over time, these cause scarring, which leads to nerve damage and reduced function.

As a result of this damage, a person with MS may experience numbness and tingling sensations, fatigue, muscle weakness, dizziness and vertigo, memory issues, and vision problems, among other symptoms.

There are four types of MS: clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), relapsing-remitting MS, primary progressive MS, and secondary progressive MS.

CIS is a single episode of MS-like symptoms that lasts for at least 24 hours. People with CIS do not necessarily have MS, but experiencing an episode can be the first sign of the condition.

Treating MS involves interdisciplinary care, including rehabilitation, disease-modifying drugs (DMARDs), and complementary and alternative therapies.

Scientists do not fully understand the risk factors for MS and the mechanisms of the condition. However, they are making new headway in the search for answers and improvements in treatment.

What does the latest research show about the risk factors, mechanisms, and treatments of MS? In this Special Feature, Medical News Today takes a closer look.

French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot first described the features of MS in 1868. He noted the differences between this condition and the tremor of paralysis agitans, a symptom of the neurological condition later named Parkinsons disease.

The three symptoms associated with MS at the time were called Charcots triad. They included a characteristic tremor, involuntary eye movements, also known as nystagmus, and scanning speech, which some call staccato or explosive speech.

Decades later, the invention of MRI scans helped doctors diagnose MS. Treatment with steroids became commonplace, and doctors then began to use medications in a class of drugs called interferons. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) first approved interferons for use in people with MS in 1993.

Article highlights:

Although scientists and healthcare professionals understand the defining features of MS, several aspects of the condition remain a mystery.

While researchers recognize that MS is an autoimmune condition, they do not understand why immune cells attack myelin.

Also, diagnosing MS is still an ambiguous process because its symptoms are similar to those of many other health conditions.

In addition, experts do not know why women are 23 times more likely to be diagnosed with MS than men.

Research suggests that risk factors of MS include a lack of vitamin D or sunlight, smoking, obesity, a history of infection with the Epstein-Barr virus, being female, and possibly having inherited specific genes, as well as environmental factors.

More recently, the gut microbiota has emerged as a possible risk modulator.

A recent overview of clinical research found that people with MS had larger populations of Pedobacteria, Flavobacterium, Pseudomonas, Mycoplana, Acinetobacter, Eggerthella, Dorea, Blautia, Streptococcus, and Akkermansia bacteria in their intestines than people without MS.

People with MS also had reduced populations of Prevotella, Bacteroides, Parabacteroides, Haemophilus, Sutterella, Adlercreutzia, Coprobacillus, Lactobacillus, Clostridium, Anaerostipes, and Faecalibacterium bacteria.

Researchers speculate that balancing out the populations of gut bacteria in people with MS may reduce inflammation and the overactivation of the immune system.

Research from the MS Society Edinburgh Centre for MS Research found that people with MS had reduced numbers of inhibitory neurons, compared with people who did not have the condition.

However, people with MS had as many stimulating neurons as those without the condition. This was true even for people who had received their MS diagnoses many years earlier.

These findings help reveal the types of neurons affected by MS, shedding more light on how the condition evolves within the body. The research may also offer insight into treatments that could protect the targeted neurons.

DMARDs that health authorities have recently approved as MS treatments include cladribine (Mavenclad) and siponimod (Mayzent) for relapsing-remitting and active secondary progressive forms of the condition.

Cladribine targets lymphocytes, white blood cells responsible for attacks on myelin. Siponimod harnesses specific white blood cells that attack myelin and prevents them from circulating in the body.

However, due to their interactions with the immune system, these drugs may lead to a reduction in lymphocytes, making a person vulnerable to infections.

The medicines actions may also contribute to reduced responses to vaccines in people who receive routine vaccinations. With the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines, scientists have investigated whether people with MS who take medications such as cladribine can have adequate responses to vaccines.

The latest research indicates that people taking cladribine do produce protective antibodies to other common vaccines, despite having decreased lymphocyte levels induced by the medication.

This result gives scientists and others in the medical community hope that people who take these drugs for MS will have similarly adequate responses to COVID-19 vaccines.

Some scientists are currently investigating the potential for stem cell therapy for MS. In a phase 1 study conducted at the Karolinska Institute, in Stockholm, Sweden, seven people with progressive MS received infusions of stem cells derived from each participants own bone marrow.

As early as 7 days after administration of the stem cell therapy, researchers found evidence of positive changes in the participants immune systems. At 12 weeks, five out of six participants had no new characteristic lesions on follow-up MRI brain scans.

As their understanding of the condition evolves, many scientists are investigating the root cause of MS.

An analysis of the current data has revealed a possible connection between gut health and the condition. Data revealing relationships between the gut microbiota and the brain continually emerge, and scientists are hopeful that diet modifications, probiotics, and certain drugs that balance the gut microbiome will play a role in MS treatment.

Also in development are remyelination and neuroprotection therapies. The latter aim to protect the axons and myelin from further damage, while the former could restore lost function for people with MS.

Meanwhile, immunotherapy drugs would protect the nerves from destruction and rebuild neurons that have already sustained damage.

Another potential treatment in phase 1 trials is a tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) inhibitor called MYMD-1. TNF-alpha is a type of cytokine produced by white blood cells that regulates some aspects of the immune system.

Overproduction of this cytokine is associated with several autoimmune conditions, including MS. MYMD-1 is a new type of TNF-alpha blocker that shows promise as a treatment for MS and other conditions.

Trials for therapies involving the gut microbiome, stem cells, neuroprotective treatments, remyelination, and MYMD-1 are still in the earliest stages. However, the possibilities provide hope that ongoing research will lead to effective ways to prevent MS and better methods of treatment.

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Multiple sclerosis: Recent research on causes and treatments - Medical News Today

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The same team of biologists and computer scientists from Tufts University and the University of Vermont that created the Xenobots last year have now developed Xenobots 2.0. Last years version were novel, tiny self-healing biological machines created from frog cells, and they could navigate, push payloads, and act as a collective unit in some cases.

The new Xenobots 2.0 are life forms that can self-assemble a body from single cells. They do not require muscles to move, and they have even demonstrated recordable memory. Compared to their previous counterparts, the new bots move faster, navigate even more environments, and have longer lifespans. At the same time, they can still work together and heal themselves when damaged.

The new research was published in Science Robotics.

With the Xenobots 1.0, the millimeter-sized automations were constructed top down, with the manual placement of tissue and surgical shaping of frog skin and cardiac cells, which produces motion. With the new version of the technology, they were constructed bottom up.

Stem cells were taken from the embryos of the African frog called Xenopus laevis, and this enabled them to self-assemble and grow into spheroids. After a few days, the cells differentiated and produced cilia that moved back and forth or rotated in a specific way.

These cilia provide the new bots with a type of legs that enables them to rapidly travel across surfaces. In the biological world, cilia, or tiny hair-like projections, are often found on mucous surfaces like the lungs. They help by pushing out foreign material and pathogens, but in the Xenobots, they offer rapid locomotion.

Michael Levin is a Distinguished Professor of Biology and director of the Allen Discovery Center at Tufts University. He is the corresponding author of the study.

We are witnessing the remarkable plasticity of cellular collectives, which build a rudimentary new body that is quite distinct from their default in this case, a frog despite having a completely normal genome, said Levin. In a frog embryo, cells cooperate to create a tadpole. Here, removed from that context, we see that cells can re-purpose their genetically encoded hardware, like cilia, for new functions such as locomotion. It is amazing that cells can spontaneously take on new roles and create new body plans and behaviors without long periods of evolutionary selection for those features.

Senior scientist Doug Blackiston was co-first author of the study along with research technician Emma Lederer.

In a way, the Xenobots are constructed much like a traditional robot. Only we use cells and tissues rather than artificial components to build the shape and create predictable behavior. said Blackiston On the biology end, this approach is helping us understand how cells communicate as they interact with one another during development, and how we might better control those interactions.

Over at UVM, the scientists were developing computer simulations that modeled different shapes of the Xenobots, which helped identify any different behaviors that were exhibited in both individuals and groups. The team relied on the Deep Green supercomputer cluster at UVMs Vermont Advanced Computing Core.

Led by computer scientists and robotics expert Josh Bongard, the team came up with hundreds of thousands of environmental conditions through the use of an evolutionary algorithm. The simulations were then used to identify Xenobots that could work together in swarms to gather debris in a field of particles.

We know the task, but its not at all obvious for people what a successful design should look like. Thats where the supercomputer comes in and searches over the space of all possible Xenobot swarms to find the swarm that does the job best, says Bongard. We want Xenobots to do useful work. Right now were giving them simple tasks, but ultimately were aiming for a new kind of living tool that could, for example, clean up microplastics in the ocean or contaminants in soil.

The new version of the bots are faster and more efficient at tasks like garbage collection, and they can now cover large flat surfaces. The new upgrade also includes the ability for the Xenobot to record information.

The most impressive new feature of the technology is the ability for the bots to record memory, which can then be used to modify its actions and behaviors. The newly developed memory function was tested and the proof of concept demonstrated that it could be extended in the future to detect and record light, the presence of radioactive contamination, chemical pollutants, and more.

When we bring in more capabilities to the bots, we can use the computer simulations to design them with more complex behaviors and the ability to carry out more elaborate tasks, said Bongard. We could potentially design them not only to report conditions in their environment but also to modify and repair conditions in their environment.

The new version of the robots are also able to self-heal very efficiently, demonstrating that they are capable of closing the majority of a severe full-length laceration half their thickness within just five minutes.

The new Xenobots carry over the ability to survive up to ten days on embryonic energy stores, and their tasks can be carried out with no additional energy sources. If they are kept in various different nutrients, they can continue at full speed for months.

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Xenobots 2.0 are Here and Still Developed With Frog Stem Cells - Unite.AI

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Scientists have created small, synthetic living machines that self-organize from single cells, move quickly through different environments without the need for muscle cells, can remember their experiences, heal themselves when damaged, and exhibit herd behaviors.

Earlier, scientists have developed swarms of robots from synthetic materials and moving biological systems from muscle cells grown on precisely shaped scaffolds. But until now the creation of a self-directed living machine has remained beyond reach.

Biologists and computer scientists from Tufts University and the University of Vermont have created novel, tiny self-healing living machines from frog cells (Xenopus laevis) that they call Xenobots. These can move around, push a payload, and even exhibit collective behavior in a swarm.

In an article titled A cellular platform for the development of synthetic living machinespublished in the journal Science Robotics, the researchers report a method for creating these of Xenobots from frog cells. This cellular platform can be used to study self-organization, collective behavior, and bioengineering and provide versatile, soft-body, living machines for applications in biomedicine and environmental biology.

The next version of Xenobots have been createdtheyre faster, live longer, and can now record information [Doug Blackiston, Tufts University]

We are witnessing the remarkable plasticity of cellular collectives, which build a rudimentary new body that is quite distinct from their defaultin this case, a frog despite having a completely normal genome, says Michael Levin, Distinguished Professor of Biology and director of the Allen Discovery Center at Tufts University, and corresponding author of the study. In a frog embryo, cells cooperate to create a tadpole. Here, removed from that context, we see that cells can re-purpose their genetically encoded hardware, like cilia, for new functions such as locomotion. It is amazing that cells can spontaneously take on new roles and create new body plans and behaviors without long periods of evolutionary selection for those features.

Xenobots can move around in a coordinated manner with the help of cilia present on their surface. These cilia grow through normal tissue patterning and do not require complicated architectural procedures such as scaffolding or microprinting, making the high-throughput production of Xenobots possible. And while the frog cells are organizing themselves into Xenobots, they are amenable to surgical, genetic, chemical, and optical stimulation. The researchers show that the Xenobots can maneuver through water, heal after damage and exhibit predictable collective behaviors.

The scientists also provide a proof of principle for a programmable molecular memory using a light-controlled protein that can record exposure to a specific wavelength of light.

Compared to their first edition, Xenobots 1.0, that were millimeter-sized automatons constructed in a top down approach by manual placement of tissue and surgical shaping of frog skin and cardiac cells to produce motion, this updated version of Xenobots 2.0 takes a bottom up approach. The biologists took stem cells from frog embryos and allowed them to self-assemble and grow into spheroids, where some of the cells after a few days differentiated to produce ciliatiny hair-like projections that move back and forth or rotate in a specific way. Cilia act like legs to help the new spheroidal Xenobots move rapidly across a surface.

In a way, the Xenobots are constructed much like a traditional robot. Only we use cells and tissues rather than artificial components to build the shape and create predictable behavior. Says Doug Blackiston, PhD, senior scientist and co-first author on the study with research technician, Emma Lederer. On the biology end, this approach is helping us understand how cells communicate as they interact with one another during development, and how we might better control those interactions.

Scientists at UVM ran computer simulations that modeled different shapes of the Xenobots and analyzed its effects on individual and collective behavior. Robotics expert, Joshua Bongard, PhD, and a team of computer scientists used an evolutionary algorithm on the Deep Green supercomputer cluster at UVMs Vermont Advanced Computing Core to simulate the behavior of the xenobots under numerous random environmental conditions. These simulations identified Xenobots that excelled at working together in swarms to gather large piles of debris in a field of particles.

We know the task, but its not at all obviousfor peoplewhat a successful design should look like. That is where the supercomputer comes in and searches over the space of all possible Xenobot swarms to find the swarm that does the job best, says Bongard. We want Xenobots to do useful work. Right now, were giving them simple tasks, but ultimately were aiming for a new kind of living tool that could, for example, clean up microplastics in the ocean or contaminants in soil.

Xenobots can quickly collect garbage working together in a swarm to sweep through a petri dish and gather larger piles of iron oxide particles. They can also cover large flat surfaces and travel through narrow capillaries.

The Tufts scientists engineered the Xenobots with a memory capability to record one bit of information, using a fluorescent reporter protein called EosFP that glows green but when exposed to blue light at 390nm wavelength, the protein emits red light instead.

The researchers injected the cells of the frog embryos with messenger RNA coding for the EosFP protein before the stem cells were excised to create the Xenobots so that the mature Xenobots have a built-in fluorescent switch which can record exposure to blue light.

To test the memory capacity, the investigators, allowed 10 Xenobots to swim around a surface on which one spot is illuminated with a beam of blue light. After two hours, they found that three bots emitted red light. The rest remained their original green, effectively recording the travel experience of the bots. This molecular memory in Xenobots could be harnessed to detect the presence of radioactive contamination, chemical pollutants, drugs, or a disease condition.

When we bring in more capabilities to the bots, we can use the computer simulations to design them with more complex behaviors and the ability to carry out more elaborate tasks, said Bongard. We could potentially design them not only to report conditions in their environment but also to modify and repair conditions in their environment.

The biological materials we are using have many features we would like to someday implement in the botscells can act like sensors, motors for movement, communication and computation networks, and recording devices to store information, says Levin. One thing the Xenobots and future versions of biological bots can do that their metal and plastic counterparts have difficulty doing is constructing their own body plan as the cells grow and mature, and then repairing and restoring themselves if they become damaged. Healing is a natural feature of living organisms, and it is preserved in Xenobot biology.

Cells in a biological robot can also absorb and break down chemicals and work like tiny factories, synthesizing and excreting chemicals and proteins.

Xenobots were designed to exhibit swarm activity, moving about on cilia legs. [Doug Blackiston, Tufts University]

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Scientists Create Living Machines That Move, Heal, Remember and Work in Groups - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

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ALAMEDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AgeX Therapeutics, Inc. (AgeX; NYSE American: AGE), a biotechnology company developing therapeutics for human aging and regeneration, reported its financial and operating results for the fourth quarter and the full year ended December 31, 2020.

Recent Highlights

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Amendment to 2019 Loan Agreement

On February 10, 2021, AgeX entered into an amendment to its 2019 Loan Facility Agreement with Juvenescence Limited (Juvenescence). The Amendment extends the maturity date of loans under the agreement to February 14, 2022 and increases the amount of the loan facility by $4.0 million. All loans in excess of the initial $2.0 million that AgeX previously borrowed are subject to Juvenescences discretion.

At-the-market Offering Facility

During January 2021 AgeX entered into a sales agreement with Chardan Capital Markets LLC (Chardan) for the sale of shares of AgeX common stock in at-the-market (ATM) transactions. In accordance with the terms of the sales agreement, AgeX may offer and sell shares of common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $12.6 million through Chardan acting as the sales agent. Through March 26, 2021, AgeX raised approximately $496,000 in gross proceeds through the sale of shares of common stock.

Going Concern Considerations

As required under Accounting Standards Update 2014-15, Presentation of Financial Statements-Going Concern (ASC 205-40), AgeX evaluates whether conditions and/or events raise substantial doubt about its ability to meet its future financial obligations as they become due within one year after the date its financial statements are issued. Based on AgeXs most recent projected cash flows, AgeX believes that its cash and cash equivalents and available sources of debt and equity capital would not be sufficient to satisfy AgeXs anticipated operating and other funding requirements for the twelve months following the filing of AgeXs Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020. These factors raise substantial doubt regarding the ability of AgeX to continue as a going concern.

Balance Sheet Information

Cash, and cash equivalents, and restricted cash totaled $0.6 million as of December 31, 2020, as compared with $2.5 million as of December 31, 2019. Since January 1, 2021, AgeX had cash proceeds of approximately $3.2 million through loans from Juvenescence, sales of shares of AgeX common stock, and the disposition of its subsidiary LifeMap Sciences, Inc. (LifeMap Sciences) through a cash-out merger.

Fourth Quarter and Annual 2020 Operating Results

Revenues: Total Revenues for the fourth quarter of 2020 were $0.5 million. Total revenues for the year ended December 31, 2020 were $1.9 million, as compared with $1.7 million in the same period in 2019. AgeX revenue was primarily generated by its subsidiary LifeMap Sciences, Inc. which AgeX disposed of on March 15, 2021 through a cash-out merger. Revenues for the year ended December 31, 2020 also included approximately $0.3 million of allowable expenses under a research grant from the NIH as compared with $0.2 million in the same period in 2019.

Operating expenses: Operating expenses for the three months ended December 31, 2020, were $2.9 million, as reported, which was comprised of $2.5 million for AgeX and $0.4 million for LifeMap Sciences, and were $2.3 million, as adjusted, comprised of $2.0 million for AgeX and $0.3 million for LifeMap Sciences.

Operating expenses for the full year 2020 were $12.4 million, as reported, which was comprised of $10.4 million for AgeX and $2.0 million for LifeMap Sciences, and were $10.2 million, as adjusted, comprised of $8.7 million for AgeX and $1.5 million for LifeMap Sciences.

Research and development expenses for the year ended December 31, 2020 decreased by $0.9 million to $5.0 million from $5.9 million in 2019. The decrease was primarily attributable to the layoff of research and development personnel in May 2020.

General and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2020 decreased by $0.7 million to $7.4 million from $8.1 million in 2019. Increases in personnel costs related to an increase in administrative staffing were offset to some extent by a decrease in noncash stock-based compensation expense, general office expense and supplies and travel related expenses with the shelter in place mandates since March 15, 2020 resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the elimination of shared facilities and services fees from AgeXs former parent Lineage Cell Therapeutics, Inc. following the termination of a Shared Facilities and Services Agreement on September 30, 2019.

The reconciliation between operating expenses determined in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (GAAP) and operating expenses, as adjusted, a non-GAAP measure, is provided in the financial tables included at the end of this press release.

Other expense, net: Net other expense for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $0.5 million, as compared with net other income of $0.3 million in the same period in 2019. The change is primarily attributable to increased amortization of deferred debt costs to interest expense following the consummation of loan agreements.

Net loss attributable to AgeX: The net loss attributable to AgeX for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $10.9 million, or ($0.29) per share (basic and diluted) compared to $12.2 million, or ($0.33) per share (basic and diluted), for the same period in 2019.

About AgeX Therapeutics

AgeX Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE American: AGE) is focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics to treat human diseases to increase healthspan and combat the effects of aging. AgeXs PureStem and UniverCyte manufacturing and immunotolerance technologies are designed to work together to generate highly defined, universal, allogeneic, off-the-shelf pluripotent stem cell-derived young cells of any type for application in a variety of diseases with a high unmet medical need. AgeX has two preclinical cell therapy programs: AGEX-VASC1 (vascular progenitor cells) for tissue ischemia and AGEX-BAT1 (brown fat cells) for Type II diabetes. AgeXs revolutionary longevity platform induced Tissue Regeneration (iTR) aims to unlock cellular immortality and regenerative capacity to reverse age-related changes within tissues. HyStem is AgeXs delivery technology to stably engraft PureStem or other cell therapies in the body. AgeX is seeking opportunities to establish licensing and collaboration arrangements around its broad IP estate and proprietary technology platforms and therapy product candidates.

For more information, please visit http://www.agexinc.com or connect with the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements that are not historical fact including, but not limited to statements that contain words such as will, believes, plans, anticipates, expects, estimates should also be considered forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from the results anticipated in these forward-looking statements and as such should be evaluated together with the many uncertainties that affect the business of AgeX Therapeutics, Inc. and its subsidiaries, particularly those mentioned in the cautionary statements found in more detail in the Risk Factors section of AgeXs most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commissions (copies of which may be obtained at http://www.sec.gov). Subsequent events and developments may cause these forward-looking statements to change. AgeX specifically disclaims any obligation or intention to update or revise these forward-looking statements as a result of changed events or circumstances that occur after the date of this release, except as required by applicable law.

AGEX THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands, except par value amounts)

December 31,

2020

2019

ASSETS

CURRENT ASSETS

Cash and cash equivalents

$

527

$

2,352

Accounts and grants receivable, net

326

363

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

1,430

1,339

Total current assets

2,283

4,054

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The pancreas, saysGary Lewis, an endocrinologist at Toronto General Hospital and director of the Banting & Best Diabetes Centre at the University of Torontos Temerty Faculty of Medicine, is like an exquisitely sensitive and perfectly networked computer.

Second by second,he notes,the pancreassecretesjust the right amount ofinsulinor glucagontolower or raiseblood sugarintotheportal veinthat leadsdirectlyto the liver, the site of key metabolic processes. Insulingis then distributedto every tissue in the body via general circulation.

Thats one reason a cure for diabetes has proven elusive 100 years after the discovery of insulin.

Another big reason is the complexity of how the disease arises. In type 1 diabetes, the immune system destroys the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas, creating a life-threatening spike in blood sugar. Type 2 diabetes usually comes on more slowly, as the body becomes resistant to insulin or the pancreas cant produce enough of it.

Genetics play a role in both types. Exposure to viruses and other environmental effects may be a factor in type 1. Lifestyle factors, including weight gain and physical inactivity, are strongly linked to type 2.

The bottom line, says Lewis, is that diabetes is a multifactoral disease, and were not close to a cure.

Ask about treatments, though, and Lewis gets excited.

The last two decades have brought a plethora of clinical and research advances, from new drugs to boost and sensitize the body to insulin and promote weight loss, to lifestyle interventions that improve diet, continuous monitoring of blood sugar, long- and short-lasting insulin, better insulin pumps, pancreatic transplantsand pre-clinical stem cell and immunosuppressive therapies.

Progress on treatments has been fantastic, especially for type 2, Lewis says. Im very, very hopeful.

The distinction between treatment and cure in medicine is often unclear. And for the 3.6 million Canadians living with diabetes, the distinction matters less and lessif the goal is a full and healthy life.

Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90 per cent of diabetes cases in Canada. Prevalence is rising, but Canadians with type 2 diabetes are living longer and have fewer diabetes-related complications.

The clinic doesnt look like it did 30 years ago, says Lewis, who mainly treats patients with type 2. We see fewer amputees, less blindness. Patients are generally healthier, and their prognosis is often excellent if they maintain their blood sugar target and other key parameters.

Weight loss is a cornerstone of treatments to lower blood sugar, and recent research has strengthened the link between weight reduction and type 2 diabetes management. Some people with type 2 can lose weight and control blood sugar through dietary changes and exercise alone.

Bariatric surgery is very effective for weight loss and often results in diabetes remission, although it comes with surgical risks and is expensive.

If we could prevent obesity, we could greatly reduce the incidence of type 2, Lewis says. And experiments have shown wecan get a remission withlifestyle changes, so we know what works.

The problem is broad implementation.

Ive tried to lose weight and I know how difficult it can be, especially in an environment of convenient and inexpensive calories, Lewis says. Moreover, factors such as income, education, ethnicity, access to healthy food and living conditions can make lifestyle changes that curb obesity nearly impossible.

Social determinants of health are overwhelmingly the most important influence on who gets type 2 diabetes, and how well or poorly they do with it, Lewis says.

Fortunately, dozens of new drugs for diabetes have hit the market in the last two decades.

Medications for weight loss round out the armamentarium, and some also protect against kidney damage and lower cardiac risk. Current therapies can reduce body weight up to 10 per cent, although a loss of 20 per cent or more would have a greater effect on outcomes for patients with type 2 diabetes, saysJacqueline Beaudry, an assistant professor of nutritional sciences at U of T who studies links between obesity, hormones and diet.

Beaudry is probing the biology that underpins these medications, including the gut hormones GLP-1 and GIP. They control blood glucose and reduce appetite, but scientists are unsure how.

If we could understand their mechanisms of action, we could design better drugs, Beaudry says.

For people with type 1 diabetes, continuous glucose monitors, insulin pumps and even automated closed-loopsystems that run on mobile apps to deliver insulin as-needed have radically changed the patient experience.

Sara Vasconcelos left),an assistant professor at U of Ts Institute of Biomedical Engineering, has worked withCristina Nostro (right), an associate professor in the department of physiology,and her team in the McEwen Stem Cell Institute at UHNto extend the survival and functionality of pancreatic precursor cells generatedfrom human stem cells.

Cell therapy could prove more liberating still.

University labs and biotechs are working on implantable devices that house insulin-producing cells derived from stem cells.

To that end,Cristina Nostro, an associate professor in the department of physiology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine,and her team in the McEwen Stem Cell Institute at University Health Network recently discovered a more efficient way to generate and purify pancreatic precursor cells from human stem cells in the lab.

They have also found a way to vascularize those cells by working withSara Vasconcelos, an assistant professor at U of Ts Institute of Biomedical Engineering. Together, they have extended the survival and functionality of the cells in animal models of diabetes.

The biggest problem with these therapies is that the immune system rejects them. The same challenge currently hinders pancreas and islet transplants.

The immune system is an amazing machine, were luckyits so good, says Nostro. But its very difficult to control when it goes awry, as in autoimmune conditions.

Nostro is working with immunologists at the university on a method to protect insulin-producing beta cells from immune rejection, and she says many researchers in the field are now focused on immune-protective approaches.

Another strategy for type 1 diabetes is to tamp down the autoimmune response before the disease progresses. The idea is to prevent immune cells that damage the pancreas while the body still produces beta cells.

Groups around the world are bringing different ideas and creative approaches to treat type 1 diabetes, thats the beauty of science, says Nostro. I am very hopeful about what the future holds. Who knows? Maybe we will see hybrid technologies combining a pump and cells. We have to keep an open mind.

This story was originally published in U of T Med Magazines Insulin Issue.

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While The Rich Cream is not the first vegan Augustinus Bader product (The Lip Balm, The Face Oil, The Essence, The Cleansing Balm, and The Body Oil have that designation as well), the upgrade features what cofounder Augustinus Bader (a famed stem-cell scientist) describes as "an advanced and smart formula resulting in deeper nourishment and hydration and, overall, a more immaculate complexion."

As a fan of both original and upgraded The Rich Cream versions, I can attest to that statement. The rich, buttery formula sinks in quickly and keeps my dry, stressed skin intensely hydrated overnight and well into the next day. "We merge a deep respect for nature and biology with knowledge-fueled targeting of skin repair needs," Bader tells Allure. "Now that our Rich Cream is vegan, it's an added bonus it is the ultimate sign of respect for nature." Another piece of exciting news: The brand says it's working on becoming entirely vegan.

The non-vegan ingredients cut from the formula include lanolin and beeswax. King (who is not affiliated with the brand) explains that lanolin is derived from wool grease and can cause long-term sensitivity and allergic reactions for some people. You also won't find lactic acid (a type of alpha hydroxy acid or AHA) in the upgraded formula, which King says is most likely created from fermented milk, and, therefore, not vegan.

On the flip side, the brand added moisture-binding hyaluronic acid, irritation-soothing hydrolyzed rice protein, and sisymbrium irio seed oil which, according to King, promotes cell turnover, firms the appearance of skin, and even helps reduce eczema. And despite the upgrades, this version keeps the essence of the original, fan-favorite The Rich Cream intact and for good reason; it works. Associate clinical professor of dermatology at Yale School of Medicine, Mona Gohara, counts herself among the legion of The Rich Cream's fans. "It's packed with peptides, a Trigger Factor Complex (which helps skin cells regenerate), vitamins [like panthenol, aka, vitamin B5], shea butter, and squalane," she praises, likening it to the cake and icing of skin care.

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I find it hard to stay in the loop these days. When it comes to new consumer productsespecially in beauty, it seems like there is a new brand coming out daily. As a natural skeptic, I can be leery of new things.But, I rounded up seven innovative skincare brands that deliver clinical results that are definitely worth exploring.

Eskafil

Eskafil

Due to recent buzz, particularly in the K-Beauty space, snail slime as a hero ingredient may have popped up on your radar. But like so many trends, they are rooted in something much older. In fact,Hippocrates used to prescribe the mucusto clear up skin inflammation while small, rural communities used it to hydrate skin and to alleviate acnes and calluses.

In the spirit of its traditional use in skincare,Eskafilwas created in fall 2020. Founded by Jeffrey Lee and Marius Ronnov, Eskafil is a dermatologist-crafted beauty line of highly effective skincare products packed with ingredients found in nature. We are brand that revolves around the power of natural ingredients, in our case snail slime, Ronnov tells me. We believe ourselves to be gatekeepers of natures secrets and stewards of self-care. To us, skincare is self-care and we work to inspire our customers to commit to themselves everyday, with something as simple as a skincare routine.

Ancient Greeks coined snail mucin as the fountain of youth due to its ability to stimulate new cell repair and increase collagen production, the protein responsible for young healthy skin. What makes snail mucin so effective is one of its active ingredients, allatonin. It is this substance that repairs the snails shell when it accidentally becomes chipped or split. So just imagine what it can do for your skin, especially if you suffer from scarring caused by acne or from eczema, states Lee. The extract's healing properties are also known to heal cuts, soften scar tissue, fight infections, repair sun damage, regenerate skin cells and make skin look younger, tighter and brighter. Recognizing its hydrating properties and skin healing abilities, we wanted to introduce this miracle ingredient to users in the Western world.

Eskafil

Eskafils three-step skincare rangeis easy to use, packaged beautifully, and effective. After a few weeks of use, my skin definitely looks brighter. I would imagine this is due to the high levels of snail mucin concentrate in the products, which is 98%. I havent used eye creams in years since many of them felt heavy and often congested my eye area. But I love the way this light formula instantly cools and hydrates my eye area. It feels like you have nothing on your skin. We pride ourselves on using dermatologist-approved formulas that take supporting ingredients such as macadamia oil, shea butter and golden seaweed to enhance the healing nature of snail slime, explains Ronnov. This combination of ingredients across our products drives hydration, acne scar repair, reduction of fine lines and protection against signs of aging.

If you are wondering if any snails got injured in the whole process, the pair tells me that what makes their brand stand apart from the other snail slime products is there ethical sourcing. We obtain the snail slime through a system that places snails in an environment that makes them extremely pleasured and happy, Lee tells me. This environment is a room thats at the exact temperature and darkness for ultimate snail happiness. The snails then excrete their slime over a mesh covering then the slime is removed and placed into Eskafils skincare products.

Heraux

Heraux

Launched this past spring byAmir Nobakht MD, MBA, and Ben Van Handel, PhD,two of the top leading researchers on the topic of inflammaging,Herauxoffers a paradigm shift in skincare.

Inflammaging is the aging process that is attributable to chronic, low-grade inflammation in our bodies, explains Van Handel, PhD, who is a stem cell biologist at the University of Southern California. Inflammaging is actually caused by things like oxidative stress and environmental damage. These stressors cause our body to release inflammatory molecules, which harm the cellular environment and result in the visible signs of aging. Inflammaging specifically is what happens when this inflammatory process stays active on our body over a long period of time due to stressors like the environment, sun, and even our diets.

It is important to reduce chronic inflammation because once you have it Van Handel, PhD tells me your body just creates more inflammation. Thats how our cells work; by releasing some inflammatory molecules into our systems other cells respond by releasing more as well and the cycle, if left unchecked, continues. When we treat the inflammatory component of these conditions, we stop that cycle and allow the cellular environment to improve so our cells, including stem cells, can regenerate and function at an optimal level, continues Van Handel, PhD.

Heraux is the worlds first anti-inflammaging skin care product.It is the only skin care product to address inflammaging, Nobakht MD, MBA tells me. We are a science forward skincare brand that uses proprietary molecular technologies to improve our skin by combating the negative effects of inflammaging which is the aging caused by everyday chronic inflammation. Unlike most skin care products that only treat the symptoms of medical issues like acne, rosacea and the visible signs of aging,Heraux Molecular Anti-inflammaging Serumgets to the root of the problem by modulating the inflammatory pathway in the skin.

Heraux

The serum is the brands first product release and is based on HX-1, a proprietary biomimetic lipid the pair discovered while researching arthritis for over a decade. Van Handel, PhD explains to me that the lipid is a major breakthrough in the fight against chronic inflammation and skin aging. This revolutionary one-of-a-kind molecule shields stem cells from the effects of stress and promotes their overall youthful function by modulating the protein that regulates regeneration versus inflammation. The lightweight formula also hashyaluronic acid, peptides, vitamins C + E, and red maple bark extract included to make it a well rounded face serum.

The formulation itself is patented, continuesVan Handel, PhD. Themain benefits includea reduction in wrinkles and fine lines, improved skin texture, increased brightness, reduction in hyperpigmentation and increased skin elasticity, all of which have been verified by an independent clinical trial. Results are seen in as little as 1 week with continued improvement with extended use. When I ask if there will be any other products to follow Nobakht MD, MBA responds, We are looking to launch a spot treatment version for acne and hyperpigmentation as well as a sunscreen very soon.I really like the way my skin feels and looks from using this product for the last few weeks. My vascular rosacea has definitely calmed down. A sunscreen would be a welcome new addition.

Pour Moi Skincare

Pour Moi Skincare

Skincare brandPour Moiwas created based on the premise that regardless of age, ethnicity, or gender that our skins appearance is affected by our exposure to daily, local weather. Founded by Ulli Haslacher, the company officially launched in 2020 (after a soft launch in 2017), shortly after receiving its first patent, with a second one issued a few months later, and several more on the way.

Climate-Smart Pour Moi is the worlds first climate-based skincare brand, changing everything you think you know about skincare, Haslacher tells me. Our brand offer products that are specifically formulated for six global and seasonal climates considering how each climates distinctive range of humidity, temperature, air pressure and light profoundly impacts the look and feel of skin. They are not created in the traditional way to only manage visible symptoms of aging skin. But rather scientifically designed to counteract the major cause of an aging complexionthe climate that you are in!

Not only did Haslacher change the approach to skincare based onclimate research, she even changed the way her products were tested. During R&D our formulas were not just tested in a controlled lab environment but tested on actual people in climate chambers, mimicking different climatic conditions and sudden changes to these conditions, explains Haslacher.

While each formula is based on one of six climate types, Haslacher tells me that there is one consistent principle across the entire ranges, the brands Geo-hydraDynamic Complex. Its the vital operating system of Climate-Smart skincare.It is the only complex in the world that intuitively aligns the upper layers of the skin with the various local atmospheric humidity conditions to achieve optimal hydration in each distinctive climate.Due to the adaptive nature of our complex, it has the unique ability to self-adjust to meet skins ever-changing hydration needs within the millions of nuances of specific climate.

Pour Moi Skincare

Customized for each specific climate, our patented complex is comprised ofingredientswith skin-identical properties including multi-size molecular hydra-actives and a French fungi, high in amino acids and valuable sugars, continues Haslacher. Together, they act as a biomimetic supramolecular network to uniquely boost the hydrating potential of the climate-specific creams and increase the efficiency of the entrapped actives. These include climate-specific antioxidants (for example the Red Snow Algae for Mountain climate and the ocean micro-algaeThermus Thermophilus Fermentfor Marine climate) as well as encapsulatedvitamins including A, C and E and anti-wrinkle peptidesfor an optimal release within the skin and a long lasting effect in each climate.

Haslacher tells me that the reason she has received both global and domestic patents is her three-step system of quenching, drenching, and geo-moisturizing. Step 1 is our Hydrating Balancer. It is an anti-aging liquefier that instantly hydrates, softens and preps skin for the next steps. Step 2 is our quenching serum that intelligently supports skins natural defense system against geo-climatic stressors in specific locations such as the mountains, beaches, plains and deserts. Step 3 is the geo-moisturizing game changer. Select the Day Cream that matches your daily weather to adapt, repair and protect skin in the climate you are in. This allows the customer tocustomize the systemfor their exact location. Think of it as anti-aging skincare for your zip code!

When I asked Haslacher if there is any sunscreen in her products, she tells me, We are working on an innovative sunscreen line which will launch in 2022. However, our formulas do account for how light impacts skin differently in different locations and seasons. While the formulas do not include SPF, they include climate-specific antioxidant strategies.I really like the concept of the brand. I just started using it, so I am excited to see what kind of changes my skin sees.

Reflekt

Reflekt

If you were under the impression that exfoliation means stripping your skin of moisture,Reflektis on a mission to change that with their 3-step hyaluronic acid-based products. Launched in 2017 and founded by Nancy Schnoll, Reflekt is a luxury skincare brand (for any skin type) thats rooted in pharmaceutical and medical principles and centered around simplifying your skincare routine, while delivering clinical results.

Reflekt is a skincare company that believes gentle daily exfoliation is the key to healthy balanced skin. We realize daily exfoliation is a novel concept, but it is the cornerstone of our brand, states Schnoll. The brands hero product,Reflekt 1is an exfoliating cleaner designed for all skin types and is gentle enough to use morning and night. Reflekt 1 was intentionally launched by itself to educate people about the benefits of a skincare regimen that consists of deliberate light exfoliation coupled with the infusion of hydrating actives.

This May, the brand will launch Reflekt 2 Brightening & Hydrating Serum, a silky serum that seals in moisture, brightens and gently exfoliates the skin, and Reflekt 3 Renewing & Hydrating Face Cream that gently exfoliates while moisturizing the skin to promote cell renewal and a firmer and even skin tone.

Reflekt

The entire Reflekt range is vegan, clean, and non-toxic and both exfoliates and hydrates the skin while not disturbing the skin barrier. Each product has unique characteristics. The exfoliating component in Reflekt 1 is the biodegradable jojoba esters that melt from the warmth of the water and your body as you cleanse, explains Schnoll. For Reflekt 2 and 3 the exfoliator is our unique fruit enzyme blend consisting of 9 different fruits (like pomegranate, passion fruit, and pineapple) and varies in percentage depending on the product. The hydrating aspect varies, but whether hyaluronic acid, aquaxyl, or squalene, each product packs a one-two punch of exfoliation and hydration.

I love the Reflekt collection. After using the 3-step system my skin looks dewy, brighter, smoother, and it feels hydrated. I also enjoy the light fragrance.

Saro de Re

Saro de Re

By now, most of us have heard about the benefits of hyaluronic acid for the skin. ButSaro de Retakes the experience to a whole new level. Founded by Mimi Kim, the brand launched last fall with their first product, the freeze-dried hyaluronic acid experience.

Saro de Re is a K-Beauty luxury brand rooted from the medical and pharmaceutical field for the professional results at the comfort of our own home and it is designed for any age, gender, any skin types, and skin conditions, Kim tells me. I have been sourcing ingredients and inventing beauty products for nearly three decades, and I have seen some very impressive technologies, products and unique ingredients that are not available to consumers. My goal over the years has been to make these discoveries available to the masses. When I partnered with a Korean Pharmaceutical R&D team and found something this ground-breaking, I knew we had something very unique.

Not all hyaluronic acids are made equal. Ourhyaluronic acid is 99.9% pure. Nowater, preservatives, fillers, additives, or chemicals. Each tablet is made up of 98.5% highly concentrated hyaluronic acid with a small amount of two additional ingredients for moisturizing: Squalene and Vitamin E.Clean beauty at its core, states Kim when I ask her what makes her formula unique.

Saro de Re

Other hyaluronic acid serums on the market contain primarily water as the number one top ingredient, which means the hyaluronic acid is not in its purest form. Our product has the patent on the method of preparing low molecular weight range that is small enough to permeate, but large enough to attract and retain the most abundant water, continues Kim. In fact, 1000 times its weight in water and the ability to release it for an immediate plumping and hydrating effect on skin with long-lasting results. No other brand has the capability to create HA in this molecular weight, which requires it to be in its purest form.

The ingredients are then freeze-dried and preserved until they are activated by the Saro de Re Pure Activator, which includes adenosine for wrinkle reduction, Niacinamide for skin brightening, and Allantoin and Hyaluronic Acid for hydration.Once activated and applied, it adds instant hydration that lasts up to 72 hours on skin with just one application. No competitive products can make this claim or be used once every other day or every three days, states Kim. Additionally, there are three botanicals included in the activator that synergistically work with the main active ingredients to achieve superior anti-aging benefits including purslane, pomegranate, and White Mulberry. Users can expect instant and accumulativeresultsincluding plumper skin, a brighter, tighter complexion, and improved tone and texture.

I have seen a huge difference in my skin with the addition of this product. I also like the alchemic process of activating the hyaluronic acid. I definitely feel like I am getting a lab-grade product when compared to other hyaluronic acid serums that I have used. It also works great with Reflekt skincare range. As for any follow up products, Kim tells me that the brand will be launching some new products soon.

The Nue Co

The Nue Co

Discussion about the gut microbiome and overall health have become mainstream and correlations between immunity and the gut have been supported clinically. But, the bodys skin is its largest first line of defense when it comes to immunity so it makes sense to treat it similarly. EnterThe Nue Co, a wellness brand launched in 2017 by founder and CEO, Jules Miller that approaches health holistically, as an entire ecosystem.

For too long health issues have been viewed as siloed issues. For example, breakouts are an issue with your skin, so the solution should be focused only on your skin. But actually, your skin is usually the mirror to our gut. Stress plays out on your skin and sleep affects your skin. To get to the root of an issue and drive real results, you have to view health as an ecosystem, states Miller. We definitely take that approach with our skincare - which we view as topical supplements. Whilst many brands focus on what we call, cosmetic ingredients, the kind which deliver on the instant glow and lovely scent but are proven to increase inflammation and erode the skin-barrier over time, every ingredient in our formulas delivers benefits to your skin health-long term.

The Nue Cosskincare formulations are grounded in clinical science and as such provides users with clinical results. They are a blend of natural ingredients, with the best of clinical research, which enables them to drive real, fast results, without compromising the health of your skin or the environment long-term, Miller tells me. There seems to be so much misinformation about skin health, with one of the biggest myths being that elaborate skincare regimes are the secret to healthy skin.Restoring the health of your skin and removing the complication of multiple products from your routine was part of a bigger shift we were noticing towards ending a culture of overconsumption, what some are calling skip-care or skin fasting. The impact of our beauty addiction has been profound, not only on our skin, but on our planet.

The Nue Co

This cycle of pollution, Miller tells me, is also a contributing factor to our skins barrier health. Our skin barrier, or the outermost layer of the skin, is responsible for defending against pollution, UV light, infection, and locking in hydration. The erosion of the skin barrier is identified as the number one cause of skin issues by dermatologists, causing premature ageing, breakouts, hyperpigmentation, sensitivity and dryness, explains Miller. And just like the gut, our skin is home to an ecosystem of microorganisms that help to keep the skin balanced. Our topical microbiome is just as important as our internal microbiome. In fact, its estimated that 21% of our microbiome lives on our skin whereas 26% lives in our gut. Like any ecosystem, it can be disrupted by outside forces and pollutants.

To support the skins barrier health and the skins microbiome, the brand is launching two newskincare products, BARRIER CULTURE Cleanser and BARRIER CULTURE Moisturizer on March 22ndon their website. Using patented, first to market technology, BARRIER CULTURE contains prebiotics, probiotics, and postbiotics to rebuild the skins microbiome. BARRIER CULTURE is the most comprehensive delivery of skin-barrier building ingredients in a two-step routine. In addition to its microbiome technology, BARRIER CULTURE uses anti-pollution ingredients to protect from external aggressors and boost the skins natural immune system; and hydrating actives to replenish and lock in moisture, states Miller.

The cleanser is designedto replace your double-cleanse, by removing dirt, pollution, and makeup without stripping or disrupting the skins PH. Almost immediately, we have found people have noticed a difference to the feel of their skin with a focus on deep-cleaning, rather than stripping. The application of pre, pro and postbiotics works to replenish the topical microbiome, whilst actively calming and conditioning the skin, Miller tells me.

The new moisturizer leaves skin instantly plumped and hydrated. The formula rebuilds and restores your skin barrier, containing ceramides and probiotics that rebuild and restore the skins natural defenses. Niacinamide activates the skins immune system, helping to repair dark marks, scarring and support natural healing and regeneration, whilst squalane protects against pollution and everyday stressors on the skin barrier. BARRIER CULTUREs microbiome technology also delivers an instant soothing effect to the skin, calming irritation and redness.

I just started using the products so I wont see all of the results for at least a month. But, I am already hopeful. I do love the way my skin feels squeaky clean, yet moisturized when I use the cleanser.

U Beauty

U Beauty

U Beauty launched in 2019 byTina Craig(aka. The Bag Snob) with the philosophy of less is more. U Beautyis tech-driven, science-backed, high-performance skincare, Craig tells me. Our strategic and singular products replace excess with essence and provide real results, without the risk of irritation. We're about amplifying your skin with a select, strategic edit of multifunctional products that streamline your routine and simplify your life.

What makes the brands three products, the Resurfacing Compound,The SUPER Hydrator, and the newest productThe SCULPT Arm Compound,is the brands proprietary technology called SIREN Capsule. Unlike most skincare that release actives all over the skin, SIRENS lures damage-causing free radicals to it like a magnet, explains Craig. By attracting only the compromised cells, healthy cells are preserved, while the Capsule releases age-reversing actives on free radicals (generated after exposure to pollution, secondhand smoke and sunshine), which materialize as vulnerable, damaged areas, instead of all over your skins surface. So your skin gets nothing but benefit.

While theResurfacing Compoundcontains the original SIREN Capsules, The Super and The Sculpt feature dual SIRENS. The SUPERs HYDRA-SIREN produces immediate hydration and with five unique types of hyaluronic acid, it continues to hydrate for up to 48 hours. Specifically designed for the arm area, the SCULPT-SIREN contains a targeted blend of marine extracts, probiotics and select ferments. It delivers oxygen and nutrients to the skin, increasing anti-aging ATP levels and boosting hydration, Craig tells me.

U Beauty

U Beautys latest formulation, The SCULPT Arm Compound, is a product of years of dreaming on behalf of Craig. No matter how often I work out, I was never able to change the fragile texture of the skin on my arms. Its not about being thin. Its about a healthy, bouncy skin consistency, says Craig. I can honestly say The SCULPT is unlike anything youve ever used. Thanks to a genius blend of peptides, marine extract, our signatureSIREN Capsule technologyand now the new SCULPT-SIREN, it visibly tightens, tones and sculpts the skin on the arms. Overall, skin is less subject to the effects of gravity and more resilient in its ability to address the visible signs of damage.

I just received The SCULPT so I cant say for certain what the accumulative results will be just yet. But, I can say that my arm skin feels much tighter immediately after applying the formulaso I am very hopeful. When I ask Craig if she will be creating any other body specific products she tells me, Were about taking a 360-degree approach to skincare, which means treating the whole body, not just the face. I will never create a product if theres not a white space in the industry and a personal need for it first. With that in mind, we have some exciting and revolutionary things coming out in the near future, so look out!

See the article here:
Seven Innovative Skincare Brands That Deliver Clinical Results - Forbes

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Seven Innovative Skincare Brands That Deliver Clinical Results – Forbes | March 8th, 2021

With more folks spending time inside, working from home and literally under wraps (i.e., masks), now is the time for many for some sneaky beauty procedures that would normally require taking time off work, hiding from your social circle and going dark on social media. But now, all your redness, swelling, and post-op symptoms can go undetectedsans burning your vacation days.

In fact, derms and plastic surgeons across the city are seeing skyrocketing increases in invasive and non-invasive cosmetic treatments since the start of the pandemic, thanks to the Zoom boom or Zoom effect.

What the heck is the Zoom effect, you ask? Basically, Zoom and other digital web conferencing platforms have led people to seek out ways to lift and tighten their faces after seeing themselves so often screens. (Note: If your computer camera is positioned lower and pointing up, it actually makes things look worse than they areinvest in a laptop stand, and you wont regret it.)

Laura Altman, a physician assistant at Tribeca Medspa, explains that since her clients are no longer spending money on travel, dinners out or fancy clothing, this disposable income allows them to spend on beauty proceduresnot to mention the added benefit of flexible downtime while WFH. Our clients are spending more per visit and we continue to see about the same number of new clients every month along with current clients who visit us for more treatments, says Altman.

Here are some of the most popular beauty treatments New Yorkers have been taking advantage of while WFH, plus some things to consider in case youre curious about giving them a go yourself.

RELATED: 9 Beauty Trends That Will Be Huge in 2021

In fact, requests for jawline filler are up as much as 2,133 percent at BeautyFix Medspa, a clinic with locations in Flatiron and on the Upper East Side. This non-surgical facial contouring enhances the jawline to give the lower face and neck a more defined and slimmer appearance by helping create a V-shape structure, BeautyFix CEO Mark Greenspan tells us. Jawline fillers are usually completed with one 30-minute treatment with no recovery time necessary.

Dr. Alexander Blinksi of NYCs Plump cosmetics and injectables bar has seen about a 25 percent increase in patients with general concerns about facial structure, aging and wrinkles over the last 12 months.

Consultations related to Botox have been requested in all the major treatment areas. The most common areas for Botox treatment remain horizontal forehead lines, 11 lines, and crows feet. We have seen a slightly greater number of patients consulted for TMJ Botox (TMJ is a medical jaw issue from grinding the teeth at night) likely due to increases in stress, and beauty trends of giving the face more angularity and a higher cheekbone, Dr. Blinski tells us.

Intrigued? Side effects from injectables include minor swelling and bruising. (Psst: Read up on our beginners guide to botox here.)

CHAKRAPONG WORATHAT/EYEEM/GETTY IMAGES

In fact, reports show that more women in the US are using facial skincare products today compared to one year ago, and that lifestyle changes including the effects of COVID-19 have in many ways altered skin care routines in a positive way, says master esthetician and CEO of Repechage, Lydia Sarfati.

At-home peels feature professional-grade ingredients and step-by-step instructions to boost a dull complexion and address specific skin concerns such as aging, discoloration and blemishes without having to go in to see an esthetician or dermatologist. These peels use low percent acids (like this one from PCA SKIN) and require no downtime for healing.

According to new survey data by healthcare marketplace RealSelf, 36 percent of respondents noted theyve seen an increase in the number of pimples since the pandemic started. And those who have had an increase in breakouts noted their chin was the most likely spot, followed by the jawline and cheeks.

Some acne breakouts are a result of wearing masks and the occlusion it causes (dubbed maskne), and other forms of acne are a result of hormonal stress or stress in general. Patients who have had acne scars are using this period to have laser treatments to finally address the treatment of their acne scars, now that they have the downtime, NYC-based cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Michele Green tells us.

One such treatment is eMatrix, a laser that works by stimulating collagen formation and healthy cells. eMatrix reduces the appearance of acne scars, enlarged pores and mild to moderate wrinkles in addition brightening the skin and improving skin texture. Downtime is approximately 48 hours with mild roughness remaining for three to five days. Results continue over three to five months after the final treatment and can be maintained annually (Dr. Green suggests patients receive three to five treatments).

PhotoAlto/Frederic Cirou/Getty Images

There are multiple ways to treat hair loss, but Dr. Greens preferred method is PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma), a treatment that uses your own blood to promote healing and stimulate the hair follicle to begin a new growth cycle while making hair stronger and thicker. Side effects of PRP may include some tenderness on the scalp after injections and a slight headache or pressure in the treated area. Depending on the severity, Dr. Green recommends four consecutive monthly treatments of PRP injections followed by maintenance treatments every four to six months.

Places like Tribeca Medspa have seen a 50 percent increase in microneedling with stem cells compared to last year. This treatment is designed to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and skin imperfections, with stem cells added to stimulate the regeneration and healing of the skin.

Typically, patients would experience mild redness and swelling for a day followed by possible mild dryness for a few days, at most. Bruising can happen but tends to heal quickly as it is generally fairly superficial, says Tribeca Medspa clinical lead medical aesthetician Holly Montgomery.

RELATED: We Ask a Derm: What Is the Best Derma Roller to Use at Home?

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How New Yorkers Are Battling the Zoom Effect: 6 Cosmetic Treatments That Are on the Rise - PureWow

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on How New Yorkers Are Battling the Zoom Effect: 6 Cosmetic Treatments That Are on the Rise – PureWow | March 8th, 2021

Researchers from Nvidia and Harvard are publishing research this week on a new way they've applied deep learning to epigenomics -- the study of modifications on the genetic material of a cell.

Using a neural network originally developed for computer vision, the researchers have developed a deep learning toolkit that can help scientists study rare cell types -- and possibly identify mutations that make people more vulnerable to diseases.

The new deep learning toolkit, called AtacWorks, "allows us to study how diseases and genomic variation influence very specific types of cells of the human body," Nvidia researcher Avantika Lal, lead author on the paper, told reporters last week. "And this will enable previously impossible biological discovery, and we hope would also contribute to the discovery of new drug targets."

AtacWorks, featured in Nature Communications, works with ATAC-seq -- a popular method for finding the parts of the human genome that are accessible in cells.

Just about every cell in your body carries a copy of your genome sequence -- a sequence of your DNA about 3 billion bases long. However, only certain parts of the genome sequence are accessible to certain cells. Every cell type -- whether it's liver, blood or skin cells -- can only access the regions of DNA they need for their respective function.

"That allows us to understand what makes every type of cell different from each other, or how every type of cell is affected in disease, or in other biological changes," Lal said.

ATAC-seq finds those accessible parts by producing a signal for every base in the genome. Peaks in the signal denote accessible regions of DNA. This method typically requires tens of thousands of certain kinds of cells to get a clean signal. This makes it challenging to study rare cell types, like the stem cells that produce blood cells and platelets.

However, by applying AtacWorks to ATAC-seq data, the researchers found they could rely on just tens of cells, rather than tens of thousands. In the research described in their new paper, the Nvidia and Harvard scientists applied AtacWorks to a dataset of stem cells that produce red and white blood cells. They used a sample set of just 50 cells to identify distinct regions of DNA associated with cells that develop into white blood cells, as well as separate sequences that correlate with red blood cells.

AtacWorks is a PyTorch-based convolutional neural network that was trained on labeled pairs of matching ATAC-seq datasets -- one high quality and one "noisy." The model learned to predict an accurate, high-quality version of a dataset and identify peaks in the signal.

Running on Nvidia Tensor Core GPUs, the model took under 30 minutes for inference on a whole genome, a process that normally takes 15 hours on a system with 32 CPU cores.

Lal noted that the researchers were able to train the model on any type of cell and then apply it to any different type.

"That's a really wonderful thing because it means that we can train models using whatever data we have available and then apply it to entirely new biological samples," she said.

The model could help deliver insights into a range of diseases, including cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes or neurological disorders. It's available on the NGC Software Hub, Nvidia's hub of GPU-optimized software, where any researcher can access it.

"We are hoping that once our paper comes out, other scientists working with different diseases would also pick up this technique and be interested in using it," Lal said. "And we are excited to see what new research and new developments that can enable."

Continue reading here:
Nvidia, Harvard researchers use AI to find active areas in cell DNA - ZDNet

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Nvidia, Harvard researchers use AI to find active areas in cell DNA – ZDNet | March 8th, 2021

Weve all heard of French beauty products and how amazing they are.

But what if I told you that certain Greek beauty products were just as good (if not better) than the high flying ones?

Think La Mere or LaPrairie. These cult favourite beauty brands cost will set you back several hundred dollars.

You dont have to spend a fortune to look good. I always say you can have great skin even if youre on a budget, no matter how old you are.

Greek women have long used natural products from the earth, plants and animals to beautify themselves and look at how immaculate their skin and beauty was.

Heck, one Greek woman launched a thousand ships! (You know her name)

These hand-picked items for skin-care are loaded with Greek olive oil, wine, figsand donkey milk. (Tried and tested by me, GCT Lifestyle Writer Despina Karp)

$40.00

This nourishing cream-to-foam cleanser is good enough to eat and leaves the skin feeling clean, not stripped of everything. Its been formulated with incredible natural Greek Yoghurt and is gentle enough to be used on even the most sensitive of skin types, including psoriasis and acne-prone skin. It is super gentle, yet very effective at thoroughly cleaning the skin and removing daily impurities and makeup. After trying this cleanser, my skin was left feeling as smooth and supple as a babies bottom.

The key ingredients in this beauty are Greek yoghurt which delivers an almost instant dose of pre and probiotics to nourish the skin and kill surface bacteria.

Amaranth seed extract and honeysuckle: These two unique ingredients provide a soothing and calming comfort to the skin.

I always recommend using this twice per day, morning and night for the best results.

Buy here.

$110 (approximately)

Well, there are serums, and then theres this serum! A little pricey, but wait till I explain what this jar of ageless beauty contains.

This is one of the best antioxidant serums Ive tried and for good reason. For starters, its ingredients make it a high-end luxury antioxidant serum, but without the super costly price tag to match.

The heavenly golden fluid is infused with the famous antioxidant saffron, once known as the most expensive spice in the world.

The crimson threads of magic come from dried crocus flowers, grown in the Greek town ofKozani. It takes approximately 70,000 flowers to make one pound of saffron! Did I mention that they bloom only once a year? Plus they need to be picked exactly ONE day after theyve bloomed! Talk about time-sensitive.

The protecting power of the saffron, combined with the copper, peptides, and amino acids combine to make an incredibly effective collagen and elastin boost.

With consistent use, this serum will leave the skin feeling bright and glowing. I often use this serum on my mature-skinned clients before moisturiser and I massage it into the skin until it has been completely absorbed.

I highly recommend paying a little extra and indulging in this serum, it works wonders for mature skin.

Buy here.

$36.99

Here comes the donkeys milk! Dont worry I wont make you drink it but it is a staple ingredient in this product.

It doesnt sound very luxurious or fancy, but Cleopatra allegedly bathed in donkeys milk for softer skin.

In 2013, a study by researchers at the University of Camerino discovered that donkeys milk is very close in structure and composition to human breast milk (Maybe thats why babies skin is so soft!).

EvenPope Francis even drank it as a babyin his native Argentina.

Are you convinced yet?

This cream provides antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory moisturisation.

The best part of this incredible product are the key ingredients (which according to their website are 97.1% natural ingredients): donkey milk (obviously), aloe vera juice, St. Johns wort, Centella, carob, cotton stem cells, moringa peptides, red seaweed and cross-linked hyaluronic acid (a superacid for the skin).

The donkey milk and Cretan organic olive oil are rich in omega fatty acids, which the skin craves.

It also contains vitamins and trace elements, which deeply nourish and strengthen the skins natural defence against pollution and UVA/UVB light.

The St. Johns wort and Centella extract calm redness and skin irritations.

I highly recommend this daily moisturiser (as donkeys milk is non-comedogenic) for any skin type, except very congested and cystic acne skin types.

Its important to always apply SPF 30+ to protect your skin from the harmful rays of the sun (especially true if you live in Australia).

Buy here at aphroditeusa.com.

So, Ive give you an entire skin routine worthy of Aphrodite herself.

These 3 products can be used one after the other as a bedtime skin routine for mature and dry skin types.

If you are using these products in the morning, be sure to apply an SPF 30+ after all your products to protect your skin.

You dont have to use a large amount of the products too, a little goes a long way with these beauties.

My donkeys milk day cream lasted me 3 months! So it turns out to be a very economical investment.

Its worth investing in your skin as its the largest organ in your body and the amount of chemicals we are exposed to these days can leave our skin in terrible shape if not looked after.

Our skin is also the first thing people look at, healthy and hydrated skin can completely alter your appearance if youve had dehydrated skin for a while.

So, what are you waiting for? Lets get radiant, and prepare to launch a thousand ships! (More like a thousand compliments)

Note: always ask a Dermatologists advice when in doubt, these products arent suitable for all skin types or skin conditions.

Thesauri Greek Caviar: available in Australia for the very first time

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Transform Your Skin Into That Of A Greek Goddess (on A Budget) - GreekCityTimes.com

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Transform Your Skin Into That Of A Greek Goddess (on A Budget) – GreekCityTimes.com | March 8th, 2021

How we humans became what we are today is a question that scientists have been trying to answer for a long time. How did we evolve such advanced cognitive abilities, giving rise to complex language, poetry, and rocket science? In what way is the modern human brain different from those of our closest evolutionary relatives, such as Neanderthals and Denisovans?

By reintroducing ancient genes from such extinct species into human mini brainsclusters of stem cells grown in a lab that organize themselves into tiny versions of human brainsscientists have started to find new clues.

Most of what we know about human evolution comes from the study of ancient fossils and bones. We know that Neanderthals and Denisovans diverged from humans around 500,000-600,000 years ago, and that the last Neanderthals didnt disappear from Europe until about 40,000 years ago.

Research has also shown that humans and Neanderthals interbred, and that Neanderthals were a lot more sophisticated than previously thought.

From studying the size and shape of fossilized skulls, we also know that brains from archaic humans were roughly the same size as modern human skulls, if not bigger, and appear to be different shapes. However, although such variations might be correlated with different cognitive abilities and functions, the fossils cannot alone explain how the shapes affect function. Luckily, recent technological advances have provided a new path to understanding how we differ from our extinct relatives.

Homo Sapiens versus Neanderthals. Source: WikipediaCC BY-SA

Sequencing of ancient DNA has allowed scientists to compare genes of Neanderthals and Denisovans with those of modern humans. This has helped identify differences and similarities, revealing that we share most of our DNA with Neanderthals and Denisovans.

Still, in specific regions, there are gene variants exclusively carried by modern humans. These human-specific DNA regions may be responsible for traits that separate our species from our extinct relatives. By understanding how these genes work, we can therefore learn about the traits that are unique to modern humans.

Studies comparing archaic and modern DNA sequences have pinpointed differences in genes important for the function, behavior, and development of the brainin particular genes involved in cell division and synapses (which transmit electric nerve impulses between cells). These have suggested the human brain matures more slowly than the Neanderthal one did.

Specifically, the development of the orbitofrontal cortex in infants, which is thought to be involved in higher-order cognition like decision-making, might have changed significantly but subtly since the split from Neanderthals. Humans also reach sexual maturity later than their ancestors did, which can help explain why we live longer.

It has long been unclear which evolutionary changes have been the most important. A team of scientists led by Alysson Muotri at the University of California, San Diego, recently published a study in Science that shed some light on this question.

They did this by growing mini brainswhich are known scientifically as organoidsfrom stem cells derived from skin. Brain organoids arent conscious in the way we arethey are very simple and do not reach sizes larger than around five or six millimeters, due to a lack of blood supply. But they can emit brainwaves and grow relatively complex neural networks that respond to light.

The team inserted an extinct version of a gene involved in brain development in the organoids using the Nobel-prize winning CRISPR-Cas9 technology, often described as genetic scissors, which allows precise editing and manipulation of genes.

Human brain organoid. Image Credit: NIH/Flickr

We know that the old version of the gene was present in Neanderthals and Denisovans, whereas a mutation later changed the gene into the current version that modern humans carry.

The engineered organoids displayed several differences. They expanded more slowly than the human organoids and had altered formation of connections between neurons. They were also smaller and had rough, complex surfaces compared to the smooth and spherical modern human organoids.

The study identified 61 genes that are different between modern and archaic humans. One of these genes is NOVA1, which has an essential role in regulating other genes activity during early brain development. It also plays a role in the formation of synapses.

Altered activity of NOVA1 has previously been found to cause neurological disorders such as microcephaly (leading to a small head), seizures, severe developmental delay, and a genetic disorder called familial dysautonomia, suggesting it is important for normal human brain function. The version that modern humans carry has a change in one single letter of the code. This change causes the genes product, the NOVA1 protein, to have a different composition and possibly a different activity.

When analyzing the organoids, scientists found that the archaic NOVA1 gene changed the activity of 277 other genesmany of them are involved in creating synapses and connections between brain cells. As a result, the mini brains had a different network of cells to those of a modern human.

That means that the mutation in NOVA1 caused essential changes in our brains. A change in a single letter of the DNA code possibly sparking a new level of brain function in modern humans. What we dont know is how exactly this happened.

The team has said they will follow up their fascinating finding by investigating the other 60 genes in more detail, to see what happens when you alter each one or a combination of several.

Its no doubt an intriguing area of research, with the organoids giving important insight into these ancient species brains. But we are only at the beginning. Manipulation of a single gene will not capture the true Neanderthal and Denisovan genetics. But it could still help scientists understand how some human-specific genes work.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Continued here:
Evolution: Lab-Grown 'Mini Brains' Suggest One Mutation Might Have Rewired the Human Mind - Singularity Hub

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Evolution: Lab-Grown ‘Mini Brains’ Suggest One Mutation Might Have Rewired the Human Mind – Singularity Hub | March 8th, 2021

By Jonny Lupsha, Current Events WriterAn alternative to using human embryonic stem cells is to use pluripotent stem cells, which refers to the ability of a stem cell, such as skin cells from an adult, to give rise to other differentiated cell types. Photo By Yurchanka Siarhei / Shutterstock

Patients who have received treatment from their own stem cells to repair their spinal cords are at the center of controversy after the stem cell therapy was fast-tracked in Japan in 2018. Despite 13 patients showing considerable recovery in response to the treatment, the means to this end have suggested improper shortcuts taken in the last several years.

It isnt the first time that stem cell research has been in the spotlight for ethical reasons. One controversial method of obtaining stem cells is to take them from human embryos, which has been argued about for decades. However, alternatives to embryo use are coming to pass.

In his video series Biochemistry and Molecular Biology: How Life Works, Dr. Kevin Ahern, Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at Oregon State University, said much about stem cells and the science that surrounds them.

There are two things that are special about stem cells, Dr. Ahern said. One is that they are capable of dividing indefinitelythat is, as long as the organism is alive. The other is that they are undifferentiatedtheyre like a child who hasnt yet chosen whether to be an astronaut, ballerina, surgeon, or an artist.

Dr. Ahern said that when stem cells divide, they can either differentiate and become a specialized cell or they can go back into the stock of stem cells. In an embryo, at the earliest stages of development, the fertilized egg divides to produce a certain number of unspecialized cells called embryonic stem cells. They become specialized by receiving certain signals, so scientists can learn what these signals are and send them to unspecialized cells to make them develop as they wish. This could mean making them become cells to repair nerve damage, heart muscles, and more.

However, some see this as tampering with nature and/or stealing cells from the embryo. Regardless of our opinions one way or the other, these ethical concerns have been raised, prompting scientists to find alternatives.

How else can stem cells be obtained, if not from embryos?

One solution is the production of what are called induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, Dr. Ahern said. Pluripotent refers to the ability of a stem cell to give rise to other differentiated cell types. To do this and yet avoid working with cells from a human embryo, scientists begin with differentiated somatic cells [like] cells from the skin of an adult, for example.

Once theyve isolated the differentiated somatic cells, scientists reverse engineer them into a state in which they can become any number of differentiated cells or tissues. Dr. Ahern said that iPS cells have been used to create beating heart cells, motor neurons, light-sensing photoreceptor cells, insulin-producing pancreatic cells, and more.

In 2017, Japanese researchers reported that monkeys with Parkinsons showed great improvement after treatment with dopamine-producing neurons derived from iPS cells, Dr. Ahern said. In 2018, clinical trials with humans were begun using iPS cells to treat Parkinsons, heart disease, and macular degeneration.

For now, stem cell therapy remains no stranger to controversyor results. The debate raging around them will likely continue in one way or another for some time.

Edited by Angela Shoemaker, The Great Courses Daily

Originally posted here:
New Controversy for Stem Cell Therapy That Repairs Spinal Cords - The Great Courses Daily News

IPS Cell Therapy Comments Off on New Controversy for Stem Cell Therapy That Repairs Spinal Cords – The Great Courses Daily News | March 8th, 2021

Pierluigi Porcu, MD, director, Medical Oncology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation and coleader, Immune Cell Regulation and Targeting Program, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, at Jefferson Health in Philadelphia, PA, explained how the combination of brentuximab vedotin plus chemotherapy works in in frontline Hodgkin lymphoma.

Targeted OncologyTM: Following a diagnosis of classical Hodgkin lymphoma, nodular sclerosis type, what additional molecular testing should be ordered?

PORCU: PD-1 and PD-L1; I think most hematopathology labs nowadays run PD-1 and PD-L1 on Hodgkin [lymphoma] cases. Certainly, most hematopathology labs run CD30, although they may not run it on non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases on a routine basis.

Barr virus [EBV]. Its an in situ hybridization test thats fairly routine and not very expensive. It identifies cases of Hodgkin lymphoma that are EBV positive. Its important because there are some pretty good data that [show] EBV identifies a subgroup of Hodgkin lymphoma that has an inferior prognosis in terms of progression-free survival [PFS]. [Its also important because] there are now treatments for relapsed patients who have EBV-positive lymphoma including Hodgkin.

In some cases, the diagnosis is complex. You may have a gray-zone lymphoma or primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma, [so its important] to have additional markers more in the space of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma to make sure.

In very difficult cases, the other testing would be immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangement. This is routinely negative in Hodgkin lymphoma because the immunoglobulin in genes is aberrantly rearranged and mutated.

Why is PD-1 testing needed for diagnosis?

It doesnt affect diagnosis. Its part of the characterization of the Hodgkin lymphoma as a whole. I use it as a routine initial assessment because you never know when patients come back to have a second biopsy how easy it [will be] to get the tissue the second time around.

Can you discuss the International Prognostic Score [IPS]?

The IPS, [also called the Hasenclever index], was published in 1998 and is specifically for advanced-stage serum albumin level of less than 4; a hemoglobin level of less than 10.5; male sex; age equal to or older than 45; stage IV disease; and total WBC count of more than 15,000 or a lymphocyte count of less than 600, less than 8% of the WBC count, or both.1 The patient here has a number of these items. She has a hemoglobin of 9.5, stage IV disease, a WBC count higher than 15,000, and a lymphocyte count less than 600. Her IPS is 4. Based on the data from Hasenclever, her 5-year overall survival [OS] rate is 61%. Interestingly enough, [British Columbia Cancer] looked at their data in terms of the Hasenclever classes and found that for the patients with the highest scores, over time, some of these 5-year survivals were better, but not for the lower ones.

In addition, even though the lymphocyte count is part of the canonical standard, lymphopenia is a common phenomenon in most lymphomas. I follow it closely in T-cell lymphomas, where its common for people to have lymphocyte counts less than 500 and certainly less than 250 in AIDS territory, even though they dont have a history of opportunistic infection. I think the lymphocyte count is clearly an important biological flag marker, although we dont quite know what the biology of that is.

What are your thoughts on the options provided in the poll and the results?

Essentially here, were talking about SWOG S0816 [NCT00822120] or the RATHL [NCT00678327] clinical trial [regimens]. Straight-up escalated BEACOPP [bleomycin, etoposide, doxorubicin (Adriamycin), cyclophosphamide, vincristine (Oncovin), procarbazine, prednisone] German style, brentuximab vedotin [BV; Adcetris] with AVD [doxorubicin, vinblastine, dacarbazine] according to the ECHELON-1 [NCT01712490] trial, or other.

There were 4 votes for PET-adapted therapy with ABVD [doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, dacarbazine]. We have 7 who voted for BV plus AVD. No votes for escalated BEACOPP, which, even though its perfectly appropriate, Im happy to see [no votes for] because Im not a fan of escalated BEACOPP, and no [votes for] other. The majority would vote for the ECHELON-1 approach for this particular patient.

What frontline systemic therapy are you most likely to recommend for this patient?

Theres no role for radiation therapy. I think the jury is still out regarding PET-adapted therapy versus nonPET-adapted therapy. When I approach patients with advanced-stage disease, I look at a couple of things. One is, which risk category do they really belong to? The other is that PET-adapted therapy is dependent on the PET [scan]. Good-quality reading of PET scans is far from common; they dont give you Deauville [score]. Its unclear how they reach their conclusion because they dont compare the mediastinal and liver to the hypermetabolic lymph nodes. Its not that easy to get a good highquality PET interpretation, and if youre making these big decisions about the escalationor rather, in my case, deescalation according to the RATHL trialthen not having a goodquality PET is a big problem.

One of the big things about frontline therapy is that now we try to avoid exposure to bleomycin. There are 2 ways of doing that: Pick BV and AVD or treat the patient according to RATHL. Thats if the PET is negative; then you can deescalate and remove the bleomycin from the last 4 cycles of ABVD.2

Which factors do you think are most important?

It looks like everyone is on the same page as far as lung function and lung issues [if] someone is a heavy smoker or has a previous history of lung disease. Its not common in young people but certainly more common in middleaged or older people. Then, obviously, the selection of the therapy is important. The BV plus AVD had less lung toxicity compared to AVD, but its not that they had no lung toxicity. You still have to be worried somewhat and monitor people carefully on this therapy, even if it doesnt have bleomycin. Then for the PET-adapted ABVD, like RATHL, the first 2 cycles still contain bleomycin. Certainly, that is fundamental.

Here we have lung disease, prognostic score, performance. Age is really, in my practice, an important part of the decision-making because its not very common. Patients who are older than 60 or 65 generally represent no more than 20% of the cases of Hodgkin lymphoma. But when you have those patientsIm sure you all have seen them in your practicetheir prognosis is particularly bad, especially for those who are older than 70. Selecting the proper therapy for those patients is difficult and, of course, there are trials currently going on. Some of them have been published. For example, BV and bendamustine is one option. There are also trials with single-agent BV ongoing for patients who are frail on the front line. Besides, of course, all the combinations with checkpoint inhibitors...Theres quite a bit going on. For me, age is a very important component of decision-making.

Can you discuss the findings of the ECHELON-1 trial?

Following the initial phase 1 trial, data from ECHELON-1 showed that you cant give BV with ABVD because of a high rate of pulmonary toxicity. Finding the right dose of BV [is important] because it has to be given every 2 weeks. There are several dose-escalation records in phase 1, but 1.2 mg/kg was found to be the right tolerable dose for this schedule.

This was a large study of 1334 patients who were randomized 1:1 to receive 6 cycles of ABVD or 6 cycles of BV plus AVD. There was an interim PET scan, mostly to assess the response but not to be acted on, except for Deauville 5. [Those participants] would be given the opportunity to receive alternative therapy, and this was not part of the modified PFS scoring. Then there was an end of therapy CT-PET scan. Standard follow-up inclusion criteria [included] classical Hodgkin lymphoma that was stage III and IV, up to an ECOG performance status of 2, more than 18 years old, measurable disease, and adequate organ function. The primary end point was modified PFS, and a key secondary end point was OS.3

The initial paper was published in the New England Journal of Medicine in early 2018 with 2-year PFS data.3 But follow-up data [presented during the 2020 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition] show a median follow-up of 55.6 months with PFS of 82% [95% CI, 78.7%-84.8%] for BV plus AVD versus 75.2% [95% CI, 71.5%-78.4%] for ABVD. There is an advantage in terms of PFS.4 OS was no different between the 2 cohorts.

Not all the subgroups had a clear advantage, but younger patients, less than 45, and patients with the highest IPS did. There was an odd distinction: The North American cases appeared to have a stronger benefit compared with the European cases. I dont think anyone has a good explanation for that at this point. In addition, male sex and good performance status seem to be falling on the side of the fence that has a greater gain from BV plus AVD.5

In terms of adverse events [AEs], peripheral neuropathy was more common in the BV plus AVD group compared with the ABVD group [67% vs 43%, respectively]. There were also some gastrointestinal AEs, [including diarrhea (27% vs 18%, respectively) and abdominal pain (21% vs 10%)]. Overall, the 2 cohorts were fairly comparable in terms of overall AEs, except for...a greater number of hospitalizations and infections in the BV plus AVD cohort, which then led to the amendment toward the end of enrollment.3

Key toxicities are pulmonary toxicity and infections and neutropenia. Pulmonary toxicity was seen in both the BV plus AVD and ABVD cohorts, but ABVD had a significantly greater rate of pulmonary toxicity. In terms of on-study death, there were 9 deaths on the BV plus AVD cohort, and of those, 7 were from neutropenia or neutropenic infection. On the other hand, there were 13 deaths on the ABVD cohort, and the majority of them were because of pulmonary toxicity.3

Was the peripheral neuropathy reversible?

Eighty-four percent in the BV plus AVD cohort and 86% in the AVBD cohort reported complete resolution of peripheral neuropathy at almost 5 years. The median to improvement was 30 weeks for BV plus AVD and 16 weeks for AVBD, and then there was a subset that had ongoing neuropathy, mostly grades 1 and grade 2.4

In terms of survivorship, what guidance do you offer patients?

We still dont know much about safety from the standpoint of fertility. In this study, there were a good number of pregnancies and deliveries with healthy babies in women who participated.

Historically, there is a large body of data showing that the impact of ABVD, particularly 6 cycles of ABVD, is trivial to minimal in terms of fertility. Therefore, for patients treated with ABVD, I only [recommend] fertility consultation if the patient or the spouse has a significant degree of anxiousness about it. The other thing I always tell patients about fertilityand this is true for any diseaseis that its impossible to figure out what your fertility is if you never had kids. If someone had children already, then you know that their baseline fertility is standard or average. Its there. If they never did, then its impossible to say what it will be following treatment with anything.

We also dont know what the impact is going to be on second-line efficacy. BV is not going to be a weapon in your toolbox when people progress after BV plus AVD. I think that these are the big questions that we have that require long-term followup. Im selective with the patients that I treat with BV plus AVD. Certainly, for the younger patients, less than age 45, and patients who have advanced stage or high IPS scores, I tend to use this frontline approach. For the others, Im less enthusiastic about using it. I think the financial cost is worth it in those subgroups, including the risk to some degree, but it may not be in the others.

Is progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy [PML] a concern?

Yes, there is some concern. Im very familiar with the PML cases that were diagnosed in patients who were treated with BV as a single agent with T-cell lymphoma. This is something that I mention to patients as a possible long-term, very severe risk, just like you have the same [risk] when you give Rituxan [rituximab]. I think there should be a concern, but its a minimal concern for this population based on the data that we have.

REFERENCES:

1. Hasenclever D, Diehl V. A prognostic score for advanced Hodgkins disease. International Prognostic Factors Project on advanced Hodgkins disease. N Engl J Med. 1998;339(21):1506-1514. doi:10.1056/NEJM199811193392104

2. NCCN. Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology. Hodgkin lymphoma, version 2.2021. Accessed February 1, 2021. https://bit.ly/3oDAEZ4

3. Connors JM, Jurczak W, Straus DJ, et al; ECHELON-1 Study Group. Brentuximab vedotin with chemotherapy for stage III or IV Hodgkins lymphoma. N Engl J Med. 2018;378(4):331-344. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1708984

4. Straus DJ, Dugosz-Danecka M, Connors J, et al. Brentuximab vedotin with chemotherapy for patients with previously untreated, stage III/IV classical Hodgkin lymphoma: 5-year update of the ECHELON-1 study. Presented at: 62nd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition; December 5-8, 2020; virtual. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://bit.ly/3pKKnx7

5. Straus DJ, Dugosz-Danecka M, Alekseev S, et al. Brentuximab vedotin with chemotherapy for stage III/IV classical Hodgkin lymphoma: 3-year update of the ECHELON-1 study. Blood. 2020;135(10):735-742. doi:10.1182/ blood.2019003127

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Brentuximab Vedotin Plus Chemotherapy Works as a Primary Option for Hodgkin Lymphoma - Targeted Oncology

IPS Cell Therapy Comments Off on Brentuximab Vedotin Plus Chemotherapy Works as a Primary Option for Hodgkin Lymphoma – Targeted Oncology | March 8th, 2021

There is no stronger risk factor for cancer than age. At the time of diagnosis, the median age of patients across all cancers is 66. That moment, however, is the culmination of years of clandestine tumor growth, and the answer to an important question has thus far remained elusive: When does a cancer first arise?

At least in some cases, the original cancer-causing mutation could have appeared as long as 40 years ago, according to a new study by researchers at Harvard Medical School and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Reconstructing the lineage history of cancer cells in two individuals with a rare blood cancer, the team calculated when the genetic mutation that gave rise to the disease first appeared. In a 63-year-old patient, it occurred at around age 19; in a 34-year-old patient, at around age 9.

The findings, published in the March 4 issue ofCell Stem Cell, add to a growing body of evidence that cancers slowly develop over long periods of time before manifesting as a distinct disease. The results also present insights that could inform new approaches for early detection, prevention, or intervention.

"For both of these patients, it was almost like they had a childhood disease that just took decades and decades to manifest, which was extremely surprising," said co-corresponding study author Sahand Hormoz, HMS assistant professor of systems biology at Dana-Farber.

"I think our study compels us to ask, when does cancer begin, and when does being healthy stop?" Hormoz said. "It increasingly appears that it's a continuum with no clear boundary, which then raises another question: When should we be looking for cancer?"

In their study, Hormoz and colleagues focused on myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), a rare type of blood cancer involving the aberrant overproduction of blood cells. The majority of MPNs are linked to a specific mutation in the gene JAK2. When the mutation occurs in bone marrow stem cells, the body's blood cell production factories, it can erroneously activate JAK2 and trigger overproduction.

To pinpoint the origins of an individual's cancer, the team collected bone marrow stem cells from two patients with MPN driven by the JAK2 mutation. The researchers isolated a number of stem cells that contained the mutation, as well normal stem cells, from each patient, and then sequenced the entire genome of each individual cell.

Over time and by chance, the genomes of cells randomly acquire so-called somatic mutations--nonheritable, spontaneous changes that are largely harmless. Two cells that recently divided from the same mother cell will have very similar somatic mutation fingerprints. But two distantly related cells that shared a common ancestor many generations ago will have fewer mutations in common because they had the time to accumulate mutations separately.Cell of origin

Analyzing these fingerprints, Hormoz and colleagues created a phylogenetic tree, which maps the relationships and common ancestors between cells, for the patients' stem cells--a process similar to studies of the relationships between chimpanzees and humans, for example.

"We can reconstruct the evolutionary history of these cancer cells, going back to that cell of origin, the common ancestor in which the first mutation occurred," Hormoz said.

Combined with calculations of the rate at which mutations accumulate, the team could estimate when the JAK2 mutation first occurred. In the patient who was first diagnosed with MPN at age 63, the team found that the mutation arose around 44 years prior, at the age of 19. In the patient diagnosed at age 34, it arose at age 9.

By looking at the relationships between cells, the researchers could also estimate the number of cells that carried the mutation over time, allowing them to reconstruct the history of disease progression.

"Initially, there's one cell that has the mutation. And for the next 10 years there's only something like 100 cancer cells," Hormoz said. "But over time, the number grows exponentially and becomes thousands and thousands. We've had the notion that cancer takes a very long time to become an overt disease, but no one has shown this so explicitly until now."

The team found that the JAK2 mutation conferred a certain fitness advantage that helped cancerous cells outcompete normal bone marrow stem cells over long periods of time. The magnitude of this selective advantage is one possible explanation for some individuals' faster disease progression, such as the patient who was diagnosed with MPN at age 34.

In additional experiments, the team carried out single-cell gene expression analyses in thousands of bone marrow stem cells from seven different MPN patients. These analyses revealed that the JAK2 mutation can push stem cells to preferentially produce certain blood cell types, insights that may help scientists better understand the differences between various MPN types.

Together, the results of the study offer insights that could motivate new diagnostics, such as technologies to identify the presence of rare cancer-causing mutations currently difficult to detect, according to the authors.

"To me, the most exciting thing is thinking about at what point can we detect these cancers," Hormoz said. "If patients are walking into the clinic 40 years after their mutation first developed, could we have caught it earlier? And could we prevent the development of cancer before a patient ever knows they have it, which would be the ultimate dream?"

The researchers are now further refining their approach to studying the history of cancers, with the aim of helping clinical decision-making in the future.

While their approach is generalizable to other types of cancer, Hormoz notes that MPN is driven by a single mutation in a very slow growing type of stem cell. Other cancers may be driven by multiple mutations, or in faster-growing cell types, and further studies are needed to better understand the differences in evolutionary history between cancers.

The team's current efforts include developing early detection technologies, reconstructing the histories of greater numbers of cancer cells, and investigating why some patients' mutations never progress into full-blown cancer, but others do.

"Even if we can detect cancer-causing mutations early, the challenge is to predict which patients are at risk of developing the disease, and which are not," Hormoz said. "Looking into the past can tell us something about the future, and I think historical analyses such as the ones we conducted can give us new insights into how we could be diagnosing and intervening."

Reference:Egeren DV, Escabi J, Nguyen M, et al. Reconstructing the lineage histories and differentiation trajectories of individual cancer cells in myeloproliferative neoplasms. Cell Stem Cell. 2021;28(3):514-523.e9. doi:10.1016/j.stem.2021.02.001

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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Retracing the Lineage of Cancer Cells - Technology Networks

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Comments Off on Retracing the Lineage of Cancer Cells – Technology Networks | March 8th, 2021

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) More than three-quarters of African Americans are unable to find a bone marrow or stem cell transplant who need one, according to the nations largest bone marrow registry, Be the Match.

There are more than 20 million people on the registry, a database of people who volunteer to donate their stem cells or bone marrow if theyre found to be a match to someone seeking a transplant, and oftentimes, a transplant can mean giving people a second chance at life.

In fact, a blood stem cell transplant can be a cure for more than 70 diseases including blood cancer (leukemia, lymphoma, etc), sickle cell anemia and aplastic anemia to name a few.

However, the likelihood for people of color and Black people specifically, is staggeringly low.

Every year, millions of people are diagnosed with a life-threatening blood disorder.

That means millions of people are looking for a donor, someone whose special protein cells, called HLA proteins, match their own.

Patients are most likely to match donors who share the same ethnic background, according to Be the Match, but this is not always the case.

There is a catch though more often than not, there are not enough donors available and willing to give blood.

As the coronavirus pandemic has struck the world and cut blood donations severely, the challenge of finding a blood donor match has become more difficult.

Charles Poldo is a 51-year-old Black man living in mid-Michigan. In 2012, Poldo was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a type of cancer of the blood and bone marrow with excess immature white blood cells.

Acute myeloid leukemia runs in his family too but Poldo said he was determined to beat the cancer.

My mom and her dad died from it so when I got diagnosed, I knew I was not going to die, Poldo said.

So, Poldo embarked on a 7 year-long search for a donor.

But doctors could not find anyone of the more than 20+ million people on the Be the Match Registry who were exactly compatible with Poldo.

Doctors decided to proceed with an imperfect solution and Poldo received a treatment that did not fully cure his AML.

As a result, Poldo went into remission and was re-diagnosed with AML again in Nov. 2019.

By this time, technology had advanced to where Poldo could receive an imperfect match.

Even so, Poldos scenario is not an ideal one, especially because of the adverse effects of an imperfect match namely, his own immune system attacking and rejecting the donors cells.

In the medical field, they refer to this adverse effect as a post-transplant complication or graft-versus-host (GVHD) disease.

In Feb. 2020 just before the pandemic hit, Poldo received an umbilical cord transplant, which uses stem cells from umbilical cords donated at the time of a persons birth for instances like these.

Fortunately, Poldos immune system did not reject his transplants. But thats not the case for everyone.

Poldo said the person whose umbilical cord he received is now 8 years old. While he did not have the opportunity to meet his donor face-to-face, he is thankful.

Poldo is one of many African Americans who are unable to find a donor whose proteins match up exactly.

Even though Poldos transplant was successful, others are not as lucky.

People of color are underrepresented in the registry for a number of reasons, although there is no clear evidence as to why.

According to CBS News, a couple of reasons why people of color are underrepresented include a history of medical abuse of Black people in healthcare research, a lack of multi-lingual resources and stigma or fear of donating out of health concerns.

The Black community is more likely to be skeptical to sign up to be volunteers for medical trials or even the registry due to their abuse and mistreatment by medical researchers in the past.

For example, the 1932 Tuskegee syphilis trials also known as: Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male purposely infected several hundred Black people with syphilis without their informed consent or cure of the disease.

The trial that was supposed to last six months ended up lasting 40 years.

In addition, language barriers and access to knowledge about donating blood and stem cells exist among minority communities including Asian, Hispanic and Black people.

Here are some facts that Be the Match has clarified for those on the fence about donating.

Many mistakenly believe that donating blood stem cells is painful, when in reality its not.

It is a common misconception that donating blood stem cells is dangerous. The truth is that there are few risks in donating blood stem cells.

Many people think that donating to a patient in need is expensive for them, but Be The Match covers every cost related to donation.

If you are interested in signing up for the national bone marrow registry, text cure29 to 61474Or join.bethematch.org/cure29

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Black people are three times less likely to find a bone marrow donor than white people - WLNS

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Comments Off on Black people are three times less likely to find a bone marrow donor than white people – WLNS | March 8th, 2021

Stem Cell Therapy Market is valued at USD 9.32 Billion in 2018 and expected to reach USD 16.51 Billion by 2025 with the CAGR of 8.5% over the forecast period.

In its latest report on Stem Cell Therapy Market provides a concise analysis of the recent market trends. The report further includes statistics, market forecasts and revenue estimations, which in addition highlights its status in the competitive domain as well as expansion trends adopted by major industry players.

Rising prevalence of chronic diseases, increasing spend on research & development and increasing collaboration between industry and academia driving the growth of stem cell therapy market.

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Scope of Stem Cell TherapyMarket-

Stem cells therapy also known as regenerative medicine therapy, stem-cell therapy is the use of stem cells to prevent or treat the condition or disease. Stem cell are the special type of cells those differentiated from other type of cell into two defining characteristics including the ability to differentiate into a specialized adult cell type and perpetual self-renewal. Under the appropriate conditions in the body or a laboratory stem cells are capable to build every tissue called daughter cells in the human body; hence these cells have great potential for future therapeutic uses in tissue regeneration and repair. Among stem cell pluripotent are the type of cell that can become any cell in the adult body, and multipotent type of cell are restricted to becoming a more limited population of cells.

The stem cell therapy has been used to treat people with conditions including leukemia and lymphoma, however this is the only form of stem-cell therapy which is widely practiced. Prochymal are another stem-cell therapy was conditionally approved in Canada in 2012 for the treatment of acute graft-vs-host disease in children those are not responding to steroids. Nevertheless, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only established therapy using stem cells. This therapy involves the bone marrow transplantation.

Stem cell therapy market report is segmented based on type, therapeutic application, cell source and by regional & country level. Based upon type, stem cell therapy market is classified into allogeneic stem cell therapy market and autologous market.

Based upon therapeutic application, stem cell therapy market is classified into musculoskeletal disorders, wounds and injuries, cardiovascular diseases, surgeries, gastrointestinal diseases and other applications. Based upon cell source, stem cell therapy market is classified into adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells, bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells, cord blood/embryonic stem cells and other cell sources

The regions covered in this stem cell therapy market report are North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. On the basis of country level, market of stem cell therapy is sub divided into U.S., Mexico, Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Italy, China, Japan, India, South East Asia, GCC, Africa, etc.

Stem Cell TherapyCompanies:

Stem cell therapy market report covers prominent players like,

Osiris Therapeutics, Inc

MEDIPOST

Anterogen, Ltd.

Cynata

Pharmicell

Cytori Therapeutics

Holostem Terapie Avanzate S.r.l.

JCR Pharmaceuticals

NuVasive

RTI Surgical

STEMCELL Technologies

BIOTIME

Osiris Therapeutics

Human Longevity

Advanced Cell Technology

Promethera Biosciences

Mesoblast and AlloSource

others

Stem Cell TherapyMarket Dynamics

Rising spend on research and development activities in the research institutes and biotech industries driving the growth of the stem cell therapy market during the forecast period. For instance, in January 2010, U. S. based Augusta University initiated Phase I clinical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a single, autologous cord blood stem infusion for treatment of cerebral palsyin children. The study is estimated to complete in July 2020. Additionally, increasing prevalence of chronic diseases creating the demand of stem cell therapy. For instance, as per the international diabetes federation, in2019, around 463 million population across the world were living withdiabetes; by 2045 it is expected to rise around 700 million. Among all 79% of population withdiabeteswere living in low- and middle-income countries. These all factors are fuelling the growth of market over the forecast period. On the other flip, probabilities of getting success is less in the therapeutics by stem cell may restrain the growth of market. Nevertheless, Advancement of technologies and government initiative to encourage research in stem cell therapy expected to create lucrative opportunity in stem cell therapy market over the forecast period.

Stem Cell TherapyMarketRegional Analysis

North America is dominating the stem cell therapy market due increasing adoption rate of novel stem cell therapies fueling the growth of market in the region. Additionally, favorable government initiatives have encouraging the regional market growth. For instance, government of Canada has initiated Strategic Innovation Fund Program, in which gov will invests in research activities carried out for stem cell therapies. In addition, good reimbursing scheme in the region helping patient to spend more on health. Above mentioned factors are expected to drive the North America over the forecast period.

Asia Pacific is anticipated to grow at a highest CAGR over forecast period due to rising awareness of benefits of stem cell therapies among the population. In addition, increasing collaboration between industry-academia to initiate research and development in the stem cell therapy expected to create the huge growth over the forecast period. For instance, as per the report of Pharma Focus Asia, members of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation collaborated with Life Sciences Innovation Forum to involve professionals having expertise in stem cell therapies from academia and research centers to promote developments in stem cell research which will foster regional market growth.

Key Benefits for Stem Cell TherapyMarketReports

Global Market report covers in depth historical and forecast analysis.

Global Market research report provides detail information about Market Introduction, Market Summary, Global market Revenue (Revenue USD), Market Drivers, Market Restraints, Market opportunities, Competitive Analysis, Regional and Country Level.

Global Market report helps to identify opportunities in market place.

Global Market report covers extensive analysis of emerging trends and competitive landscape.

Stem Cell TherapyMarketSegmentation

By Type

By Therapeutic Application

By Cell Source

Regional & Country AnalysisNorth America, U.S., Mexico, Canada , Europe, UK, France, Germany, Italy , Asia Pacific, China, Japan, India, Southeast Asia, South America, Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, The Middle East and Africa, GCC, Africa, Rest of Middle East and Africa

Table of Content

1.1. Research Process

1.2. Primary Research

1.3. Secondary Research

1.4. Market Size Estimates

1.5. Data Triangulation

1.6. Forecast Model

1.7. USPs of Report

1.8. Report Description

2.1. Market Introduction

2.2. Executive Summary

2.3. Global Stem Cell Therapy Market Classification

2.4. Market Drivers

2.5. Market Restraints

2.6. Market Opportunity

2.7. Stem Cell Therapy Market: Trends

2.8. Porters Five Forces Analysis

2.9. Market Attractiveness Analysis

Continued

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Stem Cell Therapy Market expected to reach USD 16.51 Billion by 2025 KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper - KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Comments Off on Stem Cell Therapy Market expected to reach USD 16.51 Billion by 2025 KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper – KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper | March 8th, 2021

TheBone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) Marketresearch report thoroughly explains each and every aspect related to the Global Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) Market, which facilitates the reports reader to study and evaluate the upcoming market trend and execute the analytical data to promote the business.

Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) Market Insight:

Bone marrow-derivedstem cells(BMSCS) market is expected to gain market growth in the forecast period of 2020 to 2027. Data Bridge Market Research analyses the market to growing at a CAGR of 10.4% in the above-mentioned forecast period. Increasing awareness regarding the benefits associates with the preservation of bone marrow derived stem cells will boost the growth of the market.

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The report also inspects the financial standing of the leading companies, which includes gross profit, revenue generation, sales volume, sales revenue, manufacturing cost, individual growth rate, and other financial ratios.

Prominent Key Players Covered in the report:

CBR Systems, Inc, Cordlife Sciences India Pvt. Ltd., Cryo-Cell International, Inc.ESPERITE N.V., LifeCell International Pvt. Ltd., StemCyte India Therapeutics Pvt. Ltd, PerkinElmer Inc, Global Cord Blood Corporation., Smart Cells International Ltd., Vita 34 among other domestic and global players.

Key Pointers Covered in the Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) Market Industry Trends and Forecast

TheBone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) marketreport provides successfully marked contemplated policy changes, favorable circumstances, industry news, developments, and trends. This information can help readers fortify their market position. It packs various parts of information gathered from secondary sources, including press releases, web, magazines, and journals as numbers, tables, pie-charts, and graphs. The information is verified and validated through primary interviews and questionnaires. The data on growth and trends focuses on new technologies, market capacities, raw materials, CAPEX cycle, and the dynamic structure of the Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) market.

Major Regions as Follows:

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The report includes accurately drawn facts and figures, along with graphical representations of vital market data. The research report sheds light on the emerging market segments and significant factors influencing the growth of the industry to help investors capitalize on the existing growth opportunities.

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Table Of Contents: Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) Market

Part 01:Executive Summary

Part 02:Scope of the Report

Part 03:Research Methodology

Part 04:Market Landscape

Part 05:Pipeline Analysis

Part 06:Market Sizing

Part 07:Five Forces Analysis

Part 08:Market Segmentation

Part 09:Customer Landscape

Part 10:Regional Landscape

Part 11:Decision Framework

Part 12:Drivers and Challenges

Part 13:Market Trends

Part 14:Vendor Landscape

Part 15:Vendor Analysis

Part 16:Appendix

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To summarize:

The global Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells (BMSCS) market report studies the contemporary market to forecast the growth prospects, challenges, opportunities, risks, threats, and the trends observed in the market that can either propel or curtail the growth rate of the industry. The market factors impacting the global sector also include provincial trade policies, international trade disputes, entry barriers, and other regulatory restrictions.

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