News by Subject Medicine & Health

A new MDC study may resolve a decades-old debate in immunology: A team led by Prof. Klaus Rajewsky reports in Science that distinct progenitor cells are not required for the development of B1 cells. Instead, the team's experiments show that a B1-typical B-cell receptor can reprogram B2 cells into B1 cells, suggesting that B1 cells emerge as a consequence of their special B-cell receptors.

A new reversible, drug-free antiplatelet therapy could reduce the risk of blood clots and potentially prevent cancer metastasis, according to a study published today in Science Translational Medicine.

Researchers say they are closer to solving the mystery of how a good night's sleep protects against heart disease. In studies using mice, they discovered a previously unknown mechanism between the brain, bone marrow, and blood vessels that appears to protect against the development of atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries -- but only when sleep is healthy and sound.

The bone marrow disease myelofibrosis is stimulated by excessive signaling from vitamin D and immune cells known as macrophages, reveals a Japanese research team. These findings could help to develop alternative treatments that do not target problem genes. The findings were published on Feb. 4 in the online edition of Blood.

New research shows that cancer causes premature ageing. Researchers studied Leukaemia, and found that it promotes premature ageing in healthy bone marrow cells. It is well known that ageing promotes cancer development. But this is the first time that the reverse has been shown to be true. Importantly, the aged bone marrow cells accelerated the growth and development of the leukaemia -- creating a vicious cycle that fuels the disease.

Targeted drugs are a cornerstone of personalized medicine, yet come with important drawbacks. They restrain disease progression -- but rarely eradicate the cancer. Patients therefore need to take the drugs essentially forever, exposing them to severe side effects and incurring high costs for the healthcare system. Combination therapies could potentially overcome these limitations. A study by CeMM and MedUni Vienna shows how epigenetic analysis and automated microscopy help prioritize new drug combinations for leukemia therapy.