New Science for Tooth Regeneration

A new study by scientists at Kyoto University and the Univ. of Fukui may soon offer some hope for people that have lost teeth. They have found that an antibody for one gene, the uterine sensitization associated gene-1 or USAG-1 can stimulate new tooth growth. This was established with mice that were suffering from tooth agenesis, which is a congenital condition.

An adult person has 32 teeth but around one percent of the population has either more or less due to congenital conditions. Both of these occurrences have been explored by scientists for the genetic causes. They have already identified the fundamental molecules that are responsible for tooth development.

Several molecules interact with the morphogenesis of teeth including BMP (bone morphogenetic protein) and Wnt signaling. Tooth development involves BMP and Wnt plus much more. The growth of organs and tissues are modulated during the early development of a human body. Thus, drugs that directly affect this activity are avoided, inhibiting side effects. Therefore, the team used the gene USAG-1, which could be safer and would not antagonize BMP and Wnt in tooth development.

They already knew that the suppression of USAG-1 can benefit tooth growth. But they had no idea if this alone would be enough. So they investigated using monoclonal antibodies for USAG-1. These are routinely used to treat arthritis, cancers and vaccine development.

But they soon found out that BMP and Wnt interact with USAG-1, leading to poor survival and birth rates of mice. Therefore, BMP and Wnt is important to the growth of the whole body. But one antibody disrupted the interaction with USAG-1 with only BMP. BMP signaling is dependent on determining the amount of teeth in the mice.

This was the first study to show that monoclonal antibodies for tooth regeneration can provide a therapeutic plan that currently is only being resolved with tooth implants and other measures that are artificial. Tooth regeneration cannot use conventional tissue engerineering so this study shows that cell-free molecular therapy can be and effective tood for congenital tooth agenesis.

To view the original scientific study click below:
Anti–USAG-1 therapy for tooth regeneration through enhanced BMP signaling

Is Red Meat Consumption Good For You?

A recent study by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) was conducted with close to 20,000 people with examination of their consumption of red and processed meat associated with their heart anatomy and function. As an observational study it was discovered that the more red meat a person ate the worse their heart function could be.

Previous studies show there is an increased risk of heart problems or death from heart disease from eating a greater amount of red meat. Therefore, examining how red meat consumption and heart health imaging measures are related were taken into consideration for the first time. The study hopes this will help them understand any mechanisms involved with the previous connections pertaining to cardiovascular disease.

The study did not compare red meat from 100% grass fed animals with meat from those that are grain fed so the results should be interpreted as relating to ordinary grocery store, butcher shop or restaurant red meat which is almost always grain fed. Animals that are grain fed have much higher levels of fat including arachidonic acid which can cause inflammation when consumed in excess and may be a major cause of degenerative disease.

Three measures of heart function and health were conducted. The first being CMR or cardiovascular magnetic resonance. This assesses the heart function that is currently used in clinical practices such as ventricle volume and pumping function. The second measure was CMR radiomics that are used to obtain information from images of the heart correlating to texture and shape. This can indicate the heart muscle health. The third measure was blood vessel elasticity or stretchiness.

There were adjustments made for factors that could affect the relationship. These were age, deprivation, smoking, sex, alcohol, high blood pressure, exercise, diabetes, high cholesterol and a person’s body mass index for obesity.

The study concluded that a higher consumption of red meat, including processed meats were related to imaging measures of the heart that were worse. It was shown that persons with a higher consumption of red meat intake had stiffer arteries, a worse heart function and also had ventricles that were smaller. These are all evidence of poor cardiovascular health.

To further enhance the study, they also tested the association between the consumption of oily fish and heart imaging measures. Oily fish has previously been related to a better heart health. The study showed that more oily fish consumption improved heart function and the arteries became stretchier.

The findings of this study correlate with previous observations that link red and processed meat intake with heart problems including links of the heart and structure of the vascular function. From this study it seems sensible for an individual to decrease red and processed meat consumption to keep the heart healthy.

To view the original scientific study click below:
Study strengthens links between red meat and heart disease

High Protein Diet Does Not Mean Increased Strength

A study published in the American Journal of Physiology: Endocrinology and Metabolism, determined that the health affects of consuming a diet that is high-protein did not affect strength or muscle mass compared to eating a moderate amount of protein while a person is training. The study which involved basic strength-training movements three times a week was conducted with people that had no prior weightlifting experience.

The participants ranged in age from 40-64 years old. The participants were assessed by the team for their strength, blood pressure, lean-body mass, and other health measures including glucose tolerance. These measures were taken before and then after the program. The diet each participant had was randomized into protein that was moderate and protein that was at a high level. Each participant ate a cooked ground beef steak and then consumed a carbohydrate beverage after each session. The participant was then sent home with a protein beverage to be consumed every evening during the 10-week program.

There were two different groups according to the amount of protein they received every day. The moderate-protein group received roughly 1.2 grams of protein per day and the high-protein group received 1.6 grams per day. These amounts were based on the kilogram of body weight each participant had. The two groups had the same amount of calories and beef tallow and dextrose were also added.

The participants did keep food diaries and they were counseled bi-weekly concerning their protein intake and eating habits.

Fecal samples were also taken at the beginning of the program to analyze gut microbes. They were then taken again during the program and again after the end of the program. It has been shown in previous studies that gut microbe composition can be altered in the digestive tract by diet or exercise alone.

It has been recommended by the American Food and Nutrition Board that adults need 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day to deter from getting a protein deficiency. It has been known that as we age, muscle mass declines, therefore, losing strength.

Both groups were supposed to limit their protein intake to the Recommended Daily Allowance. But upon reviewing their diaries, it was revealed that the moderate-protein group was getting from 1.1-1.2 grams of protein per day per kilogram of body weight and the high-protein group were getting 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. This is twice the amount recommended.

At the end of the 10 week program, the researchers found no significant increase in muscle mass between the two groups. The gains both groups had were roughly the same. The only difference they saw in the two groups was that those in the high-protein group had changes in gut microbes that had been previously linked to negative health issues. They found that the beneficial gut microbes and been increased and the harmful ones had been decreased.

But overall, it was found that high protein consumption does not promote any gain in strength or body composition. Lean muscle mass was not increased any more than consuming a moderate amount of protein.

This result now puts into question whether a person needs to increase their protein intake in middle age to build strength.

To view the original scientific study click below:Higher protein intake during resistance training does not potentiate strength, but modulates gut microbiota, in middle-aged adults: a randomized control trial

New Therapy for Ringing in the Ears

Research from a clinical trial which was the largest of its kind, has shown that by combining electrical stimulation of the tongue and sound, tinnitus or “ringing in the ear” can be significantly reduced. The research also indicated that therapeutic effects could be sustained for even up to 12 months following treatment.

The research was conducted by a team of the University of Minnesota, St. James Hospital, Trinity College, University of Nottingham and University of Regensberg and an Irish medical device company.

The team’s findings can potentially provide help to millions of people around the globe. Tinnitus affects 10% to 15% of the world’s population.

The study was the longest and largest follow-up clinical trial that has ever occurred in the field of tinnitus which included a medical device with 326 enrolled participants, with providing evidence in regards to the efficacy, safety and patient tolerability of bimodal neuromodulation for treating tinnitus. Close to 86% of participants who were compliant showed improvement in symptom severity when evaluated following the 12 week period of treatment. Many additionally reported sustained benefit 12 months following treatment.

The study followed post-treatment effects of therapy for 12 months. This was the first for the field of tinnitus for evaluating outcomes long-term of an approach with a medical device.

The treatment device that was utilized in the study was developed by Neuromed Devices. It consists of Bluetooth (wireless) headphones that will deliver sequences of audio tones that are layered with wide-band noise to both ears and combines with electrical stimulation pulses that are delivered to 32 electrodes which are on the tip of the tongue. The intensity, timing and delivery of the stimuli are managed by a hand help controller that is easy for participants to use. Before beginning treatments for the first time, this device is configured to the participant’s hearing profile and then optimized to each participant’s level of sensitivity to tongue stimulation.

For the study period, the participants were given instructions to use the device for a 60 minute period each day for 12 weeks. 83.7% of the participants used their device at or even above the minimum compliance level which was 36 over the course of the 12 week study period. The primary endpoints showed that patients achieved a clinically significant and statistically reduction in the severity of their tinnitus symptoms.

Following treatment, the patients were instructed to return their device and then were assessed for up to 12 months that included three follow-up visits. A little over 66% of patients who did fill out the exit survey confirmed they did benefit from their use of the device. 77.8% reported that they would recommend the device treatment to other people suffering from tinnitus.

To view the original scientific study click below:
Bimodal neuromodulation combining sound and tongue stimulation reduces tinnitus symptoms in a large randomized clinical study

You Can Use Exercise to Lower Blood Pressure

According to the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) a person can use exercise to lower blood pressure. It explains certain exercises a person can do according to their current blood pressure level. They based their recommendations on experts in this field of study and on a thorough analysis of any current data on this subject.

It has been shown that 1 in 4 heart attacks can be attributed to high blood pressure and that in only 4 years 60% of the population will get hypertension. The article focuses on a persons starting blood pressure level not just the amount of exercise per week they get.

The recommendation analyzed the highest quality of evidence and therefore, came up with a detailed guide for people with high blood pressure, a high level of normal blood pressure and also blood pressure that is normal. The primary goal was to lower blood pressure.

The first group were people with a blood pressure level of at least 140/90 mmHg. They discovered that aerobic exercise was the best activity for this group. This includes walking, cycling, running or swimming. This exercise can have the same effect as taking a medication for antihypertension.

The second group were people with a high-normal blood pressure level of 130-139/85-89 mmHg. The best exercise for this group is dynamic resistance. This can be strength training that typically involves movement of 6 large muscle groups. These exercises can be lifting weights, performing push-ups and squats.

The third group were people with a blood pressure level of less than 130/84 mmHg, which is considered to be normal. They found out that isometric resistance exercises would be the best training. These kind of exercises involve static contraction of muscles. This could be handgrip movements. This can motivate people in this group to keep their levels down if they are at a raised risk of developing high blood pressure, which could be brought on by heredity. People that are obese or women during pregnancy can also prevent hypertension with exercise.

For these exercises to be beneficial, consistency must be maintained. For most, the effect of this exercise will last about 24 hours. A person that takes hypertension medication takes it every day so this concludes a person should be active every day.

To view the original scientific study click below:
Personalized exercise prescription in the prevention and treatment of arterial hypertension: a Consensus Document from the European Association of Preventive Cardiology (EAPC) and the ESC Council on Hypertension

Hope For Patients with Macular Degeneration

In adults 50 or older, the most frequent cause of blindness is age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This condition leads to central vision loss and affects about 196 million people around the globe. Treatments can slow down the onset and even preserve some of a patient’s vision, however there is no cure.

However, recently a team at the University of Rochester made a significant breakthrough in a possible cure for AMD. A first time three-dimensional lab model that mimics the human retina part which is affected in macular degeneration.

The teams’ model combines vascular networks form patients and retinal tissue from stem cells with synthetic materials that are bio-engineered in the three-dimensional matrix. By utilizing the patient’s 3D retinal tissue, they were able to study the mechanisms that underlay what is involved in advanced neovascular macular degeneration which is the wet form of the disease. This particular form of the disease is more blinding and debilitating.

The team has also shown that we-AMD-related changes in their model might be targeted with drugs. Once they have validated the results over a larger sample, their next hope if that they could develop rational drug type therapies and possibly also test the efficacy of any specific drug to work for single patients.

The findings have helped resolve a large debate researchers have in the field who have been working on how to determine if defects in the retina alone are what is responsible for macular degeneration or if the disease is possibly due to other systemic issues such as blood supply.

The current research shows quite strongly to retinal defects being responsible and in more detail defects in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) which is a cell layer which is pigmented and feeds the retina’s photoreceptor cells.

There are two areas of the eye which are affected by AMD. This includes RPE and also beneath the RPE is an underlying system of support known as the choriocapillaris which is composed primarily of capillaries which nourish the outer retina.

Until recently, scientists have primarily relied on rat models. However, the physiology and anatomy of the rodent retina and the human retina a quite different. In order to have the entire complex which becomes affected by AMD, it was very important to the team to create an in vitro human model of the layer of choriocapllaris along with the RPE. This method allows the properties of each different cell type to be independently controlled.

The team’s lab engineered the 3D matrix so that the choriocapllaris would be placed safely and additionally oriented properly within the overall vasculature. They also facilitated adhesion of the RPE cells in the model and although small, it was an important contribution. Their three-dimensional model was vital for them to be able to describe the very amazing things they have discovered and identified through utilizing this model.

The team’s discoveries offer a potential resolution to the discourse over causes of AMD. The results have shown that RPE cell defects alone are adequate to lead to the disease. A person an have totally normal choriocapillaris, however if the RPE’s are dysfunctional they will lead to dysfunction of the choriocapillaris.

Additionally, through using samples of blood from wet AMD patients in their human retain model, the data shows for the first time that factors which are blood-driven can individually add to both the development and also the progression of the wet form of AMD.

The team’s work has succeeded in the creation of a precise human model of the choriocapillaris/RPE complex, has confirmed that RPE and mesenchymal stem cells have a role in development of the choriocapillaris layer, has mimicked the aspects of AMD in a human model, has shown an understanding of roles of the blood derived factors and specific cell types in the development of the disease, and has shown disease targeting by utilizing a drug with a patient derived cell model.

To view the original scientific study click below:
First-ever lab model of human eye offers hope for macular degeneration patients

People Over 65 Need to Keep Moving

A new study at the UC San Diego’s Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science has concluded that older people need to perform at least light-intensity physical activity such as a casual walk or even shopping to protect mobility. Out of women over 65, it is shown that 1 in 4 are unable to walk 2 blocks or go up a flight of stairs. This is a condition called mobility disability and can promote a person’s loss of independence as it is the leading type of incapacity in the U.S.

Researchers found that women that included light-intensity physical activity for the greatest amount of time and did not have a mobility disability at the beginning of the study had a 40 percent less chance to lose any mobility. This was over a 6-year period.

It was important to note that all physical activity, not just moderate-to-vigorous counts. Light-intensity physical activity also will maintain a women’s mobility later in life.

To perform the study, 5,735 women over 63 that lived in the U.S. and had enrolled in the Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Health study, wore a research-grade accelerometer. After 7 days, accurate measures of their physical activity were obtained. The participants had spent 4.8 hours per day in light-intensity physical activity.

The results showed that 46 percent of the women that performed light-intensity physical activity had a lower risk of mobility loss. The women that had performed less than light-intensity physical exercise had more risk of mobility loss. The women that had a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or below showed the strongest benefit. But women that were obese also showed reduction of mobility disability.

As we age, it becomes harder and harder to perform moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Therefore, these findings may have major impacts on recommendations for public health. Focus on light-intensity physical activity would be of more importance to healthy aging of older women. This would help older women maintain their mobility and independence.

Older people that have a mobility disability have been shown to have more hospitalizations and have higher health care costs. Women seem to have a disproportionate amount of mobility disability. Results showing that light-intensity physical activity could help with mobility could help a woman have better mobility as she ages.

To view the original scientific study click below:
Evaluation of Light Physical Activity Measured by Accelerometry and Mobility Disability During a 6-Year Follow-up in Older Women

New Soft Contact Lenses used as Diagnostic Tool

There is a new soft contact lens technology that can help diagnose certain eye conditions soon to be implemented for clinical trials. Researchers at Purdue University along with biomedical, chemical and mechanical engineers, and clinicians have developed this new technology. They have developed soft contact lenses to be used as a bioinstrumentation tool to obtain information that is important to diagnose underlying ocular health conditions.

By using the soft contact lens, it can be a painless way to discover early ocular diseases, such as glaucoma. It has always been a goal to utilize contact lenses in biomedical platforms.

Currently, soft contact lenses couldn’t be used as sensors because technology to fabricate them had to use a rigid, planar surface. This proved to be incompatible with a contact lens that has a soft, curved shape.

The team has created the use of ultrathin, stretchable biosensors that are seamless. They used wet adhesive bonding with soft commercial contact lenses to embed the biosensors. They are then able to deliver a record of the electrophysiological retinal activity from the cornea. In the past this has not been done without requiring topical anesthesia for pain.

Using this new technology, doctors and scientists would better be able to understand ocular activity with greatly improved reliability and accuracy with no pain to the patient.

To view the original scientific study click below:

All-printed stretchable corneal sensor on soft contact lenses for noninvasive and painless ocular electrodiagnosis

Burn Fat Faster By Being More Fit

Physiologists have found that the greatest predictors of men’s and women’s abilities to burn fat are their fitness level and their biological age. A team of sports nutritionists have conducted new research that has shown that women who are healthy and fit are likely to burn more fat when exercising than men.

It is important to people how their body burns fat for insulin sensitivity, great metabolic health, and for reducing the risk of Type II diabetes. However, for endurance type sports competitions like cycling or running, how our body will burn fat can be the difference between failure and success.

Earlier research from the current team has shown how the body’s carbohydrates of athletes competing in distance events deplete stores quickly while exercising. This shows that athlete’s abilities to tap into fat reserves to continue to fuel them forward becomes necessary to their individual performance.

The initial study included 73 healthy adults who were 19-63 and included 32 women and 41 women. The study tested the biological factors for ideal fat burning and lifestyle through asking the participants to participate in a fitness test utilizing a bicycle and measuring all key indicators.

The results discovered that women and of them those who were most physically fit across the age ranges, burned fat more efficiently during exercise.

The second study then took the first stage further to look at what molecular factors in our fat tissue and muscles determine exactly how fat is burned. This test involved the team taking muscle and fat biopsies from the participants for analyzing how the differences in proteins in muscle tissue and fat could affect the ability to burn fat.

The team discovered that proteins found in muscle which are part of the process of breaking down stored fat into smaller fatty acids, and additionally proteins which are part of transporting the fatty acids into the mitochondria in muscle which are the cell’s powerhouse, regularly were linked to a greater ability for fat burning. However, the molecular factors looked at did not indicate why women burned more fat than the males in the study.

The team’s analysis shows that women typically have a larger reliance on fat for fuel while exercising than men. Through understanding what mechanisms are behind the differences in use of fuel between the sexes might help in explaining why women seem to have a metabolic advantage to insulin sensitivity which is a vital indicator of metabolic health.

The team notes that a person’s ability to burn fat for fuel seems to protect against weight gain in the future which ensures great management of a person’s weight. They do caution that a person’s ability for fat burning should not be associated with their ability to lose weight. Weight loss is mainly produced through a deficient in energy (taking in less calories than what is expended).

Managing weight is mostly about a balance in energy. In order to lose weight a person needs to consume fewer calories than what is expended through physical activity and resting metabolism. People who have an increased ability to burn fat for fuel however, appear to be a bit protected from future weight gain which could be associated to how burning fat affects energy expenditure and food intake.

To view the original scientific studies click below:
Resting skeletal muscle ATGL and CPT1b are associated with peak fat oxidation rates in men and women but do not explain observed sex/differences
Determinants of Peak Fat Oxidation Rates During Cycling in Healthy Men and Women

Detecting Bone Healing Stem Cells With Nanotechnology

Researchers at the University of Southampton have succeeded in the development of a novel method of using nanomaterials to not only identify but also enrich stem cells found in the skeletal system which can potentially lead to the development of new treatments for repair of damaged or lost bone and serious bone fractures.

Working as a team, chemists, physicists and tissue engineering experts employed uniquely designed gold nanoparticles to look for very specific stem cells in bone. They created a fluorescent glow which revealed the stem cells presence around other stem cell types and permitted them to be enriched or isolated.

This new technique is quicker and simpler than other methods and close to 50 to 500 times more successful at enriching the stem cells.

The team used gold nanoparticles which are tiny particles that are composed of gold atoms, coated with oligonucleotides which are strands of DNA to optically sense specific signatures of messenger RNA of skeletal stem cells found in bone marrow. Under a microscope, when the stem cells are detected, the nanoparticles will release a fluorescent dye which makes these stem cells distinguishable from cells in the same area. These stem cells can now be separated through the use of a state of the art fluorescence cell sorting process.

Through identifying stem cells found in the skeletal system, scientists have the ability to grow the cells in pre-identified conditions which enables the formation and growth of cartilage tissue and bone, as an example to help heal broken bones.

Due to challenges involved with an aging population, the need for both cost effective and novel methods of bone repair are needed. One in five men ad one in three women are at risk of osteoporotic fractures throughout the world and costs are significant.

The team has been researching stem cell based therapies for bone over the past 15 years in an effort to understand the development of bone tissue and how to generate cartilage and bone. At the same time another group had been designing novel nanomaterials and also studying applications of the material in the fields of energy and biomedical sciences. The new study brings both the disciplines together and is an example of the impact interdisciplinary and collaborative work an achieve.v

Some of the most promising and exciting areas for bone regenerative medicine and bone disease treatment for the aging population is skeletal stem cell formed therapies. The latest studies have harnessed distinctive DNA sequences from targets which the team believes can enrich skeletal stem cells. And by using Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS), they have achieved enriching stem cells from bone in patients. The identification of distinctive markers is known as the holy grail in bone stem cell biology. And while there is a ways to go, the studies have produced a marked change in researcher’s ability to identify and target bone stem cells in humans and the optimistic therapeutics that lie within.

The correct material design is important to their application to complex systems. By customizing the nanoparticles chemistry, they programmed specific functions within the design. They designed nanoparticles which were coated with short DNA sequences which were able to sense specific RNA in skeletal stem cells. Combined with advanced FACS gating strategies, this enabled the sorting of the cells that are relevant to human bone marrow.

A major feature of the nanomaterial design requires strategies that regulate the density of oligonucleotides which are on the surface of the nanoparticles which will assist in avoiding DNA enzymatic degradation of the cells. The fluorescent reporters which are on the oligonucleotides enabled the team to watch the status at different stages of the nanoparticles which ensured the quality of the endocellular sensor.

The team are now applying the sequencing of single cell RNA to the platform technology that was developed with all the partners. They have proposed to then move forward with clinical applications with preclinical bone formation studies in order to produce proof of concept studies.

To view the original scientific study click below:
Enrichment of Skeletal Stem Cells from Human Bone Marrow Using Spherical Nucleic Acids