Nature cover heavyweight: Regrowing neurons.

the latest batch of research papers published in the journal Nature, a leading academic journal, including a study by Fu Xiangdong of the University of California, San Diego, topped the cover of NatureIn this study, the scientists used a simple method to successfully reverse the pathological symptoms of Parkinson's mice! Being on the cover of Nature also proves the weight of the studyan official press release from the University of California, San Diego, tells us an interesting story behind this studyFor more than a decade, Professor Fu's team has been working on a protein called PTBIt binds rna to determine the "on" and "off" genesa few years ago, a postdoctoral researcher on the subject, Professor Fu Xiangdong, usedsiRNAtechnology to interfere with the production of PTB proteins in fibroblasts, to see what happens to those cellsBut using siRNA every time to interfere is a tedious repetitive effortSo the postdoctoral researcher built a new cell line that permanently lost its PTB proteinbut it is this cell line that was born for "lazyness" that has had unintended consequencesThe press release revealed that after several weeks of culture, there was little sign of fibroblasts in the petri dishInstead, the whole petri dish is full of neuronal cells!that is, as long as the PTB gene is removed, multiple cells can be converted into neuronsfollowed in this direction, And Professor Fu Xiangdong and another postdoctoral researcher, DrQian Hao (who is also the first author of this paper), set their sights on neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's diseaseIn the case of Parkinson's disease, the main pathological change in the disease is the degeneration and death of dopamine-enabled neurons in the brain, which significantly reduces dopamine levels in the brain Current Parkinson's drugs can only relieve symptoms and do not fundamentally stop or reverse the degeneration and death of these neurons If we write on the PTB gene, is it possible to make ordinary cells in the brain gorgeously transformed into dopamine-enabled neurons to reverse the disease? that's the question the researchers want to answer They used a mouse model and drug-induced dopamine neurons in mice to die The mice also developed Parkinson's disease as expected After , the researchers used adnod-related viruses (AAVs) carrier to send a special piece of DNA into the mouse's middle brain, the main lesions of Parkinson's disease This particular DNA binds to the RNA that encodes the PTB protein and induces the latter to be degraded As a result, mice were unable to synthesize the PTB protein smoothly In this way, the researchers hope to stimulate the production of neurons after this gene therapy, some of the structurally active astrocytes in the mouse brain turned into neurons The researchers estimate that the number of neurons has increased by about 30 percent The levels of dopamine in the brains of these mice were similar to normal values In contrast, mice in the control group that received a or unrelated genes of aAV carrier did not see these changes even more encouraging, after three months of treatment, the mice's limbs were able to move normally and last a lifetime many reports that the discovery could lead to gene therapy for Parkinson's disease Given that the current treatment sourcing in the field of Parkinson's disease is mostly "cure-and-cure", this technology, which allows neurons to regrow, is expected to bring about real disruption and change But before this technique can be applied to the human body, we also need to confirm whether it activates neuronal regeneration in older people as well If this technology works regardless of age, the future application prospects will be extremely broad (
Bio valley Bioon.com) .