Archive for organoids
A perfect genetic hit: New gene mutation implicated in rare congenital diarrhea
When the 1-year-old boy arrived from overseas, he was relying on total parenteral nutrition — a way of bypassing the digestive system to provide nutrients and calories completely intravenously — to survive. From the time of his birth, he had experienced unexplainable diarrhea. Answers were desperately needed. Sequencing his genes in search of clues, neonatologists ... Read More about A perfect genetic hit: New gene mutation implicated in rare congenital diarrhea
Intestine chip models gut function, in disease and in health
The small intestine is much more than a digestive organ. It’s a major home to our microbiome, it’s a key site where mucosal immunity develops and it provides a protective barrier against a variety of infections. Animal models don’t do justice to the human intestine in all its complexity. Attempts to better model human intestinal function ... Read More about Intestine chip models gut function, in disease and in health
Entry door for deadly C. difficile toxin suggests new mode of protection
Clostridium difficile, also called “C. diff,” tops the CDC’s list of urgent drug-resistant threats. Marked by severe diarrhea and intestinal inflammation, C. diff has become a leading cause of death from gastrointestinal illness, causing half a million infections a year in the U.S. alone. C. diff flourishes best in hospitals and long-term care facilities where people are on ... Read More about Entry door for deadly C. difficile toxin suggests new mode of protection
‘Heart on a chip’ suggests a surprising treatment for a rare genetic disease
It was the variability that intrigued pediatric cardiologist William Pu, MD, about his patient with heart failure. The boy suffered from a rare genetic mitochondrial disorder called Barth syndrome. While he ultimately needed a heart transplant, his heart function seemed to vary day-to-day, consistent with reports in the medical literature. “Often patients present in infancy with severe ... Read More about ‘Heart on a chip’ suggests a surprising treatment for a rare genetic disease
Drug-testing alternative: a lung on a chip
Combining microfabrication techniques from the computer industry with modern tissue engineering, a team at Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering has created a device that mimics the function of a human lung. This living “lung-on-a-chip,” which incorporates human lung and blood-vessel cells, reproduces the all-important interface between the lung’s tiny ... Read More about Drug-testing alternative: a lung on a chip