progenitor cells

(University of Rochester Medical Center) Cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins have a profound effect on an elite group of cells known as glial progenitor cells that are important to brain health as we age, scientists have found.

The new findings shed light on a long-debated potential role for statins in the area of dementia.

The extraordinary action of a new cellular therapy came to light as a result of powerful PET and SPECT imaging in a recent study reported in the April issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

Researchers in Germany were able to observe the repair action of circulating progenitor cells, immature blood-derived cells capable of developing into adult stem cells, as they successfully preserved healthy heart tissue and corrected blood flow imbalance within the heart.

Scientists at Schepens Eye Research Institute have discovered what chemical in the eye triggers the dormant capacity of certain non-neuronal cells to transform into progenitor cells, a stem-like cell that can generate new retinal cells.

The discovery, published in the March issue of Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, offers new hope to victims of diseases that harm the retina, such as macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa.