Much of your health is managed outside a clinic
A standard doctor's appointment lasts 10-15 minutes. A follow-up might be even shorter depending on the severity of your symptoms. A specialist visit is even harder to get and often doesn't last very long either. It is important to note that, aside from these few minutes, much of your health is managed entirely outside the clinic. But these days, it is very easy to track your health at home with tracking devices and wearables. The number of things you can track at home
1 day ago5 min read
The Cell Death Case Files: How Macrophages Get Reprogrammed Inside Tumors
A six-slide mystery walking general readers through apoptosis, efferocytosis, and what immune cells get up to inside a tumor when the evidence keeps disappearing.
Jun 241 min read
Efferocytosis in Cancer: How a New Tool (Effero-seq) Reveals That Tumor-Associated Macrophages Are Reprogrammed by the Dying Cells They Eat
A new forensic tool for the body's quietest crimes Apoptosis and Efferocytosis Every day, vast numbers of cells in our body die through controlled self-destruction called apoptosis. Apoptosis helps with tissue renewal and remodeling. Clearing away the bodies falls to macrophages, which are the immune system's cleanup crew. They do this through a process called efferocytosis, by which they engulf and digest dying cells. During efferocytosis, macrophages release anti-inflamma
Jun 246 min read
Pigeons Use Magnetic Immune Cells to Find Their Way on Cloudy Days
A new study in Science found that immune cells called macrophages in the pigeon liver become magnetic. Macrophages eat up old red blood cells, break them down, and accumulate so much iron that the cell itself starts behaving like tiny magnets. Homing pigeons can find their way home even when the sky is cloudy and the sun is no longer visible as a navigational cue. Scientists have long suspected that pigeons can sense Earth’s magnetic field, but exactly how they do so has rema
Jun 101 min read
Ruptosis - A New Way of Cell Death
Cells die in more ways than most people realize. Researchers studying flatworms described ruptosis, a new form of cell death in which a single cell detonates, destroying its neighbors within a 100-micrometer radius. Remarkably, it's carried out by a gland cell, not an immune cell. The table above compares ruptosis with the other major cell-death pathways: apoptosis, necroptosis, pyroptosis, and ferroptosis, alongside the contact-dependent killing by cytotoxic T cells and NK
Jun 101 min read
The Other Crew: Microbes on the ISS
Are we really alone in space? One major stressor astronauts encounter during their missions is isolation. But are they really alone in space? The answer is a resounding NO when you consider all the tiny microbes that give them company (not to mention aliens and conspiracy theories). Some of these microbes live inside our own bodies, and some hitchhike along on missions to outer space, adapting to conditions there. This blog explores humanity's longest-known companions, micr
May 86 min read
The Immune Cost of Dirty Air
"About 99% of people breathe air that does not comply with the WHO Air Quality Guidelines." - WHO, 2021 Air pollution is undoubtedly increasing around the world. Every time I see a high AQI reading on my weather app, I wonder just how bad it's going to be for us. Key Takeaway High AQI levels are not just a warning for our lungs. It may also be a warning for our immune system. Fine particles like PM2.5 can reach deep into the lungs, disrupt immune cells, and leave the body
May 15 min read
