The origin, development, and characteristics of two types of testicular macrophage have been described by a CNRS team at the Centre d’Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy (CNRS / INSERM / Aix-Marseille University). To elucidate the nature of these immune cells, the researchers used a novel cell tracing method. Their findings were published on August 7, 2017, in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, and are of fundamental importance. They may help understand certain kinds of...
Researchers from Généthon, the AFM-Téléthon laboratory, Inserm (UMR 1089, Nantes) and the University of London (Royal Holloway) demonstrated the efficacy of an innovative gene therapy in the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Indeed, after injecting microdystrophin (a “shortened” version of the dystrophin gene) via a drug vector, the researchers managed to restore muscle strength and stabilise the clinical symptoms in dogs naturally affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy. A first....
On July 13, 2017, the journal Lancet Neurology published the results of a gene therapy trial conducted in four children with Sanfilippo type B syndrome (also known as MPS IIIB). This trial is the achievement of a two-decade partnership with financial support of AFM-Téléthon and the cooperation of the charity "Vaincre les Maladies Lysosomales" (VML). After monitoring of the treated children for 30 months, Dr. Jean-Michel Heard, from the...
From July 23 to 26, 2017, the Ninth IAS Conference on HIV Science, of which Inserm is a partner, will be held at the Palais des Congrès in Paris. For this edition, the International AIDS Society (IAS) has teamed up with ANRS, the autonomous agency of Inserm, to coordinate and fund research on HIV/AIDS and hepatitis.
Scientists from the Institut Pasteur, Inserm, the Collège de France and Pierre & Marie Curie University have recently demonstrated that mutations in three genes responsible for Usher syndrome – a hereditary condition that affects both hearing and sight – influence not only the workings of the ear, specifically the function of sensory cells in the cochlea, but also the development of the auditory cortex. Their discovery could explain why...
The Vision Institute (Inserm, Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC), National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS)) via the Fondation Voir & Entendre has signed a contract with the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which could ultimately represent $ 25 million. With the help of an international consortium, researchers from Inserm, CNRS and UPMC, working within the Vision Institute, want to develop a system capable of restoring...
Phage therapy involves the use of bacteriophages, or phages, for treating bacterial infections. Phages are viruses that specifically attack bacteria and are harmless to humans. A significant decline in the use of this therapeutic strategy introduced 100 years ago was seen in the West following the development of antibiotics. However, there is now new interest in phage therapy, especially in Europe, given the alarming increase in the number of...
Life expectancy has been on the increase for several decades in Western countries. But what about life expectancy in good health? It is clear that the increase in life expectancy is a new source of inequality between men and women in terms of disability.
In humans, apelin is able to regulate blood sugar levels and increase the sensitivity of cells to insulin. These two observations have paved the way for a clinical trial led by Inserm researchers from Toulouse, and represent a promising step forward for the development of a new treatment for diabetes, in particular type 2 diabetes.
Physical activity in adulthood is not associated with a reduced risk of developing dementia. However, a decline in this activity is observed during the decade preceding its diagnosis. If this decline in activity cannot be considered as an early sign of dementia, it could be one sign - among others - to be taken into account by the attending physician. This is demonstrated by a study conducted by an...