Lymphatic vessels in mice and humans: alike yet different

Treatment of the eye disease, retinopathy, aims to reduce the formation of blood vessels in the retina of the eye. To reduce unwanted side effects of such treatments, researchers in Lena Claesson-Welsh’s research group have tested to inhibit the enzyme eNOS and found a reduced formation of dysfunctional vessels in mice with retinopathy while the healthy vasculature in the retina was preserved. The study highlights the importance of targeted approaches in medicine.

The body’s lymphatic vessel system consists of specialised vessels whose function are critical for absorbing and transporting fluid. Taija Mäkinen’s group at IGP have identified a mechanism for how collecting lymphatic vessels are formed in mice, which could help to develop treatments for lymphatic diseases.

To some extent, genetic factors influence whether an individual attends college or university after finishing secondary school. In a recently published study, researchers at IGP have found that genetic factors have a larger effect on the probability to attain an higher education in more socioeconomically deprived areas. The study was published in American Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Mantle cell lymphoma is a malignant tumour disease where intensive therapy can prolong survival. A new study from IGP and others shows that people with mantle cell lymphoma who were unmarried and had a lower education level were more seldom treated by stem cell transplantation, which can result in reduced survival. The results have been published in the journal Blood Advances.

Propranolol, a drug that is efficacious against infantile haemangiomas (“strawberry naevi”, resembling birthmarks), can also be used to treat cerebral cavernous malformations, a condition characterised by misshapen blood vessels in the brain and elsewhere. This has been shown by IGP researchers in a new study published in the scientific journal Stroke.

In critically ill COVID-19 patients, the innate immune system is strongly activated which can cause thrombosis and reduced oxygenation in the patients. This is shown in a study from IGP, published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology.

Researchers from IGP show in a new study that inhibition of the protein EZH2 can reduce the growth of cancer cells in the blood cancer multiple myeloma. The reduction is caused by changes in the cancer cells’ metabolism. These changes can be used as markers to discriminate whether a patient would respond to treatment by EZH2 inhibition. The study has been published in the journal Cell Death & Disease.

Thyroid disorders in mothers-to-be increases the risk for future thyroid cancer in the children. This is shown in a new study in the journal The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology where IGP researcher Ingrid Glimelius has participated.

Different types of breast cancer tumours differ in how they affect the function of the lymph nodes. In patients with invasive breast cancer, the vessels and supporting tissue of the lymph nodes are altered, which cannot be seen in patients with a non-invasive cancer called (ductal cancer in situ). This is shown in a new study from Maria Ulvmar’s group at IGP, published online in the scientific journal Cancers.

A comprehensive study from Uppsala University, involving more than 250,000 women, shows that oral contraceptive use protects against ovarian and endometrial cancer. The protective effect remains for several decades after discontinuing the use. The study is published in the journal Cancer Research.

In the condition known as cavernoma, lesions arise in a cluster of blood vessels in the brain, spinal cord or retina. Researchers in Elisabetta Dejana's group at IGP can now show, at molecular level, that these changes originate in vein cells. This new knowledge of the condition creates potential for developing better therapies for patients. The study has been published in the journal eLife.

Genetic examinations of more than 400 Viking age skeletons reveal that the Vikings that raided Europe came from relatively isolated groups in Scandinavia and many of them had a genetic influx from Asia or Southern Europe. This is presented in a study in the journal Nature, in which Marie Allen and Magdalena Bus from IGP have participated.

The internet can be used to provide education and support for self-management interventions to alleviate depression symptoms in individuals with cancer. This is shown in a study from Birgitta Johansson’s group at IGP.  

Researchers from IGP show in a new study that cell signalling regulating vessel leakage differs between blood and lymphatic vessels. The findings suggest a possibility to modulate this signalling in order to selectively control lymphatic vessel function and to treat diseases characterised by lymphatic vessel leakage.

In a study including more than 400 hospital patients with 18 different cancer diagnoses, researchers have been able to show that EVP, extracellular vesicles and particles, could be used as biomarkers for several cancer diseases. The study has been led by researchers from among others IGP.

Researchers at IGP have described the presence, throughout the human body, of the enzyme ACE2. This is thought to be the key protein used by the SARS-CoV-2 virus for host cell entry and development of the disease COVID-19. In contrast to previous studies, the study shows that no or very little ACE2 protein is present in the normal respiratory system. The results are presented in Molecular Systems Biology.

Therapies for treating glioblastoma brain cancer can be delivered with greater precision and existing drugs can be used in new ways. These are the conclusions from a study from IGP investigating a large number of cell samples from patients with brain tumours. The researchers have characterised how changes in glioblastoma cells influence the effect of different drugs. Their findings are published in the journal Cell Reports.

Researchers at Uppsala University have developed a method for identifying functional mutations and how these affect genes with significance for the development of glioblastoma – a malignant brain tumor with very poor prognosis. The study is published in Genome Biology.

Lymphatic malformation is a debilitating and often incurable disease. Taija Mäkinen’s research group has in an international collaboration studied cellular mechanisms leading to abnormal vessel growth and identified a combination therapy that may allow effective treatment of these malformations.

In an international collaboration, researchers from IGP have mapped the lymph node lymphatic vessels in mice and humans down to the level of individual cells. The results may eventually help scientists to discover new methods for strengthening the immune system against viruses and cancer. Their work has been published in the journal Frontiers of Cardiovascular Research.

Targeting a molecule that contributes to leaky eye vessels, while sparing nerve and blood-vessel cells, could be a safer treatment strategy for age and diabetes-related vision loss. Scientists at IGP have identified a key step in the process that leads to leaky vessels and harmful swelling in eye diseases, according to a new study published today in the journal eLife.

Cancer cells grow and divide in an uncontrolled manner. A new study from IGP now shows how alterations in a cell’s degradation hubs, called lysosomes, can cause abnormal cell growth. The results are published today in the scientific journal Nature Communications.

Could the ability of cancer cells to quickly alter their genome be used as a weapon against malignant tumours? Researchers at IGP have succeeded in developing a substance that has demonstrated promising results in experiments on both animal models and human cancer cells. The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Using a computer algorithm, scientists at IGP have identified a promising new treatment for neuroblastoma. This form of cancer in children, which occurs in specialised nerve cells in the sympathetic nervous system, may be life-threatening. In the long term the discovery, described in the latest issue of the scientific journal Nature Communications, may result in a new form of treatment for children in whom the disease is severe or at an advanced stage.