Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disorder and is associated with metabolic dysfunction. Persistent hepatic inflammation in diseased livers results in progressive fibrosis and loss of hepatic function. Vascular adhesi...
Published December 22, 2014

Many lines of evidence support a link between prolonged inflammation and tumorigenic transformation. For example, patients with inflammatory bowel disease are at increased risk of developing colon cancer. In this episode, Julie Saba, Emilie Degagn&e...
Published November 26, 2014

The rare demyelinating disorder progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy is triggered by JC virus infection of glial cells.  Current models to study JC virus infection are limited to cell culture systems due to the human-selective nature of t...
Published November 17, 2014

Binge eating is associated with obesity and depression. This disorder is more prevalent in women, and there is an apparent correlation between low estrogen levels and this behavior. In this episode, Yong Xu, Xuehong Cao, and Pingwen Xu demonstrate t...
Published October 1, 2014

Familial hyperkalemic hypertension (FHHt) is a rare monogenic disease that results from mutations in the kinases WNK1 and WNK4 or mutations in the ubiquitin ligase cullin 3 (CUL3) or the CUL3 substrate adaptor kelch-like 3...
Published September 29, 2014

The type 2 diabetes drug liraglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonist that lowers blood glucose and reduces body weight. Liraglutide is being investigated for clinical use as a treatment for obesity; however, the mechanism of a...
Published September 9, 2014

Platelet accumulation and coagulation are key processes required  to stop bleeding following blood vessel injury. Plasma fibronectin, which circulates freely in the blood, contains collagen, fibrin, and integrin binding sites and is well poised...
Published September 2, 2014

There is a strong association between obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D); however, the majority of obese individuals do not develop T2D, supporting that genetic predisposition is an important component of the disease. Alan Attie and colleagues previo...
Published August 26, 2014

Muscle satellite cells are a rare regenerative population in adult skeletal muscle and have potential to repair damaged muscle tissue. In this episode, Simone Spuler and colleagues demonstrate that satellite cells can be successfully expanded from h...
Published August 26, 2014

Age-related declines in immune function result in enhanced susceptibility to infection and decreased vaccine efficacy. While aged immune cells exhibit signs of cellular senescence, such as a reduced proliferative capacity, many maintain effector fun...
Published August 1, 2014