is predicted to encode a very large type-I transmembrane protein, but its function has largely remained obscure. Recently, it was shown that Pkhdl1l1 is a component of the coat that decorates stereocilia of outer hair cells in the mouse ear. Consistent with this localization, conditional deletion of specifically from hair cells, was associated with progressive hearing loss.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe influence of the naturally occurring population of microbes on various human diseases has been a topic of much recent interest. Not surprisingly, continuously growing attention is devoted to the existence of a gut brain axis, where the microbiota present in the gut can affect the nervous system through the release of metabolites, stimulation of the immune system, changing the permeability of the blood-brain barrier or activating the vagus nerves. Many of the methods that stimulate the nervous system can also lead to the development of cancer by manipulating pathways associated with the hallmarks of cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTumors exhibit complex organization and contain a variety of cell populations. The realization that the regenerative properties of a tumor may be largely confined to a cell subpopulation (cancer stem cell) is driving a new era of anti-cancer research. Cancer stem cells from Glioblastoma Multiforme tumors express markers that are also expressed in non-cancerous neural stem cells, including nestin and Sox2.
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